# My Rattie Cage, Pass Or Fail?



## Psykotik (Feb 3, 2007)

Its a 10 gal. aquarium, with a wire topper, a little house, with the water bottle through the roof, a stone under the bottle, to help dull thier nails, cell-sorb bedding, some T.P. rolls, a rope in the middle, 2 hammocks made of 2 bandanas.... ironiclly thier red and blue, looks like a lil gang war in my rats cage xD

and a "ratty pinata" (a sock filled with mixed treats, 6 pcs. in all)



its for 2 10 week old rats, a brown 1 with a white stomache (Reaper), and (Grim) black hood, and a blk stripe down his back


(im not sure what spieces they are, or how big they'll get, if anyone can tell me, thanks much  )


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## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

that cage won't last long. i am assuming the wire topper you are talking about is one of those ones that adds extra floors to the cage so they can climb up in it. it will work for now, i guess, but not for long. the stuff you have in the cage sounds good though. they are both just fancy rats and will be normal size. all rats that are sold as pets are fancy rats and will get about the same size. they do now have dwarf rats but you can only get them from breeders.


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## Psykotik (Feb 3, 2007)

what do u suggest for a cage? 


and whats "normal" size?


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## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

go to this site....

http://www.rattycorner.com/odds/calc.shtml

you can put in the dimensions of a cage and see how many rats will fit in it. just look up cages for sale on petsmart or petco or somewhere like that and use the dimensions of different cages they have for sale.


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## Eden (Jan 28, 2007)

That calculator is very cool. I like it. That's probably 'cos it told me my cage could house 9 rats happily. That's a LOT of little ratties... *grins*


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## alybaba11 (Feb 8, 2007)

I think you did it wrong. A 10 gallon tank certainly cannot hold that many rats, and isn' big enough for even one full grown rat.


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## nativemic (Jan 24, 2007)

the ten gallon tank will be ok if the rat (s) are babies but once they start to grow the tank will be too small for him/her/them. males will can get up to around 10 inches not counting the tail. so a larger cage will be needed. you can use ferret cages with multilevels or rat specific cages like the "rene rat , jenny rat, tom rat cages.go on google and search for "rat cages" and you will see all the options you have


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## Psykotik (Feb 3, 2007)

ROFL!!! i put in 9,999,999 for each, and it said i can hold 2 rats


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## STUgirl55 (Feb 6, 2007)

It said my cage is only big enough for one rat! My cage is very big and the two of them seem really comfy in there.


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## carlylox (Jan 16, 2007)

Wire cages are better than aquariums as they have better ventilation (which will stop your rattie overheating) and ratties like to climb and cage bars are great for climbing  

I can't advise you on cages I'm afraid as the cages we get in England are completely different to ones you get in the US (our tend to be mostly plastic with plasitcoted metal bars). As for sizing, we work in litres not gallons, so again I'm a little lost on this :? 

It sounds like you have plenty of playthings for you ratties but when they get bigger they're not going to have enough room.

It sounds like you have a black and white hooded and an agouti berkshire (if the feet and tummy are white and the tip of the tail is pinky, its a berkshire, if not then its an agouti self, their tummys are light in colour, almost greyish)

Hope you enjoy your ratties, happy cage hunting!


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## Psykotik (Feb 3, 2007)

hes berkshire


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

when you said topper did you mean a wire top for the tank or a add on tank topper?


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## nerdchick (Feb 26, 2007)

Well no matter what happens, the aquariums fail. Unless you are breeding or have eepers, your rats need a wire cage. I have three boys, and they are quite comfy in an All Living Things cage, it cost $100. Martins cages are also awesome, and if you want the holy grail of cages, check out the Ferret Nation. Whatever you do though, please get your ratties out of an aquarium, you're just asking for health issues.

-Caty


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## Night (Feb 23, 2007)

I have to vouch for the FN. I absolutely adore my Ferret Nation, and I have had a great many cages over the years (SuperPets, tanks, Martin's, and homemade).

Caty's right - tanks are no home for an adult rat, unless they're recovering from surgery or are sick, and even then they're not ideal.


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## Psykotik (Feb 3, 2007)

1) i clean thier cage 3 times a week now, theve been in 1 thier entire life, and NO health problems, and thier not even in the cage often, like 4 hrs a day


2) night, u freak, not everyone has money coming out thier ass... so unless ur gonna start donating, stfu...

ty, and have a wonderful day


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## Night (Feb 23, 2007)

Uh, that was really unnecessary and rude. I didn't say anything mean to you, so I didn't deserve that. Simply because I stated facts and mentioned a cage I like, doesn't mean I'm a "freak."


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## reachthestars (Feb 27, 2007)

I understand that not everone has money for an FN (I don't, but sure wish I did!) but there ARE nice alternatives. Have you considered a Martins cage (www.martinscages.com)? I have the R-695 myself and love it, but there are cheaper options that are still great for 2-3 rats.

I applaud you for being able to clean your cage so often, but will you want to do that for 2+ years? And keep in mind that the boys will grow out of that cage quickly. I've had boys reach up to 1.5 lbs and a body length of 9 in (not including tail).

Just my $0.02


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## nerdchick (Feb 26, 2007)

Wow, that was really rude Psykotik. And cages don't have to be expensive. I work a low paying retail job and managed to afford my cage. You can also make a cage, some great links are here: Curiosity Rats
Go to info, then DIY.

Now I tried to be nice in my first post, but I'm going to be honest here. Living a tank is not fair to the rat and can border on cruel. How would you feel if had to live in a glass box, walking around in the build up feces and urine stench. That is called torture and is illegal. Just because you clean your cage often doesn't mean it's any better for the rats. And having a wire cage is easier for you. It's way easy to clean. 
So, if you want to make life better for your rats, you can find a good cage in the range of $80 to $150 or can make a cage. Making a cage is way cheaper, I've made one for $30 and the only reason I don't use it was because the wire wasn't powder coated.

-Caty


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