I have changed my mind...Rats are not so bad. - Page 4

sylviahomeatlast · ‎03-11-2010

On 1/23/2014 bikerbabe said:
i like rats and mice. i like mice better of the two. i love all of God's creatures.

I'm with you, biker babe--I like they tiny feet

scotttie · ‎03-09-2010

On 1/23/2014 Anniecamp said:
When I was in grade school, I had a white rat for a pet. I got her after we were done with our science experiment on nutrition.

She was the sweetest, cutest thing on 4 feet. I had her for a long time.

Same here. My dd was able to take home the school's lab rat after they had done the nutrition experiment.

It was really an adorable creature. I freaked at first...didn't realize she was going to be so big. She looked like the pure white one in the pictures above.

It was a very, very cute and interesting pet. She used to do the funniest things. I think I have told before how she would empty the oatmeal out of her dish and place her empty corn cob in the dish as if to say "more corn".

We were really sad when we had to have her put down due to cancer.

Lavinia_1 · ‎03-21-2013

Those are beyond cute, I love almost all animals and those I don't love I don't wish bad things on them. Those are really effin adorable!

croemer · ‎03-10-2010

On 1/23/2014 Lavinia said: Those are beyond cute, I love almost all animals and those I don't love I don't wish bad things on them. Those are really effin adorable!

I know!!!

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**Careful... I have caps lock and I am not afraid to use it.**

mistriTsquirrel · ‎07-17-2010

On 1/23/2014 ennui1 said:
On 1/23/2014 ennui1 said:
Did you know rats don't have bladders, so they pee constantly?

After I said that, Google says it's a myth. Rats do have bladders, and they do have bladder control, but they still pee everywhere, all the time.

"What your rat is probably doing is scent marking, not actually weeing. When rats wee, you know about it because there tends to be a lot of it! But some rats (not all) will leave tiny drops of urine behind them as they walk. This serves two purposes: the first is to tell any other rats that this is their territory and to stay out. The second is so they can find their way back to safety by following the trails.
Rats can and will mark everything they want to claim as theirs, or retrace their steps over, and this will include you."

That's odd. I've had pet rats for years, and NONE of them have ever peed on me. An adult rat will become agitated when he/she has to pee...then when you put him/her back in the cage, they go. That has been the case with all of my rats, and I've read other peoples' accounts of their rats signalling when they need to return to the cage to pee. I've had rats poop a pellet or two on me when startled, but I've never been peed on by a rat.

Mice, on the other hand, are a different story. They WILL pee/poo wherever they want to.

"Heartburn Can Cause Cancer" -- www.ecan.org

mistriTsquirrel · ‎07-17-2010

On 1/23/2014 kachina624 said: The problem with rats as pets is that almost all get tumors and die of cancer at a young age.

That is true; respiratory diseases are also a problem with feeder rats that are kept as pets.

However, there are people who breed rats that are to be kept as pets who are careful to breed for health...so if anyone wants a pet rat who will not die of cancer or respiratory disease at a young age, it pays to find a legit breeder.

"Heartburn Can Cause Cancer" -- www.ecan.org