The Rat Lovers Club! ~MODS PLEASE LOCK!

[heartleafed]

I'll upload their newest pictures tomorrow, I'm about to go to bed right now. I can't post them from phone though, it's stupid that way.

I only have to worry about two of the dogs around my rats, and one is my god mom's. The Chihuahuas are afraid of thema lot. My cat would never hurt my rats, neither would my mothers, they know better and are really old. I only really have to worry about kitten, and she does it because she's scared but also wants to play. She never really hurts them though, I worry more about them hurting her.

[No Going Back]

I think if you're worried that your dog might go for the rats, then just don't do it would be my best bet (although obviously I've never owned any rats, so my best bet may not be proven...). It's not essential to do, and it's better to be safe than sorry

[skrapple]

My cat is terrified of rats. Once, Monkey walked up to her, and my cat (my mom named her Tigger) got up and sat down somewhere else. Monkey followed her there, then Tigger ran away.. XD

[-PLEASE DELETE-]

lol thants funny one of my cats are ;like the

[ru.]

Ahh, I just heard from my own mother's mouth that she wanted rats. Getting two for sure once we move. <3 That's in two months and I can't wait!

Although, I'm scared of what my dog will do if I introduce him to rats. I'm not sure if I should even introduce him at all...Any opinions?

I think it depends on the dog, personally. What breed or mix of dog do you have? Some breeds have higher prey drives, so it might depend on that. There are two dogs in my house, a Shiba Inu/Pomeranian mix and a Golden Retriever. The Shiba mix (Shiba Inus are prey driven dogs) wants nothing more than to chase and kill my rat. He's not allowed in my room, because he will come in and stare at Amadeus' cage forever, and he has tried to attack him before. My Golden Retriever, Edgar, on the other hand, although being a bird dog, is absolutely frightened of my rat. He won't go near the cage, and once I had my rat Amadeus out while Edgar was in the room, and he crawled too close him and Edgar absolutely freaked out. He ran into a corner as quickly as he could and wouldn't go anywhere near him. xD

[Sulli]

Ahh, I just heard from my own mother's mouth that she wanted rats. Getting two for sure once we move. <3 That's in two months and I can't wait!

Although, I'm scared of what my dog will do if I introduce him to rats. I'm not sure if I should even introduce him at all...Any opinions?

I think it depends on the dog, personally. What breed or mix of dog do you have? Some breeds have higher prey drives, so it might depend on that. There are two dogs in my house, a Shiba Inu/Pomeranian mix and a Golden Retriever. The Shiba mix (Shiba Inus are prey driven dogs) wants nothing more than to chase and kill my rat. He's not allowed in my room, because he will come in and stare at Amadeus' cage forever, and he has tried to attack him before. My Golden Retriever, Edgar, on the other hand, although being a bird dog, is absolutely frightened of my rat. He won't go near the cage, and once I had my rat Amadeus out while Edgar was in the room, and he crawled too close him and Edgar absolutely freaked out. He ran into a corner as quickly as he could and wouldn't go anywhere near him. xD

Aha, he's a little yorkie and you probably know they originated hunting rats. I'll probably just keep him away from the rats when I get them since he's really unpredictable and I do imagine him trying to get a rat in his mouth. Thanks guys for answering. <3

[rachaelandrats]

Honestly, my opinion is that it is better to be completely safe than sorry.

At the end of the day - a cat or dog could easily kill your rats.... and there is nothing to gain by introducing them, they aren't going to get anything from it to be honest.

[vejitadmc]

Honestly, my opinion is that it is better to be completely safe than sorry.

At the end of the day - a cat or dog could easily kill your rats.... and there is nothing to gain by introducing them, they aren't going to get anything from it to be honest.

I wholeheartedly agree with that. It might be potentially dangerous, no matter how sweet and caring your dog or cat might usually be. There's a predator in every cat and dog and you can never be absolutely cetain when it might show. I am not saying every dog or cat is a danger to other pets, but one can never be too careful if it is about another being's life. :3

[OneRowdyNight]

{Okay, thank you both for the info C:}
{I go to PetSmart - do you think rats from there would already be spayed/neutered?}
{And we'll have to see on cages. Thanks for the tip, though ^^}

.Holli.

Don't get any living creature from big stores like that. I got my first rat from PetSmart and the vet said he would die within the week. We took him back and they sold him again, even though we told them specifically that he was sick. They're absolutely TERRIBLE places to buy pets from. They only sell males and they aren't neutered. If you're going to get a pair, rescue two boys is what I'd do. Or buy two boys from a local breeder. Boys are alot more chill and like to cuddle, whereas females are a LOT more active and bouncy.

[ru.]

Yeah, they are right. There really is no point in introducing a dog to a rat. The only reason I let my dog around my rat is because he is so afraid of him and because they both stay in my room at night, but I would never leave the two alone together. And I only had them both in my room with my rat out of his cage once.

{Okay, thank you both for the info C:}
{I go to PetSmart - do you think rats from there would already be spayed/neutered?}
{And we'll have to see on cages. Thanks for the tip, though ^^}

.Holli.

Don't get any living creature from big stores like that. I got my first rat from PetSmart and the vet said he would die within the week. We took him back and they sold him again, even though we told them specifically that he was sick. They're absolutely TERRIBLE places to buy pets from. They only sell males and they aren't neutered. If you're going to get a pair, rescue two boys is what I'd do. Or buy two boys from a local breeder. Boys are alot more chill and like to cuddle, whereas females are a LOT more active and bouncy.

I think all Petsmarts are different. My local one only sells females. But yeah, I would only go to any chain store as a last resort. It's like the puppymill thing, but with small animals. They are usually sick because they aren't housed very well. When I was little I always got my syrian hamsters from Petsmart or Petco. Every hamster I got from Petco was dead within a couple of weeks. I had better luck with Petsmart, but still only a couple of them lived past 2 months. They lived for 8 months to a year. So pretty much, the chances of actually getting a healthy pet that will live for a long time is really unlikely.
Search craigslist if there aren't any breeders in your area that you can trust.