I have RATS! YAHOOOOO
 

My hampster died last night so today i filled his cage with 2 mid sized, fancey rats.

they are both black and white and they dont have that freaky red eye thing going on lol

i wanna post some pics in a few moments, they have a little condo cage with multi-levels haha

will post pics when i get them

Yeah. Lab rats are the fucking coolest.

Yeah I think rats are cool too.. and easy maintenance since they'll eat just about anything. :Graucho

nice. If you got any Q's let me know. I deal w/ rats myself - rescues/breeders, etc.

im confused about their clenliness though,

on one hand i see them cleaning themselves all day long ...

but on the other hand i have never had an animal (even mice) that worked up a stink so fast!!!

i mean by the time they got fromt he pet store to my house they were stankin!!

i heard they are easy to train and fun to play with, that will be a nice change from my hampsters


I also have 2 Guinea pigs

They're actually very clean. They will groom and clean themselves all the time. Bad idea to get them through a pet store but that's alittle late now.

They usually stink from pet store to home b/c they'll probably shit and pee during the ride home.

What are you using for bedding?

im betting since you asked that, that i am using the wrong one lol

i got that big bag for $9.99 and its like beige chips or something?

very small chipped wood or something, i have used it for years with all my animals

Haha. Yup. You shouldn't use that. I'm guess that you got cedar chips or somethign similar?

yes they almost looks yellow color

but they arent very large chips they are sort of dusty ... but not very dusty

Cedar and pine shavings; small or large are actually bad for small animals. Large chain pet stores carry them because they are profitable.

"These litters contain TOXIC hydrocarbons. The oils that give these woods their scent is what causes the problem. When inhaled, the chemicals change the amount of enzymes the liver produces. Long term exposure to these chemicals actually causes damage to the liver and immunesystem, making the animal more susceptible to respiratory diseases such as Mycoplasma. These toxins may also cause cancer."

By the way, do you know about Mycoplasma by any chance? Are these your first rats?

yes they are my first rats, and no i dont know about it.

keep typing, im gonna try and snag a few pics and show you my setup.

BRB

As far as the diet goes, don't rely solely on pet store food. Check out Harlen Teklad blocks. Don't buy the immitation lab blocks. I can show you where to get that. It's fairly cheap too and lasts awhile. (Roughly $1/lb.)

I heard that rat steak is pretty good if cooked properly with wine..

Myco (Mycoplasma pulmonis is the technical word) is an organism in pretty much all rats that causes the majority of respiratory infections. If you hear your rat making funny noises or breathing funny, you should get him/her checked out. (It's best to find a exotics/rat specialist).

You're bound to eventually run into this but it just requires some meds down the road.

by the way, why isn't it good to get them from a petstore?

and what if you get bitten by one?

Bad treatment, bad breeding, unknown history (certain lines of rats pass down problems like respitory problems, tumors, etc.)

Unless it was a rabid/disease spreading rat; nothing (other than some bleeding :winkwink: )

hope i had the res set so i dont need to resize these, im too lazy right now lol

anyhow here is some pics of them.

http://www.jizzbank.com/delete/rats/r1.jpg


http://www.jizzbank.com/delete/rats/r2.jpg


http://www.jizzbank.com/delete/rats/r3.jpg


http://www.jizzbank.com/delete/rats/r4.jpg

PS, notice my bedpost with the chains on there?

LOL!!!!

SO where would I look into buying a rat, if I wanted one?

pic of my guinea pigs but they wouldnt come out of the house lol

they are in the bottom cage shown above ...

http://www.jizzbank.com/delete/rats/g1.jpg

Nice. Yup. Get rid of that bedding. Go with "Yesterday's News" or even corn cob <---most pet stores carry that fairly cheap - I think Petco/Petsmart have 50 lb. bags for around $25.

By the way, make sure they don't always spend their entire day in the fish tank. It looks good though that they can go into the cage area.

Theyre by your bed? :uhoh

yea i wanted them there ebcause when i had my rabbit in the bottom cage i could lay in bed and play with him in there

they dont stink, i keep very clean.

BUT the hampster made tons of noise on his damned wheel, but thats all he has so i wasnt about to take it away from him lol

lol yeah, i remember when i used to have hamsters, shit was so loud i could hear it down the hall where it stayed.


i didnt know this shit about the bedding, maybe thats why my last 2 died the way they did... altho they were pretty old.

are they lazy or just tired? lol

they have tons of stuff to do in that cage, not to mention it is their first day in there

yet after a quick walk around, they laid in a corner and are trying to sleep.

wtf?

Wow, I didn't know that :( Thanks for info

very strange you are!

Rats make really great pets. If I get another one I will set up lots of transparent tubing and tunnels so it can run around and I can still see it! :thumbsup

Yep rats are awesome!
I've had them off and on for 10 yrs.
Currently have 8 girls and 1 boy...our second boy passed away last week though so gotta find him another playmate.
Rats are extremely sociable animals and fun to play with!

Hamster wheels aren't good for rats though cuz they're larger than hamsters and also might get limbs/toenails caught in the rungs.

2 fun activities for them....

Get a toilet paper tube, fold up one end and put a bunch of treats inside like cereal, yogurt drops a couple raisins etc then fold up the other end, throw in cage. The have keen senses of smell and will have fun finding out how to get to the treats inside...lol

Get a ceramic croc from pet store, fill with water and drop a bunch of frozen peas in it.....rats actually love water and will have tons of fun dunking for the peas...good during hot summer months :)

Enjoy your ratties!!

Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.
Rats?
I hate rats.
They make me crazy.
Crazy?
I was crazy once.
They put me in a room...a rubber room...with rubber rats.

this one is like torture! lol

thanks for the ideas, any others?

Buy him a "Wodent Wheel" - they don't make as much noise and they're the best for rodents. :2 cents:

Rats are nocturnal. They will play and do their shit mostly in the night.

If you get more, make sure you get at least 2. Rats don't do well alone. :2 cents:

Feeling better today? :1orglaugh

yes i got 2, figured they can keep each other company and shit

Lets Hunt !