Exotic Pets : How to Care for Rats

When caring for rats, it's important to get a good cage because rats are intelligent and can often escape. Make sure to provide a rat with plenty of toys with help from the manager of a pet store in this free video on pet rats.

Expert: Ashlee
Bio: Ashlee has been the manager of Pet Planet in Riverton, Utah for the last three years.
Filmmaker: Michael Burton

[DespairsAi]

like I said, I always use Aspen as it has never harmed any of my rats. The type of bedding she suggested in the video is very dusty and has made my previous rats sneeze and scratch. I've never once had problems using aspen wood bedding. My newest rat Madrox is very content and hasn't had any problems.

[odduckOasis]

Aquariums aren't the most ideal, though as long as you keep them clean, they're fine, but for one rat only if it's a 10 gallon. They need ventilation and an aquarium doesn't provide quite enough. However, you can get wire cage toppers in order to allow them to climb around, keeping the potty and whatnot on the lower levels and also keeping the bedding from being tossed all over creation (they love digging and tossing stuff). They won't run on the wheel, too smart, teach them tricks instead!

[CocaineDragon]

Depending on the set-up of the aquarium it can be boring for them, although I have seen and heard of some very elaborate set-ups. But the main issue with a tank is that they have poor ventilation, making it very warm and uncomfortable for the rats as well as meaning that you have to clean it way more often to protect from respiratory infections which they are very prone to.

[cumgullet]

I love the fact that she suggests using a paper not wood shaving based bedding as they suffer from respiratory problems, and oh look at that she's using wood shavings!

[DespairsAi]

That dust is the reason why I don't use it for my rat. I use Aspen. It's pretty soft and low in oils and dust so she doesn't sneeze near as much as she did with carefresh

[PossumKing]

Well I have a 40G tank for my two pet rats. They're medium sized, but actually quite small. Is this okay? I'm a first time pet rat owner. Any advice will be appreciated.

[Margalicious]

i had a hamster once when i was really young and i put him in an aquarium... he was probably smarter than most rats, and escaped multiple times by climbing up the water bottle and pushing up on the top of the cage

[grantjf]

DON'T use tanks, they are bad for your rats respiratory system, plus they don't have space to climb. also, make sure to get a nice big cage, the cage in the video is extremely small and should not hold that many rats. The cage needs at least 2 cubic feet per rat. The bedding you want to use may not have sents in them and cannot be pine or cedar beddings, if you plan on using a homemade bedding, don't use anything with inks. The best beddings to get should be paper based. If you have a two story or more cage (don't get a one story cage, it's too small and they don't have space to climb), make sure it doesn't have wires, because that can cause bumblefoot. Make sure your rats have lots of toys, and you need to get at least two rats. You do not have enough time to spend with your rats to keep them happy, so make sure to get two, I can't stress that out enough. Let your rats have free range time every once and a while so you can spend time with them. Rats love hammocks so make sure to have a couple, and have lots of places they can hide in the cage. Cutting small boxes out is a cheap idea if you don't have the money to buy a hideout from the store, plus your rats will really enjoy ripping the box up. Saving toilet paper rolls is a good idea too, you can make a bunch of stuff with it. Rats love treats too, you can feed them practically anything, but make sure to see the things they can't eat. You need to give the rats greens very often. If you visit the dapper rat, they have lots of stuff to make for your rats. That is most of how to keep your rat healthy, there is a lot more to cover and you can comment me questions, or look online, either way works :)

[rattielover]

Don't you just love how she mentions how important it is to have the right bedding for them because of their sensitive respiratory systems and completely bypasses the fact that a few seconds before that suggests keeping them in a tank! She obviously knows nothing about rats otherwise she would know that they should not be kept in tanks. They have no opportunities to climb and more importantly have very, very poor ventilation. Please anyone watching this video and thinking of getting rats for the

[TheChannyj]

I had a dwarf rat before.... he didn't want/like to be held at ALL. Are you able to hold yours?

[mrsethcorbin]

Just wondered why you had a wheel up there with the other accessories?

[LuvOfCavys]

These baby rats ate adorable, but I defiantly would keep my rarities in a glass aquarium.

[rattielover]

Look up "Savic royal suite" now that's a rat cage! This is what I keep mine in and it's perfect!

[yankovic]

@TheYoghurt42 the wood shavings is bad
but the aquarium is okay IF it is reasonably large and you have a lid that will keep it well ventalated and you provide the rat with plenty of climbing toys

[wizzyjo]

@dreamera1 aspen is generally okay for rats. as its a hardwood it doesnt contain the same oils as softwoods which is what the toxic parts of shavings/sawdust are. some people do prefer not to use it as it can be dusty. its best if you can find dust extracted aspen but if not then it should generally be fine anyways and is a 100% better choice than soft wood shavings or sawdust :)

[wasabi]

I have an aquarium and it works well but I let it air out by letting them out more it keeps the cage kinda cleaner and gives them exercise more so I just let them out more

[TheYoghurt]

@kobel64 I'm sorry, I don't know how big 10 gallons is (I live in New Zealand and we use the metric system). However tanks aren't the best choice in general because they don't allow air flow and so smells build up which is not good for your rats' delicate respiratory systems.

[ruzzzler]

can some one tell me if i can raise a wild rat or mouse? we have 2 or 3 mice and or rats running around the house and i dont want to kill them, i could let them into the wild but id be nice to tame em.

[Ilovemypetrats]

Small rats(as labeled by the pet store) WILL grow into medium sized rats if they are females and large if they are males, they are sized for snake owners conveniences. Aquariums are not only bad bc they are tiny but also bc they have bad air circulation and are the reason why most rats developed respiratory illnesses. Get your rats into a wire ferret cage with a solid floor ASAP!

[ratmaster]

@MissHeartOfGold22, what is the best bedding for rats then?