/r/RATS
š This is a community for our little pocket puppies! We will occasionally accept wild rat posts, but this is mainly a place to celebrate our pets! We love art, stories, videos, and photos of our potato bros! š
Sub icon by u/Chihuahuapocalypse and sub banner by u/JackFrostsKid
/r/RATS
I canāt even make this up but my rat is turning into a cat
iāve got 3 rats, nearing their second birthdays! (yay but also :( my babies are getting old). one of my rats, Pearl, has managed to continuously escape the cage to the point i gave up and just let her be (yes i replaced the cage, used metal wiring around it, did everything to try and keep her from escaping but by god she wants OUT). Iāve got 4 cats, a 5yr old domestic shorthair, and 3 ragdoll kittens. my 5yr old cat is VERY brave (heās scared of everything including my rats) and my ragdoll kittens just adore their big (but smaller) rat sisters.
my other two rats, minnie and daisy are very good girls who appreciate the carefully designed and wonderfully decorated cage their mummy has set up for them, but pearl is looking for more. over the past few months, pearl almost exclusively sits, plays, eats, and sleeps with my ragdoll kittens. iāve even had to set up a tiny ācat bowlā for pearls food next to the kittens and change the kittens litter to a rat friendly one because pearl will only use the kittens litter box from now on. wtfā¦.
absolutely adorable when iāve got my kittens snuggling and pearls just curled up in the cuddle pile or when they take turns grooming eachother š„¹š„¹ but at the same time, what?? iāve seen videos of rats getting along with their cat / dog siblings but nothing of this level. is pearl having a mid life crisis?
I'm a clean freak so I want to clean it like every few days but idk if that's good or not? What like the maximum times in a week???
Hello so i am trying to find the best litter box for my boys, they always use the bathroom in the two same corners and i clean it out every 3 days or so and iām hoping to use this as a better and easier way for them to go potty, but if anybody can help and recommend something iād be very grateful !
Hello i am looking yk expand my boys treat options and i am wondering if this is safe for them, i search and i read they can have hibiscus but iām not sure if it applies to certain brands or whatnot.
it looks gross cuz i
When I went down to feed them I noticed my ratās eye looked a little weird so I took a closer look and it seems like she has a cut starting at the bottom of her eye going down the side of her face. I canāt see it super well bc itās dark right now. Sheās acting completely normal, running around, eating, playing. Iām hoping sheās not in pain bc the earliest I can take her in is tomorrow afternoon. Does this need to go to the vet? This is my first time having rats so itās hard to gauge the severity of the situation.
jk i know they are š„°š„°š„°š„°
Hi all. I noticed my old boy (his cage mate died recently and Iām not planning on keeping rats anymore so Iām just spoiling him until itās his time) was itching and I picked him up and he has some tiny red bugs on his skin. Based on searching this sub Iām guessing theyāre lice ā is the olive oil bath the best way to get rid of them? Also can someone please reassure me that these lice will not infest me. I had head lice as an adult a few years ago and it traumatized me š Thanks!!
So basically 2 of 6 of my boys that are housed together are total opposites in size. And by that i mean one is over weight and the other is under. I took the grey one (Ollie) to the vet recently and got him meds but also wants us to start feeding separately which is something ive been trying to do. I currently scatter feed, and having a hard time figuring out of to keep their food separate so i can monitor Ollieās weight. Neither one of them eat normal food outside of their enclosure. Any ideas on how I can acheive this?
NSFW for dried blood/scabs
One of my boys get lots wounds under his mouth and around his neck and occasionally on his back. First I thought they were fighting, but even when i spend the whole day with them in a room I don't hear them fight much. Then I was worried about mites, but vet looked at them and they were OK. I'm wondering if any of you guys know what might cause these, and how I can help them? I bet they're super itchy and uncomfortable, and there's been more and more recently. Maybe hot water and a wash cloth? Any ideas?
Hello, on the hunt for a better bedding for my rats. Any good suggestions are welcome, I just heard hemp was a good choice.
My boyfriend and I just lost one of our babies today. He came home from work and found him. His brother was in the cage with him. Weāre so devastated. I know itās part of life but we think he was only around a year old. He wasnāt showing any signs of being lethargic or anything he was literally completely fine yesterday. He had respiratory issues in the past but heās been okay, he sounded a little congested but we weāre about to take him to the vet we even got insurance for them!! I just donāt understand he was completely fine yesterday. Did we do something wrong??? I couldnt live with myself if we did something that contributed to this. He seemed to be peaceful when he passed, he was laying down all comfy in a little bed he made himself in the non pill fleece blanket we have for bedding (one of them had tail issues and we were advised to use bedding that soaks up less) weāve been cleaning their cage constantly. we literally cleaned it last night. we always give our boys so much love and take them out whenever we can, I just hope he knew how much he was loved. I could really use some words of encouragement right now and I know Iām not alone but Iām so lost and confused about how this happened and these are our first rats, we just celebrated their gotcha day. Iām destroyed. Iāve experienced losing my soul dog but now my soul rat too? Iām just so completely destroyed. l just canāt understand how or why this happened. I just need a community that understands right now.
As the title of the post states what got you so interested in keeping rats as pets? (Hope this doesnāt come off as rude just genuinely curious)
Hello Im seeking tips to bond w a traumatized rat, it was from a lab and the only times they grabed them or interacted with them was on cleaning day for their box. the thing is that i got her 2 new sisters since she has only let me pet her (w only 1 finger) and trust me enough to grab food of my hand and run away with it, the thing is that it has been 4 month (i know it was horrible for her to be alone w no other rats around but i had to ask and convice my parents to allow me have more rats)
Pd im also having problems introducing each other since Morgana (the lab rat) has fight her new sisters, she would even follow em to like scare them away( they were in my bed, i belived it to be the most neutral spot for them to meet)
Tzipi yawning while old lady Nyxx uses her as a pillow.
please send prayers heās in surgery today š
dizzy is having to be put under today, I dropped him off 5 hours ago and havenāt got the call yet. They told me they were going to do him last so that heād have a nurse to sit by him as he wakes up. Iāve felt sick all day and so anxious for my little powder puff. Please send us some love and encouragement šā¤ļøš„ŗ
Hi I'm gonna get rats at some point [soon I think] and I've learnt some stuff but I wanna make sure everything is right and perfect if you have any tips or suggestions please send them thank you so much! :) [super excited btw!]
What i imagine what she's thinking: Me: awe bunzi you love your teddy bear Bunzi probably: I don't want that stupid panda you keep shoving It in my face and on my body every second you see me asleep Meb; bunzi and her teddyš„°š„° Bunzi; goddammitt woman stop putting it in all the places I sleep
Bunzi is a single 2yr old old lady very sweet spoilt girl
Hereās a terrible video but my male rat is making this very loud noise when heās excited but itās not his usual noise. Almost sounds like really bad congestion. Itās not always really loud. He doesnāt have any additional symptoms like sneezing or runny nose.
For context, I'm getting my ever rat(s!) towards the end of next month after three years of waiting and research. What beginner advice / info that I won't find anywhere else can you provide? :>