The Rat Room

And a little common sense. In this day and age, there is absolutely no excuse for the improper care of a pet. With all this user friendly technology holding a wealth of information and even the mass publications at your local and free library, everyone should give the very best care necessary to keep your pet healthy and happy.
On the Rat Shack, we see so many rescue stories with our members. They pick up so and so from an online ad, most of us see the pics and some of us probably think the animal is on his last legs but no, due diligence as well as some TLC brings this animal back to life. Literally. Recently, one “case” has really opened our eyes. Shade was adopted by one of our members, lilspaz68. She’s a hospice and rescue so when Shade came in, lilspaz68 was fully prepared to care for her. Some good food, clean habitat, antibiotics for any infections, revolution to treat possible mites or lice and a friendly loving place to call home gave Shade the chance she deserved to be the happy healthy rat she should be. The pictures are incredible. I couldn’t believe my eyes after a couple of months in lilspaz68′s care what a difference it has done to Shade. She has even shed her poor black (brown) coat and molted into a beautiful shiny black girl. She’s gained weight, she’s bright eyed and happy. The way a rat should be.
Please do your research when adopting a pet. Proper food, big clean habitat and friends to play with is a must for rats. Be a good pet caregiver. Be their companion, as they are yours.

Shade in October:

Shade in January:

Too many times new rat parents are faced with an issue they don’t understand and can even have a hard time explaining it. One of our members on the Rat Shack is our go to girl for anything medical and health related when it comes to rats. She’s a rescue and hospice and has seen, treated, comforted so many rats with medical issues. From toe nail wounds to enucleations of the eye. lispaz68 had the good sense to record many of the ailments her rescues have had. I’ve asked for her help and permission to compile her videos and place in them in one spot. You will be able to find them here in the Rat Room but more importantly, it will also be in the Rat Shack in the Reference section.

Many many thanks to Lilspaz68 for putting this together for us to learn, research and do better for our rats.

HED Hind End Degeneration. There can be a number of reason why a rat develops this progressive condition, pituitary tumour, arthritis, spinal tumour to name a few.

Here is Declan, starting his HED, not fully developed yet. This can progress slowly or quite fast.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/Declan/?action=view&current=DeclanwalkingHED.mp4

Head Tilt due to a neurological event. Head tilt is sadly becoming more common than it once was. It is a common symptom of an ear infection as well as early pituitary tumour. Most rats will adapt and live full and happy lives with their head tilt.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/Lilith/?action=view&current=JillsneurosymptomsSep24.mp4

Severe head tilt and spinning. This condition can be caused by an ear infection, a pituitary tumour or some other neurological event. It is imperative that you seek a vet for antibiotics and even steroids to help alleviate the symptoms.
Here, Fred is showing a tilt and spinning.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/Fred%20and%20Marley/?action=view&current=DSCF6068.mp4

Hind end spasms. These are quite common, mostly in aging rats especially those with spinal nerve degeneration. In the video, Asha has a nerve twitch in toes and haunch.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/medical/Videos/?action=view&current=DSCF5169.mp4

Anesthetics side effect. It’s always a risk when going through surgery. Anesthesia can have side effects but even more so when the right combo of drugs is not given correctly or in too high a dose.
Here is poor Wilbur recovering from a simple neuter. It took him several hours to overcome the effects of anesthetic overdose.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/medical/Spays%20and%20Neuters/?action=view&current=DSCF4214.mp4

Open mouth breathing. Gasping is a progressive symptom of a serious respiratory infection. Pinta, a five week old baby is struggling with her congestion. It is necessary to bring your rat to a vet before it gets to this point.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/medical/Videos/?action=view&current=Pinta5weekoldbabywithresp.mp4
Another rat Bradley with gasping and panicking movements, coastal breathing.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/medical/Videos/?action=view&current=DSCF9657.mp4

Babies on Board! This is a great video. You can see Lilith’s babies moving about, hours before they were born.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/Lilith/?action=view&current=DSCF7530.mp4

In Estrus. Here’s a funny video of a female in heat. They flutter their ears as part of their mating dance.
Bella is demonstrating her skills.
http://s61.photobucket.com/albums/h75/rattiluv/medical/Miscellaneous/?action=view&current=Bellainheat.mp4

Please visit the Rat Shack, it contains a wealth of information and experiences from long time rat lovers.

Of course we already knew that.
But scientists put it to the test and have found rats to have empathy and pro-social behaviour. In the study, they trapped a cage mate in a tube, while the free rat had the choice to release the cage mate or move on to something else. On average the free rat, released his cage mate before doing anything else. The article goes more into details. There is also a video to show the difference the rats faced with a trapped cage mate, a trapped stuffed toy or nothing in the tube.
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/334/6061/1427.full.html

Over the years, I’ve experienced my share of rat empathy and social capabilities. I remember once, my old girl Bijou was being harassed by 3 young bucks. My Mielle out of nowhere during out time must have sensed Bijou’s worried signals because she bounded back to the cage and found Bijou at the bottom. Mielle pushed the big bucks away and convinced Bijou to enter a tube by nudging her gently into it. When Bijou was in it, one end was already blocked, Mielle dutifully placed herself at the open end, daring any of the young boys to come near. That day, I knew just how special rats truly are.

A must read for all pet owners… a fantastic book by Karen Pryor. This book gives you an insight on how animals think. Animals can learn from us and are eager to do so. We are their teachers and we must do so gently and with lots of fun. Sure, animals can be trained using fear, pain and intimidation but why not do it with fun?
Not only can you train rats to do tricks but you can also shape their behaviour. You can help them figure out how to react differently. Instead of biting out of fear, you can click them away from the source.
My sister was having a lot of trouble doing intros with her group. Two males, both were neutered but Neko was literally launching himself onto Bruno. This was not good. I talked to my sister about clicker training her two boys into not wanting to hurt each other and to have a cue word that could be used to separate the two. This was something even I have never attempted and didn’t know how well it would take.
Nic used her tongue as the clicker. She used pumpkin seeds for treats and the cue word was off. The word was not introduced until the shaped behaviour was strong.
During out time, Nic watched the rats closely, when Neko moved close to Bruno, the slight turn of his head earned him a click and a treat. It didn’t take long for him to associate turning away from Bruno to a click and treat. He was doing it all the time. Finally, Nic added the word off to the turn away. Neko was having so much fun running to Bruno, sniffing him and turning away for his click and treat, it became a game. Then Nic worked on Bruno. She had both boys running to each other, sniffing and turning and running to her for the treat. She had all her rats moved in together within a week. Her intro attempts had started last July and she never could get beyond 2 or 3 days. Yet after only one week of clicker training they are living together. And Nic no longer needed the clicker or treats. The boys didn’t associate each other with aggression, it’s like they couldn’t remember why they didn’t like each other in the first place. But Nic wanted to see if a month later, the word Off would work. Sure enough…she yelled off and they turned away from what they were doing. Amazing!

The boys Neko and Bruno.

We’ll never know. Did you ever have a friend? Probably not. Did you ever have the right food, and comfy fleece in your cage to keep you warm? Sure doesn’t look like it. Did you get any care at all for your illnesses and injuries? Definitely not.
We are all so sorry your life ended before it could begin again like it should’ve. It looks like your nakie skin was chilled on a metal pan in an old fashioned dog kennel, I don’t see bedding, toys. I do see you, your eye damaged, probably gone septic, probably suffering badly until finally your spirit had to let go of your weakened body.

A friend of mine responded to an ad on Kijiji, a typical ad that goes like this:
I have up for grab is my hairless rat FREE, yes free.
Just him no accessories and must be gone today as
we are leaving …

BRING YOUR OWN CONTAINER.

The little guy never made it. This is no way to treat a rat. Rats are not toys or possessions, they deserve love and respect, they deserve proper care.
There are countless ads online of owners who no longer care for their rat or perhaps never cared for them at all. There are even ads that states the rats will be left outside in the woods… what? Why do people think rats can live outdoors, in the wild? Pet rats were born and raised to be with humans. Domesticated rats have different needs.
Please… if you want a rat, do your research. If for some reason you need to rehome your rat, please take your time and find the right home for him.
Rats are beautiful, social and loving animals. Be kind to them.

This little guy clearly never had a chance. RIP wee one.

Then don’t get the pet. Yes, I’m preaching today.
I don’t think it can be said enough… when you adopt or buy a pet, you must set aside a vet fund. These animals will get sick. It’s a given. At some point, your healthy pet will need vet care, by a professional doctor of veterinarian medicine. Rats truly are resilient and adapt quite well but when they are hit by something like mycoplasmosis, they need the proper medicine for a quick and complete recovery. There are many websites out there that give alternatives to vet care, these sites are WRONG. Please, don’t give your rat, fish medicine when he is sick. Don’t give your rat, bird medicine that you can buy in pet stores. They don’t work. They simply alleviate the symptoms but it will come back stronger thus making it even harder to treat. On average, I’d say a rat will run you about $500, that’s if you don’t get your rat altered, or get check ups or any surgeries. On average rats remain healthy until about 18 months of age. That is not an old rat. That is a middle aged rat. Rats can live beyond 2 years, they have the potential to make it to 3 or even 4. There are circumstances where even the most dedicated pet owner with all the vet care in the world still can’t prevent an early death but the point is that some rats, many rats will live beyond 2 years old.
Lets talk vet prices for altering your pet, tumour removals… you are looking at an average of $300 for spays, $200 for neuters, $500 for tumour removals. In some areas, it is much cheaper but the bottom line is, it’s expensive. So when you pick up that sweet, tiny baby rat(s) do yourself and your baby a favour and start your vet fund immediately. Put away $15 a month. By the time they reach 18 months old, you’ll already have over $250 saved up. You’ll feel better about yourself and you’ll know your rat(s) will get the care he/she deserves.

Recently on The Rat Shack, a member brought up the question about moving rats. Is it stressful on them, is it a good idea? From my experience, it all depends on the rat or the colony. Some rats are so bonded they really shouldn’t be moved away from their cage buddies. Yet there are other rats who really aren’t attached and don’t mind going through changes. There are also rats who need the simple routine in their lives and a change causes them much stress.
There comes a time when a move is necessary. This would be the time to observe your rats and really make sure that the move is required and that you won’t be posing too much stress on them. When should one consider a move? Some aging rats develop Hind End Degeneration. Once a rat has HED his habitat should be changed to accommodate him. A lot of people choose to create a retirement home for their oldies. Of course you shouldn’t pull your rat away from the colony to live alone but you observe your rats and find a buddy that would also benefit the move.
There might also come a time where in some cases, like what I chose to do was to pull a rat from a colony to pair up with a rat from a different colony in order to avoid a rat living alone. This I do with a lot of thinking and planning. I am usually totally against breaking up a colony. Rats bond and it would be a shame to break such bonds. So you observe your rats and you make sure that the rat has a good stable energy and temperament and wouldn’t mind so much the change.
Soon, I will be moving three girls from their single Critter Nation home into the colony cage. Intros are going so well, I know that the transition will go smoothly and will most likely be welcome by the three.

Here are some pics of the cages and of the rats exploring each other’s cages.

Sansa watching George explore her cage.

Bree exploring the soon to be her cage.

I’ve always been a huge advocate of only one sex homes or altering different sexes. It is human nature to want to reproduce and hook up with a mate. I’ve always had my females spayed so it was never an issue in my home. The primary reason for me was always to be very secure so accidentals litters are 100% prevented. In June I adopted some older males and didn’t need to have them neutered since my one female is spayed. But then I adopted 3 females, middle age I would say but certainly in their prime. They are awaiting their spay which is this coming week. (thank god) My rats are safely separated in proper cages so I’m not worried for an accidental mating. But… more so than anything else, is the changed behaviour in rats. They are constantly trying to get to each other. The one intact male is getting all stressed out over the smells of the girls. He is relentless and has become quite the bully. I’ve also noticed a slight change in the girls. They too are stressed out and needing to visit the intact males. People might not think their rats are stressed out due to the intact two sexes in the home, but don’t be fooled, they are. All animals left intact will have the natural need to mate. It’s a strong need and can change behaviour into an aggressive determination. All I can say is I can’t wait for my girls to be spayed. I’m not used to this kind of havoc, it’s quite unpleasant for all involved.

George and Sansa

That’s the title on a kijiji ad. Might as well have put up a big neon sign saying: SNAKE FOOD.
So I emailed them and went and picked up the little biter. The female silver fawn rat is an older rat, already with muscle loss near the spine and darkened under feet. I’m placing her at about 18 months old. She’s shy but that’s to be expected but definitely not a biter. This sweet little girl will cuddle and close her eyes while enjoying head pats. She’s tiny, only 230 grams but otherwise she seems in good health. I’m having her spayed on August 2nd… and then she will be introed to the colony. I’m sure she will be a most welcomed addition especially for Ferdinand. I’m sure Teddy and George will forget he exists with this beauty around.

Welcoming Bree:

Exploring the rat castle:

In June, I adopted 3 older rats to add to the colony. Buddies Teddy and George are bullies but not in a mean way. The hold up right now I’m having is Ferdinand. He can’t seem to accept Teddy and George. I can’t seem to figure out why that is. Ferdy is quite fine with the residents, even young buck Doc. So why are Teddy and George on his no friends list? I’ve been observing T and G for a while now, sure they are big and strong, and some rat might even say a bit of a bully but they don’t hiss, they don’t hit, they don’t grab, bite or scratch. They do however command the space. Teddy seems to have a very strong presence in the cage, not a bad thing really. He’s the alpha for sure. George however is turning out to be quite the gem. He’s a bit shy with me, although he’ll lick me to death, he also doesn’t really like noise and sudden movements. But one thing he does like… rats. He’s now the cage guardian. A couple of weeks ago, Meeko, one of the resident rats was struggling with a nasty URI, most likely pulmonary abscesses. George took care of Meeko. One day, as I gave them all their veggies, George grabbed a big piece of romaine and ran up the ramp with it. He deposited within a few cms of Meeko’s nose. He waited for Meeko to pick it up and start eating it before turning around and joining the others downstairs gorging themselves on their food. It melted my heart to see George who is relatively new to the group take on such an important role. A few days before that, during intros, he threw himself between his bro Teddy and Ferdinand. Ferdinand had been whining and screaming like a little girl… George knew he had to move in to calm the situation. I might go as far as saying that George is like Gera, except Gera has no fear of anything. He lives in the moment and accepts all things. This colony is shaping up to be another awesome group.

Ferd and George