Got my new Ratties! *PICS ADDED*

[NewHopePoultry]

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Mine is mink based.
True Chocolate is hard to find, most rats sold as Chocolate are simply a light black rat, or a black rat that the color has faded away.


I'm not much into tailless (manx) rats. I think the tail serves too much of a purpose to breed them without it,but everyone likes something different.

 

[Goat_Walker]

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I noticed your male has curly whispers like my hairless as well, I love it!!
lol, any wya, when yousay "tailless"... does that really mean no tail?!

 

[gocrow77]

Rats are awsome pets, My favs are American Blue or Russian blue dumbo boys - they are so sweet! I have a weakness for those two colors - and boys were my favs - none of my girls was ever what I would call a lap rat : total busybodies always on the go. My fellas on the other hand were nice big lazy squishes! I miss them sometimes.....

Best of luck with your new babies enjoy them - they are the sweetest and ONLY member of the rodent family I would ever keep again as a pet. I had too many bites from all of the others and hampsters can be downright nasty if they are woken up. My rats were ANGELS.

 

[Kanchii]

Quote:
Mine is mink based.
True Chocolate is hard to find, most rats sold as Chocolate are simply a light black rat, or a black rat that the color has faded away.


I'm not much into tailless (manx) rats. I think the tail serves too much of a purpose to breed them without it,but everyone likes something different.

Ok, I figured it was mink based, since as you said, Chocolate is hard to find. I had the honor however of working with Brian, owner of Sleepy Hollow Rattery http://www.sleepyhollowfancyrats.com/ while he was alive. He passed away several months ago.

He bred mainly chocolate, as well as black and russian blue. My latest litter was out of my chocolate doe who carries russian blue, back to her russian blue who carries chocolate father. I was lucky enough to get a true, chocolate based, russian dove.

Here's a pic of the russian dove on the left, and his russian blue sister on the right for comparison.

 

[Stina]

I'm not much into tailless (manx) rats. I think the tail serves too much of a purpose to breed them without it,but everyone likes something different.

Land Shark (the tailless) gets around just as well as the other boys...and any other rats I've ever met. I know the tail serves a purpose for balance as well as temperature control...I think they can compensate well enough for balance when they dont' need to escape predators or hunt, and as long as their climate is controlled that's basically a non-issue. I think rats without tails can do perfectly well when cared for well....they don't need all the traits of their wild cousins when they're kept in cushy controlled environments without predatory risks. Same thing with hairless rats.

lol, any wya, when yousay "tailless"... does that really mean no tail?!

yes!...he is completely tailless (just has the tiniest little stump). The gene works the same way as manx in cats..."removing" vertebrae from the tail. When not bred carefully problems can arise with too many vertebrae being "removed" resulting in nerve problems or death. When they are bred carefully and responsibly those risks are minimal. Some female tailless can have issues giving birth (if the pelvic girdle is affected by the gene), so its best to cross a tailless male or carrier male with a carrier female. It's a very interesting gene, but it is one that should be bred cautiously....and its not for everyone. I personally find the tailless trait intriguing and endearing, so I've decided to pursue it

I'd like to breed tailless mice as well....but am having a heck of a time finding anyone breeding the manx gene in mice anymore!


Marebear...do you have any photos of your harleys?!​

 

[Goat_Walker]

Any one have a picture of their "tailless" rats?
Geez, i always thought the tail was too important to be forgotten! I mean do the rats have balance issue?

 

[Stina]

Mine does not have any particularly noticeable balance issues. I'm sure it would be a hindrance if he had to worry about predators and had to be able to move very fast and be very agile...but Land Shark seems to bounce around the cage and me just as well as any other rat I've handled. He is more playful than the other boys and not at all clumsy. From what I've been experiencing with him they seem to be able to compensate very well and he doesn't seem to notice that he's missing anything.

You can see Land Shark's taillessness in this photo...

I should see if I can get him to wlk on a tight rope....see just how much his balance is affected...lol

 

[raroo]

Awww, they are cuties, congRATS!

I used to have 7 ratties, down to two old men now.
here's an older pic of 5 of my boys.

Ratties are great, but their health problems are too overwhelming, as are the vet bills associated with them. I don't think I will ever get ratties again after the two I have left are gone. I had 4 with chronic myco their whole lives, it was soooo stressful and sad, and sooooo expensive. My vet would only give them 3 weeks worth of antibiotics at a time, at the lowest dosage (and fellow rat enthusiasts know myco has to be hit hard and fast!) and they would get sick again immediately after, so I ended up taking them to the vet like, every month. It was $50 per rat just for the office visit, and then another $80 for the antibiotics. By the time I found a better rat vet two hours away, it was too late.
Some people have great vets who give them antibiotics without a vet visit needed. Siiiiigh. I swear I knew more about rat health than the vets I tried, as most rat people can probably attest.

 

[Kanchii]

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Oh jeesh raroo you could have gotten a TON of baytril or tetracycline online for practically nothing! D:

 

[Cetawin]

How precious. My DD is pointing at your agouti girl and saying "Mom that looks like Kitt". Her male looked exactly like her and his name was Kittsipimi.