Why under the ladders???

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Wednesday

New Member
Joined
Apr 16, 2019
Messages
2
Location
Massachusetts
Why are their poops concentrated under the ladders? Anyone else notice this? I have now put the base of the ladders in small paint trays with newspaper litter in them. 99% of the poops are now in the trays! What is the behavioral drive that is prompting them to 'go' at the base of their ladders? Anyone know?
 
Rats have their behaviours :) I have a small group who climb up the bars of the cage to poop. One taught all the others LOL. But putting a litterbox there is the best thing you can do as it really does seem like a fav place for a lot of rats.
 
Haha! I have a boy that goes right under the back side of the ladders. Another that uses a basket, and another who poops on the house! Rats are silly. Pepper, my heart rat, used to climb all the way to the top of the cage, and drop bombs on his brothers below! It was kinda hilarious!
 
Of the four ladders in my cage, two of them have a litterbox situated underneath them lol. Perhaps the ladders are dark, therefore a safe place to poop in their minds. Or, your ladders may just be in the corner of the cage, which makes another perfect place to go potty. Rats have their quirks!
 
I have the double critter nation cage, so 4 ladders. The 2 ladders on the largest floors are the most popular, or um, should I say, "poopular" (no. no I shouldn't). Ahem, anyway, yeah, the crazy boys pair up, the 2 grey ones tend to hang out on the top smaller floor and the 2 white ones (well, one white, one hairless), prefer the bottom larger floor. The top large floor is where the food is and, as expected, that is where the most poop accumulates under the ladder. But the the bottom large floor under the ladder is also a hot spot.
 
I put litter boxes under ladders …… it helps
and in the back corners

It is also important to protect the wall behind the cage (a sheet of coroplast works well), a protect the floor under the cage
 
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