The BRODENTS! Rodent Enthusiast Thread!

[n e m o]

Some people really like exotics, but permits and such make it a pain to own wildlife (with good reason, however!). If they are kept in the proper enclosure and cared for the way they are supposed to be I don't see any major issue with it. Rats and other rodents started out the same as chipmunks, they were wildlife and were domesticated. If someone has the passion enough to go through all it takes to adopt chipmunks I don't see a reason to persuade them against it, even if there are plenty of domesticated companion pets to choose from. =P

Since they're on the topic right now I thought I'd share a photograph I took of a chipmunk on vacation a few weeks ago.


Also, y'all are making me want a hamster with all your cuties... I will have to live vicariously through your little munchkins!

------ Salty Health Update;
He's doing so great, I hope nothing goes wrong and he continues to get better. <3

Here he is cuddled up with his brother this evening.

Also, check out all these meds. ;n;


And if anyone is curious, here is a dry herb mixture I give my boys;

(finally mixed it up in a jar a few days ago instead of opening each bag... so much easier. xD;

[vulturous]

And if anyone is curious, here is a dry herb mixture I give my boys;

(finally mixed it up in a jar a few days ago instead of opening each bag... so much easier. xD;

could you list out what herbs they are?

[n e m o]

Sure, I don't mind. ouo

It has the following so far: (from left to right in bags)
Chickweed
Garlic Flakes
Oregano
Dill
Peppermint
Milk Thistle Seed
Cumin Seed
Eucalyptus
and Dandelion Root

I mix powder form herbs and spices into their cooked mix after it's cooled, such as spirulina, cinnamon, all spice and nutmeg. I also mix in wheat germ oil, and a probiotic blend.

[vulturous]

Sure, I don't mind. ouo

It has the following so far: (from left to right in bags)
Chickweed
Garlic Flakes
Oregano
Dill
Peppermint
Milk Thistle Seed
Cumin Seed
Eucalyptus
and Dandelion Root

I mix powder form herbs and spices into their cooked mix after it's cooled, such as spirulina, cinnamon, all spice and nutmeg. I also mix in wheat germ oil, and a probiotic blend.

how much do all of those cost when you need to buy them and where do you get it? the herbs we have are found for cooking in name brand stores or in feed stores, but i find it difficult to acquire all of them.

[clover.]

I own a male Syrian hamster named Squiggles. :3

Here are some pics of him. C:

[n e m o]

^ He has such cute ears!

@ { sureile. }
I found them at an organic grocery store, they ranged from approximately $1 to $6 each bag. If you can't find them where you live you might look into online sites that sell in bulk? I found this site that seemed to have prices similar to what I paid, for example:
http://www.bulkherbstore.com/

I wouldn't buy from chain stores because they have small bottles that cost much more than you would want to pay to supplement your rats. I tried that with my normal grocery stores and I was like 'OMG I CAN NEVER AFFORD THIS' and then I lucked into another little store that has loads of bulk supplies so I didn't have to order online. My advice is don't give up, explore other options for purchasing supplies. c:

----------;

With Salty being so sick it made me think more about my first rat, Aero... I miss him so much and Salty reminds me the most of him out of my current 4 so I was taking it a little harder due to that.


I thought I would share a photo of him since he's been on my mind a lot more than usual, he is the reason why I will always be partial to rats. I saw him one day at a reptile shop that I frequented, sitting in the feeder bin, and without any hesitation I asked to see him (more like I was freaking out to get him out of the $1 feeder bin before a snake owner)... I just couldn't tolerate him being dinner. He was so scared and had never been socialized, he was probably 5-6 weeks old, but when the guy let me hold him he clung to me for dear life and I was smitten. I had read books about rats and wanted one for years but my parents refused, however, I was 18 at the time and decided to sneak him in. I stored his cage in a bookshelf that had a fabric cover and took him everywhere with me... his cage was basically for sleeping hours, lol. One day (a few months later) while I was at work my mom went in my room to grab my flat iron and when he heard footsteps he grabbed his palm tree with a bell on it and shook it (which he always did when I entered the room to say "welcome home, come get me!") and the rat was out of the bag. >_>; He was a loner for about a year and we became extremely bonded, all my friends knew him and he spread the rat love bug onto people who would never think twice about them. He never showed any form of aggression to any human or any other rat, he wanted nothing more than a shoulder, lap or hoodie pocket to sleep in, treats and scritches behind his ears. I will miss him forever and I know that no rat will ever be able to take his place.

Anyone else have a heart rat/rodent?

[rachaelandrats]

(Posting so this shows up on my search).

[kay.]

For people who said mice, I'm never planning to get a mouse again (don't bother asking), I WAS going to get one rat but me & my mum fell in love with chipmunks, rats aren't completely crossed off but my dad has a 90% chance to say no to them (about 75% to say yes to chipmunks), I don't want to 'replace' my deceased guinea pig with another one, my family was planning on a chinchilla before a dog but I actually never was too sure on them, there are no degus or sugar gliders around. So its a chipmunk that can't be replaced with another rodent. Apparently the chipmunks at the breeders' have been handled since birth and love to jump into your hand.

[n e m o]

If you would only get one rat I would push you even more toward chipmunks.
Keeping a single rat is cruel.

[vulturous]

If you would only get one rat I would push you even more toward chipmunks.
Keeping a single rat is cruel.

any rat owner/specialist would tell you the same, too. i don't know who bernard or navin would snuggle with all day if either one of them were gone. we were gone nearly half the day and i know if either were alone he would of gone crazy. :/