Jumping and crashing

[Sam]

My two rats, 4-5 months, love to run around in the bathroom. Lately I noticed that one of them likes to jump off really high places. For example, there are shelves in there with a rope ladder down one side. She used to climb up and down using the ladder but now when she wants to get down, she just jumps. It's like a 4 almost 5 foot drop onto hard tile floor! Nothing is scaring her or making her jump. I used to put them on a table with towels, toys, etc to play with but now she just jumps right off. This seems to me like something that would cause broken bones, am I just paranoid? Why on earth is she jumping from such heights? What is a "safe jumping height" for rats?

Also, my other rat seems to be running into things a lot. When she is playing she'll be running around and then all of a sudden crash head first into a piece of furniture. It's only when she's really excited and running around. Is this anything to worry about?

 

[smalltowngirl]

I am very over protective but I personally wouldn't let her go up there anymore. (5 foot drop sounds scary for their little bones.)

 

[jorats]

They are being silly ratties but I agree, if the rat wants to jump that distance, she should not be allowed to do so. It doesn't take much for them to jump/fall the wrong way and cause internal injuries which could lead to death.