Im thinking about getting 2 pet rats?

pet rats make great pets…all mine are basically bred as feeders and there is a range of temperaments among them, but NONE have bitten me!!!

I have one that has nipped a few times, but she has a tail injury and is a bit grumpy and she only bit me after Id been handling my boy rats and didnt wash my hands to clean the smell of the boys off

My ratties are all litter trained and they all know their names and the names of their cagemates. They also know other words, like ‘treats’ and they come running…especially Bella who LOVES treats!!!

it is good you are getting 2 because they are highly social and interactive and fret if there is no other of their kind…research has proven that pet rats have shortened lives and more health problems if they are kept as a single rat…the opposite is true if they are kept in groups, they live longer and healthier

my ratties groom themselves and each other about 6 times every day…their friends get into their ears and other places they cant reach and keep them spotless…they really are the cleanest of the furry animals

boys or girls?? I have both. I love them both almost equally. I got the girls first so Im probably a bit more partial to them…ratties get more and more loving, affectionate and interactive as they age and as the girls are the eldest I am enjoying aged ratty love these days lol

boys are very sweet too. I integrated my feeder rescues with some older rats, it took weeks and weeks of patience but now they all live together very sweetly

girls are typically much more active than boys and they chew more…my boys never chew their bedding but my girls gradually shred everything…they have more of a nesting instinct so it seems

I use fleece, recycled cotton fabric, like t-shirts, towells, handtowels, teacloths, face washers (with hooks made from a wire coathanger – face washers make GREAT hammocks) – all these things are changed daily and washed in the washing machine with a gentle detergent and a good slurp of white vinegar and dried in the sun or the clothes dryer

I feed my ratties food I prepare myself -
they eat about 15% protein in the form of tofu, lentils, soybeans, yoghurt, soymilk, seeds and nuts, egg (boiled, omellette, scrambled, etc), tuna, sardines – Im a vegetarian so my ratties are about 70% vegetarian too, but must make sure they get good quality protein
they eat lots of good quality varieties of grains and cereals – virtually NO processed food. I want my ratties to live long and healthy as much as I can possibly aid in that – about 65% of their diet will be grain and cereal
they eat fresh fruit and veg – their absolute FAVOURITE!!! every veg except raw potato and onion, every fruit except orange and lemon/lime. They love fresh greens, especially off the tops of celery, and adore fresh mint and basil. they love banana, grapes, strawberries, papaya, nectarine, apple, etc…you name it and they probably love it – about 20% of their diet is fresh fruit and veg

I dont give my rats processed foods and I dont give them low quality food. If I wouldnt eat it (except for the bit of animal products I do give my ratties) then they wont be getting it

I use recycled dishes (single serve heavy quiche etc dishes are perfect), recycled lunch boxes for litter trays and carefresh recycled paper pellets for litter, and lots of stuff I find around like empty boxes for toys. They love paper!!!! so for treats I give a box of tissues, or a toilet roll, or paper bag

boys or girls??? they are both so sweet and cute. The boys have a stronger fragrance – sort of like fresh baked spiced cookies and they are slower and more likely to sit still, but they have HUGE boy bits!!!

girls are daintier but dont like to sit still much, although mine will ride on my shoulders for an hour or more , or inside my shirt

Pedigree bred ratties should live longer healthier lives and be instantly tame, but carefully tended and well and gently loved rescues from feeder bins should also be capable of have a wonderful life for up to 3-3.5yrs IF taken good care of…that means to the vet when needed!!!

if you feed junk food and dont give them a fun interesting experience – their lives will be shortened

rats are an anmal, like a doggy, that will want to play WITH you

I believe ratties are NOT for smaller children..they are fragile and can easily end up with broken bones and internal damage from being squeezed to tight

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Yes, your rats would be fine if you left them for a day. I have a pair and I sometimes have to leave during the weekend and they’re always fine.

Newspaper is fine to use as long as there is no ink in the paper. The best bedding to use is the paper kind that you can buy at any petstore (or Walmart).

Rats can chew on paper towels and toilet paper but I don’t find using it very necessary because they will arrange their paper bedding to however may be comfortable for them.

I’m sure they physically can eat dog food, but it’s in a rat’s best interest to get feed that has a variety of nutrients as well as a proper balance to suit the rat’s health.

I would recommend getting 2 male rats, but be careful and make sure they lived together at the time of purchase and had no problems.

The disadvantage of buying feeder rats is that they are not raised for temperment, so they may be difficult to tame and could be aggressive. You can look on the internet for ratteries near your area.

Also, if you do get rats, make sure they have plenty of ventilation and that they have at least 2 square feet of space per rat.

If you have any more questions, don’t hesitate to ask. :]

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It’s good that you’ve done plenty of research but it sounds like your getting wrong information. Rats are wonderful pets that unfortunately don’t live very long (2-3 years mostly.) Don’t let that discourage you bc they really are great to have and you would be, hopefully, giving him/her a loving home and not living out it’s days in a store. But if you are serious in getting a rat or two then you need to take care of them properly and not "make-do" with what is lying around the house.

They will need proper bedding from a pet store/walmart (I used CareFresh pet bedding, the white one bc everything else smelled bad) and DO NOT use pine bedding, EVER! My rat always chewed on any type of fabric bc I let her have run of the house and she never choked on anything, in fact they do it for nesting purposes. They will need chew sticks bc they’re teeth continue to grow, I also gave mine these little treats that look like cheese and are hard so it helps file them down incase they aren’t interested in the sticks (they come two a pack). And they need they’re own food, not the dogs. I gave mine Reggie Rat food from Petsmart/Petco and you can give them fresh fruit as well just research foods not to give them.

I had a girl and she never bit me or anyone in my family before. Idk about males but whatever you get, try to get a pair that are already together and get them a place that has adequate space for them to live and grow in. Good Luck

Oh and yes, if you leave them with plenty of food and water you can leave them for a day or 2 but not longer than that please!

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Shame that your first answer was some idiot telling you that rats bite. I’m sure you’ve gathered already that this is usually NOT the case! I’ve had six or seven rats over the years and only one has ever bitten me, and that was because he was a feeder rat that was already quite old when I purchased him from the store, so wasn’t really used to any company. (A lesson for you there, I guess!) Feeder rats often have negative temperments and can also be pre-disposed to more ilnesses.

As long as they are in a pair or more, rats will be absolutely fine living alone for a day, just make sure they have enough food and water to keep them going and give them lots of attention when you get back.
You could quite easily use paper towels for bedding, (they usually love anything they can tear and it’s funny as hell to watch them do it!) I don’t really see why that would be a huge problem, but you’re probably better off just buying them some bedding from a pet store. And yeah, you can feed them dog food (my rats would never touch it, mind you.) They will in theory eat it and it’s not particularly "bad" for them, but in general you’re obviously just best off giving them a complete rat food which you can buy from pet stores. The only time you should really give dog food is if you’re completely desperate and have run out of rat food!
Good luck.

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dont get feeder rats, youre encouraging the breeding of rats to be used as LIVE food and thats just sick! even if it may feeling like youre ‘saving’ them, youre not youre just encouraging more breeding. try to looc for local ads for a hobby breeder or perhaps someone with an accidental litter.so youre not encouraging breeding for food and also theyll be more socialised than any pet store rats.
yeh theyll be fine on saturdays. they should be taken out to play every day but one day a week left in the cage shouldnt be a problem if your cage is big enough cuz theyll have each other to play with.
yeh you can use dog food but make sure its not too high protein as too much protein is bad for rats, also ive them other stuff too like vegetables and wholegrain crackers etc since like humans they cant get all the nutrition they need by eating just one type of food. also dry pasta is good for their teeth

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Well, i suggest males for first timers because they are bigger and usually less hyper. There are no breeds of rats, only types. There is no personality difference in any type. Care-
goosemoose.com
ratcare.org
ratguide.com

Saturdays alone will be fine! I go to my dads every other weekend and usually check on them over the weekend, and they are fine.
Newspaper pellets should work great! For nesting material, they love toilet paper, paper towels, newspaper, fabric, and (over the holidays hehe) wrapping paper.
It depends on the dog food… If it is under 20% protein, then it should be fine. But over that, the rats can have problems (itchy skin, really stinky poop, etc).
I would not suggest feeders. I mean, you are saving a life, but at what cost? It puts money into those mass breeder’s pockets, and you will probably be left with a huge pile of vet bills. I once adopted some rats from petco (petco rats are feeder rats) and they died within 6 months of bringing them home. I would suggest going to petfinder.com and ratster.com and goosemoose.com in the adoption section.

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