# First time rat owner



## manic rose (Mar 12, 2011)

Am hopefully getting my first rats on Thursday - a group of 3 males from a rescue shelter. feel like a kid before xmas, so excited, have wanted rats for years. Have been out today and brought some toys for them and the rescue shelter is selling me a cage. just a bit worried about letting them out of the cage for the first time - how do you rat proof a room and whats they best way to help them get used to it? I let my gerbil run about loose for a little while each evening and as there is only one its fairly easy to keep an eye on her but with 3 rats it wont be! (not gonna let them run about together obviously!)


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## Sergeant.Floyd.Pepper (Mar 2, 2011)

I know nothing about rats - however congratultions on your first brood!

Have you thought about starting off with one rat at a time in a small room. Maybe a cloakroom so you can have more visibility and an easier time catching him?

This is the first sign of GMR.   :thumbup1:


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## blade100 (Aug 24, 2009)

i used to have 7 at one point and they were all out together.

i had my spare room so it was an empty box really so easy to watch them,i used to put down cardboard boxes and tubes to go through,clothes horse was good to climb up and down too.

is your bathroom big enough to let them free range?

really 3 rats out at once is no problem really,they tend to follow each other around except u may get just 1 that like to nibble and strip wallpaper!! :mad5:


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## ladyalex (Mar 10, 2011)

my sis loved her rats..they were brill.they never pooed outside the cage and never went too far,they had a massive bedroom to explore.we used to take them to the shops on our shoulders....their really good pets... hope you have loads of playfull times.....


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## siberiankiss (Sep 24, 2010)

I would start off by freeranging them on a sofa or your bed and by walking round with them in your pockets or on your shoulder. Once they are familiar with you you can start floor freeranging - they will come back to you when they know you're their friend 

As far as rat proofing a room goes, you just need to check that there's nowhere they can escape from and that anything you don't want chewing is out of their reach! If there are wires around it might be worth putting them in a cable tidy, but to be honest if you provide them with enough fun things to do during their time out (pea fishing, digging boxes etc) then they shouldn't feel the need to go and chew things.


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## Sarahhampson (Nov 3, 2010)

my 5 have out of cage time in the bathroom as its the only place with no wires i fill the shower base up and put in some peas for them and i hide treats all around the room i play with them for abit then just read or go on my laptop were in there for hours


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

I have two groups of rats (boys and girls) one group of 11 and one of 6 and they go out in their groups and explore the bedroom, they are much happier in their groups and tbh they have more fun together.


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## siberiankiss (Sep 24, 2010)

thedogsmother said:


> I have two groups of rats (boys and girls) one group of 11 and one of 6 and they go out in their groups and explore the bedroom, they are much happier in their groups and tbh they have more fun together.


That said though I do think it's really important for each rat to have 'alone time' with their human. It deepens that bond and sense of trust and friendship. I try to give at least ten minutes per rat away from the group, where we just walk around the house together or sit on the bed or whatever before taking them back for a group freerange.

It's especially important when socialising youngsters and particularly important if you ever decide to show. Your rat needs to feel confident away from their group.


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## owieprone (Nov 6, 2008)

word of warning

baby rats ARE FAST!!!! don't free range them alone all together if you're on a sofa or in a room with lots of hiding places, it's hard to keep an eye on 1 let alone 3. you SHOULD let them run around together, they will be far more confident with their mates near them. and they should play together as it will help keep the colony friendly.

and they fit up/in all sorts of tiny spaces

if you can free range them in a room that doesnt' have much furniture like a hallway for instance with the stairs blocked off with a 3 ft or higher heavy board that is somehow attached or blocked in place (they can move things and will figure out how to do it very quickly, or a bathroom if all your behind furniture bits (the holes the pipes go down) are blocked off by built in cupboards or whatever. (trust me you don't want your new babies under the floor they take forever to come back out)

as you've not got them yet, you shouldn't free range them for a few weeks anyway. wait until they are used to you so if they do get on the floor or whatever they are more likely to come back to you. if their cage is big enough they won't miss ranging and it won't do them anyharm.

look up intros and other advice we've already given in past posts on here. you can do it by individuals names so me and blade have definately given advice like this before, might take you a while to find but definately worth looking for.


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## thedogsmother (Aug 28, 2008)

siberiankiss said:


> That said though I do think it's really important for each rat to have 'alone time' with their human. It deepens that bond and sense of trust and friendship. I try to give at least ten minutes per rat away from the group, where we just walk around the house together or sit on the bed or whatever before taking them back for a group freerange.
> 
> It's especially important when socialising youngsters and particularly important if you ever decide to show. Your rat needs to feel confident away from their group.


Ooooh quite right, cuddle time, thats the best bit of rat ownership .


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## owieprone (Nov 6, 2008)

wear a hoodie, loose clothing and no socks during playtime

lots of rats in your clothes is fun and erm.. distrubing but mostly fun... might want to wait until they've got past the 'nibbling' phase though. lmao

oh yeah, no socks cos..... socks with toes in are for biting.


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## niki87 (Nov 18, 2009)

siberiankiss said:


> I would start off by freeranging them on a sofa or your bed and by walking round with them in your pockets or on your shoulder. Once they are familiar with you you can start floor freeranging - they will come back to you when they know you're their friend
> 
> As far as rat proofing a room goes, you just need to check that there's nowhere they can escape from and that anything you don't want chewing is out of their reach! If there are wires around it might be worth putting them in a cable tidy, but to be honest if you provide them with enough fun things to do during their time out (pea fishing, digging boxes etc) then they shouldn't feel the need to go and chew things.


I agree with everything said...but wanted to highlight this post! Esp the bit about the sofa...I did this for my first three boys and they love me! The 2 babies i thought would learn from the big boys....they didn't...and do not like me

Oh and if u can...keep rats and gerbil away from each other. I have learnt the hard way about what happens if rats are in with other rodents!!


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## princesslea (Jul 6, 2010)

Thought I would add my two pennies worth...Let them run riot!!!! I free range my 4 boys in the bathroom as it's quite large. i have a dog so I usually carry them in my pet carrier and let them run riot. When free range time is up they all run into the carrier, there so intelligent.

Free ranging on your own is no fun and if you add toys and interact with them they are hilarious!!! Have fun


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## manic rose (Mar 12, 2011)

thanks for all the advice  picking them up tomorrow afternoon. really excited about it - have been telling some of the people at work about it and all but one person have said they dont like rats cos of the tails! Dont understand that personally but each to their own.

wont let them freerange for a week or two until they are a little bit settled. dont want to let them out and cant get them back in their cage. the bathroom isnt really suitable (quite small and due to be ripped out soon) and no real hallway but do have a spare bedroom. This gets used as the junk room at the mo so will have to get converting it to the rats playroom! and defo wont let them near my gerbil cage. meggy would be terrified of something bigger than her and dont want to risk her getting hurt.


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## manic rose (Mar 12, 2011)

picked up the boys yesterday and am now a proud ratty (and gerbil) mummy. the lady from the rehoming centre has taken fantastic care of them and they are so much tamer than I ever expected they would be. having waited years to get pet rats I am so glad I now have them.


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