3 replies to this topic

[galaxia]

So, my school got rats, to do experiments (their care is decent, but not ideal), and after this they are giving the rats to a student. My parents are thinking about it, but in the mean time, they told me to research a lot. So, I have a few questions.

 

1. Do rats really stink? I would image if you cleaned often enough and changed their litter box, it would be fine, but I'm getting mixed answers.

 

2. I would use a homemade diet, following the Shunamite diet (similar to Emiology's rat diet if you don't know what that is). Is there any better diets, before I'm 100% sure I will do that?

 

3. Any cage recommendations? I'm thinking about using this. 

 

4. Do you have any product recommendations?

 

5. Anything else I should know?

 

Edit: Why did I put "and Other Stuff"??? lol

Edited by oakwillowivy, 10 January 2021 - 10:19 AM.

[a little furry thing]

So, my school got rats, to do experiments (their care is decent, but not ideal), and after this they are giving the rats to a student. My parents are thinking about it, but in the mean time, they told me to research a lot. So, I have a few questions.

 

1. Do rats really stink? I would image if you cleaned often enough and changed their litter box, it would be fine, but I'm getting mixed answers. Rats do smell. Their poo and pee smells, but you can get rid of that with cleaning. It's the scent marking that's the hardest to keep under control. The more you clean the more rats scent mark. There's a delecate balence of how much scentmarking you let your rats do before you clean it.

 

2. I would use a homemade diet, following the Shunamite diet (similar to Emiology's rat diet if you don't know what that is). Is there any better diets, before I'm 100% sure I will do that? I use a lab block diet(Oxbow to be specific) because when I tried a muesli mix, my rats were always picky eaters. I would definetly reccomend Oxbow Adult Rat Diet, but I don't know enough about the Shunamite diet to make a fair comparison.

 

3. Any cage recommendations? I'm thinking about using this. The Critter Nation has been my favorite. I've used quite a few cages over the years, but the CN takes the cake.

 

4. Do you have any product recommendations? Spacepods, bendy bridges, hammocks, lava ledges, and more!

 

5. Anything else I should know? They are a LOT of maitenence. I spot clean my rat cage 2+ times a day, wash all the fleece 2-3 times a week, Change all the water 2+ times a day, refil foraging toys 2+ times a day, deep clean about every three weeks, and more. Not to mention the hours of daily free-roam time and training sessions.

 

Edit: Why did I put "and Other Stuff"??? lol

[daisy~]

In terms of the smell, with a poorly thought out cage setup and the wrong substrate choices the cage can really smell horrible. Any large shelves or platforms will be urinated on, as it's what rats do. They like to use flat surfaces as toilets. You can replace them with litter trays filled with an absorbent substrate, but mostly you want to encourage activity with lots of ropes and climbing opportunities. Rats are often a bit lazy compared to hamsters so they will actually pee in their beds or hammocks if there isn't a better option very nearby. You can have a suspended litter tray just under or outside their main sleeping area to encourage them to use that instead. Personally when I am pet sitting for rats they usually come in the cages with plastic shelves which are a nightmare to clean, but I have found a shiny ceramic dish or tile placed on the shelf will sometimes become a more easily cleaned toilet spot. 

 

In terms of substrate, you want to use an absorbent litter such as paper pellets in the litter tray, but something different everywhere else (like a paper bedding or aspen shavings). Never fleece. Fleece stinks as soon as it's peed on, and doesn't allow for any digging or foraging behaviour (and rats will tunnel just like hamsters if given the opportunity). 

 

Litter trays will probably need to be changed every 2 or 3 days. Full cage cleans should probably be done every week or two, depending on your rats' habits. You might even be able to go longer if they're very tidy. Hammocks and other fabric or rope items will need to be washed sometimes (when they smell really). The cage base and bars can also cling onto smells so every few months, you should give them a good scrub. Be wary of overcleaning as this will encourage to scent everything again.

 

If you have a good cage setup and keep up with regular cleaning, the smell shouldn't be too bothersome but there will be a certain smell around the cage that you don't get with hamsters. The rats themselves don't really smell.

Edited by daisy03, 11 January 2021 - 08:36 AM.

[nomnomhammy]

So, my school got rats, to do experiments (their care is decent, but not ideal), and after this they are giving the rats to a student. My parents are thinking about it, but in the mean time, they told me to research a lot. So, I have a few questions.

 

1. Do rats really stink? I would image if you cleaned often enough and changed their litter box, it would be fine, but I'm getting mixed answers.

 

Like all animals rats do smell. The rats themselves barely have any smell but their poop and pee smells somewhat strong. If they are litter trained it makes cleaning much easier. Overall the smell isn't overwhelming. I have 2 young male rats and the smell isn't that bad.

 

2. I would use a homemade diet, following the Shunamite diet (similar to Emiology's rat diet if you don't know what that is). Is there any better diets, before I'm 100% sure I will do that?

 

I'm 99% sure that this is the best option. I'm currently feeding my boys Oxbow Essentials food but in the future I'm going to feed them the Shunamite diet.

 

3. Any cage recommendations? I'm thinking about using this. 

 

There is no link so I don't know what "this" is. The best cage is definitely the critternation. I don't have the critter nation but I know someone who does and its perfect. The price might draw some people away from it but It's definitely worth it.

 

4. Do you have any product recommendations?

 

SPUTNIK/SPACEPOD! Plus hammocks bendy brides and other climbing toys of course.

 

5. Anything else I should know?

 

They reqiure a ton of attention and maintenance like a little furry thing said.

 

Edit: Why did I put "and Other Stuff"??? lol