I want to get a rat...

[Chickerdoodle13]

Oh, believe me, they will not be living in a closet! Nor under the bed. I have a spot right on top of these two storage containers I have where they will be able to see me as I do my work! The only time I will have to cover the cage is during fire inspections, and those are usually during holidays anyways. Many of my friends have hamsters and even rabbits. I already have a rabbit at home and I'm not a hamster person. Reptiles are out of the question due to the need for an external heat source. My college will tolerate furry animals, but not reptiles, especially if they need a heat lamp. Several fires have been set on campus due to improper heating setup for reptiles. I'm also not big into the live crickets.

I have a martin cage at home that was used for my ferret, but it is EXTREMELY heavy and bulky for such a smaller sized cage. They make excellent cages, but they are not ideal for being carried up and down three flights of stairs.

I already have six fish and five snails in two separate tanks. I'm running out of room on my desk and while I love my fishies, I don't want to get any more. I'm in my dorm so much that I want something I can cuddle and spoil. Fish just don't cut it.

A friend of mine is going to get a rat this weekend and I'm going over to look at her setup. I've put a lot of thought and research into this, so I do know the responsibility! I do really appreciate your advice though! I want to be sure I get a big enough cage so they are in an ideal situation. Obviously I can't get huge three story cage, nor can I get a twenty or thirty gallon aquarium, but I want to provide the best home I can

 

[Justino]

Rats Rock!!!!!nuff said lol

i had a rat and it was awsome....a lot carry diseases though and mine died of a huge gross tomor....happens alot so be sure to pick a good, nice helathy one!

 

[texasgirl]

I love rats. I think they are the best little pets. I had 4 at one time and lost them one at a time to cancer/tumors (I think that's nearly the way they all go). I recently got a cute little dumbo boy named Uno. I recommend females though

I like cages that have at least two levels but I understand in a dorm bigger is not always possible. A nice large single level would be fine as long as they got plenty of "out" time every day.

Good luck

Definitely check out your local petfinder.com and rescue groups and if you have no luck, search out New Jersey ratteries, you'll be able to pick out certain colors or varieties.

She has some very nice looking rats:
http://www.paperheartrats.com/

 

[Yoshii]

Quote:
You sound more than educated, heh ;3. I think, whatever rats you end up with, they will have a WONDERFUL home.

I'ma go against the grain, though, and say males. They're calmer, cuddlier, and much less prone to tumors. Really just depends on what you want, though, a playful, inquisitive pet or a calm, cuddly pet.

I'd recommend getting a trio, though. The upkeep for two v. three is negligibly higher, and -- and now I hate to be morbid -- rats honestly only have a maximum of two and a half years on this planet for the most robust among them. Chances are you'll lose someone before the other, and rats grieve terribly, sometimes even to the extent of illness leading to death. With a trio, when the inevitable happens, the remaining rats won't be lonely.

Also, I might be preaching to the choir (you certainly seem to know your salt), but just wanting to add: don't be alarmed if, when you first get your rat, you see a red discharge around its nose and eyes. That's not blood, it's a fluid they release when stressed.

Best of luck! Be sure to post lots of rattie pictures!

 

[silkiechicken]

I've done ALOT of hamsters, and a few mice... but now thinking a rat. How attached do these guys get? Like, if I wet outside with it, would it jump off and I'll never see it again? I know my hamster just sits like a rock in my pocket sniffing the air when I go out, but if I set him down, doesn't really go anywhere fast. I can imagine a rat moving alot faster and would he get lost? Do they come when called? The hamster sure doesnt.

 

[texasgirl]

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Females may take off, they are more "squirrely" than males and move a little quicker, mine never did though. They wont jump off your shoulder, they wont even jump off a foot tall table, lol.
The males are calmer but I did not have good luck with males getting along together, maybe if they are raised together from pips and neutered it would be different.
Mine loved to go outside and run all over the house. They will come back when called if you teach them

I recommend rats over any other "pocket pet". I've had hamsters, gerbils, mice, and ferrets. They are less maintenance than a ferret and don't need quite as much attention (not that they don't need a lot) and they are more personable than any hamster or gerbil could ever be!

 

[catdance62]

I had a rat named Pickles and she was one of the best pets I ever had, for real. I got her when a friends went in the service and of course couldn't take Pickles.
She was so smart! Every day when I came home she would be at her cage door (She lived in a large old bird cage) and I would let her out. She would come to the kitchen for a snack (I would give her a treat) and then would cruise around the house checking everything out. When I watched TV she would come up on the couch with me to be snuggled. THe dog even tolerated her but he drew the line when she nibbled on his toenails (he would growl, but never bite). She also never went "potty" in the house--she always went back to her cage to go on the wood shavings.
I was really sad the day she died. She just got old (she lived to be about 5) and wouldn't hardly come out of her cage even though she wanted to. I just picked her up and would hold her for a while. One day she just passed peacefully.
She sure was a good pet.

 

[PurpleChicken]

Quote:
Yup. You missed my sarcarstic sense of humor.

Don't get a rat / Don't get married
Rat / Husband

Men are rats.. (I'm a man, I can say it)

Aww forget it.

Aren't rats incontinent??? Yuck

 

[snugglepup]

Quote:
No, but a man can't hit the toilet to save his own life.


Hannah (why is the floor always sticky??)

 

[Alleyoops25]

You know my brother had rats back when he was in high school. He was in FFA and was studying genetics. He was trying to breed rats to bring out different colors. Well they reproduce fast and a few rats turn into 20. One night I was about 7 I got to playing with them, and when I was done I didnt shut the cages good enough. So a couple got out. One wnet to my parents room and crawled into there bed. At this time my parents had a little mutt dog that slept with them. The rat climbed up in my moms face and she thought it was the dog she went to push it away and it bit her on her nose!!!! Some how she scared it and it bit her several times on hers hands and face and by the time she got the light turned on it disappeared. The whole next day my dad cleaned house of the rats. He hunted down the excaped rat and shot it with a b.b gun. Needless to say we never got to have furry little rodents as paets after that. So what ever cage you get make sure they cant get out, other wise your room mate may get eaten.