ratties vs people

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Tarah

Well-Known Member
Joined
Mar 15, 2009
Messages
2,081
Location
Nova Scotia, Canada
My Dad (who i don't live with, he's visiting NL and staying with my grandmother) has a HUGE problem with the rats. He knows he cant make me get rid of them, but everytime we talk it's about how dirty and full of diseases the rats are. Almost every conversation is about how he'd like for me to get rid of them and how he doesn't agree with them. So i have a few questions so that in defending my babies i don't lie to my father.

1. Rat Scratches.
You all know what i mean when i say the ratties can give you little scratches with their nails. Can you contract any diseases from them when they scratch you?

2. Dirt.
Dad HATES them because he says they're pure dirty and the dirtiest animals out there. Now, he said their dirty aswell because they walk in their own fecies, but i told him that (gross warning) a lot of animals will eat their poo for once reason or another, and dogs, cats, horses etc will trot in their crap aswell.
So are the ratties really that dirty?

3. If theres anything else about diseases you can contract form the rats that is good to know, please help me out! :)
Thanks!
 
Well I know they're actually cleaner than cats for one!
The kind of myco that domestic ratties have, can't be contracted by humans, and they're not dumb enough to eat their own poo at least!!! My dog does though DX

Their scratches are unavoidable really, but apart from a bit of skin irritation, they're harmless. You honestly can't get ill from pet rats, they're cleaner than the cleanest of cats (and no toxoplasmosis or whatever it is cat poop can give you)
 
As stated above rats are VERY clean animals, and would perfer to not have poo in their cage for them to walk on.

You cannot get diseases from domesticated rats!

Their little scratches will do nothing more then get a little red then go away.

Tell your father to read a bit on this site and i think that he'd get a reality check, because we are not living in the 1300's anymore :roll:
 
No matter what you tell your dad, he won't believe you. He has his mind set. If I were in your shoes, my response would be: if you want to see me then lets not talk rats. He needs to respect you, not control you.
 
has your dad SEEN your rats? i know he is totally against them, but what if he just sees them? maybe he would have a slight realisation that maybe they're kind of cute, if nothing else?
i really can't understand people who just hate them and have never really experienced a true loving rat.
i have had people crinkle their noses and look disgusted when i say i have rats, but if they allow themselves to see them, then they usually admit "well, i guess they're kind of cute".
and if even after you tell him that rats are NOT dirty, do NOT carry disease, etc.. then maybe it would just be best to have an agreement not to talk about it, because you love them, thats not going to change, and he should just accept it.
 
Tarah said:
My Dad (who i don't live with, he's visiting NL and staying with my grandmother) has a HUGE problem with the rats. He knows he cant make me get rid of them, but everytime we talk it's about how dirty and full of diseases the rats are. Almost every conversation is about how he'd like for me to get rid of them and how he doesn't agree with them. So i have a few questions so that in defending my babies i don't lie to my father.

1. Rat Scratches.
You all know what i mean when i say the ratties can give you little scratches with their nails. Can you contract any diseases from them when they scratch you?

After learning about rats and having them, I have never had any problem with contact with them except for hives occasionally.

2. Dirt.
Dad HATES them because he says they're pure dirty and the dirtiest animals out there. Now, he said their dirty aswell because they walk in their own fecies, but i told him that (gross warning) a lot of animals will eat their poo for once reason or another, and dogs, cats, horses etc will trot in their crap aswell.
So are the ratties really that dirty?

Absolutely not. They spend 1/3 of their waking hours cleaning themselves, they groom each other, and they can be trained very easily to use a litter box at ANY age. If their cage is not cleaned, then they will be forced to walk in their own feces, but believe you me, I'm sure its not their preference.

3. If theres anything else about diseases you can contract form the rats that is good to know, please help me out! :)
Thanks!
Click to expand...

The only thing I have EVER heard is that you can contract diseases from rats in the same way you would any other WILD animal. FLEAS. Wild rats carry fleas, just like wild dogs do. But since pet rats don't go outside, they don't carry fleas. Rats can contract strep from humans, but I have never heard of anyone contracting a disease from rats.
 
Really!? I thought they only did it when they weren't well/confused because my rats have never done it apart from Joey with pt :D
Thanks for the info lol, I didn't know rat's were one of the coprophagia species.
I understood how it was perfectly fine and healthy for rabbits and dogs etc, I've just never seen my guys do it :p
 

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