Calling All Rat Lovers/Owners!

[vein]

This is my new baby, Ladybug!
She's not in very good shape right now,
with bumblefoot and overgrown teeth/nails,
as well as (healed at this point) once torn up ears,
but I'm 100% devoted to make her healthy again.
I have such an affinity for self-black dumbos lol.
I've had three at this point- Titan, Meatball, and now her
(Meatball is the one in my profile pic).

[Tupfensplitter]

I have two female rats. You can find pictures of them in my signature.

[claypigeon]

so, I'm looking into getting a rat, here's what I'm wondering.
It seems that with so little breeders in my area my only choice would be a pet store rat. I'm just asking, does anyone have a really tame pet store rat? Is it possible to have one, and if I wanted it super tame what age should I get it at?

[heartleafed]

i've had some very tame petstore rats in the past, it's less of a what age and more of a what temperament to look for (since i have babies i've had since they were four weeks still be skittish because they're just very poorly bred rats)

it can be hard to tell but typically the ones that are more willing to interact with you and let them pick them up at the store are going to be more friendly, depending on the store they may let you handle them yourself they may not, ask about it

also you can always try rescues and people trying to independently rehome their rats, since sometimes they're giving away supplies too


even so you can find taming guides online, starting with a rat with a good personality really helps the process though

[ShadyBro]

so, I'm looking into getting a rat, here's what I'm wondering.
It seems that with so little breeders in my area my only choice would be a pet store rat. I'm just asking, does anyone have a really tame pet store rat? Is it possible to have one, and if I wanted it super tame what age should I get it at?

Definitely check a rescue first, though I know they're few and far between. They will know their rats and their temperaments far better than any pet store or even most breeders. Temperament is pretty much 50/50 how they're raised and how well they're bred, so scooping a babe up out of a pet store and expecting to be able to tame it down is a gamble. Some of my feeder bin rats have lived and died here without ever coming around, while others turned into amazing wonderful pets right off the bat. If you are going to go the pet store route, I've found that bringing them home in pairs (even if you already have other rats at home) helps a lot for the more skittish babes. Just remember that most of these rats, even the ones featured and sold as 'pets', all come from the same dark place in most cases, and expecting them to come out of that totally unscathed mentally is a bit far fetched.

[cornspurrd.]

so, I'm looking into getting a rat, here's what I'm wondering.
It seems that with so little breeders in my area my only choice would be a pet store rat. I'm just asking, does anyone have a really tame pet store rat? Is it possible to have one, and if I wanted it super tame what age should I get it at?

Definitely check a rescue first, though I know they're few and far between. They will know their rats and their temperaments far better than any pet store or even most breeders. Temperament is pretty much 50/50 how they're raised and how well they're bred, so scooping a babe up out of a pet store and expecting to be able to tame it down is a gamble. Some of my feeder bin rats have lived and died here without ever coming around, while others turned into amazing wonderful pets right off the bat. If you are going to go the pet store route, I've found that bringing them home in pairs (even if you already have other rats at home) helps a lot for the more skittish babes. Just remember that most of these rats, even the ones featured and sold as 'pets', all come from the same dark place in most cases, and expecting them to come out of that totally unscathed mentally is a bit far fetched.

I have 5 very tame petstore rats, Rescue rats sometimes have problems, And i have ad no problems with my petstore rats.

[cornspurrd.]

My new bab! Danny <3

[cornspurrd.]

And possibly the best picture i have ever taken of my rats! XD

[cornspurrd.]

bump

[Julia]

Hello everyone <3

I got these two beautiful ladies yesterday!

I lost both my grandmas (not rats, humans) during the last three weeks and thought it would be a nice idea to name my girls after them. Their names were Brunhilde Ella and Annemarie, which is why my rats are named Ella/Ellie and Mary/Marie. 8D



@Rattielover, are these girls? They look so cute. 8D Do you breed them?