# Angry rant! Irresponsible pet owners



## anetaxo (Aug 16, 2011)

I was just on a pet adoption website, looking for breeders in my area, and I have come across quite a few posts where people were giving away pet rats because they 'don't have the time' etc. This has angered me so much, how can you do this to a pet? You bought it, it's a commitment! One post said that they have recently had a baby and now they don't have the time to look after their pet rats. HOW CAN YOU NOT HAVE TIME FOR RATS! For God's sake, it doesn't require THAT much effort. Sure, you have to take them out to play etc. but it's not that hard! I bet they would find time if they had another baby, people do look after 2 babies at the same time, and a pet rat requires much less attention than that! 

One post that angered me in particular was a person giving away 2 gorgeous 6 month old girls because (GET READY FOR THIS) 'child lost interest'. REALLY?! ARE YOU SERIOUS?! You bought this pet and it is your responsibility to care for it! A pet is not toy, you can't just toss in the corner because you're bored of it! To make the matters even worse, from what I caught in the photos, the cage was absolutely filthy with poop everywhere, and I doubt it had been cleaned since they got them.

People like this make me SO SO angry. And it's not just because it's about rats, in fact, I don't care what animal this is about, it is so out of order, immature and cruel.I just felt like messaging every single one of these people with a massive rant, and taking the pets off their hands so I can look after them properly, but I can't do that ! People like this should be banned from having pets!! GRRRR SO ANGRY!!!! 


Sorry for the rant, I just got so upset and angry, and I know people here would understand where I'm coming from


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## zurfaces (Jan 16, 2013)

I think they're being responsible for rehoming them. I know people that would just turn them loose or drop them off at the humane society. It's not fair for the rat to live in a household where they're not getting any attention and getting minimal care. Children do lose interest in things. I personally would never have gotten them the pet in the first place. If anything I would have gotten it for me and let the child think it is theirs. Being the mother of an infant is hard stuff and she probably has to work too. When is she going to get time to play with those rats if she has a baby crying at her constantly that eats for hours straight and barely sleeps at night? 

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## Ratfinx (Feb 19, 2013)

I completely agree, I'm always on Gumtree looking at animals and the amount of times I see that people "don't have time" really makes me angry, if you get a pet it's a commitment, no matter how busy I am I always make time for my boys even if it means getting up early or going to bed late, they depend on their owners! I share you anger completely, tbh I'd never get a pet for my child unless I knew they would look after it or I knew I could look after it, 
The amount of people who treat animals like toys disgust me to be blunt about it, 


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## pwoink (Feb 19, 2013)

I agree with zurfaces -- it's more responsible to recognize when you can no longer be a good pet owner and try to give the animal a better life with someone who does have time for them, than to never try to rehome them. People's lives and situations are different, and often unpredictable.


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## Ratfinx (Feb 19, 2013)

pwoink said:


> I agree with zurfaces -- it's more responsible to recognize when you can no longer be a good pet owner and try to give the animal a better life with someone who does have time for them, than to never try to rehome them. People's lives and situations are different, and often unpredictable.


Yeah I suppose your right tbh, but when animals are living in bad conditions there's not really an excuse yeah it's good they're trying to rehome them but if they're kept badly its not fair to start with, but I do understand what you mean 


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

I dont mind the genuine people, you get a few that took the rats on, cared for them well but then life got too much and they can't do it any more. I had a friend like this that had a baby and ended up with post natal depression and the rats were getting neglected so she got them rehomed through the original breeder. Those kind of cases i think are good and the person is being brave and doing right by the rats. The ones that get me are the 'child lost interest' ones and those where they dont have time but are looking for a dog/lizard/snake/cat etc instead.

Saying that at least the rat is getting out, i took in a foster once that a lad had just bought on a whim, him mum had found it in his room when he left to go back to uni. She was terrified of rats but knew my mum who took him in for me to find a home. This is his cage with all the things he had in it.










its around 15 inches at its longest and is tiny., mum and dad added a box and toilet roll tube whilst waiting for me to bring a proper sized cage and stuff for him to move in. I dread to think of his life if his owners mum hadn't rehomed him. Instead after quarentine he went to a home with other rats, in a massive cage, he became the best alpha my friend had ever had and one of her all time fave rats.

Rupert, the unwanted lad


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

By the way the lable on the cage made it worse for me, poor Rupert was so loved that the owner didn't even take its former inhabitants name off it (ignoring the fact i wouldn't even keep a hamster in that cage).


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## anetaxo (Aug 16, 2011)

zurfaces said:


> I think they're being responsible for rehoming them. I know people that would just turn them loose or drop them off at the humane society. It's not fair for the rat to live in a household where they're not getting any attention and getting minimal care. Children do lose interest in things. I personally would never have gotten them the pet in the first place. If anything I would have gotten it for me and let the child think it is theirs. Being the mother of an infant is hard stuff and she probably has to work too. When is she going to get time to play with those rats if she has a baby crying at her constantly that eats for hours straight and barely sleeps at night?



I'm guess you've got a point, tbh I'd rather see them being rehomed than stay with bad owners or have even worse things happen to them, however I think that they should think about their lives and their situation before having a pet, instead of making decision to buy one, only to be getting rid of them soon. I think if their child lost interest the parents should care for it then, but hey ho, people are idiots. You wouldn't give a child away because your dog lost interest would you? You also woundn't give a child away because you are having another one and you can't give it more time. This is what pisses me off. On top of that they probably didn't care about the poor thing in the fist place, the cage in the pics looked filthy


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## anetaxo (Aug 16, 2011)

That is awful, poor rupert  At least he is happier now  


And yes I think sometimes you can tell when someone is being genuine and wants the best for the rat, however I think there is a lot of people trying to give them away because they got bored, or can't be bothered to look after the pet. Not to mention the 'child lost interest' one.

I had a friend when I was young who kept having different pets, and the parents kept giving them away after a few months because he got bored with them, he must have easily had 30 different pets, anything from dogs, cats, to rabbits, to snakes. I remember one time he just killed his 3 mice he had 'for fun', and after that he got a rat from his parents. I could kill parents like this, a pet is not a toy.


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## Ratfinx (Feb 19, 2013)

Isamurat said:


> I dont mind the genuine people, you get a few that took the rats on, cared for them well but then life got too much and they can't do it any more. I had a friend like this that had a baby and ended up with post natal depression and the rats were getting neglected so she got them rehomed through the original breeder. Those kind of cases i think are good and the person is being brave and doing right by the rats. The ones that get me are the 'child lost interest' ones and those where they dont have time but are looking for a dog/lizard/snake/cat etc instead.
> 
> Saying that at least the rat is getting out, i took in a foster once that a lad had just bought on a whim, him mum had found it in his room when he left to go back to uni. She was terrified of rats but knew my mum who took him in for me to find a home. This is his cage with all the things he had in it.
> 
> ...


Is that plastic in the cage? :/ 
Poor little guy, I agree with everything you've said, you've basically summed it up to a tea. 


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## Lubmyrattie (Mar 8, 2013)

CL around my area has a mass influx of small animals right now. Most of them with the excuse of child lost interest. Makes me think that they got it for themselves. Realize hey this is a living animal and I don't want to take care of it so they are rehoming it and pinning it on the kid. 


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Ratfinx said:


> Is that plastic in the cage? :/
> Poor little guy, I agree with everything you've said, you've basically summed it up to a tea.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


Its selotape round the outsideof the cage, sticking a bit of card on to fill a gap left by a shelf that normally slots in, how Rupert hadnt already escaped I dont know. You should have seen his face when I put him into what I considered a small rat cage. He didnt know what to do. But within a week he was climbing and bouncy and so friendly.


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## Ratfinx (Feb 19, 2013)

Oo right I see now, aw bless him that's so sweet! 


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## Rumy91989 (Dec 31, 2012)

Lubmyrattie said:


> CL around my area has a mass influx of small animals right now. Most of them with the excuse of child lost interest. Makes me think that they got it for themselves. Realize hey this is a living animal and I don't want to take care of it so they are rehoming it and pinning it on the kid.
> 
> 
> Sent from Petguide.com Free App


I believe that's what happens with A LOT of people. There are many people that do buy for their kids, though, and don't take into account that kids are, well... kids. Some are responsible enough to understand that a pet is a life that requires care and commitment, even after the new exciting feeling has worn off. Most kids, though, are not prepared to handle a pet, and parents that get their kids pets and don't take this into account make me very sad and frustrated.


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## alexn (Sep 30, 2012)

We had a guy come into the store today and try to offload 9 (NINE) rats on us - one mother, eight babies. We had no space, but referred him to another store that might. While it sucks that he's having to shift them, I'd much rather he did so than just released them/chucked them out.


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## mistymornings18 (Aug 13, 2012)

As a mother of a child who has recently started having major life threatening health issues I can understand the excuse that they no longer have time. 
I worry all the time that my rats aren't getting enough time with me. I've had no cents I thought about rehoming my rats and not taking anymore rescues. Its hard. 
Never judge a situation when you only have a bit of the full story.


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## monster_paws (Jan 17, 2013)

What I hate are those bandwagon rat owners like some of my friends. They come over and go, "aww I didn't know you could have rats as pets. They're so cute, I love them!!"

2 weeks later, I get a text like, "I got rats too!" What usually comes next are frantic messages telling me that their rats are scared of them and aren't friendly like mine. Yep, I worked hard to socialize mine so that they'd be little furry angels. And what happens is that they don't want the rats anymore and start neglecting them and I've ended up adopting their unwanted rats, which turn into tiny lovables when they live with me.

Ugh.


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