How much can a rat cost? What type of cage should it have? Do rats bite a lot? Does a rat require visiting the vet? Does it learn tricks easily? I've only owned hamsters and mice but I am interested in a rat. Anything you can tell me or any tips would be great!
Is it alright to have a rat living all by itself?
Tessa Starr
Favorite Answer
Rats cost anywhere from $5-$25 depending on where you get them.
Rats need a minimum of 2 cubic feet per rat. Large wire cages are best. Never use an aquarium as this can lead to many health problems.
Rats very very rarely bite. I've owned rats for years and have never been bitten.
Rats are prone to respiratory infections, mites, and tumors. All of these require veterinary care. However if your rat seems healthy, there is no need to see a vet.
Rats are extremely intelligent and can be taught many tricks. They can also be litter trained.
This guy has tons of great videos showing how to teach tricks: http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=oPuPo&view=videos
Rats are very social creatures and they should never be kept alone. Rats kept singly may develop neurotic or aggressive behavior. Rats kept singly may also become lonely, depressed, ill, or may even self-mutilate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDy3bMRuobE&feature=channel_page
Rats need a high-quality lab block diet to stay healthy. Mazuri is the best kind you can buy in stores. Avoid any seed mixes and never feed a rat food made for another animal. If you are able to order online, Harlan Teklad is very healthy and cheaper than store-bought foods.
Along with their staple diet of rat blocks, rats should be given fresh fruits and veggies a few times a week. Blueberries are especially good as they help prevent cancer which is common in females.
Rats do not eat big meals at any certain time of day. They eat small bits of food periodically throughout the whole day. Because of this, food should be available 24/7.
By nature, rats are nocturnal. However they may adjust to your sleep schedule over time.
Inside the cage you will need bedding, a water bottle, food, hidey house, a hammock, and chew toys.
For bedding I'd suggest either unscented aspen shavings or carefresh ultra. NEVER use pine, cedar, or corncob. Pine and cedar are both toxic to small animals. Corncob is very uncomfortable and if it is swallowed will expand in the animal's stomach.
No pine/cedar: http://carawatha.tripod.com/article_2.htm
You can check my site for more info: http://www.tessastarrsrats.weebly.com
Please e-mail me if you have any questions.
Anonymous
1. Bathing your rat isn't necessary but if they start to smell bad you might like to. Some rats won't like the experience so some places sell wipes to clean your rat- ask your petstore shop assistant. Bottom line, you don't need to bathe them regularly as they groom themselves, just if they somehow get dirty which will be unlikely! 2. It should be easy enough if you have a good cage, you just need to take out all the bedding and use a pet-safe disinfectant on all the levels and the floor. The first time you do it, put aside an hour and you can figure out how long it will take for your specific cage. 3. If it's rat nuggets, yes, if it's a muesli mix, probably not as the rats will pick out the parts they like and leave the stuff they don't enjoy which can lead to nutrient deficiencies. If you get all-in-one nuggets, there's no risk of this and you can still give them vegetable/ cooked chicken etc treats! 4. Some rats will get grouchy, especially mother rats. Pregnancy often changes female rats and they're no longer 'sweet'. They will get less playful, as with any kind of animal as it grows up, but they will most usually still be very loving! 5. If the dog and rat are used to each other then it might go see it but if it doesn't know the dog it'll probably hide. Your cage should be escape-proof but the dog might distress the rat if it's up against the bars or something. 6. Quarantine is keeping something away from other things, eg keeping a rat isolated from other rats if it's sick. 7. I would say girls. Boys are more docile (calm, less playful) but they have (no other way to say this!) large testicles which can be quite unsightly. You should preferably get 2 or more rats, 2 boys may fight if they don't know eachother but will get used to each other. 2 girls will be quite happy together. You shouldn't mix genders unless you plan on breeding, because they can breed from about 5 weeks old! Most people probably find that girl rats are better pets. They're more curious and playful and I think sweeter :)
Mandy
It all depends on what you get and where. "feeder rats" are usually around $7. these guys are in bad shape because they are bred simply to feed reptiles. your other option is a fancy rat or dumbo rat. i've seen the from $7 on sale to $15 regularly. supplies can run around $100-$200 depending on what you get. ideally they should have a large wire cage that will allow them to climb and have toys and houses, etc. you can save money by making toys yourself. put food and treats in a toilet paper roll and fold the ends. you can also take old dish towels or cloths and use paper clips to hang them making hammocks. also you can find fabric strips, braid them together and string them throughout the cage making ropes. rats love to have houses to hide in so you can reuse any cardboard boxes for them or you can get one from the pet store. they don't need a vet visit unless they are sick. the biggest problem with rats is mycoplasma, a respiratory infection that can be fatal. rats generally are very intelligent and can learn easily but it varies from rat to rat. they can be potty trained, to come when called, and a few other things. it is okay to have a rat living by itself but if you work or have school or anything else that takes a lot of time away from home it's best to get two or more of the same sex. rats are highly sociable animals and need company, otherwise they can have health, emotional, or psychological issues. the best advice is to keep the temperature around 70 degrees F and run a humidifier in the winter. dark chocolate is a good treat to fight off any respiratory issues, only give a chocolate chip every other day. any more than that may cause problems and milk/white chocolate has way too much sugar.
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you have already had some great answers, but I'll put my two cents in.
1. A rat in my area cost 2 dollars for a young rat (preferable to new owners ) and 7 dollars for a grown feeder rat (not socialized, bad for new owner.)
2. It should have a wire cage with a plastic bottom. The wires should be close enough together to keep the rats inside the cage. Aquariums are bad for rats. They don't allow air flow for the rats. Wire bottomed cages can cause bumble foot.
3. Do rats bite a lot. Well, most well-socialized rats do not bite at all. However, if a rat is poorly socialized, he/she may get defensive and bite. New rats (especially ones from feeder bins) can be difficult to socialize but its important to keep working on it and be patient.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIWdc_ZOqFw
4. Rats do often require vet visits in old age due to tumors, cancers, abscesses, and back leg paralysis.
5. Rats can learn tricks easily! They are fun to watch and play with. They can learn to retrieve, shake, and circle, along with much more!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtbjM2o41Hw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E7JjzrvWVt8&feature=fvw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNOgpQLDZH8&feature=related
6. No, rats really do need to have at least one buddy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDy3bMRuobE
Their diet is important, because their health is kind of precarious. Mixed packaged foods with different types of seed and grain is not suggested. The rats will just pick out the pieces that they like.
Lab blocks or pellets are very good for rats, because they cant choose to leave anything behind.
You can give them treats like baked or grilled chicken, a small amount of vegetables, a tiny bit of human food here and there, a little bit of nuts, cooked beans,
BAD FOODS: raw sweet potato, green potato and potato skin, raw dry beans and peanuts, green bananas, wild insects, and for males, orange juice.
You can play great games with them, like the digging box, toss-the-rat, tickle, and what not.
http://www.dapper.com.au/fun.htm
If i think of anything else, i'll add to this.
If you have any more questions, feel free to e-mail me through Y!A.
rats are great pets!
good luck!
<3 books
Anonymous
A rat can cost anywhere between 15-35. My pet shop sells them for $20. It should have a rat, ferret or glider cage but it needs to be reasonably big and taller is better because they love to climb up the sides. get one with horizontal bars. Rats, like any other rodents do bite, but rarely. They bite if you either startle them by trying to pick them up suddenly, they bite when they are fighting with another rat, and they sometimes bite a bit too hard when they smell food on your fingers. (wash your hands before playing with them) a rat doesn't require visiting the vet often for check ups, but a rat has a high chance of having something go wrong with it at least once in its lifetime (they live 2-3 years). rats are prone to respitary infections (do not use pine or cedar bedding) the symptoms of this are sneezing and wheezing and it can be fatal.
Female rats:
they are generally the energetic, active type which usually don't like cuddles(simply because they have more things to do), they are more prone to tumors and of course, the suprise litter. they don't smell as bad as males and they don't scent mark nearly as much. and they don't have those unpleasant balls (lol, sorry)
Male rats:
they are generally more lazy, and love to cuddle. they smell worse than females. they sometimes have problems bein introduced to new rats (females can have problems too).
Rats do learn tricks farely easy. You still have to have a lot of patience if you want them to learn, though. they can learn tricks such as spinning, walking on two feet, and even fetch! They are very smart.
Rats definitely are better than mice and hamsters, they are affection towards humans.
no, it is not okay to own one living by itself. They can develop behavioral, psychological and health problems which can include Behavioral / Psychological
- Loneliness ( especially if person/s of the household are at work during the day )
- Boredom resulting in behavioral problems such as cage wire/wood chewing, squeaking and wanting human attention and food constantly, roaming around the cage in circles.
Health
- Excessive weight from constantly eating and wanting more food
- Impaction or other conditions related to lack of movement and exercise and/or also due to a smaller enclosure
Watch this adorable video for more info =] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDy3bMRuobE
hope i helped hehe