Tricking out 1 level FN

[Riana]

Hello, everyone!

You all probably don't remember me, it's been years since I've been on here! I had four boys in 2008 that I unfortunately had to rehome due to family issues. It's been a long time, but my sister and I have lived in Fredericton for two years, and we were approached about a sweet boy named RB who is looking for a home. We're happy to bring him into our home as long as our cats tolerate him, and he them, so that being said, I had a few questions!

Firstly, he's always used shredded newspaper for litter and bedding, but I have some fleece blankets. He chews plastic, so that rules out any type of container to keep the paper in, how do you suggest I work it out with newspaper in the cage? Does anyone have some handy ideas we could try?

He's a typical big lazy manrat, and he has a greasy coat currently. I wanted to give him a bath and then treat him with Revolution (treating our kitties once he comes home as well, just as a precaution), but I'm not sure what would be good to use. We use Greenworks dish detergent, and I didn't know if that might be okay for him? I wanted something that would help with potential buck grease buildup specifically.

With regards to Revolution, is it still 6mg/kg for rats? What size do you guys use? I know the kitten dose is a different concentration than the adult dose, so what's easiest to divide for treating a manrat? (We'll weigh him when we get him home).

I think that's all for now. I'm excited about this, I hope that he gets along with our kitties and vice versa!

 

[SQ]

Hi

from what I have heard on here, it only takes a scratch from a cat and the rat is going to die
I have no idea about buck grease as my boys are all neutered
but I think people use dawn dish soap

Your boy needs a friend .... there are many in need on kijiji
and the Oromoncto SPCA and Fredericton SPCA each have a lone boy in need of a good home
The best rat vet is Dr Stewart in Islandview and New Maryland

this is a great place to buy rat supplies: http://www.chinchilla.ca/store.php
the barking lot and feed n needs on the exhibition grounds are also good

Yes, revolution is usually 6 mg/kg http://ratguide.com/meds/anti-infectives/selamectin_revolution.php

good luck

 

[Riana]

Hi, SQ

I know he should have a pal, but the woman has been unsuccessful in introducing others to him, so we're going to keep him as a singleton. It's not ideal by any means, I know.

I'll check out those stores, I haven't been to them yet. We were at PetValu and Petsmart.

 

[Claireybell2477]

You could try a spayed female? It's really not good for him to be alone.

 

[Riana]

I know, but as I said, he's not been able to have a buddy in the past, so we're not going to press. I know it's not a good scenario for him, but we're working with what we have.

 

[SQ]

Try reading about my SPCA rat Christmas.
He loved people but tried to kill other rats .... I mean blood splattered all over a room at the SPCA (the other rat survived)
and Christmas trying to bite through the spine of my elderly girl to kill her at the vets ....
but after a neuter and trying for awhile eventually I had the opportunity to try him with old enough babies
He found them a bit hard to handle at times and needed his space but they absolutely loved him!
He did not see them as a threat, they were his babies and he took care of them ... grooming them and even allowing them to take food out of his mouth
Christmas was a very happy boy with "his 4 babies" for the remainder of his life

My only regret is that I didn't try him with babies sooner and that Christmas lived alone for so long

Your boy needs a neuter and friends.
If the woman was unsuccessful, well it may be that she isn't experienced enough and he needs to be neutered.
Rats need to live with other rats
[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDy3bMRuobE&feature=related[/ame]


I would be concerned about the bar spacing on the FN, where you have cats
but I don't have cats so you might want to ask others that do

 

[fumblesquid]

Hi! Welcome back. As others suggested you probably want to find a buddy or two for him, but I think they covered that topic pretty well so I'll discuss some other things

For the FN I'm wondering what you'll use for a bottom pan, since the that part is plastic. I hear a lot of rats (even those who don't normally chew plastic) take a liking to FN or CN plastic pans... So that makes me wonder, how much plastic does he chew, and do you think he swallows it? Do you find plastic in his poo? Rats are very good at chewing without swallowing (they have flaps behind their incisors that prevents chewed bits from being swallowed).

If you'll think he's fine with plastic, I recommend putting down newspaper on the plastic, then fleece. The fleece will wick the pee, the newspaper will absorb it, and the plastic will provide a smooth waterproof base. If you think he'll miss his newspaper bedding, I recommend ripping it into strips and hanging the strips with a shower curtain ring punched through, so he can grab off the newspaper strips and nest with them! My rats LOVE when I do this. It keeps even my laziest of rats active. They'll bring it back to their sleeping spot piece by piece, and then shred it

Not sure about washing buck grease off. Never really washed a rat myself, since I love the buck grease smell! BUT I would say to get something unscented and mild, like baby soap.

 

[Godmother]

Welcome back, Riana! It was such a nice surprise to see you at the Playhouse the other night, and good news to know that you are ready for rats again. The others have given you great suggestions, and I have nothing to add except :welcomewagon: