Some questions on owning pet rats?

1. I never bathe mine as they don't really need it, the only time I would is if the got messy or mites/lice.

2. Depends what cage! My plastic based freddy 2 is really easy to clean taking the top off and removing the dirty litter and spraying clean, wiping and putting new litter down, takes me about half an hour if i'm being thorough. My other cage, all metal is a lot harder as the corners get stuff stuck in them all the time and the wire around the cage gets messy too.. so about 50 minutes to clean that one out.

3. If it's their own brand I don't know.. A good brand mix would be good/ lab blocks are very good! plus it stops picky eating, but you can always add your own supplements to their food other vegetables etc and also my friend said that rats really enjoy eggs in their shell i believe hardboiled with a tiny hole in the top for them to pick at.

4. No, I have young and old rats at the moment and my old ones just sleep a lot more and enjoy just sitting there and being stroked rather than going away from me and exploring.

5. I'd keep the rat cage out of reach of your dog, the dog might scare them and from previous experience the rat will fight back and give a little nip on the nose if it feels threatened, but it certainly won't try to escape and hunt the dog down

6. quarantine is keeping the rat in a separate air space to any other animals for 2 weeks maybe longer to check for illnesses in case they give them to your other animals, another room isn't ideal as air may still travel to the other animals room if you can't keep them at another house, furthest away in your own house will have to do.

7. Boys: Pro: Sleepy more relaxed and enjoy cuddles, a lot more laid back.

Con: Smell a bit more, may be harder to introduce more rats if needed so very territorial

Girls: Pro: enjoy exploring, funny to watch as they certainly aren't scared to try anything

Con: Health problems, females are prone to mammary tumors in all 12 of their mammary glands, which benign won't be the reason for death but can make their lives uncomfortable trying to reach food/water.

As to which gender you get it all depends on your preferences, would you like a more relaxed rat to fall asleep on you? or something to watch play and run around a lot? (I have females and I think they're hilarious to watch)

You should have 2 rats, and should be played with for at least 1 hour a day (If you had one alone it would need at least 4 hours a day play time to compensate). Rats love hammocks ropes etc in their cages and anything you can spare, cardboard boxes homemade toys anything like that and i'd recommend looking at the dapper rat website just type the name into google and it should come up.

Another illness which both genders are prone to is myco, upper respiratory infections so should be kept on dust extracted cat litter, and not wood shavings which are very dusty. I've heard of owners keeping rats on fleece bedding which they use little hand hoovers to do spot cleaning daily and then wash the fleece each week. You may also be interested in teaching your rats tricks, lots of video's on youtube about that and my favorite pair of rats on youtube are names whisky and womble from "oPuPo" 's page and he has lots of information about why rats should be in pairs and video's of the rats play room may give you idea's for things to do with your rats!

Checking rats for illnesses check their eyes are clear and noses check their sides and bellies for lumps, check their ears and teeth, which their teeth should be yellow.

I hope that's everything if I think of anything else I'll be sure to add it :) Good luck picking rats and enjoy them! They're a pleasure to own.

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 :)

1. I do not bathe my females unless necessary, like if they get dirt on their fur. All but one hate water and it just ends up with them stressed out and me with lots of scratches.

2. It doesn't take long, maybe 15min-30min.

3. No. You should feed them lab blocks. Preferably mazuri, oxbow, or harlan teklad. Mazuri is available in most pet stores. Oxbow is in some stores or online, but many rats don't like the taste. Harlan teklad is online and probably the cheapest since it only comes in bulk.

4. No, they may slow down and not want to play as much. But they should not start to bite.

5. I don't think so.

6. Quarantine is if you already have other rats and you get a new one. You need to keep them separate for at least 2 weeks to prevent the spread of illnesses and make sure the new rat is healthy.

7. Neither gender is better, they are just different.

Females: Smaller with softer fur. They are very active and playful, most don't like to sit still.

Cons - If the sexes aren't separated when you get them, they are likely to be pregnant. They are very prone to mammary tumors.

Males: They are a bit lazy and are often considered cuddly because of it. They are still willing to play but don't have as much energy as females.

Cons - They may be more territorial, also they're a bit smellier and more likely to scent mark (females do it too though).

you may want to bathe a rat every 2 months, maybe. if you bathe too often all the oils get washed away and the skin becomes dry and irritated.

with a multiple level cage it may be 10-15 minutes.

i recommend Reggie rat food. its very healthy for them.

they dont usually get grouchy unless treated badly.

it most likely wont try to attack your dog. dogs and rats usually get along but i dont recommend trying to introduce them to eachother.

im not sure what that is.

well, girls are more adventurous while boys are more calm and will sit with you while taking a nap. but if you dont like the boys balls dragging on you, which can be gross, then get a girl.

also, do NOT get your pets from petco or petsmart. they treat their animals horribly and the animals tend to not be very social. you may want to look into a local rat breeder. you can also often find young rats for sale on craigs list. i hope this helps :)

the answers

1.i dont know

2.it takes about 15min and it is easy

3.yes

4. they do get grouchy

5.no

6.like it bites or its sick

7.i think girls are better because the boys get balls and it is gross