 Keeping
Rats As Pets
Rats: Domestic Rats are clean, highly
intelligent social animals that enjoy human company
and make wonderful family pets. They should not be
confused with the wild Rat, although they belong to
the same species. As long as they are handled
correctly from birth, they can share your home quite
safely, with no risk of disease or aggression. They
need companionship and at least an hour of exercise
each day outside their cage – so make sure you are
able to devote this time to them. Like most rodents,
Rats should be kept in single sex pairs or groups to
prevent unwanted litters of babies. They generally
live for 2 to 3 years.
Housing
Rats are very active and love to climb, so the
larger and taller their cage, the better. A good
cage size for a pair of Rats would be 50cm x 80cm
with around 50cm depth. The floor should be solid to
avoid injury to the Rat’s feet and plenty of litter
should be put on the floor to absorb ammonia from
the animal’s droppings. Note, an aquarium style
glass cage is not suitable for Rats as it will not
give enough ventilation.
Your Rat’s home should be kept away from draughts
and out of direct sunlight, although a little
sunlight each day does help them absorb vitamin D
which helps prevent malnutrition problems. A nesting
box filled with shredded paper should be provided,
along with wood shavings or sawdust for the floor –
fluffy bedding should not be used. The cage should
be cleaned at least once a week - a litter tray can
be provided to help keep the environment clean for
your Rats.
Types of Rat
There are many varieties of Rat with different
combinations of coat and eye colours. These include
white with dark or pink eyes, cinnamon, blue, and
other colours.
Feeding
A good quality Rat mix makes an ideal core diet
for your pet. This can be supplemented with small
pieces of fresh fruit and vegetables. Dry dog food
makes a good source of protein. Be careful not to
overfeed as Rats can soon become fat. Avoid giving
your Rats sunflower seeds or peanuts. Fresh drinking
water should always be available, usually in a
gravity bottle although a small heavy bowl can be
used instead. Like all rodents, a Rat’s front teeth
grow continuously, so provide them with something to
gnaw on.
Looking after your Rat
Exercise & Entertainment:
Rats need at least an hour a day to play outside
their cage so it’s important to ‘Rat-proof’ the room
- Rats can squeeze through tiny gaps. Houseplants
and cables should be kept out of the way too. Rats
like playing with toys, but avoid spoked wheels
which can cause injury.
Handling:
Rats enjoy human contact provided they have been
handled correctly from birth. Rats should never be
picked up by the tail; instead gently place your
hand underneath its chest behind the front legs,
supporting the hindquarters with your other hand.
Children will enjoy handling Rats, but should be
supervised.
Breeding:
Rats can breed extremely quickly from 5 weeks old,
producing a litter of 8 or more young every 4 or 5
weeks! You should therefore seek expert advice
before considering keeping a breeding pair and only
if you’re certain you can find good homes for the
babies.
Tips for a happy healthy Rat
Community:
Social creatures, Rats naturally live in groups so
you should always keep more than one. A same sex
pair or small group from the same litter should get
on well. Rats are one of the cleanest pets you can
own and pose no threat to people or to other
animals.
Health:
Rats are generally healthy creatures but as with all
pets, if you are worried about any aspect of your
Rat’s health, seek veterinary advice. They can be
prone to respiratory diseases which are contagious
to other Rats (although not to humans). For a
healthy life, your Rat needs the following:
- Time and attention – at least one hour per
day
- Daily exercise outside of their cage
- A good balanced diet - no overfeeding
- Clean dry housing, cleaned once a week with
a mild disinfectant
- No extreme or sudden changes in temperature
- Water bottle and feed bowls cleaned daily
- Gnawing block or fruit tree branch to help
wear their continually growing teeth
Download this page as a
PDF |
