All about rats!

I've been raising my rats and I want to help everyone from my experiences. Whether you're a new rat owner or a seasoned one, there's probably something here for everyone!

[insight-jd]

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Rat Cages & Bedding

 Please make sure your rat cage does not have a wire bottom! These bottoms can cause your rat to have bumble feet. Also an aquarium tank is not really recommended either because rats need lots of ventilation! Rats should have a rather large cage. But if you get your rats as babies it is harder to find bigger cages because they are still small enough to slip between the bars. If you find a cage with a wire bottom that is big enough for your rats with bars close enough together where they won't slip out and you have to have it: make sure you get something to cover the wires. A sheet of plastic (like one of those plastic cutting boards) should do the job.

  A cage with horizontal bars will be much appreciated by your rats because they love to climb.

 I personally recommend the Rat Starter Kit cage that's sold at PetsMart. It's huge, three stories, and comes with a good amount of stuff. Also the bars are perfectly spaced and my baby rats had no problems with them.  It is 100$ but even seasoned rat owners that it's a pretty good deal. I have a picture of it on this blog.

                              BEDDING

Please follow this link: http://ratguide.com/care/environment/cage_bedding_litter.php

It has an easy formatted guide for what is perfect for rats and what is dangerous. Recycled paper beddings mixed with things like cotton is what I usually get and it works out just fine. I only have to clean out my cage like once a week or so and it doesn't smell at all.

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Wiki and Luka slowly getting bigger. Estimated age: 8 or 9 weeks.

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This cage is fantastic and seasoned rat owners tell me the same! They also say it's a really great steal! It came with:

-The cage -The hammock -The exercise spinner thingy -A rat chew toy -A very small bag of bedding (but hey! everything helps!) -A rat food blend. (I just use it as spare treat food.) -And a water bottle.

You can usually find this at walmart. It is 100$ but I've been told that is such a great deal for such a big cage and everything came with.

http://www.petsmart.com/small-pet/cages/all-living-things-rat-starter-kit-zid36-5201419/cat-36-catid-600022

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Food for your rats

 Lab blocks are a rats best friend. These will be 80% of your rat's diet. The other 20% is fruits and vegetables. Generic rat store variety blends are not as healthy for your rat and I would not recommend them unless you buy one for the purpose of treats for training or just treat food in general. This may mean you'll have to buy a small bag of carrots and a few apples. Only give citrus fruits to females, as citrus can cause health problems for males. Mangos are also bad for male rats. My ratty girls LOVE limes and carrots. But they don't like strawberries or raspberries. Rats have different personalities and they may not like everything you give them. Or one rat may like something the other doesn't.  But most people will agree their rats really like peas and bananas.

    When I said I only suggest getting generic pet store food blends for rats as treat food, I mean that a lot of these blends have things like corn and sunflower seeds and other grains and such that rats usually love but are not as healthy for them as the Soy Rat/Lab blocks. Seeds also tend to be fattening for rats and some people may think a chubby rat is cute but it causes discomfort for the rats!

 Almost anything can be used as treat food for rats. And it is perfectly fine to give them a treat or two when training them, and just about every other day. Of course is small moderations. My girls love uncooked pasta and crackers.

Raisins are really high is sugar though so please don't give those as often! Peanut butter and other sticky substances can KILL your rats. Please, please do not give them these things.

Here is a site that will tell you more things that are dangerous to rats: http://www.ratfanclub.org/diet.html

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Important things to ask at the pet store

  Some of these things I didn't ask and I could REALLY kick myself for it. I sincerely suggest you write these things down. Even if you think you'll remember you may not and ANY of these questions could be very useful to you! 

- How old are the rats (you should always get two rats! This is a must!) > [also if you get baby rats check if they are water bottle trained! If they are water bowl trained and you wish them to be water bottle trained you really should start while they're still young. If there is no water bottle you can assume they're bowl trained but it doesn't hurt to ask.]

-Usually the pet store where you get the rats will be where you'll be coming back for food, bedding, toys, etc. Ask to be shown to the rat section and check out their selection. If they do not have proper food or bedding that you can buy regularly you may want to call around and find someplace that does! [I will be making a post on what brands of food and bedding are best!] The store where I bought my rats had a good selection for food and a few nice toys. But besides that, they did not have much.

-Please ask before if they box or bag the rats when you buy them. I didn't know that they boxed the rats at the pet store I went to and hearing their screams when they went into that box broke my heart. Many rats are terrified of being boxed in or bagged. If you can bring a small cage just to bring them home in that is best! If not, depending on the age of your rat you're getting, bring an open topped box. If you are getting baby rats, the box should reach about mid calf. Young rats should have a box of about almost knee height and full grown rats, especially if you're getting males, should be okay with a knee high box.

- You may want to ask if the pet store owner knows a good vet in the area that will treat small animals, including rats. Rats are prone to URIs and it is good to have a vet just in case of an emergency.

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My First Two Rats, Luka and Wiki when I first got them from the pet store. Their estimated age is about 5 weeks old.