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Elmo525100

Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2013
Messages
9
My local rescue currently has two ratties for adoption. I've always had a huge interest in keeping them but need a little push to bite the bullet and keep them myself. I've had all sorts of small animals and would love a pair of rats. Can anyone offer me any first time owner advice?

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Hi and welcome! You've come to the best place for rat advice. If you have done your research, this would be a great opportunity for you to adopt. Some key things - rats are best kept in pairs or groups, you need to make sure you have a large enough cage, pine and cedar shavings are BAD bedding and you should make sure you have access to something like Carefresh or fleece. You might also check to see that you have a vet in your area who will treat them in the event they get sick - rats are very prone to respiratory illness, as well as a few other conditions.

If you have any other specific questions, this forum is really one of the best places to ask anything you need to know. Rats are great pets, and if you can afford them and are willing to do what you need to do to give them a proper home, then I definitely encourage adopting the two at your local rescue.
 
I keep guinea pigs too i understand they have different requirements, are rats expensive to keep? My rescue have two for adoption, two boys and a large cage too. How much on average would you spend on a rats?

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I made a pamphlet a few months ago, ill transfer what I wrote on it to here:

They are social creatures
Rats are very social and should be housed with other rats for their mental and physical well-being. They should be housed in same sex colonies/pairs unless spayed or neutered as early as 5 weeks old.

Bedding
Use recycled paper bedding as most wood bedding is toxic to small pets. The only exception being Aspen. The most common beddings being:
• Carefresh
• Boxo comfort
• Yesterday’s News
• Aspen
Rats can also be litter trained. Just add some bedding into a small litter box and place in corners or under stairs in their cage.

Cage Accessories and Toys
One of the best cage accessories you can have for you rats are hammocks. It gives the cage more “square inches” and rats love to snuggle in/on them. Other great rat toys are wheels, chew toys, hanging bird toys, cardboard boxes, and much more.

Cages
You need at least 2 cubic feet per rat when buying a cage. The bigger the better. Bar spacing should not be bigger than 1 inch for males and adult females, and ½ inch for young rats. The most common cages are:
• Critter / Ferret Nation (single hold-up to 5 rats. Double Holds up to 10 rats)
• Martin Cages (Depending on cage, 2-10 rats)
• Large Rabbit cages ( 2-4 rats)
• Fiesty Ferret cage ( up to 8 rats)
• Super Pet My First Home for Exotics, Large ( up to 4 rats)
• Super Pet Multi Floor Ferret Cage XL (up to 6 rats)
There are also many more options out there.

Diet
Rats cannot eat food made for gerbil, mice etc. They are usually seed mixes, and most rats would just pick their favorite seeds, not getting everything they need to be healthy. The best foods for rats are Lab blocks. There are three to choose from:
• Oxbow Regal Rat
• World Hamster Extrusion
• Harlan Teklad 2014
Rat diets should be made out of 80% lab blocks, and 20% veggies/fruits. Though rats should not get fruits more than 3x a week due to the sugar content.

Introducing a new rat
Rat cannot just be put together to live with one another, they need to be properly introduced using these steps.
1. Introduce rat in a neutral place
2. If all goes well move to a familiar place to your original rat(s)
3. If all goes well for a few days, clean the cage and rearrange items. Then Move everyone in together.
Females are easier to introduce to one another than males. If need be males can be neutered to calm them down and remove aggressive behaviour to other rats.

Exercise
Rats need a minimum of one hour of exercise time outside of their cage. It could be on your bed, or a rat proof room etc.

Vet Care
Like any pet, Rats deserve veterinary care.
The Most common health problem in rats is respiratory infections. And many times there is no way to prevent a fare up as most domestic rats are born with Mycoplasma Pulmonis.
Symptoms include, noise hiccups, sneezing, wheezing, clicking, labored breathing, and porphyrin around the eyes and/or nose.
If your rats ever do get a respiratory infection, you should make a vet appointment and receive antibiotics for their treatment.
And depending how severe your rats respiratory infection is, different antibiotics and anti-inflammatory drugs can be given.
Females should also be spayed to help prevent mammary tumors. Though it cannot be prevented 100%. Also check your males and females for bumps and lumps. If one is found, contact your vet.
 
That's a great guide Amanda :thumbup:
Elmo - as far as cost goes, it varies. If the cage comes with them, you've already saved yourself some money. Most importantly, you should set aside some money for a "vet fund" - I think it is probably rare for a rat to go their whole life and never need a vet at least once. My vet charges $55 for a visit, plus additional for any medications. My last visit for one rat plus antibiotics was around $100, just to give you an idea. It varies, so again, you might want to call local vets and find out a) do they see rats and b) how much is an office visit. As far as the other costs - food, bedding, water bottle - you might go online or to your local pet store and do some pricing. And that's just the necessities. You will find yourself wanting to spend money on fun stuff like hammocks and toys. Hopefully someone who only has two or three rats can give you a better idea of how much they spend each month on food, etc.
 
We have 15 now and buy a 20 lb bag of oxbow from drsfosterandsmith - that lasts quite awhile and its cheaper than buying 3lb bags from the pet stores. Vet bills I'm bad to ask about because we have a couple really sick guys so they are costing a lot, but we will also care and treat them until they no longer can be helped - other people may give up sooner.

Rats are wonderful pets.. I've only have them about 18 months and wish I had know how wonderful they were 10-20 years ago!!! I kind of describe them as little dogs in a cage. They are trainable, liter box trained, and just plain wonderful!!!
 
I would say that the most expensive and hardest part of owning rats is the vet expenses, if they get sick or develop tumors. In the future, I wont get a new rat unless I have the money to spay her shortly after (I like to keep girl only colonies). Aside from that, rats are amazing pets and are not too expensive to keep... I would say they are just as expensive as cats with the food, litter, and treats. All though, getting a good cage can be an expensive upfront cost.
 
Ok thanks. I'm going to get looking for a suitable cage and doing some more research :) thanks for all your help :-D

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