Does anyone own rats?

[BlackCurtains]

Lately I've been thinking of getting some small animals. I love dwarf hamsters and have had over 20 in my life but all my hamster stuff is inaccessible at the moment and I didn't want to remake my bin cages and rebuy all my supplies. I thought about gerbils but it's the same type of deal with my supplies. So it came down to guinea pigs or rats. I was leaning toward the piggies. Since I've got a cat I'd need cages with a top and rig them together for two but I don't have the floor space. So then I looked at rat cages and got a great deal on one from FB Marketplace. Rats need vertical space, which I have if I move things around.

I'll finish putting the cage together today. I'm waiting for one more box of goodies to come before I can start decorating.

I've bought everything but the food and treats, and the rats, of course. I'm trying to find a local breeder but of the three I found, two are inactive and the one breeds mice now. Other Florida breeders won't ship, so, I think I need to go the pet shop route. I know PetSmart sells dumbo rats and fancy rats, and they have all females across the board for small animals. They were where the majority of my hamsters came from. Most were healthy and lived long lives, and the rats are sold as pets, not feeders. I keep checking the local shelter too, but so far all they've had is bunnies.

Anyway, who has pet ratties? I think someone on the board is a breeder actually? Or maybe that was mice too.

Where did you get your rats? Tell me about them! Show pics too!

[Beth3346]

i had a mouse once when i was a kid. one of the classes at my elementary school had mice as a class pet. then the mice had babies and i convinced my parents to adopt one. his name was Speed Racer Jr. I didn't pick the name, the kids in the class named them after the Speed Racer cartoons.

i'm not sure a mouse was the best pet for a 10 year old. he was a sweet little mouse though at the time we also had 3 cats, a dog, a bird and fish so it was a lot! i'm sure i have pics but this was way before digital cameras.

[brightberry]

I had rats way back when.  I think they're great pets but their lifespan is way too short. 

I got mine as feeder rats from a reptile store.  They lived a long time for rats.  They were friendly and smart.  They aren't as fast as little hamsters and will stick around for cuddling.  I thought they were pretty darn cute and good company.

As for cons, they do have biggish droppings, drag pee around and might be more on guard if there is cat scent.  They also break your heart when they pass. Places like Petsmart and feeder stores (like the one I used) usually buy rats in bulk and the breeding conditions/transportation are not nice.  So that's why I never bought more when I found out.  Maybe things have changed since then. I'm glad you're looking for breeders.

[BlackCurtains]

Beth - I had a mouse once too. I think I was around the same age as you. She wasn't socialized though and would bite me, but I kept her. Her name was Cracker Jane.

Brightberry - Dwarf hamsters can live up to 4 years but that's rare, I've only had 5 live to that age. Most of mine were 3 years when they passed. It never gets easier losing a pet, even little ones, but what keeps me going is that in their lifetime, you were there for them

I used to work in a pet store and was in charge of the rodents and birds, and one of my tasks was to open the boxes of feeder mice and rats and put them in the aquariums. The smaller rats and mice came from a a different farm than the others and they were scared, aggressive and lots of times had wounds and were sick. The other rats, mediums and jumbos, were much better tempered and never sick. So it can depend on the farm too. One the other hand, my boss had three pairs of her own breeding rats for pets. They were all very chill expect for the blue rat female. She was MEAN. So mean. I had to wear gloves to change the water and food because she would lunge at me and bite. She did this when there weren't any babies too, so it wasn't just her being protective of her pups. My boss was also breeding for long haired mice, and I would play with them a lot, so they were nice

[brightberry]

Awww! They all sound so cute!  I've never pet a long-haired mouse.

I loved the rats but my spirit animal has to be Syrian hamsters.  I can relate to the morning grouchiness, obsessive organizing and hoarding.  I tamed a lot of them and they liked to hang out.   Really glad I had that experience as I had no idea such small creatures could be so friendly and able to learn. Before then, I always thought they were more like robots running on instincts.

I would love to see pictures of your new little buddies when you get them.

[Leave a Whisper]

Pet rats can be very sweet n snuggly. Please show pictures when you've found your new friend.

I've had hamsters.

[pinkkittywinks]

Rats are so cute, my friend has rats and they are fun, adorable, feisty, clever, cheeky little things!

Have you tried looking at getting a recue? Almost all my friend's rats are rescues of some sort.

Love pkw xxx

[BlackCurtains]

I've been searching for two days for breeders and rescues. I've had no luck. I did find one place local-ish that breeds tame roof rats though, but I don't think I want those.

Everything but my hammocks have come. I think I went a little overboard I have a huge box of stuff for them to play with and climb on and dig in. I finally finished putting the cage together. It's technically a bird cage so the bottom is wire with a shallow pan underneath. I found a 7 in deep dish pan that should fit instead. I can take off the bottom off the cage and rig the pan to hang, so they'll have a place to dig with bedding.

Here's the cage and the box on the bottom is all the stuff.

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[Leave a Whisper]

That'll give your ratty some space to roam. You'll find the right one at the right time.