Some questions about rats...

[Ukulele]

I have been thinking about getting a small pet for ages and think I have finally settled on getting two rats. I wonder if anyone would be able to answer me these questions though...

1. Male of female? I like my pets quite active so I am leaning towards female but I have a young dd so maybe male would be better? Also re males, how much do they scent mark?

2. How much do they smell? It's not a major issue as i know all pets smell a bit but I have quite a small flat don't want the whole place to smell worse than it already does.

3. Any recommendations on a cage? I don't have tons of money but I want to get them something big and interesting enough.

4. Vets fees, how much should I be prepared for?

I think rats smell far less than mice/hamsters and other rodents.

Cage size calulator but adding shelves and hammocks gives you far more area and intrest
Avoid cages with wheels not really suitable for rats as they can trap their tails.
"jenny" cages seem to be amongst the most popular but they are expensive brand new.
We were lucky and found a cage for sale on Gumtree when my son was considering getting his rats

We did have a disabled rat who lived in a guinea pig cage, he couldn't climb so we added in ferplast shelves and ladders so he could crawl up and down easily with out falling and hurting himself.

We've had male and female rats , can't say i've noticed any diffrence in activity, or smell

We use quite a few hammocks in the cages, which can be easily chucked in the washing machine. Makes cleaning so much easier, they can be moved around to add interest and different areas to explore
I use caribiner clips to fasten the hammocks onto the cage, easy to get on and off, cheap plastic ones from either e bay or amazon
I've used these places below for hammocks and accessories, you will also find such like things on ebay, amazon and pet stores
www.ratwarehouse.com/shop_view.php?cat=8
www.roosrats.co.uk/hammocks

Ideally get a same sex pair that have been handled from a very young age

Vets fees will vary, our last visit was around £12 for consultation and some antibiotics for Whiskers
But Alf who needed a couple of ops, many antibiotics and an overnight stay ran to around £80-£100 in the end ( tail amputaion, infection, pulled out stitches ...)
They dont get offered yearly vaccinations and suchlike so its usually a vet trip only if the animal is ill.

Clean them out at least once a week and they won't smell. They have a rat smell but as long as they are clean it's not at all unpleasant or strong.

I have 2 females and they are lovely. I have always had female rats but only because that was what was available.

Toys and stuff don't have to be expensive. Mine love it when we put sheets of paper in - they enjoy wrecking it and rolling themselves up in it. Toiler roll middles. Old clothes that have been washed - again get ripped up and used as bedding.

Male rats do tend to be larger than females.

Boxes are another favourite toy
Yoghurt pots will be happily licked clean

In the summer pea fishing keeps them occupied for a while
Put some frozen peas in a small container of water and let the rats go "fishing" for them. The peas sort of float. If you put in frozen sweetcorn it sinks so add both to the water for some fun entertainment

We use Megazorb in the bottom of the cages, it comes in HUGE bags and is much much cheaper than Carefresh
We pick it up from an equine store to save on delivery but it can be ordered online.

Echantica's rat guide below covers most details about rats.

We were very lucky when we got my son's two rats
They were from an unexpected litter but had been well looked after and handled from very very young
They were advertised on Gumtree and the owners were only willing to give them away in pairs. They also asked my son whether he knew about the care of rats before they said he could have them. We got to see the mother rats as well. I was very impressed

Was going to add to this but people got it covered I see. Please have a look at my rat guide too.

If you want an active rat then females may be best although I have had some active males too! Personally I prefer males as they can often be bigger and like to lump about on hammocks a lot of the time. A few have been very active though. I do love me a big squishy rat though! They do scent mark and some can do it more than others if they decide that everything belongs to them lol.

Rats are as clean as the owners make them. Clean them out once a week minimum and you shouldn't have problems. Be aware though that you shouldn't have air fresheners in the same room as rats and make sure not to spray aerosols. Their sensitive respiratory systems can be affected.

Good point about aerosols, I kind of forgot about that as we routinely only use deodorants etc in the bathroom

You'll probably find that the rats will poo in one bit of the cage so cleaning that bit every few days cuts down on smell. You can buy little trays that fit in the corners that they'll hopefully poo in
but some prefer these as an extra sleeping area < rolls eyes>

Thanks all of you

I have enquired at a few breeders near me and I also looked at the sspca website which tells me they have 2 males needing a home in my town. I am going to phone up and see if I can go and see them.

Cages seem a mystery...there are so many! I will get a nice and big one though.

Sorry have to add my two pennies in here.

My boys are incredibly lazy, past the age of 6 months they start slowing down a lot. If you want a rat to play with for longer and even teach tricks then go for girlies. If you want super squishy cuddle monsters, go for boys.

Females, however, can be prone to mammary tumours.

My girls, and my boys, pee up the wall through the cage bars. So no I don't think they are as clean as you make them lol Some scent mark more then others. Once I had my girls spayed they didn't do this anymore so my feeling is that its hormonal.

Rats can be litter trained but mine didn't want to know.

I would never recommend megazorb or carefresh now having had a bad experience. I use plain cardboard squares available from your local horse beding stockist and usually as cheap as shavings. It comes in 20kg bales, mine costs £6 a bale.

I have a Furet Tower with 10 rats in and an Abode with 4 rats in. Both are good cages, the Abode is available from the Just Cages website and can be relatively cheap.

The Furet Jenny is a good cage for two rats, lots available on Ebay but make sure you get the version with the painted bars to avoid rust issues. Freddy 2 cages (blue bars, yellow base) are always on ebay. Okay for two rats but make sure they get a lot of out time. Personally I would pay for a bigger cage like the Abode because you are going to want to get more rats :)

And yes, my rats smell more then my mice and hamster put together but I do have a lot of them :)

AAh, happy memory of my rats.

Be sure to give them a piece of cooked spaghetti occasionally - it is so funny watching them eat it.

I spent a fortune (close to a thousand quid, mostly pointless) removing tumours from my females to extend their lives. If I ever got rats again it would definitely be only males or I wouldn't remove any tumours and live with the consequences.

Haven't had rats for years, but on the cleanliness side my last rat used to shower with me!

FatRat had a large cage, but used to roam free during the day. Every morning I would open the doors and he would run up my arm and get on my head. I'd then have a shower with him there! He hated being dirty, and would refuse to get back in his cage if he had a wee that I hadn't cleaned out!

In the end I bought a toilet (hut thing) that he would do his business in, and I'd empty it daily.

Rats (IMHO) are the cleanest rodent.