Rattie Question

Pepper97 · June 2010

I have my two bucks, Bleach and Tar. They're completely healthy and have been amazing pets so far, but, they STINK. Like, BAD. My entire room and part of the hallway smell constantly. I clean the cage daily, I have them on the bi-odor water supplement which is helping a little bit. I'm getting a new cage soon that will be easier to clean. I found one rediculously cheap on the petco website w/ free shipping(pm for the link, I'd hate for anyone to miss this). Maybe all the crevices in the shelves are the issue? I have them on wood shavings for bedding. Maybe it's because they're males and they're scent marking?

RoyalRaccoon · June 2010

I imagine it might be the wood shavings. Wood shavings really aren't a good bedding for rats, and some types can be dangerous. Try something softer, and more papery like carefresh or soft-sorbent. They tend to be really absorbent, and good at odor control. The shelves could also be a reason like you said. If you're not able to get into all the tight little spots, then urine can build up there and eventually cause really bad ammonia smells. I'd also suggest bathing your rats every week or two if your don't already do that. Weak or diluted kitten/puppy shampoo is generally safe if you can't find shampoo for small animals.

Erra · June 2010

I second the "disinfect everything" comment. My mousie gets her cage dismantled and white vinegar scrubbed once a week, it's the most effective method of getting rid of leftover gook(also used for past-owned ratties haha). Make sure you do it in a room away from your rats (small lungs can't handle the fumes) and also rinse thoroughly etc etc. Don't use bleach! White vinegar neutralizes smell better and it's not worth the risk. One important thing I might note is, if you are ever tempted to reach for pine or cedar wood shavings because of their fresh scent, don't do it, captain. The oils in those woods are excessively harsh on rodent lungs and have been proven to cause all kinds of respiratory distress. I can prove it if need be, but if you do your own research you'll quickly observe a pattern. Rats can also be litter trained - look into it. Perhaps changing a litterbox daily will help control smell better, though I can't guarantee all rats will respond to the training. Good luck!

Pepper97 · June 2010

Thanks you guys, I'm looking into a cheaper type of bedding until I get the cage. It's a 5-8 day shipping and the smell is so bad that I can't let them breathe it for even that long. I do believe it is the shelves that stink. With this cage, I can't take them out at all to clean them, so I'm forced to wipe them down with a lysol wipe and then with a washcloth to take off all of the disinfectant. They are litter trained(mostly), though my younger buck sometimes pees on the shelves. My older boy would never be caught going anywhere but the litterbox. I have a corner litter pan and use CritterLitter. I can't remember what brand it is and I don't feel like running upstairs to check, but I also mix in a tablespoon of baking soda that helps with the litter odor alot. I went ahead and got the new cage. <a href="http://www.petco.com/product/15487/Super-Pet-Multi-Floor-Ferret-Home.aspx?CoreCat=FerretHPCagesHabitats"; target="_blank" class="bb-url">http://www.petco.com/product/15487/Supe ... esHabitats</a> It'll be a little smaller, but the rats don't really need the ammount of room they have now, and I think that's why they sometimes pee on the shelves, because it's too far to get to the litterbox. Would it be ok to just cut a piece of fleece to size for the bottom and give them some fluffy stuff to sleep in in the igloo? There's some pictures on the reviews that show that, I just wouldn't know how to secure the fleece. But, I would of coarse take it out every week(or whenever necissary) to wash it.

NotaMallard · June 2010

I know a lot of rattie people use fleece as a bedding, it's supposed to be the best option. Some people use it on all of the levels. I'll probably do that when I adopt my pair of rats (which I'm super excited for, by the way).

Pepper97 · June 2010

Congrats on getting ratties!! :] I'm excited for you. haha. The cage should be here today. I bought 1 yard each of 5 different patterns of fleece, if that makes sense. >] I'm gonna have a field day making hammocks. I'm going to try the fleece bedding at first, sense my boys aren't much of chewers. I think it'll be much cleaner and safer. The cage should be here today. 8D *happy dance* I'm excited. I also have another question.. what do you guys use for rattie food? I mix the store bought Katy blocks things in with birdseed, a tiny bit of kitty food, lettuce, and whatever other veggies are about to go bad. And then I have a seperate bowl with a bunch of fresher veggies and fruits I change out every day, but it's kinda expensive.

Goldy · June 2010

I use store brand cereals and mix in some dog food. They get lots of treats, and I usually give them fruits and veggies too. They like milk so I let them have a piece of cinniman toast crunch when I eat in the morning... They also really like fruit juices so I usually fill a small water bottle with it. Between my three they typically drink it all in a matter of two or three days. As for something cheaper; Well dog food isn't expensive, and I already buy it for my dogs. I use cereal that has gone stale, because I buy in the boxes and it just doesn't stay fresh very well. And everything else I give them are just tidbits of what I'm eating. I also feed them goldfish and fiddler crabs - I buy three feeders and let 'em have them, they eat the whole thing and I imagine there's lots of good protein. The fiddler crabs are in my salt water tank, they were for my octopus, but it died so I've been pulling them out and putting them in the rat cage- they also eat those whole.

RoyalRaccoon · June 2010

I buy lab blocks, and hamster seed/grain food. A few days a week I'll mix in cereal like Special K, Cheerios, or whatever healthy cereal is around(basically anything that's not covered in sugar or chocolate). She gets some leftover cooked vegetables like peas, carrots, corn, or green beans when we have them, or else it's just regular vegetables. I also give mine cat food, but you have to be careful with it because it's very fattening. Whenever I think my girl is loosing weight, I'll start giving her cat food more often. I feed no meat, and some fruit(berries or melon usually). Sometimes, I dig through the pantry and give her oats or cooked rice, or on rare occasions pasta.

Pepper97 · June 2010

Ohmygoodness. -.- So I got the new cage today, set it up and put them in. Then I noticed Tar(my younger buck) was acting strange around Bleach. They'd never acted like this before around eachother and it was freaking me out. So, I took tar out and I happened to notice a scab looking thing, almost like a misquito bite that'd been picked at. So, I looked around in his hair and they'res a ton around his shoulders, nowhere else. Like he has chicken pox in that spot. I think it may be Bleach? I've never seen or heard them fight, but today tar's avoiding Bleach. I don't understand it. I'm going to seperate them, but they're gonna get so lonely apart from eachother. I was going to get a female and breed Tar eventually. I'm looking into babies now. But what to do with Bleach? He's anti-social. I've tried everything to socialize him. He's blind, and bites EVERYTHING he comes into. Even the bars of the cage. I can't just let him live by his self. I don't know what to do.

Hibachi · June 2010

Bucks have a tendency to smell really bad, you should never keep two bucks together. I know with mice that even if they seem okay, if one where to go off they WILL fight until death. Trust me they won't get lonely, and I wouldn't breed pet store rats unless they are high quality. Tar could also have parasites or be chewing on himself, but I'm not much of rat expert.

RoyalRaccoon · June 2010

Some people do it, but when I inquired about it at a show run by the AFRMA they told me to never stick two unaltered males together. Some get along, but a lot don't. I personally, would not risk it. An alternative is keeping them in separate cages, and allowing them to play together(outside the cage) with supervision. They also told me while at one of the shows to use vanilla to mask their scents when letting them meet or play together, but there is no guarantee they'll fall for it. The marks on his shoulders could be bites. It could also be mites or other parasites, an allergic reaction, skin disorder, etc. Here is a link that talks about some skin disorders, including protein allergies: <a href="http://www.sandyscrittercity.com/skinproblemsabscesses.htm"; target="_blank" class="bb-url">http://www.sandyscrittercity.com/skinproblemsabscesses.htm</a>; Cat food is high in protein, so I'd suggest eliminating that from his diet first, and then get a magnifying glass and check for mites. They can be various colors depending on the species, and tend to look like little moving dots. My male ALWAYS had mites. It was like I could not eliminate them, but he was kept healthy(no scabs) with weekly treated baths. A female mouse(Gizmo) that I owned developed cancer, and got scabby skin from it. As for breeding, I'm with Avla on this. Unless your breeding for feeders, it's not a good idea to breed pet store rats. Many of them are bred extremely bad, which results in a huge mess of health problems that aren't always visible. Breeding pet store rats is kind of like breeding pet store puppies. Not to mention, rats aren't as desirable as puppies. Overall, I highly recommend not doing it.

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