How did this happen............

[Bartman]

Wow, I never thought in a million years id end up with a PET rat.

So heres the story in a nutshell. I needed to get my ball on rats and I tried everything. I got alive rat to show him that this scent is food. He took his first live rat a long time ago and then 2 f/t's right after..then he stopped eating again and I gave up and gave him 2 jumbo mice.

So I made another attempt to get live and see if he goes...it was a no go for like 5 mintues and then I couldnt help but keep this little guy. Hes so cute...HOW O HOW DID THIS HAPPEN TO ME!! :p :D

Im gonna name her (I believe) Sprite. I think ill keep a 1.1 for breeding purposes. Ill use the babies as feeders but keep this girl and whoever will become her bf as pets.

I dont know how the rents will take this :rolleyes: Oh well, they dont need to know...do they? :p


http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v281/BartmanReptiles/DSC00015.jpg


This was taken the first day. Im now using that 20 gallon tank with towel paper bedding and ive given her a water dish along with some carrots, greens, and bread.

I have no idea how to keep a rat..anything I should know as the internet caresheets ive seen so far really suck.

[Big_V]

Get some rat food from a pet store. Easier that way.

[Brent Strande]

We've got a couple, and today I adopted 7 dwarf hamsters to hopefully try scenting to get my chondro eating, The dwarves are pretty cool, I may have to post a few photos

[Bartman]

Will do Big V

Do post brent..id like to see! I wasnt aware their were dwarf's.

[Bartman]

I was thinking of keeping them in the basement. I keep my crickets in the furnace area now that its to cold to keep them in the garage. Could I keep the rats their or do they need like good light?

EDIT: Their is decent light their, and its about 74 where id want to keep them.

[Jeff_Favelle]

Rats make great pets! Better than a cat as far as I'm concerned!

[Artemis]

But JEFF!!! Cats are better to sleep with!! come on... admit it..

OP- I love that your feeder became your pet! I think its sweet. Yay already dead feeders!!

;)

Artemis

[Bartman]

I have two cats, but I couldnt imagine sleeping with a rat :p

I wanna see how smart she is, but im afraid it will run away and then me, the herps, and the rat will need a new place to stay :p

[vanderkm]

She is a little sweetie - rats make fantastic pets - smart, clean and tons of personality. They are easy to condition train to stay on your shoulder (food treats help with training - ours always loved Cheerios) and we had a harness that provided safety for outdoor trips. Look forward to seeing a pic of the male you pick up for her.

mary v.

[daver676]

All I see are all the turds in the background and that makes me think twice about keeping them as pets.

[Bartman]

Yea she is beginning to stink real bad and im changing the paper towl every single day!

Im thinking of giving it to the place I work and just getting an f/t in exchange.

[Kisha_Llewellyn]

Yes, rats can smell bad.....especially in the wrong environment!!! Go to the pet store, but some rat food. Try to get one with the least amount of sunflower seeds in it, these are a rats favorite but can also be fattening and not too highly nutritious for them. Bread and veggies is a good healthy snack for them, but make sure its not white bread (no good), and make sure to remove any uneaten snacks every day. As for giving them bedding....paper towels are no good at all....they are uncomfortable and will make your aquarium smell bad in no time! Get some pine shavings (not ceader!!! no good!! causes respiratory problems) if you want to you can get the pine with clorophyl in it to add to the niceness of the smell plus add some green color to her home. Handle her whenever you want, she shouldnt run away unless given the opportunity, start off slowly by just carrying her around, she will stay on your shoulder if you just want to sit and watch tv with her. After a couple of months of bonding, she will stay in your vacinity even if left on the floor loose, she will also learn her name and learn to come when called (all of my rats have done so, i have had 5 so far). Oh yeah, and she will use one corner exclusively as a "bathroom area" to save money you can just keep and eye on that corner and just scoop out that part and replace with fresh bedding so that you dont have to spend much on pine shavings (they are cheap anyways) hope this helps and I hope you keep this little girl, shes gorgeous! :)

[Bartman]

Ill try the new bedding and the new diet, and see if the smell continues. If it doesnt, then im forsure keeping her.