Rats, Ferrets, Snakes, other exotic animals.

[innerchorus]

Rats are fantastic pets! I tend to educate (and if that doesn't work, ignore) anyone who holds the common misconceptions about rats.

 

Hopefully some of the people who meet yours once you have them will change their opinion. As far as advice goes, make sure to get them a good-sized cage (if you do a Google search for "rat cage calculator" you will be able to check whether the dimensions of your chosen cage allow enough space per rat) and ensure that it's one they can climb. Plastic tubs and aquariums are not suitable cages for rats, because they don't allow them enough height to climb and can contribute to respiratory problems due to poor ventilation. In the UK, aquariums are almost never used and I wouldn't use one for my rats even with a wire tank topper, but I do know this is more common in other countries.

 

Do you know where you'll be getting them from yet? I would strongly advise going to either a reputable breeder or finding a good rescue near you. Both will be able to offer you support and advice and if you really want baby rats a lot of litters are born into rescues so it's worth not ruling them out. The vast majority of pet shops are supplied by rodent mills (large-scale small animal breeding operations) or backyard breeders.

 

Good luck with your rats, when you get them!

[Kiraine]

Do you know where you'll be getting them from yet? I would strongly advise going to either a reputable breeder or finding a good rescue near you. Both will be able to offer you support and advice and if you really want baby rats a lot of litters are born into rescues so it's worth not ruling them out. The vast majority of pet shops are supplied by rodent mills (large-scale small animal breeding operations) or backyard breeders.

 

Good luck with your rats, when you get them!

Oh right, this! I got my first rats from a pet store, and they were great pets - but now, I chose to have my second couple from breeders, and chose one with a very good reputation and a registered breeder status, and another just because she had a husky buy available and seemed like an alright breeder.

 

I've never met more cuddly, kind and human-loving creature as my Tristan, who came from the first, registered breeder! I never knew any critter could be this fond of scratches and pats or be this trusting (he just screamed when a vet injected antibiotics into his skin, stood there, stared at me and said "EEP! EEP!" and that was it, TWICE).

His friend, Beowulf, came from an unregistered breeder who had loads of litters on her hands. My friend had Beo's two sisters, and we came to one conclusion with the three: they were shy, easily startled and afraid. Beowulf, in contrary to Tristan, bit me VERY hard when I was holding him for the two injections, screamed and tried to run away. He hasn't been mistreated and I'm sure he was well cared for at the breeder's place, but whatever the breeder did for him, she for sure did not handle him enough.

 

That's the difference between a reliable breeder's pet rat and a pet that hasn't been handled enough before selling.

That's pretty much also the difference between breeder's rat and a pet shop rat.

 

(There's really nothing wrong with Beowulf, though - he's a sweet little creature, but he really took his time to first settle in the new area, to start liking me and not fearing me, and he still won't trust me if I have to do something like cut his claws or wash him. Tristan instead will only tell me he's afraid by eeping, and then he'll let me do whatever I was about to, trusting I won't hurt him.)

Edited February 8, 2010 by Kiraine

[Crisis]

I used to have a couple Sugar-Gliders. They were cute, but my next door neighbour let them out of their cage.

thats horrible D:

[MinervaTree]

My stepbrothers used to have two rats. They were some of the cutest and sweetest animals I had ever seen. We named them Biscuit and Jefferson (my idea. I'm a dork.) They liked riding on people's shoulders while they walked around the house, especially mine, because I had long hair which they seemed to enjoy getting tangled in.

 

My only complaint was the claws. Not fun on bare skin.

[cadydid]

I don't really view rats as exotic, but, to each their own. One of my elementary school teachers had one in her class, so I'm used to them.

 

I have a turtle, but I don't think of him as exotic. He's a Northern Map, so his type is pretty common in the wild.

[Bedazzled]

Your friends are idiots. Rats are the smartest, sweetest, and best pet rodents ever. They rock. I wanted to get two, but my grandma hates rats, so that plan went down the gutter. But I am going to get a leopard gecko pretty soon. I'm an almost exotic owner.

 

I have a question for all you leopard gecko owners out there. Is it absolutely necessary to buy the gecko from a breeder, or is a pet store that takes good care of their animals fine?

Edited February 9, 2010 by Bedazzled

[33bury33]

I have a cat. I haven't got exotic animals. (-(-()-)-)

[Rhyendel]

the dog is outside,

Thats sad.

 

I have a rat and a ferret- obviously, they can be out at the same time!

Whizzy is about 5-ish years old (we rescued him) and hes so funny! We bathe him once a month and clean out his litterbox everyday. He does have a musky odor to him, but its not overwealming. He loves to curl up in a nice, dirty pile of clothes and take a nap (they usually sleep about 20 hours a day) and he'll get underfoot for an hour or two at night

 

Dita is a hairless rat, and because shes a female, a little "I'llhave it my way, when I want it" if YKWIM? Shes an only rat now (she did have a female cage-mate, she died of a virus a few months after we brought them home) and loves chilling out in my hoodie while I'm wearing it. Rats are the easiest things to feed- fruits, veggies, some seed and a few kibbles of dog food, and shes happy!

 

Have fun with the rats- just make sure they're the same gender! Also, males tend to be less moody than females IME, but it may be wrong...

[x-acidic pixie stick-x]

I own four rats and each of them are intelligent and clean. I am suprised people think of them as so gross when I look at my rats, but then again the only ones they'd know are off the streets. It took some getting used to, but all my friends love them.

[Ausha_Vey]

I have two pet rats and I just love them, but a lot of people, when they imagine rats, imagine giant sewer dwelling monster, not the domesticated rat. A lot of people I that I talked to about pet rats weren't even aware that they existed, they all just assumed that they were all wild.

I was so suprised with my first rats how intelegent they were. I taught them to climb into my jacket pocket and come to their name with no hastle. They're so much fun, and such awesome pets.

[RheaZen]

I wouldn't mind a giant sewer dwelling-monster as a pet. I mean, after getting cleaned up and all, how bag could one be?

[Gentern]

i've always wanted a snake ... even if they intimidate me sometimes. 8D corn snakes are adorable.

 

i'd also want a rat but again, sounds pretty intimidating for a first-timer. what if they ran away, squeezed through some crack in the wall, ran out of the house?

 

i've only got a dog... and he's much easier to keep track of. haha 8D

[TheDarkCynder]

For a cage, i'm planning to get a Martin's R-695 (The Rat Skyscraper) [Powder coating]

For bedding, i'm going with fleece-lining and a litter pan with Yesterday's news.

For food, i'm giving fresh veggies and fruit, with Harlan Teklad lab blocks.

Planning to get my rats from 1: a breeder, or 2: a shelter.

I did my homework!

[innerchorus]

Sounds good to me, aside from lab blocks - not commonly used in the UK; a lot of rat owners/breeders formulate their own food mixes as lab blocks don't really provide the variety/stimulation that a home-made diet can (not to mention you can tailor your own mix to best suit individual rats or certain life stages). In the UK the Shunamite Diet is popular as are mixes based on similar principles featuring straights instead of a base of rabbit food. I think Suebee's is the US equivalent? I'm sure the lab blocks will provide the right nutrition, so it's probably down to personal preference.

 

Always good to supplement with fresh food, though, as long as you're aware of the foods that rats cannot have. (I have a list bookmarked somewhere if you need it.)

[blackdragon71]

I've always wanted to own a bearded dragon. But since I have cats that love to murder other living beings their own size or smaller, it won't happen for a few years.

[FreeBird]

I have two hamsters (dwarf and syrian) and a beta fish.

I love them to peices, but I want something exotic... Like a hairless cat.

I live with uptight old people. They don't allow anything more than a hamster in their house.

[21Phoenix]

What an interesting topic. I love talking about animals. I worked in a pet store for nearly two years so I have been in contact with a lot of exotic animals. My mom is also a teacher so when I was much younger we had a lot of her class pets at home for the summer and a lot of them were exotic.

 

Personally I now own Atara, a Jenday Conure, Chinchy, a Chinchilla, and several fish tanks (both freshwater and marine).

 

At one point or another I have had or cared for iguanas, hedgehogs, mice, hamsters, sugar glider, turtles, rabbits, guinea pigs, bearded dragons, anoles, gerbils, ferrets, snakes, and a lot of birds ranging from softbills like finches and weavers to the larger hooknills like macaws.

 

Personally never wanted a rat although baby "ratlings" are very cute. I personally am put off by the smell of their cage after a few days which is why I don't currently own any of the more common rodents. Gerbils don't drink as often and neither do chinchillas so their cages don't smell as bad to me.

 

We fed our rats at the pet store Lab Blocks and I usually gave each bowl a small handful of "Hamster Vita-Vittles". All of the other rodents excluding the chinchillas received this diet as well. If I kept one I would offer fresh fruits and veggies (sparingly though as you don't want to upset their tummies or have their poop not be firm from all the moisture in their food.)

 

The only thing I would never keep would be a ferret. I am so allergic to them. I couldn't even handle them at the petstore for more than a few minutes or I would be miserable for the rest of the day. And their little claws make me itch terribly. Just opening their little area to get one out would make me start sneezing. I'm so glad they weren't just out on the floor.

[chinchillagirl95]

As my name suggests I have chinchillas, an army of them. (13)

They're the best pets to have. <3

/swoon

 

I'd suggest them to anybody, although they're not for small/immature children. Chinchilla's have a very fragle frame and they cannot take high humidity or heat, which is why it's not advised to keep them in a hut outside.

 

But we had this one chinchilla that we rescued from a fur farm, and he only had 3 legs, so he was missing his hind foot. While they were running around for their exercise time in the TV room, he used to jump up on the sofa and sit in our laps and watch a movie with us, he was the best little buggar ever.

 

And the rest of the exotic animals other from the chinchillas are; two zebra finches, one hermit crab, and two dwarf hamsters.

Edited February 22, 2010 by chinchillagirl95

[dragon_mando]

I've had snakes, salamanders, toads, rats, mice, gophers, robins, crows, a deer, and llamas...

 

...I want a ferret once I'm out of the dormitories and into my own apartment

[rubyshoes]

I've never owned anything but cats (and I don't have any of those right now). But I've always liked ferrets.

[Rexelrat]

I've had rats for almost 10 years now and they're great pets!I only have one right now unfortunately Her sister died and I want to stop keeping rats because I'll have to move next year when I go to university and I don't know if rats are allowed in my new home. I might get another rat at the shelter to keep mine company. It can go back when my rat dies... Will you get males or females? Males are often calmer but they smell more. They have less tumors but there is a chance they have to be neutered if they fight. I've always had females. They are busier, often won't fall asleep outside the cage unlike most males, but get lots of tumors If I were you I'd get them from a rattery, they're often healthier and they are very well socialized. When I live in my new home I'll probably get rats again I also want ferrets but they're a lot smellier

[tenyasyugan]

Used to have a beta fish which my mom [not educated in the ways of fish] would let swim with all our guppies. owo We had an army of the little buggers... Anyway, the beta surprisingly left all of the guppies alone. Instead, it would act as a guard dog for them against the cats which would occasionally try to go fishing. Later in the day, we'd find one of the cats looking at the tank and being a weird child, I liked to mess with there feet by touching the little pads on the bottom. I'd end up finding little nicks from where the beta had bitten em'. Oh well, they learned fast.

 

Other then that, I've had a feral cat that me and my sis adopted when some of our friends had found it in a construction yard. Thing was the best exterminator ever.

 

My Step-dad introduced me to ball-pythons, showing me his own lovingly raised nine year old girl named Selphie. I fell in love with snakes. Problem is, my mom has a thing against anything that isn't a cat or a dog. D: I was stuck taking care of the fish, and when I got a parakeet, I was the only one who loved it. When Selphie came along, I wanted to carry her around everywhere and always be there when she got fed a live rat. Too bad the minute we moved into military housing we had to get rid of her... *sniffle*

[Dark Moon]

I have had 3 rats, and about... 5 mice I think? Anyway, no one I know thinks of animals like this as gross. I have a friend who is dying to get a pet rat, who happens to have a snake, as a matter of fact, and that could be a problem. And one of my other friends owns two lizards, and a lot of frogs.

Edited March 3, 2010 by Dark Moon

[shonet]

We have 4 fire bellied toads and a geko in my house. but i really want a basalisk.

[rubyshoes]

I've never owned anything but cats (and I don't have any of those right now). But I've always liked ferrets.

I forgot that I actually did have a beta once. It died after only about 6 months.