Pet rat questions?

Question

again sorry bout the 1st question. i meant.

are they better than mice and gerbils?

Answer 1

- Huh?

- Yes, you must get two of the same gender, they are very social.

- You should clean the cage once a week.

- If you get them from a reputable breeder they are likely to be very tame as opposed to unsocialized pet store rats.

No, an aquarium of ANY size is not appropriate for rats. They require large, multi-level cages much like ferrets.

No, mouse stuff will not be the proper size for rats.

Research some more: http://www.petinfopackets.com/rats/ratin...

Find a good breeder: http://www.petinfopackets.com/rats/ratin...

Answer 2

- do they better than like mice or gerbils?

Personally, i think yes they are a better pet as they bond with there owner and are much more interactive.

- do i have to get 2?

Yes, you HAVE to get two.  As rats are a very sociable creature and they NEED to be kept in a same s*x pair or more.  If they are not, they are most likley going to develope behavior problems and/or health problems.



- how many times do i have to clean the cage a month?

You have to clean the cage once a week.  And NEVER use ceder or pine bedding as it can be incredibly harmful to the ratties respritory system.

-can tame them easily?

It depends on where you got them.  If you got them from a chain petstore [i.e- petco, petsmart, petland, ect.] than most likley they will not be very use to human contact and it will take a while for them to trust you.  But if you got them from a reputable breeder, than most likely they will love you as soon as you take them home!

also i have my old mouse stuff can i use it or should i get new stuff??

As long as it is not too small, sure you can use it!  But if you are talking about a wheel, than don't use it b/c rats are too intellagent for wheels and most don't even use it.  But sure, rats love almost everything that they can play with/sleep in!

i thought of more things srry lol but is a 10 gallon tank ok? or should i get a bigger one?

NO rat should be kept in a 10 gallon tank!  It should not be in a tank at all actually since there is not enough ventallation.  Rats are very intellagent and active so they need a much larger cage.  I have this cage and its great!  Its a tad bit expensive, but the rats will love it and it will definatly proove its exellence in the long run!

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.js...

But if you were to get a rat, it sounds you need to do ALLOT more reserch.  I'll give you a few pointers to get you started.  ;)

*Rats are very intellagent creatures and can be taught all sorts of tricks.  Including learning there names and riding on your shoulder!

*Male rats are more laid back than females, and are also commonly twice the size of female rats!

*The rat food you find at the stores usually have corn/seeds which are actually bad for the rats, so i recomend using this food mix-

http://www.ratsrule.com/diet.html

*Rats have a very sensitive respritory system, so make sure you don't use any powerful scent around them or they might develope respritory infections, which are quite common in rats.  

*Since rats are prone to harmful sicknesses[[tumors, URI's, cardiac heart faliure]], then you might have to find an exotic vet nearby that you can take them too incase the rat/rats get sick.

If you have any other questions, I recomend this website-

http://www.goosemoose.com/component/opti...

Hope i helped,

morganluverX10

Answer 3

rats dont really have to be in pairs, but it would make them much happier. a rat will need a large cage and a mouse cage will not be big enough. you should clean the cage about every 5-7 days.  when i had 2 rats, i cleaned it every 5 days. Carefresh bedding is the best.

Answer 4

They are lovley creatures and are kind by nature...If your mom agrees to let u have a rat, here are a few thing ur rat will deff need!

~ a large cage

~ another rat 2 play with ( at least 2 rats cuz if u dont have 2 rats it will become depresed no matter how much u play with it)

~Toys

~bedding material (shreeded tisues are good and cheap too!)

Floor material (i wouldnt recomend wood shavings as the tiny dust in it will iratate ur rats eyes and nose, thus maiking it sneeze ad more prone to respiratory disese so i would recomend wood-based cat litter not made from pine tho!)

Here is a little info about the s*x of the rat

Male~ Male rats are laid-back and calmer than female rats, and will gladly sit in your lap. BUT, they mark places with a few drops of urine, this might put u off! ( by places, i mean places inside the cage! =p)

Females~ females are always active, and are hyper! they come into heat ( when they can breed) about every 14 days, so unless you want loads of babys, i would recomend the same s*x pairs!

Vets~ you will have to find a specilist vet 4 ur rats, as not many vets are specilised 2 take care 4 rats as they r 2 small!

Tumors + cancers~ unfortunatly, rats have a high chance of dying from cancers + tumors, this is because of how they were tested upon in the labs and its in all rats genes. If you do get rats, and ur rat(s) get a tumor or cancer, it would be the kinist thing to put it to sleep =[

Cleaning out the cage~ i clean out my boys cage once a week!

Good luck with your rodent hunting!

Hope this helps!

P.S if u have any questions just email me on yahoo!

Love from,

Rach x