[Closed] Fancy rats

TopTip........they breed.......a lot.

Rats make brilliant pets imo, well for kids anyway - not sure about for adults 😕
Way better than hamsters, guinea pigs, and rabbits I reckon. They don't live too long though 😐

I brought one, turned out to be a pregnant female. Before we knew where we were we had nearly 40 and most of our furniture had been converted into cages.
Having said that, provided you handle them lots they are lovely, friendly creatures. The one we kept long term lived in a cage with the door open. She would come when called, especially if you had chips.
The 3 cats and 1 dog loved her, they were completely facinated but would never try to harm her.
They dont live very long tho, we stopped keeping them when she died cos we didnt want to lose a pet that regularly.

We had a couple. Basil and Arthur. Both brilliant pets. Kids love em. Adults not so much. So friendly though. But when partner became pregnant again she developed an allergy to them. They went to my sisters after that.
Arthur died from cancer not long ago after a very large vet bill. Basil is still going strong. They don't live long as said above and can be difficult to tell if there's anything wrong with them. Go to a reputable breeder or the rehoming section of Pets at home. DON'T BUY one from Pets at home though. They aren't looked after well before they get to store.

Brilliant pets, we had 22 over a period of eight years. Run a single sex colony,we always had girls - they tend to be more active and social. And always two or more as they are gregarious animals.
All rats are good, but every now and then you get a very special one with a superior brain and cheeky personality. Here's some pictures of Pickle who was truely Rat Royalty 8)
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Here's some pictures of Pickle who was truely Rat Royalty

I can't see Pickle 😐

Now I can 8)

Amazed at the cats not killing them... don't think I'd trust our cat with a rat.

Vermin Fawlty, Vermin.

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I dont think id trust the cats weve got now, we were careful to start with but they never even tried, just sat staring at her, and if she went towards them they would all try to stand behind each other.

We have a couple of Siamese but if we get some I'd never have access to them, certainly not without an adult around.

Absolutely fantastic little creatures, so willing to learn new tricks, they do like to explore though so keep the doors closed, they do chew things as well, electric cables etc,Weirdly adults seem tobe a fraid of them and their tail,but they show affection to people who care for them.

Handle them from an early age and they wil love you,feed them frequently, and keep their cage clean, oh and theyre incontinent, so have a constant dribble, but it doesnt smell, like humans.

Finally they breed, the kids can breed after a month with each other,and then you have lots strangely born at the same time from different mothers,and usually in different sides of the cage, try not to touch the babies as the mother will bite you quite hard, and she doesnt half hurt.

Brilliant pets, we've had several over the laast few years - the only problem is they don't last very long 🙁

Annabel used to curl up on my lap and go to sleep every night, then sulk when it was time for her to go back in her cage.

oh and theyre incontinent, so have a constant dribble

Riiight.

Whilst we're on the subject of rodents, what would our cat have killed in our garden that looks like a small mouse but has a furry tail?

Rats are fantastic pets, my last two "Burke and Hare" were great characters.

Very clean and eat anything (Dont give them chocolate though!)

An incontinent rat has to be better than any dog though, at least you don't have to bend down and pick up its poo in a little bag in the park.

You wouldn't want the ones that I used to get in the garden of a place I lived in. ****ing huuuge mutant monster rats, the size of a small dog. One ran into one of my flatmates, almost knocked her flying, poor little thing.

Rats or cool. I'm totally against killing them unless absolutely necessary, as I think the 'health risks' are greatly exaggerated. People should just learn to wrap and store refuse more effectively. Hate all this 'ooh look something undesirable let's kill it' mentality. People in this country are soft as shite. Meanwhile, they'll willingly have 'pet' Pitbulls and Rottweilers and other Devil dogs which rip babies' to pieces....

ratzilla!

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rats are amazing 🙂 very intelligent, and also really clean, and friendly.

our first lot, Pickle and Poppy

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now onto our second lot, a pair of boys called Thor and Loki
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molgrips- dormouse?
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molgrips - Member
Whilst we're on the subject of rodents, what would our cat have killed in our garden that looks like a small mouse but has a furry tail?

Gerbil?
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Degu?
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Possibly a bit big (about fist sized + tail) and the tail is more scaly, with a "paint brush" at the end

When you guys say they don't live long, what are their live expectancy ?

Dan - It'll possibly be a shrew or vole that the cat got. That's what ours brings in anyway.

When you guys say they don't live long, what are their live expectancy ?

You'd be lucky to get 4 years out of one. The problem is that rats can be real characters, so when they die, they can be sorely missed......not quite the same as a goldfish in a bowl, for example.

My two kids have got rats, two males called Fry and Bender. I was against it at first, I'd rather they got chipmunks, but I'm sold on them now. Very intelligent, very amusing and very friendly - except to the cat, which they hate and regularly chase round the room!

My ex-partner used to keep rats - I can only echo what has been mentioned above...

Great characters, highly amusing and they get very attached to owners.

Life expectancy is about 2-3 years as they invariably succumb to tumors of one type or another.

Best to buy at least 2, 3 is better as they are sociable animals. They do need interaction with owners, pretty much on a daily basis to get the most from them. I think 20-30 minutes per day is a good amount of time for them to be playing or be handled.

EDIT - Double post...

Re the furry tailed mouse - it was caught in the garden so unlikely to be an escaped pet. The tail had short hair like the mouse's body except at the end where it was a tad bushier.

Although it was dead and wet so that could seriously impact its bushiness. The dormouse does look quite like it tho - although it was smaller than that.

EDIT: more like this but lighter in colour. I think we have a winner.
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[i]theyre incontinent, so have a constant dribble, but it doesnt smell, like humans.[/i]

Hmm:

http://www.holmesdale.acs.btinternet.co.uk/what_is_weil.htm

b r: there is a difference between wild rats and fancy pet rats.

http://members.madasafish.com/~cj_whitehound/Rats_Nest/Norway_Rats/HealthTips/scare_stories.htm

Yup, I can't imagine how a pet domesticated rat would catch Weil's Disease. Except possibly off it's owner.