I had posted an add on CL looking to adopt some ratties who needed a new home rather than buying a feeder rat... a lovely lady who was moving in with her boyfriends mom to save money for college had a family of 3 rats who weren't welcome to move. Well, they were certainly welcome at my house lol.

I'll note first that I do think the cage is too small for 3 rats (I'd love to invest in a ferret nation some day if I can afford one) but I know they also can have stress issues from a change in their environment... the girls lived in the EXACT same cage in their last home, haha.

I really only wanted a pair and she was willing to separate them, but who could take a momma away from her two babies... =P

One berkshire dumbo, a regular standard agouti and a hooded standard agouti (I think that's right.)

Their original names were Stripeface, JR and Pseu. I've decided to change them to Bubbles, Buttercup & Blossom.

Welcome home ratties!

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How pretty they are! I had gerbils, mice, and guinea pigs growing up, but my mom drew the line at rats (we had plenty in the basement of the tenement where we lived, she said). Wish I could have them now, but we travel too much. Congrats on da rats!

oh! rats are amazing pets i love them! congrats!

Beautiful rats! But yes that cage is way too small for them. Especially active girlies who literally like to bounce off the walls!

The ferret nation is an awesome cage, you can actually get a 'fake' called an Explorer, I think its made by Liberta

Or you can use an old aviary etc

They may be a little nervous of the new space, you could always pop their old cage inside the new one so they feel a little safer and just take it out once they are used to their new cage.

Rats really shouldn't be kept on woodshavings either as their are toxins in the wood that can cause respiratory problems, and they are usually quite dusty. Swop to paper based cat litter or a cardboard based bedding product x

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They are really cute. Even though I was never allowed to have any either. So had to be happy with rabbits, gerbils, hamsters, and guinea pigs

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Thanks all!
And the bedding I use is aspen only, it doesn't contain the phenols that are found in pine or cedar (the stuff that causes the respiratory issues) and is 99% dust free. It's also doesn't have the oils in it that "softwoods" do. The only issue is basically if they have a particular allergy to it. If you can find ANYTHING that proves this otherwise though I will definitely switch; this is just what I've heard so far.

This may not be the best place to ask (I did try on a rat forum but didn't get the much info) is there a "raw diet" equivalent in rat food? I found one "recipe" of different grains and seeds and fruits/veggies; but no actual info to back it up. I'd like to make sure they get the best diet just like I do for my dogs but I do find a hard time believing that lab blocks are truly the best thing for them (though I could be wrong I guess..)

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I feed mine Suebee's mix, which sounds like what you are referring to. I mix in cereals, pastas, a little bit of seeds, and dried fruit and veggies. Then they get Mazuri lab blocks every day, and then fresh foods. The fresh food that they get is basically leftovers from our home made meals.

That cage, while it's nice, is too small for even one rat. They need to have at least 2 sq foot per rat. I have seen a lot of fns on craigslist for cheap lately. Most rat people have decided to invest in critter nations since they have the smaller bar spacing and don't need to be modified for babies. Look around, you might find something good.

Sorry, just looked like woodshavings in the pic! I'm sure aspen is okay

Look up the Shunamite Diet.
There's a book you can buy all about making up your own mix called The Scuttling Gourmet which can be bought from The Rat Warehouse.

Fancy rats is a good rat forum x

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