# my gambian pouched rat



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

well i have my gambian pouched rat Queenie.
she is 7 weeks old tomorrow and is currently the size of a 6 month old fancy rat.
she smells like cheesy feet: not the usual male rat smell that i'm used to but then again they are completley different species of rat.

she is hand tame as the people that raised her from babies handled her from day one.

she is off a member of the ukpouchies web site and queenie's parents well one of them is related to lesley's poched rats.

i paid £200 for her then her cage which was £100 plus toys,hammocks,snuggle bed,java branch,ceramic dog litter bowl etc

so all in all i have paid about £400
she is worth every penny.

i will get photos later of her.

i was origionally getting a male from someone else but i decided to go with this girl instead knowing she had been handled and i had updates of her plus she has a good lineage.

bye for now.

amy


----------



## lozza84 (Jul 19, 2008)

wow i cant wait to see pics  she sounds amazing


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

pics as promised












































she is my ickle baby.

amy


----------



## lozza84 (Jul 19, 2008)

awww shes gorgeous!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ur so lucky


----------



## red dogues (Nov 27, 2009)

she is lovely. how big will she get?


----------



## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

Can they be kept as a single animal?


----------



## simplysardonic (Sep 1, 2009)

Wow she's beautiful


----------



## Janak (Sep 5, 2009)

wow she's gorgeous! whats their average life span?


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

she will grow to 3 to 4ft in length thats tail included.and weight 2 kilo's.

they don't have to have company as there not like fancy rats although they can have a partner.
2 females will fight and fight to death same as two males,but it can be done although they would need neutering.

male and female together but would need neutering if not intending to breed.

in the wild of africa they either live together or on there own.
obviously on there own they will have a very strong bond with the person and they usually only take to one person and will attack anyone that they are not familiar with.

so both me and my fella are handling her as much as possible.
but i'm the main owner of her.

if i do get her a friend it would have to be a male and be neutered but sometimes it doesn't always go to plan and they can end up a close bond with each other and fall out with the person.

at the moment she is cuddled up in her snuggle bed with her heat mat under the outside of the cage as gambians can't maintain body heat.

they live to around 8-10 years i think.

they eat a mixture of fruits and veg and parrot mix but not hazel nuts as they are toxic to them.

they are not a rat to be taken on lightly and need so much more care and attention.
they can be destructive and need parrot cages or an all metal cage as they have been known to eat through plastic bases and bend ferplast bars.

i have wanted one for a couple of years and done quite a lot of research before i went ahead and got queenie.

amy


----------



## laststar89 (Jun 15, 2009)

i haven't heard of these.. until i read you previous post before, they are quite fasinating!


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

if you go on ukpouchies.co.uk it tells you everything you need to know about them.

they are lovely animals providing you take the time to handle evryday without fail and let them out of the cage as often as possible.

if not they can become quite nasty.

amy x


----------



## vet-2-b (Sep 25, 2008)

arrr there gourges i want one lol


----------



## rosie75 (Sep 14, 2009)

She's beautiful
I saw Lesley's cages, so can completely appreciate how destructive they can be.


----------



## Akai-Chan (Feb 21, 2009)

Yayyyyyyy GPR ^_^ That's a massive cage!

Peace
Akai-Chan


----------



## Sarah+Hammies (Jul 20, 2009)

She's gorgeous!   That cage looks good fun too


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

the little madam had caused chaos in her cage this morning.everything was tipped upside down and she sat at the bars looking all cheeky.

rosie your a member on the ukpouchies forum i've see some of your posts.
i read how you visited lesley.

i bet it made you really want one.

queenie is a babe and she is a lot cleaner than my fancy rats.the fancy rats pee everywhere on there ferplast shelfs and hammocks.

queenie only poo's and wee's in her ceramic bowl of litter.

i shall keep updating this thread with pics:thumbup1:

amy


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

pics from last night


















licking my finger


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

pics taken at 1pm today

she was dreaming her little legs twitching and ears and nose wriggling


----------



## Phenobarbie (Sep 28, 2009)

blade100 said:


> pics taken at 1pm today
> 
> she was dreaming her little legs twitching and ears and nose wriggling


:001_wub::001_wub::001_wub:
That is so gorgeous, why don't my rats do that? 

Does she take much extra looking after than normal rats? I was really interested in your original post saying about them


----------



## Nonnie (Apr 15, 2009)

She is beautiful.

The first time i ever heard of them was when i saw something about them being used to detect landmines.

Not sure id feel comfortable taking on such a commitment. One of those animals where you really need to know what you are doing. I'll leave it to people like yourself who put in the hard work and do the research


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

yeh i would say to anyone who wants one of these to really think about it and do a lot of research because they can be a handful and if not handled daily and given the right training can be aggressive animals.

males can be awful when going through puberty one of the ukpouchie members has 2 and she is going through hell with the older boy.

she had him neutered but he hasn't calmed down yet and attacks her husband and trys to bite every bit of bare skin.

yet he is fine with her.

gambian pouched rats are totally different to fancy rats so i suppose at this age they will be quite docile although saying that queenie's mum loves her cuddles and falls asleep in arms too.

they get such a close bond and can be taught the words "no" "come" "leave"
bit like a dog really.

but these animals have only just be domesticated.

amy


----------



## Doggiestyle (Jun 7, 2009)

Stompy stomp.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

this is why they are called pouched rats




























she had scrambled egg this morning and she loved it.


----------



## Tammy0407 (Sep 19, 2009)

She is soooooooooo gorgeous, maybe my next venture in a few years


----------



## rosie75 (Sep 14, 2009)

Those are lovely pictures.
Yes, I dearly love them and so did my little girl, but it will be a while yet before we can consider having one.


----------



## happysaz133 (Jun 5, 2008)

Pretty girl!


----------



## trekky (Apr 16, 2008)

If she turn's out anything like her great grandmother Zee you'll have one loveable girl


----------



## vet-2-b (Sep 25, 2008)

shes adorable i love one but mums not to into rats no matter a giant one lol


----------



## Midnight (Jan 17, 2009)

AAAwwwwww she is gorgeous ssshhhssssssss i won't tell my friend she will want one  x


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

i hope so trekky(lesley)

she was a beautiful natured girl your zee.(rip)little girl.

well here are some more recent pics of queenie.

for some strange reason i have not been able to get on this forum but its working for me...at the minute!














































amy


----------



## Pampered pets (Jun 20, 2009)

oohhh you lucky lucky thing, she is gorgeous :001_tt1:

Her coat looks different to fancy rats or is it just the photos, i looks shorter and shinier.

well i would love one but i wouldnt have the time for one i shall have to follow the progress of your girl, soo cute sleeping on you like that


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

Pampered pets said:


> oohhh you lucky lucky thing, she is gorgeous :001_tt1:
> 
> Her coat looks different to fancy rats or is it just the photos, i looks shorter and shinier.
> 
> well i would love one but i wouldnt have the time for one i shall have to follow the progress of your girl, soo cute sleeping on you like that


yes she has a different coat to fancy rats its shorter and shiny plus she is all muscle,they don't hold fat they can't seem to maintain body fat.

amy


----------



## Tammy0407 (Sep 19, 2009)

blade100 said:


> i hope so trekky(lesley)
> 
> she was a beautiful natured girl your zee.(rip)little girl.
> 
> ...


WANT ONE SOOOOOO BAD lol! Very jelous Amy 
Tammy x


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

hey tam,

you'll get one soon
you know lesley has 3 baby pouchie's ready to leave in january!!


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

so thought it was time for an update on my lil queenie.
she is now 12 weeks old.













































amy


----------



## RattehChickidee (Sep 15, 2009)

Awh how lovely is she? :001_tt1: Very cute sleeping on you like that indeed. I've only ever had one of my fancy rats do that. Looking forward to viewing future photo's and reading about her.


----------



## u-look-like-a-hamster (Aug 17, 2008)

Awwwwh
I love her little white bit on her tail ^^ 
Most GPRs have that anyway dont they 

veryy cute lil missus ¬


----------



## jaxx (Aug 10, 2009)

I cannot express how unbelievably cute your Queenie is! I've loved pouched rats for years but never met one yet and I doubt if I could own one at the minute as I can't afford it. But I would dearly love one. 

How much more hard work are they to look after than a fancy rat? Fancy rats need daily handling as well which is a joy to do.


----------



## Phenobarbie (Sep 28, 2009)

She definately looks very different from a normal rat! But shes absolutely gorgeous


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

she doesn't take much more care really.you have to vaseline her tail once a week as they get dry.something to do with humidity.
proper pet cod liver oil tablet once a week so her skin doesn't get flakey.
an all metal strong cage is a must!!
parrot cages are fab.

mainly fruits and veggies but then so do my fancy rats,queenie also has to have parrot mix in with rat mix.

LOTS AND LOTS of handling but then again queenie was handled from 2 days old by her breeder.

they don't have to live in pairs or groups like fancy rats.infact sometimes they can kill there same sex cage mates!but this is rare.

queenie free ranges like my fancy rats but obviously for longer and in seperate intervals.
one hour in the morning,hour in afternoon and then in the eveing another hour or so.

they really are fantastic pets in knowledgeable hands!
i did lots of reading up on them and i'm still learning!
but i go on the ukpouchies web site a lot if i need questions answered.

she will soon go through adolescence soon 3-9 months it takes and they can be very naughty like little toddlers.they will chew(they do this anyway)skirting boards,etc can get nippy to see how far they can push you.
but with a firm "no" it sometimes works.
males are worse and can become quite nasty usually neutering solves this!

oh and they need to be kept at a room temp of 20-24 degrees otherwise they can go into torpor like hibernation and die.
i use a heat mat under the metal cage and have the heating set to 20 degrees.


hope thats helped
amy x


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

oh and yes all gambians have the white tip on there tails unless of course it needs to be amputated.


----------



## jaxx (Aug 10, 2009)

Ooh many thanks for that. I could cope with all that. Is an explorer cage suitable for them?


----------



## Ratdog (Mar 10, 2009)

Oh my god, I want one!!!!!! She is gorgeous. I will have to do research in to getting one in the next year or so. Obviously I will enjoy my 3 ratties 1st (down stairs isnt big enough for another large cage!). 

Can you insure them? If they live quite a while it would make sense to insure, like you can rabbits.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

hi yes an explorer cage is fine infact there are some pouchie owners that have them but you would need to re place the plastic trays to metal ones.johnhopewell does custom made metal trays.

yes i am getting queenie insured.exotic direct but they have to be 12 weeks and over to insure them.
think its £14 mnth for full cover upto £2000 i think cover.

amy x


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

queenie at 14 weeks old

just woken up in bed

















attacking my bed sheets



























sleeping baby









amy.


----------



## vet-2-b (Sep 25, 2008)

awwwwwwwwwww cute shes getting bigger and bigger every picture do they grow quite quick ?


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

yes and they stop when there 1 year old.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

my little girl at 15 weeks old







































































into everything!


----------



## vet-2-b (Sep 25, 2008)

i saw a gambien pouched rat at bradford small animal show 

shes a biggen now lol but still gourges


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

queenie is now 5 months old some new pics for you to see


----------



## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Wow only just seen your thread!! She is so gorgeous!! Think my fav pic was her in bed though hehe. She is beautiful now though. Does she like cuddles etc? xx


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

yep niki she loves cuddles and as i type this she is curled up nxt to me asleep on my bed while i'm typing this to you.


----------



## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Awww i want big ratty cuddles!!! Bless her!! xx


----------



## Diction (Jun 12, 2009)

I have always been fascinated by these. How do they differ in personality from the normal fancy rat?

Beautiful! I am in complete envy!


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

i'd say they are more fun than fancy rats.
queenie loves to play with anything she'll chase my feet,hands and her ikea ratty toy.
she reminds me of how a kitten plays.
she also talks to you by making chirpy high pitched noises.

my fancy rat boys are just slobs now that nothing but eat and eat,though they do love there scritches and cuddles but they don't sit with me or on me like queenie does.


----------



## owieprone (Nov 6, 2008)

aw shes gorgeous! 


i must stop looking at threads with rattie pics.. i will end up with lots of stolen rats in my house!


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

owieprone said:


> aw shes gorgeous!
> 
> i must stop looking at threads with rattie pics.. i will end up with lots of stolen rats in my house!


hahahaha
GMR syndrome


----------



## Berrywoods (Mar 25, 2010)

shes lovley, id so love to get one, im pritty set on one day finding a breeder who has Rattus Rattus (black rats), very few and far between, right now im happy with my 40 odd norway rats, but next on the agenda is a gambian when im feeling both richer and braver


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

its been a couple of months and so i thought i'd better post some pics of my ever growing gambian pouched rat queenie.

she is 7 months old now
she is soooo tame and friendly with both myself and my partner jamie.
they only usually bond with the one person but becasue she was handled from 1 day old and then continued handling from myself and jamie she loves us both.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

more of queenie at 7 months old


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

and some more


----------



## Mickelmarsh Mouse (Apr 21, 2010)

I've loved looking at your pictures. My husband has promised I can have a pouchy once I drop my work down to part time. It won't be for a while yet but I'm doing as much research as I can. I am mad about rodents but have never had a particular favourite. But when I first read about the pouched rats I knew I had found one. 

Do you know how they react with cats? I know some people keep them with dogs but I've never heard of them living in the same house as cats. Obv. I wouldn't ever leave them together unsupervised.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

i don't have cats so i can't really help with that one but i wouldn't leave get the pouched rat out with any cat cuz it could so easily go wrong!

but goodluck in the search for your gpr


----------



## momentofmadness (Jul 19, 2008)

Great pics my faves is her lay asleep on you.. And I still can't beleive how big Queenie is.... Shocking... Ive seen big rats down the farm living on condition and bloom for horses and blimey they are very shiney big one but Crikes she is mahoosive... Lovely though.. xxx

Think our Ryan would love one cause he used to love carrying his hamster around and playing with him..lol


----------



## superstar038 (Sep 29, 2009)

Awwwww how lovely is Queenie!!! shes so cute, I've never seen a pouched rat before. Wouldn't work in my house, i think she'd give my dogs a run for they're money haha! i love all your pics, like a proud mum


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

UPDATE-queenie now 11 months old yesterday


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

few more of her at 11 months old

one with my fella holding her.

u may notice on some of the pics she has white markings,this is white hairs that seem to have spread and she has 2-3 patches.its very strange as no other gambian pouched rat owner has come across these as of yet.only queenie.
she hasn't rubbed away any fur for it to grow back white.
she is just unique!

as always she is still very tame and weighs in at 2kgs.
still she has a little more growing to do but i think by the time she gets to 1yrs old she may stop.

she is very big for a female gambian.


----------



## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

Oh she is stunning...so beautiful and elegant! xx


----------



## hilary bradshaw (Mar 9, 2008)

*Hi Amy, its Hilary from lovingsd.
I love her, I have always wanted a pouchie, but I did my research and having 22 fancy rats now I just couldn't put the time in for one.
Queenie is stunning, she is in such beautiful condition, I am soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous:biggrin5:​*


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

hilary bradshaw said:


> *Hi Amy, its Hilary from lovingsd.
> I love her, I have always wanted a pouchie, but I did my research and having 22 fancy rats now I just couldn't put the time in for one.
> Queenie is stunning, she is in such beautiful condition, I am soooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo jealous:biggrin5:​*


thanks hill's.
she is my special lil girl,a mummys girl she loves her mummy.


----------



## olga1uk (Sep 17, 2010)

Hi, i thought id say hi!! I got a ten week old pouched rat yesterday and all day at work i couldnt wait to return home hehe................ shame he is asleep though lol... your girl is gorgeous xxx


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

hi olga1uk where did u get yours from?
would love to see some pics of him.


----------



## Phenobarbie (Sep 28, 2009)

She is so big up against last time i checked this forum!!!
Ohmygod i really want one now 

Has she gone through the naughty stage yet?

Also just wondering, my ratty boys also leave little pee trails around everywhere they run 
including over my boyfriend 

Never pees on me, but on the floor, sofas everywhere.

Does she have the same tendancies? Because my new flat im about to move into is carpetted throughout and im considering getting one so badly now!!

P.s she's gorgeous did i say that already???


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

Phenobarbie said:


> She is so big up against last time i checked this forum!!!
> Ohmygod i really want one now
> 
> Has she gone through the naughty stage yet?
> ...


hey there,
she did go through a faze of being naughty nothing bad just things she was getting into and i told her off she'd just go back and do it.bit like a small child.

females i think from other pouchie owners i know are much more behaved,and males have a tendancy to be very hormonal and a little agressive but neutering helps loads.

queenie does leave trails of pee but its only when something new is added to the house and likes to scent it.
other than that she doesn't really scent mark like male fancies.

male pouchies only scent mark by rubbing there cheek pouches on things.
females scent mark through peeing but like i said its only small amounts nothing as bad as male fancies.

if u do decide to get one go on ukpouchies forum do your research and then if u feel u can cope with a gambian,remember they are not like fancy rats at all.they are an exotic wild animal that has only just been domesticated.then go ahead and get one.you'll be so happy with him/her.

one of the ukpouchies members on the forum has some pups for sale they are queenie's brothers and sisters.
so if u get one from that person you will have a gambian just like my big girlie!
a tame,cuddly,silly BIG gambian.


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

some more pics for u to see


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

and more of my girl


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

queenie one years old today.
happy birthday my big girlie


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

its been ages since i last posted pics on here of my big girly.
she's 20 months old now and weighs 3lb's

she also has lots of white spots on her something that is known to gambians and rare but all normal!


----------



## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

few more of her


----------



## momentofmadness (Jul 19, 2008)

*OH MY GOODNESS!!!!!!​*
Have you got her on steroids.......:yikes:

She is so beautiful.. xxx


----------

