# New here, wanted to share my setup and my lil fellas...



## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

Hi all,

I am new here (I have been registered on here since a while but I have not posted yet)

I have 2 male rats Ben and Jerry, I got them as a gift in Jan 09 when they were 2 months old... I got them a rabbit hutch today, they are really excited and they have spent the entire day exploring the habitat... They are too big to escape from the cage and they dont even try (lucky me)

I will be adding accessories soon, but I am looking to make some DIY toys and accessories instead of buying some...

I dont plan to add any more rats to the cage since I want these 2 to be happy 

Here are some pics 


























































P.S I am happy to be here and I am looking forward to being a part of ur forum !


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## lilangel (Mar 26, 2009)

Hi And welcome! Nice set up. For DIY stuff you can make extra levels by using coroplast from any hard wear stores or find someone getting rid of signs lol

for toys and such the http://dapper.com.au/ has many ideas.

Your PEWS are very cute.

Also in your cage id take off that grid like at the bottom can hurt little feet's or cover it up with fleece at all times. (you can also get bubblefoot that way always being on mesh or bared levels)


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

Thank you for replying.. I have the option to add the tub that is below inside the cage and to fill it with bedding.. i shall do that in a few hours, right now they are sleeping on top of the platform and I dont want to wake them up...

Since when I have got them I use newspaper as bedding, they dont eat the paper at all (I got them in jan 09)

I was wondering if I can use clean hay as bedding, I doubt if they will eat it since they are very picky about what they eat....

I also have a noob question, how long do pet rats live?

I made a ferret tunnel for them, I shall upload pics when i add it to the cage


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## jasugar (Feb 2, 2010)

nain said:


> Thank you for replying.. I have the option to add the tub that is below inside the cage and to fill it with bedding.. i shall do that in a few hours, right now they are sleeping on top of the platform and I dont want to wake them up...
> 
> Since when I have got them I use newspaper as bedding, they dont eat the paper at all (I got them in jan 09)
> 
> ...


Pet rats live about 3 years. Not very long when you fall in love with them.  

PVC pipes are great alternatives for tunnels.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

3 years is quite a short period ... My rats are already 1 year and 6 months old (approx).. Bummer 

Pvc pipes is a great idea! Thank you 

We get aquarium tubes here, large ones, acrylic and translucent, maybe I can use one or two of those instead..

I shall try to make a hammock and a cube today. I have really bad stitching skills so lets see how that goes..


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

jasugar said:


> Pet rats live about 3 years. Not very long when you fall in love with them.





nain said:


> 3 years is quite a short period ... My rats are already 1 year and 6 months old (approx).. Bummer


Not to disappoint more, but 3 years would be VERY old for a rat and it's very lucky if they reach that age. The average is about 2 years. I recently read on another forum the average has been found to be 21 months.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

Thanks for the information... I guess good things always end soon 

Does anyone on this forum keep hamsters?

I made a rat tube for my lil boys, i have terrible sewing skills 

Here are some pics...


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

nain said:


> Does anyone on this forum keep hamsters?


I used to. Probably had around 20 from around the age of 4. I have rats and gerbils now though. My Mam still keeps hamsters and currently has 2 - a syrian and a dwarf (not sure if winter white or campbells) that has 3 legs. The 3-legged boy was where I volunteer and now has a home with her.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

I really like all small animals. I would like to keep sugar gliders, some day maybe.. I actually have two empty 65 gallon tanks that I used to use for my fish. I was planning to get 2 male hamsters (Russian dwarfs) for one of the 65 gallon tanks. i was hoping someone would guide me since all of you are so helpful 

As of now I am making a cube for the rats, it should be done in a few hours....


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

I'm a member of Hamster Fanatic Forum and have found people on there to be really helpful when I've posted about ailments of my Mam's hamster. I'm also on Hamster Central and Hamster Hideout, but have found the forum I've linked to be the most active.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

Thank you! I shall join the forum you mentioned... 

Pic of the cube, Jerry is sleeping inside it right now ;D


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## AvaAdoreSmashing (Dec 31, 2009)

You really need to cover the bars they walk on to prevent bumblefoot.


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## toby (May 11, 2009)

great set up. love the tubes but would be better without the bars at the bottom.


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## Lauren_22 (Mar 10, 2009)

AvaAdoreSmashing said:


> You really need to cover the bars they walk on to prevent bumblefoot.


Actually walking on bars doesn't cause bumble foot. Rats can get bumble foot in wire floor cages or solid floor cages, the cause is walking around in unsanitary conditions which can happen in any type of cage. Many people who have Martin's cages don't cover their shelves and they opt to wipe them down multiple times a day to keep it clean. 

However, you do need to cover the floor or remove the bottom grid simply because of the spacing of the wire. Because the openings are long there is the potantial that their foot could slip between two bars and be broken or sprained.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

I have just added the tub to cover the bars, I am sorry I dint add it earlier, my bad 

I have one last question for now, do rats need wheels like hamsters do?


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## sawyerashton (Dec 14, 2009)

I wouldn't say that they need them. Some don't like the wheels at all. 3 of my 4 girls love it.


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

Thanks.. I had got the critter trail 3 level habitat for my rats earlier and that had the wheel...I exchanged it for the hutch in a day since my rats were too big for the tubes (duh!) and they were actually scared of he wheel....

The new cube is a success... When I opened the door of my pet room this morning I found both of them snuggled inside it


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## vivianelizabeth (Feb 24, 2010)

My rats seem to be a tad scared of their 'cube'. (it's sortof mishapen.. my handstiching sucks  )
If I put them in it, they'll snuggle in it for HOURS, but otherwise Evita prefers the hammock and Frida prefers the hide... but won't sleep in the hide becuase she's terrified without her sister!


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

All right, I wont get a wheel.. Instead I gave them some cardboard tubes to play with, they arnt chewing but they are running through them and acting cute...

I had put the tub in yesterday but for some reason they started climbing on the bars to travel and refused to set foot on the base.. I was quite confused so I removed the tub instead i put a thick layer of newspaper, covered it with a large cloth and pinned the cloth to the sides of the cage.. Now they are moving around fine... Does anyone know why they were refusing to walk on the base when I put in the tub? ???

vivianelizabeth your girls sound very cute  ... My handstiching is bad too, but looks like my rats dont mind it


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## nain (Jan 27, 2007)

I shall put back the tub tomorrow when I put the cloth for wash, I shall try to lure them down with treats then .. Thank you


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## Capistrono (Apr 12, 2010)

You know, if you're not good at sewing there's a very easy way to make a hammock that I used, only took me 5 minutes. I took an old towel, cut it into a square and cut holes in the corners, then put string through it and tied it to the bars or the cage. Doesn't look too pretty but the rats love it.

Just a suggestion.


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## laughingrats (Apr 21, 2010)

I have a cage similar to yours, and what I did with the grid was take it out so there is about 2/3 or spacing. That way it acts like a second level, and they like to run underneath. One downfall is having to get them when their under there, but you can just slide the grid further out, or tempt them with treats.


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