The Rat Lovers Club! ~MODS PLEASE LOCK!

[TheForumFairy]

yah my wittle della wouldn't stop moving...*tear fall* it was like slow mo compared to my hamster

[OneRowdyNight]

I'd love to have a cuddly rat for once. e.o My girls like to run and jump off the bed and chew things, but heaven forbid we let mama sleep. Or go the week without a new hand scar. x.x I love them, but I'm totally getting a male next.

[MoonfallTheFox]

Haha, parents are weird- I think them being uncomfortable might have to do with the social stigma around -any- genital. Even if it's just a boy rat.

I don't mind my buck's testicles, they are a bit in your face on occasion but I think it's funny. Girls are fun if you have the personality to not only keep up with them but tolerate them. I have my rats as snuggle buddies, who I want to sit with me and watch TV and enjoy snuggles and petting. I don't want rats who zoomzoomzoom. Rosebud is a Zoomer, she is all over the place with her big nose in everything. It gets really annoying sometimes and I used to not have her out as long as the boys because I couldn't stand it anymore. Since she's been sick shes very snuggly now and is my movie buddy. She zooms for a while, and then settles down to cuddle next to me in my warm blanket.

If you want an animal who will be able to keep up with anything and always in the mood to play, I'd go for girls. They are -tons- of fun, but busy little things. If you want a lazier pet who will cuddle when you want to and is usually very in tune to you and tends to play much less as he ages, I'd get boys. Does don't urine mark as much, bucks do, and mine are REALLY bad markers.

Let us know how your old rat does on the ensure, Faffy.

Rosebud update- I got her eye-drops and infant motrin last night and her eye is looking quite a bit better. She's been secreting less poryphrin when I use the drops, because they lubricate her eye. I believe her excessive poryphrin on that side is due to the tumor constricting her eye muscles making it hard for her to blink correctly. Her body is trying to compensate by keeping the eye extra wet. The artificial tears are helping.

She throws record-breaking tantrums when it comes to taking the motrin, it's berry flavored but she still isn't going down without a fight. Personally, I think it smells delicious, and human babies are supposed to like the taste, so why not rats? I suppose anything which comes in a syringe is the devil to her, though. She was on antibiotics for a very long time.

She's alive and well today though, thankfully! Glad to see her every morning and know she's still ok.

[Kiliann]

Really? Are boys cuddly...? Because if so, I want to get one- first off, to breed one of my girls, and then also to have a cuddle buddy. My girls zoom all the time, so no movie buddies for me. Must ask for tons of money for Christmas.

[laces]

Right now both my rats are zoomzoomzoom all the time- they crawl all over my arms and legs and in my hair xD

[MoonfallTheFox]

Some bucks are zoomers, and they tend to be very playful when young.

In the same way, some does are very cuddly and when old, sick, or in pain, they almost always are very loving and sweet.

Generally speaking though, most bucks cuddle more than does. My particular group are THE definitions of squishy laprat. My eldest is a big, sweet old mush who will climb into anyone's lap for cuddles, my younger two are both licky, licky, licky little guys who, when picked up, go limp like heavy little sausages. It's adorable, I love how relaxed they are. My doe has been the sweetest thing ever lately and it's going to be that much harder to let her go because of it.

You do -not- need to be breeding, if you want boys, go to a breeder or rescue some. If you want to see rat babies, go love on some in a pet store- they get so lonely. Or foster a litter for a rescue! There is not EVER a reason to breed. Never never never ever.

There are rats everywhere in rescues and being neglected who need homes and love and affection and kindness. Rather than making more rats needlessly, you should use the space you have to help those who are truly in need. By breeding, even if they find homes, you are filling up homes that would otherwise have helped rats in rescues who would love to have a family who loves them.

Consider this- I love rats, very, very much. I had a pair of handsome bucks, one of whom I still have, who would have had -adorable- babies. He has the perfect temperment, and he's pretty dang adorable, too. When I rescued Rosebud, she was not spayed. She was young enough to breed and she, too, was very cute.

I could have let them mate and had a litter of very cute babies. Heck, the first time he saw her, he mounted her straight off. But I had her spayed before they were even allowed in the same HOUSE together.

Why? Because Rosebud is a pet shop rat with unknown genetics. Romeo is the same. Just because they are cute and appeared healthy at the time does not mean they aren't prone to illness, and they also have the potential for horrible and life threatening recessive genes to pop up!

Rosebud ended up being very prone to URIs. Now she has a ZGT and is dying of it. Romeo is the healthiest pet shopper I've seen, at two and a half he is always last to get sick and is chugging along like a pro.

His babies might not have done that, Rosebuds babies might not have. It is never worth it to bring animals into the world who will be at risk of suffering painful illnesses and who may not find proper homes who give good care, especially when you could very easily open your home to a pair of bucks or a single neutered buck and make a rat's life so much better!

[OneRowdyNight]

Right now both my rats are zoomzoomzoom all the time- they crawl all over my arms and legs and in my hair xD

Ditto. My two younger girls, Aphrodite's playmates, are quite zoomy. In fact, one of them has to stay in a seperate cage, becuase I can't figure out how ot keep her from squeezing out! I can't let her run around (as much as I'd like to...) becuase my dogs would eat her quick as look at her. :|

[Kouvinxx]

Thank you Fuffy and Nightwings I appreciated that and Panda too

[TheForumFairy]

WOAH hold up remember moon this is a childrens site

and yah I don't support breeding and when it comes to pet shops get rats there not supplies, no matter how tempting becuase your giving them the money they need to hurt more animals.saving rats should be everyones first prority not cute kittens

[MoonfallTheFox]

I wasn't being inappropriate as far as I'm aware. :3

However mods are certainly welcome to edit my posts if they think I said anything inappropriate.