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Amiss
Mar 9, 2006

Pestilence is the new pink.

Slidje posted:

THOUGHT YOU COULD GET AWAY HUH?


AHHHhhh adorable fatty rattie patty! :3:

Superconsndar posted:

[tragic rat wipeout]

That this can even happen so thoroughly and irrevocably from just getting supplies at the pet store scares the poo poo out of me, no lie.

Pterodactyl posted:

This is Sir Dexton Lawrence Keeds, Gentleman Explorer...

And this is Balls

Aaaaahahahahaha... I suppose the names are self-explanatory. I love Balls's coloring, btw-- one of my first rats was that gorgeous multi-shaded dark brown, too, and I'm hoping someday to find another. They look so city-rattish! Or wharf-rattish, I suppose, once they start pushing the one-pound mark...


-- Bonus material for page four: Pouched rat fishes for peeeaaas!

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Tlacuache
Jul 3, 2007
Cross my heart, smack me dead, stick a lobster on my head.


Because one of my rats did something cute, I have to share it everywhere.

Here is Face, who is just about to turn a year old. I looked over and found him asleep, just like this:



(He's awake here because Janson, who is the biggest attention whore in the world, saw me coming with a camera and tried to get in the shot. I dodged to the side at the last second, which is why the picture quality kind of sucks.)

Also, after I clean their cage today, I think I might need to bathe them. I buy recycled paper pellet litter for them, and had to buy the red kind for their last cage cleaning because it was all that was available. It died their bellies and butts pink. I don't think it's harming them, but it looks weird as hell.

ETA: Oh hell, I took Janson out to play with and noticed that he has a little bulgy mass on his abdomen. Hopefully the vet is open tomorrow.

Tlacuache fucked around with this message at 18:48 on Jul 4, 2010

xainlich
Dec 31, 2004
So I found this great multi-level cage, about 36" tall, 24" wide. Problem is, I want to get the rats young, and the cage was a rabbit cage. The width between bars is enough to put a pack of cigarettes through. I got some chicken wire/poultry wrapping, but its galvanized steel, and the only other option is plastic. If the steel is attached with wire on the outside of the cage, they will still come in contact with it through the bars. Do I have any options here, or do I have to just wait to get the rats until I find a smaller cage?

Hoplosternum
Jun 2, 2010

:parrot:
Argh, I shouldn't have looked here. It's made me jealous about all the patterns and colours that we can't get in New Zealand. *bitter*

From left to right, this is Gwen, Sylvie & Ratamon (The girls are spayed btw)
I am learning to knit, so they got my first, holey, attempt as a blankey.


Happymeal meets Domkun.


Ratamon has a wang shaped belly spot :eek:

CompactFanny
Oct 1, 2008

xainlich posted:

So I found this great multi-level cage, about 36" tall, 24" wide. Problem is, I want to get the rats young, and the cage was a rabbit cage. The width between bars is enough to put a pack of cigarettes through. I got some chicken wire/poultry wrapping, but its galvanized steel, and the only other option is plastic. If the steel is attached with wire on the outside of the cage, they will still come in contact with it through the bars. Do I have any options here, or do I have to just wait to get the rats until I find a smaller cage?

They will be fine. Just know that if you get females, you might never be able to take that wrapping off, which case I would probably buy a smaller bar spacing cage, because galvanized steel can get pretty gross after awhile. A couple weeks/months should be ok though for them to grow into it. Got pics?

eig
Oct 16, 2008

i hope you guys have nothing against coloring your rat with food coloring cause maggie now a dinosaur :3 (its almost all faded away after like 2 days)




shadysight
Mar 31, 2007

Only slightly crazy

Hoplosternum posted:

Argh, I shouldn't have looked here. It's made me jealous about all the patterns and colours that we can't get in New Zealand. *bitter*

From left to right, this is Gwen, Sylvie & Ratamon (The girls are spayed btw)
I am learning to knit, so they got my first, holey, attempt as a blankey.


Happymeal meets Domkun.


Ratamon has a wang shaped belly spot :eek:


It depends where you live in the States. I basically have access with either white rats or white rats with black heads, unless I get really lucky.

Your babies are super cute :3:

Supercondescending
Jul 4, 2007

ok frankies now lets get in formation

eig posted:

i hope you guys have nothing against coloring your rat with food coloring cause maggie now a dinosaur :3 (its almost all faded away after like 2 days)




I used to have a cage with like 8 pew girls in it and i had them all dyed like easter eggs to tell them apart :3:

Serella
Apr 24, 2008

Is that what you're posting?

Superconsndar posted:

I used to have a cage with like 8 pew girls in it and i had them all dyed like easter eggs to tell them apart :3:

What did you use?

eig
Oct 16, 2008

food coloring !!!!

e: aka the same thign you use to dye easter eggs :xd:

eig fucked around with this message at 00:40 on Jul 8, 2010

Supercondescending
Jul 4, 2007

ok frankies now lets get in formation

eig posted:

food coloring !!!!

This

xainlich
Dec 31, 2004

CompactFanny posted:

Got pics?


Click here for the full 960x1280 image.


I don't smoke anymore, so I don't have a pack for comparison, but it's just slightly smaller than a pack. The poultry wrap is 1/4" by 1/4" squares with no powder coating. The cage is close to 36"x17.5"x24"

EDIT: For Waffleimages. I obviously haven't cleaned the cage yet, but that's next on the list. Do I just use bleach water and rinse it thoroughly?

xainlich fucked around with this message at 00:48 on Jul 8, 2010

CompactFanny
Oct 1, 2008

404 not found! Try waffleimages!

Asstro Van
Apr 15, 2007

Always check your blind spots before backing that thang up.

eig posted:

i hope you guys have nothing against coloring your rat with food coloring cause maggie now a dinosaur :3 (its almost all faded away after like 2 days)




This reminds me of when my old guy, Beanie, decided to go exploring in my fresh charcoal drawings. One of them was sort of folded over, so he ran down a charcoal tunnel.





For reference, this is what he was supposed to look like:

Click here for the full 829x375 image.

Pessimism
Aug 2, 2005

You can find this and other great titles at your local library
I was all set up to adopt a pair of boys, first rats I'd been able to have in several years, when circumstances beyond my control intervened and now I can't get them after all :smith:. I was so jazzed about this; I feel like I'm in mourning now, even though I hadn't even met them in person (ratson?) yet. My boys :(.

CompactFanny
Oct 1, 2008

xainlich posted:


Click here for the full 960x1280 image.


I don't smoke anymore, so I don't have a pack for comparison, but it's just slightly smaller than a pack. The poultry wrap is 1/4" by 1/4" squares with no powder coating. The cage is close to 36"x17.5"x24"

EDIT: For Waffleimages. I obviously haven't cleaned the cage yet, but that's next on the list. Do I just use bleach water and rinse it thoroughly?

I've seen this cage before, it's pretty popular seems like. It should be fine to use for males or large females, similar to the Ferret Nation bar spacing wise. Lots of people keep rats in unmodified ferret/rabbit cages that have 1'' spacing. I would give it a try, at least, but wrapping it with hardware cloth is going to be a GIANT pain in the rear end, due to the shape and spring locks on those doors. If you are handy with tools though, it can be done and still look ok.

For cleaning you can use bleach water, white vinegar, or an enzyme cleaner like Petzyme or my new favorite, Simple Solution (smells soooo goood :3: ). Whatever suits you.

Fat Dio
Feb 27, 2010

I have two new ratty things! They're 6 month old sisters, and they're alternating between "I'm shy, don't look at me!" and "You have food? Awesome!"

I had a terrible time getting good photos but here's Bee:


Click here for the full 966x1288 image.


And here's "I need a name for you"


Click here for the full 1288x966 image.


What's a good name for a little dark rat? Nothing's coming to me. Bee's the more dominant and outgoing one, but I haven't seen any real fights yet, just lots of "Groom me - now!". They're both crazy for oatmeal, it's hilarious.

daggerdragon
Jan 22, 2006

My titan engine can kick your titan engine's ass.

Apidae posted:

They're both crazy for oatmeal, it's hilarious.

Well, there you go. Name the little smoky one Burnt Oatmeal. :3:

shadysight
Mar 31, 2007

Only slightly crazy

Apidae posted:

They're both crazy for oatmeal, it's hilarious.

Oh, hey, this is a great idea. My rat with the terrible teeth usually has a little trouble eating by the end of month when we get her teeth trimmed again, and this seems like a great treat for her that she could actually eat. I just tried a bowl of it with her and she is also nuts for it. I even moved one of her clip on bowls from nigh-impossible to reach so she'd have easy access to it. Took her all of 10 seconds to hoard it all, so back to nigh-impossible to reach it goes :3:

Also, I come up with terrible names for my pets, so I'd be tempted to do something to pair them, like Bee&Cee, Bee&Jay or Bee&Emm.

daggerdragon
Jan 22, 2006

My titan engine can kick your titan engine's ass.

shadysight posted:

Bee&Jay

We have a winner :D

Rodent Mortician
Mar 17, 2009

SQUEAK.

shadysight posted:

Oh, hey, this is a great idea. My rat with the terrible teeth usually has a little trouble eating by the end of month when we get her teeth trimmed again, and this seems like a great treat for her that she could actually eat. I just tried a bowl of it with her and she is also nuts for it. I even moved one of her clip on bowls from nigh-impossible to reach so she'd have easy access to it. Took her all of 10 seconds to hoard it all, so back to nigh-impossible to reach it goes :3:

If it helps, I always use baby oatmeal for my rats with bad teeth. You can get it in a pour-out box and just mix it with water so no cooking!

Fat Dio
Feb 27, 2010

I've just been giving them little bits of whatever I'm having to eat, and I have oatmeal + pb every morning. Hopefully it will help make them more sociable in the daytime.

I tend to do pretty well at finding good names for my pets so I'm just waiting for one to come to me for the darker one. I don't think I could tell my Dad I have two rats named Bee and Jay! The dark one is SUUUPER shy but pretty cute, I think she may be the more cuddly one and Bee will be the one who runs off all the time.

She already found a hidey-hole I couldn't get her out of easily (space between my bed and the wall).


Click here for the full 1288x966 image.

shadysight
Mar 31, 2007

Only slightly crazy

Apidae posted:

I've just been giving them little bits of whatever I'm having to eat, and I have oatmeal + pb every morning. Hopefully it will help make them more sociable in the daytime.

I tend to do pretty well at finding good names for my pets so I'm just waiting for one to come to me for the darker one. I don't think I could tell my Dad I have two rats named Bee and Jay! The dark one is SUUUPER shy but pretty cute, I think she may be the more cuddly one and Bee will be the one who runs off all the time.

She already found a hidey-hole I couldn't get her out of easily (space between my bed and the wall).


Click here for the full 1288x966 image.


Hiding rat is cute! :3

Yeah, the name was funny, but I'm not sure I could go through with that name either. I ended up with my rats having code names for my Mother, so that Syphilis and Misogyny were Sissy and Missy around her.

I suppose I should be happy because my Syphilis is gone now, and Misogyny doesn't exist anymore! :(

I thought naming them after bad things would at least give me jokes to cheer me up when they died, but they just made me more sad. I still like telling about how I got Syphilis at a pet shop sometimes though.

Slidje
Jul 30, 2002

RAPIST
I`ll rape you till you love me
THEY ALWAYS LOVE ME BEFORE THEY DIE

Apidae posted:

pb every morning

Be VERY careful with peanut butter. Rats dont produce a lot of saliva so they can very easily choke to death on it. My rats love the stuff but i always chew it heavily before giving them some and i always always always watch them eat it. I've had 2 rats choke on some but not die, and i know one girl that wasnt so lucky.

I always save my rats something from what i eat, as long as its not spicy. Mostly they get chicken bones, tuna, eggs, biscuits and chewed toast.

Amiss
Mar 9, 2006

Pestilence is the new pink.

Slidje posted:

Be VERY careful with peanut butter. Rats dont produce a lot of saliva so they can very easily choke to death on it. My rats love the stuff but i always chew it heavily before giving them some and i always always always watch them eat it. I've had 2 rats choke on some but not die, and i know one girl that wasnt so lucky.

I finally got around to watching Wanted recently (terrible, terrible movie), and I could not get over the part where they lure rats with peanut butter. "THAT IS THE LAST THING YOU WANT TO GIVE THEM GODDAMN IT THIS MOVIE DID NOT DO ITS HOMEWORK."

Fat Dio
Feb 27, 2010

I know but it's a spoonfull mixed in with 1/4 cup of oatmeal while it's hot so it's not like I'm giving them a huge gob of it. They're fine :)

On the topic of food, it's reccomended not to give them insects because of the chance of internal parasites, but what about crickets and mealworms from the pet store? I buy them for my tarantula and it would be nice to give the ratties a live treat once in a while.

Supercondescending
Jul 4, 2007

ok frankies now lets get in formation

Apidae posted:

I know but it's a spoonfull mixed in with 1/4 cup of oatmeal while it's hot so it's not like I'm giving them a huge gob of it. They're fine :)

On the topic of food, it's reccomended not to give them insects because of the chance of internal parasites, but what about crickets and mealworms from the pet store? I buy them for my tarantula and it would be nice to give the ratties a live treat once in a while.

Totally fine, they'll love them. :) I occasionally gave mealworms to nursing moms as a protein source and they went nuts for them.

Gravity Pike
Feb 8, 2009

I find this discussion incredibly bland and disinteresting.
Is one rescue basically as good as another? I know that you guys are super-particular about your breeders, and pet stores are a no-go, but are there different "quality" rescues, or is the one a block and a half away as good as any other?

Supercondescending
Jul 4, 2007

ok frankies now lets get in formation

Gravity Pike posted:

Is one rescue basically as good as another? I know that you guys are super-particular about your breeders, and pet stores are a no-go, but are there different "quality" rescues, or is the one a block and a half away as good as any other?

99% of rat breeders suck, all pet stores suck, most rescues are varying degrees of suck, just get some rats i hope this helps

Amiss
Mar 9, 2006

Pestilence is the new pink.

Superconsndar posted:

99% of rat breeders suck, all pet stores suck, most rescues are varying degrees of suck, just get some rats i hope this helps

Title of the next Rat FAQ?

Rodent Mortician
Mar 17, 2009

SQUEAK.

Gravity Pike posted:

Is one rescue basically as good as another? I know that you guys are super-particular about your breeders, and pet stores are a no-go, but are there different "quality" rescues, or is the one a block and a half away as good as any other?

Just MHO, but there are a variety of different types of rescues. I tend to break them down into three groups:

Shelters/Humane Societies - they take whatever comes in. They'll usually do little to no socialization and probably don't provide vet care. Your range with a rat from here is anywhere from most lovable rat ever to the evilist most vile sewer rat. Diet is typically not ideal, you may be dealing with anything from parasites to tumors to aggression to nothing. Their screening standards are typically along the lines of "Are you alive?" They may even missex rats, which seems impossible, but a local shelter did give me this 'female' rat:



Generalized Rescues - rescues that don't specialize in rats or small animals but take them in whenever they must. Their care is often better than a shelter, and they'll often have sought veterinary care for the rats if they're ill, but may not have taken them to a rat savvy vet. They'll typically have a bit more screening (for example, you may be forced to prove you own a cage and are not going to hit the rat with a hammer), but in general they'll tend to have very basic ideas about rat care and will often not realize if they (or you) are doing something potentially harmful to their rats. These rats will often have at least been handled often and you'll get a general sense of whether or not the rat will bite off your finger or be a snuggler.

Specialty Rescues - these people will be rat nuts, usually. They'll have detailed descriptions of their rats, especially those with behavioral problems. They may spay or neuter their rats (and will probably encourage you to have yours done if they don't have it routinely). They'll probably have guidelines to follow on diet and caging, will likely enforce social groups (won't adopt out single rats), and will quarantine rats, provide excellent vet care, and in general will be able to hand hold you through the process. You may be put through a vet and/or home check, and they'll likely stay in touch with you for a while to make sure things are ok.

I would recommend that a rat newbie go to a specialty rescue or reputable breeder for their first rats, as they have the least likelihood to turn up with illnesses or issues. That's not to say that all shelter rats are going to be foaming plague beasts. I've pulled plenty of shelter rats that were friendly, precious, and healthy. But a lot of people use shelters as a catch-all for animals they don't feel like taking to the vet. I've picked up a ton of animals with serious health issues that probably would have died within a few days of adoption, and oftentimes the shelter staff won't notice because they're not used to dealing with exotics.

Supercondescending
Jul 4, 2007

ok frankies now lets get in formation

Amiss posted:

Title of the next Rat FAQ?

Yes please :iamafag:

Professor Wayne
Aug 27, 2008

So, Harvey, what became of the giant penny?

They actually let him keep it.
Looks like I may have a circus rat on my hands. She is about 5 months old, and this was her first day of training.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ia_Lz50-WwM

I think we are looking at the next member of the Flying Graysons.

EVG
Dec 17, 2005

If I Saw It, Here's How It Happened.
Wow! I love her flips (although unintentional) and how she climbs down the pole / chair legs. :)

Fat Dio
Feb 27, 2010

Superconsndar posted:

Totally fine, they'll love them. :) I occasionally gave mealworms to nursing moms as a protein source and they went nuts for them.

I've had rats since I was 11, my mom used to bring in earthworms, grasshoppers, grubs or whatever she'd found in the garden as a treat. I hadn't considered the internal parasites thing though.

Indigestable
Jul 26, 2007
And immoveable.
I caught my new little friends napping in their hammock this afternoon.

Tegan is the one looking at the camera; Moose is the one being sat upon.



It's bizarrely fun to figure out what foods they like. Both go nuts for garbanzo beans, lettuce, and kale, and they hate grapes.

Big Bug Hug
Nov 19, 2002
I'm with stupid*
Thats funny. Mine love grapes. Although, they've never met a food they don't like.

Dr. Spaceman
Jul 15, 2007
I want to meet that dad
Anyone have a recommendation for chew toys? My rat could not give two craps about anything I have bought her at the pet store besides maybe a Kong filled with treats :/

Gravity Pike
Feb 8, 2009

I find this discussion incredibly bland and disinteresting.

Indigestable posted:

It's bizarrely fun to figure out what foods they like. Both go nuts for garbanzo beans, lettuce, and kale, and they hate grapes.

I was about to bitch you out for feeding your rats grapes, having heard that it causes kidney failure, but I guess that only applies to dogs. The only results I could find of rats and grapes after a quick google search was that grapes seem to protect fat rats from heart disease.

So, uh, feed on, I guess.

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Spacedad
Sep 11, 2001

We go play orbital catch around the curvature of the earth, son.
Are strawberries okay? :3:

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