The BRODENTS! Rodent Enthusiast Thread! V2

[Agent Maine(Meta)]

@drift
You'd actually be surprised. This isn't a neurological issue and this actually does happen. 9/10 rats are social but there will always be that one who isn't as social as others and prefer their own space at the end of the day. Similarly to humans. Humans are social creatures as well. But you'll always have a human who isn't as social.
So i'm not going to PTS or rehome my rat just because he's an introvert and not an extrovert.
Its just the hand life has dealt him after all.

[drift.]

Rats aren't like humans who just wanna be antisocial and chill at home on the couch watching Netflix.
No rat is just "I don't like other rats, I'm an introvert"

We need to look at the actual reason for this behavior.
It is generally poor socialization - they may have been taken from mom too early or never had positive social experiences/weren't able to learn these social cues. So they don't get what the other rats are saying and/or they behave in appropriate.
This doesn't mean they don't WANT to be ratty friends. They just don't understand how to. They still are lonely. They are still depressed and sad.

Or they just have poor temperament or hormonal issues. Or likely a mix of all three!
Again this isn't because they don't want to have friends, they just aren't behaving properly with their friends. They are afraid or just a bully.

But it is written in their DNA, their instinct and very nature to be social animals.
Not being able to do so well because of issues doesn't mean they don't want to or have a need for friends.
They are not happy. And this is actually the same for people! I know because I have social anxiety! People need other people. There are buttloads of science that prove this! We do not do well on our own either. There can be underlying causes that make it difficult and sure all of us may like a night alone which isn't the same as spending our entire lives alone with no human contact.
A person is not a rat. You don't speak rat. You can't snuggle the same or play the same. And most importantly you aren't there 24/7. Rats do not stay up X hours and then sleep like humans do. They are up and active for a bit if time, rest and back up. Your sleep/job/errands/life really sucks for that rat.
And lastly, happiness is hard to judge in animals. People always think their lone rat is happy. Look how happy it seems when it sees me!

If I were starving to death and someone gave me the most disgusting food imaginable that I would never touch normally, I may very well eat it up like it was the most delicious food ever! I'd lick the plate clean!
Well, that's the same thing! The rat is lonely and starving for attention.
You are all it has and so of course when it sees you it may appear super happy... Until you are not there.

As a responsible breeder I do believe it is my job to educate on behalf of proper care and husbandry. This post can be for anyone with a lone rat who needed that last 'push' to understand why it is so detrimental to their health and well-being. The first post on the front page explicitly states in red that improper care will not be tolerated. In fact, you can choose to do nothing about your lone rat and not heed any advice given, we would never know as long as you didn't bring it up again. But I implore you to make the right decision for a loved pet that would end up in a less than ideal, and personally cruel situation.

I would ask for studies showing where having a single rat is appropriate, but I doubt there are any.

[sagittarius.]

Username: sagittarius.
Favorite type of rodent: dwarf hamsters
Tell us about your pets: i have two female robo dwarf hamsters, and i've had them for about six months now. although they are sisters they have completely different personalities. tiny loves to have a cuddle and to free roam around my room, whereas almond thinks everything is food and loves to have a nibble of everyone she meets
Other: i've owned syrians, robos, guinea pigs and rabbits, but my knowledge is most thorough in the care of robos and guinea pigs

[gamorasass]

Username: sagittarius.
Favorite type of rodent: dwarf hamsters
Tell us about your pets: i have two female robo dwarf hamsters, and i've had them for about six months now. although they are sisters they have completely different personalities. tiny loves to have a cuddle and to free roam around my room, whereas almond thinks everything is food and loves to have a nibble of everyone she meets
Other: i've owned syrians, robos, guinea pigs and rabbits, but my knowledge is most thorough in the care of robos and guinea pigs

welcome, friend! c:

[dyingdinorat]

Username: ♡⬊ŋųɬƈąʂɛ⬋♡
Favorite type of rodent: syrian hammy
Tell us about your pets: currently i have a cat, but am looking into either an amphibian of some sort or, hopefully, a hamster!
Other: nothing really (:

[quirkcirc]

Username: QuirkCirc
Favorite type of rodent: Hamsters, they're very adorable and also very gnarly!! [size=85]gotta love those little homicidal balls of fluff lol
Tell us about your pets: I currently have five dwarf campbell hamsters!! They're all boys and since I got them from the same breeder, they're all related in someway (uncle, cousin, nephew, brother).
Their names are (from oldest to youngest): Butterball, Baseball, Riceball, and Toilet Bowl. The youngest doesn't have a name yet (suggestions are appreciated!!)
They all live in separate cages except for brothers Riceball and Toilet Bowl who get along very well.
Other: For the past four years I've had several dwarves (and two syrians). I have insomnia so we're usually awake at the same times and they keep me company. Also, the white noise of them running on their wheels and playing helps me sleep.
Suggestions on what to name my newest hamster are welcome. He's an argente campbell so very creamy coat and red eyes. He likes carrots and is a bit of an escape artist.

[eff]

how much would you say to save before getting a mouse (potentially one male or three females)?
im currently looking at a 25 gallon tank and a 10 gallon tank, which would be between
50 pounds and 110. other than the expenses for the mice themselves (+ enclosure), how
much for everything else, like bedding and money to put aside in case of a vet trip?

[drift.]

I like to have $200 minimum in emergency visits for my rats, though I've never used it because rats can be given medications easily at home with the right tools.

For bedding, use pine, (paper is not appropriate) and it controls ammonia like a boss.
- this can be obtained at a local feed store in bulk for really cheap.
I go to tractor supply and it's 5.99 for a huge compressed bag of fine shavings that lasts months.

- For food I highly recommend a rodent block, specifically Mazuri 6f. It is directly targeted for mice and all of their nutritional needs. Again, source a feed/farm store who either carries it for you or will have it shipped to their store. Buying directly from Mazuri is rather costly. It's about $35 for a 50 lb bag when purchased locally instead.

- Toys and enrichment is tricky to say, since I get creative and mostly use recycling (like paper tubes, cardboard anything, etc)

- I use food hoppers as enrichment and to lower food costs, and these can be made cheap with some hardware cloth 1/2 ", and plastic hay holder (for like guinea pigs)

TLDR;; If you're smart about it, I think realistically you could gather everything basic for under $100.
Naturalistic setups are also great, so cocofiber dig boxes and safe-to-chew branches and logs for exploring would make fun things to add.

[pizzas and scream]

how do you rodent fans deal with feelings when and if you have mice ruining your house and pooping in your food?

[nervousdog]

how do you rodent fans deal with feelings when and if you have mice ruining your house and pooping in your food?

Humane traps to remove pests . I loved my rats more than anything, but a wild animal is a bit different- especially when they become a pest problem .
Glue traps are inhumane and sad . They will also trap other animals to die a sad fate and not just the mice you are looking to trap .
A live trap is something that would work, and then you could relocate the caught mice to a different area, far away from your home . But that only leads to it's own moralities of tossing the mice into a place where they wont thrive or sometimes survive .
I personally dont mind snap traps as they provide a quick end so the animal does not suffer long .

Wild rodents can carry many things that you dont want; fleas, illnesses, etc . They breed super fast too, and feeding off of the food in your home can allow them to explode in population . Its just an unhygienic situation and when it happens you just have to push your feelings for domesticated rodents aside and take care of it .