selling feeder rats - Page 2

NennaMeerkat · 06-22-11, 10:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanbakir

On a side note, I had a friend try and teach me how to kill rodents a few weeks ago... He took a shoe, TURNED HIS HEAD AWAY and slammed the heel down on the things head, missing twice...
At least you aren't one of those:P

That is just AWFUL! Honestly people need to have a bit more feeling. I will however say that I had a rat I rescued that had really really bad upper respitory (sorry I can't spell) infection where he had a lot of the red phlem rats have coming from his eyes and nose. Ended up having to put him out of his misery after two days. He could barely breathe. That was the one time we used a shovel...but the rat was really unresponsive and in pain.

Ug...why do I say these things...I feel bad all over again.

stephanbakir · 06-22-11, 10:26 PM

Take comfort in the fact that its out of its misery.

NennaMeerkat · 06-22-11, 10:57 PM

Oh yeah it was hard but we didn't want to see him in pain. If we could have we would have taken him to our vet at the time...but we couldn't let him be in pain until the morning. I never wanna do it again.

stephanbakir · 06-22-11, 10:59 PM

Breaking their necks is much easier on you then the gruesome mess a shovel makes.

NennaMeerkat · 06-22-11, 11:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stephanbakir

Breaking their necks is much easier on you then the gruesome mess a shovel makes.

True that...but we used some old towels that were scrapped anyway to cover him with so all we had to do was pick up the scrapped towels and toss the entire thing. Though we did bury the bundle instead of really "tossing" him.

TeaNinja · 06-23-11, 01:19 AM

sad =/

Max713 · 06-23-11, 01:55 AM

It's very cute how attached you guys are to your rats

I grew up on a ranch, so I've been completely desensitized to both killing things I've raised since a baby (sometimes even bottle feeding), and killing rodents. Although there was one particular steer that I had a really hard time pulling the trigger for...

My family has been going on annual rat shoots for 25 years now. Every year we travel to mid eastern oregon, find a local rancher with a sage rat problem, and shoot away. On a good year we have been known to shoot 8000 rounds. Even at a 50% accuracy rate that would be 4000 rats, I would say I'm probably about 80%. That and 2 other events is the highlight of my year.

It's amazing the difference in animal preference between different people.
I imagine there's people in Argentina that think Tegu's make great dinner and kill them at first sight! :O

stephanbakir · 06-23-11, 05:18 AM

Reptiles in general are tasty

Lankyrob · 06-23-11, 05:19 AM

It is funny to read - i worked on a farm (volunteered) form age 12 -16 and had no issues with humanely killing any animals that needed it - especially those that were sick already.

My wife cringed in the past when i took a cat up to the end of the garden after it had been hit by a car - i just pre-dig the grave and then put it out of its misery before burying it.

Dehlida · 06-23-11, 09:38 AM

You could easily sell those rats for more privately.. As a breeder, I can honestly say selling the rats (both as pets, and feeders) privately makes me probably double the money of selling them to a shop- plus they buy in bulk and keep coming back regularly.

Oh- and if you can't seperate yourself from the emotional attachement I would really suggest not breeding rats at all, make life easier on yourself....

TeaNinja · 06-23-11, 09:43 AM

LOL, oh man.....stop breeding rats.....IS IT THAT EASY????
that's the worst advice i've heard in weeks. not only will most people buy rats from the pet store if they need them, but just because i don't like mercilessly killing things doesn't mean i shouldn't breed rats. grow a heart.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dehlida

Oh- and if you can't seperate yourself from the emotional attachement I would really suggest not breeding rats at all, make life easier on yourself....

kind of a pricky comment i'd say.

Dehlida · 06-23-11, 10:17 AM

Not trying to come off the wrong way- but this is the way the reptile hobby works. I fail to see the point in taking the rats to the pet store to sell them only to buy frozen ones. Who knows what happens to the rats after they hit the store. Have you ever been in the back of the pet stores, or seen what happens to the rats?

Frankly, I'd rather kill and freeze them myself where I know what I'm doing is 100% instant and pain free- as opposed to the slow deaths from various diseases found in most pet stores, along with the cramped display cages etc.

You aren't avoiding killing them because you have the rats best interest in mind, you're avoiding it because you don't like doing the dirty work.

Again, not trying to come off the wrong way, just being realistic here.

Jenn_06 · 06-23-11, 10:25 AM

i have to say im with Dehlida when you take your rats to the pet store(in most) they are going to get put in a 10gl tank with about 20+ other rats and stay there until someone buys it a will be feed to a snake live. thats a painful death. you dont want to see your rats in pain C02 them. if you do it right its pain free and you will not feel at bad.

TeaNinja · 06-23-11, 10:25 AM

your realism is more like idiocy to me. they don't kill their live rats, they have f/t shipped if they need them. the rats live in perfectly fine cages and even though a lot of the rats at pet stores become feeders, some become pets. i figure if i can breed rats, give them a chance to get adopted, and Still have the same f/t feeders without having to kill and freeze them, i'll take that in a heart beat.

i've already seen the rat setups and they are fine.

Dehlida · 06-23-11, 10:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TeaNinja

your realism is more like idiocy to me. they don't kill their live rats, they have f/t shipped if they need them. the rats live in perfectly fine cages and even though a lot of the rats at pet stores become feeders, some become pets. i figure if i can breed rats, give them a chance to get adopted, and Still have the same f/t feeders without having to kill and freeze them, i'll take that in a heart beat.

i've already seen the rat setups and they are fine.

So now you turn to personal insults and self defense when I no more than make a suggestion based upon the simple facts of how the reptile and pet industries work? Seems rather immature if I'm honest.

Fact is- you have no way of knowing for sure where those rats are going or what is happening to them AFTER they leave your hands at the store. Diseases can't be seen from the cages, you don't know what actually happens. You saw the cage, whoopy. Have you seen the way they take care of each individual animal every day? No, have you been able to screen buyers? No. Who knows, those 4 rats could have gone to someone bored with a hungry Tegu- who's going to let them be painfully destroyed by a larger predator.

$8 was sure worth it!