Hello :) few questions and pics!

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Mariah94

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Jun 1, 2014
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Hi everybody! I have been creeping around on this forum (which I love) for a few weeks now. My boyfriend and I have agreed on getting some pet rats after discussion on wanting a furry friend. I found a local guy who sells them and is extremely over stocked. I picked out two younger females who we will be bringing home on Monday.

I wanted to post pictures of the setup we will be getting until next paycheck. It is a little starter kit, but we plan to buy a CN single off of amazon.com in two weeks.

Also, in regards to bedding. I am hoping to potty train the girls to use the fabric method I'm seeing a lot of. With my reptiles I've learned to hate bedding with a passion, but I wanted to make sure there is no benefit for 100% bedding over a little bedding/fabic?

Also, for chewing blocks can we use scrap building blocks or would we need to get the pet brand?

I'm sure I will have a million more questions but I'm hoping to be fully prepared by Monday

Here is the temp cage we are looking at
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And here are the girls we've picked out!
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They are adorable! We do prefer rescuing here though. That being said, that cage will be fine for awhile and can be used as a hospital cage after you get your CN. Fleece vs bedding. I use both, I find that fleece smells more and babies pee more - you will probably never get them to totally pee/poo in a liter box. I put paper cat liter in our liter boxes (has to be paper so it doesn't clump should they eat it) Fleece needs to be changed more often, but is more cost effective since you just need to wash it. I use carefresh white when its on sale, but prefer kaytee clean and cozy otherwise. On the smaller shelves of the CN I leave it as is and put crinkle liter on it, but I have used fleece for those too. I would assume the wood would be ok, but I'm not sure on that. I order a bag of wood pieces from drsfosterandsmith.com (under bird diy toys) What do you plans on feeding them? We use oxbow regal rat.

Welcome to the shack...
 
Thank you. I actually do prefer to rescue or adopt from homes who cannot keep them myself (I have three reptiles due to this situation), and after looking around on my local craigslist I did see a lot of rescue situations. I will admit I was nervous about adopting/rescuing this go around since this Is our first experience with rats. I am a sucker though and I just know I will be taking in rescues down the road.

I ran a hermit crab rescue years ago before I started college. It was a very rewarding experience!

I was thinking of using care fresh as my bedding to start off, is aspen a safe and preferred choice as well?

I was planning to use oxford labs, I am going to check out my local tractor supply to see if they sell that brand. I was told the farming stores will sell rat labs but I am not sure on brands so if they do not have a reputable brand I will order oxford.

Thank you for replying. I am looking forward to continuing to learn.
 
I feed my rats Oxbow and Harlan. I can get the Oxbow locally, but I have to order in the Harlan 2014. I get the 33lb bag and re-bag it and freeze it if possible to keep it fresh longer. I figure it's nice for them to have a choice. :)
I love my Critter Nation, that's for sure! It's a great cage and lots of room for two girls to live. They always climb up the bars and run around. I bought extra shelves when my rats got old and I was worried about them falling and now the cages seem bare if they only have one shelf. LOL
I use fleece and litter pans with Yesterday's News in them. They do seem to use the litter pans for pooping most of the time...
Your girls are beautiful and you will have such a great time with them! :)
 
Is it safe to se regular newspaper or should I get unprinted newspaper? We have a box full of newspaper!
 
Mariah94 said:
Is it safe to se regular newspaper or should I get unprinted newspaper? We have a box full of newspaper!
Click to expand...
I don't know about safety, but having used it to wrap presents one year, it is very dirty!!
I think you'd be better off using shredded regular paper that doesn't have the ink load.
 
Thanks. I'm hoping to provide enough for them to chew/shred that they will not care to chew on the fleece and hammocks. May be a dream though
 
:lol: You can give those ratties the best chew toys in the world and they'll pick their liners over it! Part of the wonders of having them in your life!
I have a double critter nation. I use carefresh ultra on my lower level and fleece on my upper levels. I have 4 litter boxes with yesterday's news. My girls learned to poop in the boxes VERY quickly. They are just now learning to pee in them, 3 weeks later.
The carefresh keeps the smell down, but isnt sensical to use up top because its messy. Fleece liners are a pain to sew and get destroyed so fast and smell instantly. Carefresh gets everywhere and is more expensive.
This is why I mix and match both. XD
 
Velo, do you have any suggestions on best absorbant/least dusty bedding? Is carefresh the best choice? I can't wait to see what they choose to do with the setup I'm giving them. I'm hearing that fleece is easy and cheaper but smells a little worse?

Here is my walmart list:
-fleece, sewing kit, plastic tubs (hide, litter box), Popsicle sticks, binder clips, zip ties, plain tissue boxes, paper clips, Cheerios, apples
And my petstore list:
-wheel, yogurt treats, chews, bird hang toys, cat balls w/ bells, cat paper based bedding

Does this sound like a good starter list? Once I have the CN I will be able to afford more goodies, for now I am trying to put as much towards that cage!

I also have two exotic vets I'm familiar with and will use in case I need to. Is there anything I need to look out for with new ratties?
 
awww such cute little bubs! :D I love baby rats - their ears always look extra big!

You will LOVE the critter nation. I have a double and I think they are the best cages money can buy.

Something to look for is you should check their lungs before you bring them home. Make sure they aren't sneezing and hold them up to your ear and listen to their breathing. Make sure there aren't any weird noises (rasping, gurgling, wheezing etc.). Also check their skin for fleas or mites. Once they're home with you, they most likely will start sneezing as they adjust to the new environment. This should go away after a few days. If not, keep an eye on it (worse or more frequent sneezing, porphyrin discharge) as it could mean they are developing a respiratory infection.
 
Oh, thank you! I will have my boyfriend who is a medic bring his stethiscope and give a good listen before we bring them home.

This is super noob question, but I'm having a hard time differentiating between dumbo and regular ears, are the girls above regular? Won't matter either way [emoji4]

Thank you!
 
wait a minute that first picture is the back of my jeep! lol i believe we are ordering the same CN cage on the same day... but anyway i have a book about rat care and training for you!
 
Mariah94 said:
Velo, do you have any suggestions on best absorbant/least dusty bedding? Is carefresh the best choice? I can't wait to see what they choose to do with the setup I'm giving them. I'm hearing that fleece is easy and cheaper but smells a little worse?

Here is my walmart list:
-fleece, sewing kit, plastic tubs (hide, litter box), Popsicle sticks, binder clips, zip ties, plain tissue boxes, paper clips, Cheerios, apples
And my petstore list:
-wheel, yogurt treats, chews, bird hang toys, cat balls w/ bells, cat paper based bedding

Does this sound like a good starter list? Once I have the CN I will be able to afford more goodies, for now I am trying to put as much towards that cage!

I also have two exotic vets I'm familiar with and will use in case I need to. Is there anything I need to look out for with new ratties?
Click to expand...

You can get a lot of stuff from the dollar store in ways of buckets, zip ties, etc. Remember you need to freeze all bedding for about 72 hours before using to kill any mites,lice,etc that might be tagging along.
 
The girls are home today. They didn't have the cage I posted earlier so I got this. I'm not a fan of it, but it will work for now. I'm not sure how wooden platforms was ever thought of as good idea. I can't wait for my CN!

The girls are pretty shell shocked, I feel bad they're just huddled in a corner :( I am leaving for work so they will have the night alone to figure things out. This is our setup for now...I need to make a hammock on my day off :)
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Hi girls! Welcome to your new home! They will come around soon. It's just very scary right now. Spend lots of time sitting next to the cage, talking to them. Leave them treats. Even if they won't take them from your hand yet, they will eat them when you're not looking. Soon you will have them won over. :)
 

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