# RatPak Monthly Subscription?



## AmberlynKnight (Apr 11, 2016)

I just recently discovered RatPak and subscribed out of curiosity. I don't have my rats yet, but our local petshops are horribly understocked when it comes to rat chews, bird chews and even food for the little fuzzies. Most of the food is all alfalfa based!  RatPack seems to be similar to lootcrate for rats, or bark boxes-- where a bunch of rat goodies are put into the box and it's sent out monthly. After I subbed I even got a bunch of little extras; a discount and a free rat treat/chew. It seems really neat! But I can't find a lot of reviews about the products over a length of time!! If anybody has been subbed to it I would love to hear what you think. I'm still waiting on my first box which should arrive a few days before I can go out to get my first mischief. 

So yes! If you're subscribed or know where I can find reviews let me know!! <3 Much thanks!


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

I think it is a neat idea but not something I would ever get.

I honestly am not a fan of small pet treats, almost all of them are over priced and made with alot of bad ingredients. I'd rather give my babies something healthy and yummy that is made with human grade ingredients. Gerber baby food snacks like the puffs or yogurt bites are great (and cheaper). Or you can make stuff yourself even! Cheerios are always a big hit.

As for toys, some things are not always safe and I am picky. I'd rather just pick out what I wanted myself & it would likely be cheaper & i would get exactly what I wanted. There are lots of online stores. Amazon, http://www.drsfostersmith.com. ferret.com, any bird supply stores. 

Plus they have a real lack of pics show casing their boxes. The ones I have seen have alot of products I do not think are good at all. Their Jan box had salt licks.... which no just no. 

I'd rather see a cool rat box that had like hammocks and safe rat toys, no food (or only high quality stuff) and nothing unsafe for rats.


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## AmberlynKnight (Apr 11, 2016)

It's really difficult to find healthy treats in my location which of course is the only reason I considered it xD I do like that they have things like snuggle pouches and tunnels. From what I saw, there were a lot of essentials! Not only treats! What I have seen so far, besides the salt licks and certain treats with a high sugar content they seem to be treats recommended by a lot of people! I agree they are overpriced, but with the coupon and the shipping I paid about 25 dollars which is the least I have spent so far looking for supplies in larger cities like Toronto. When I buy online, shipping to my town is an arm and a leg, sometimes 20 dollars per item if I can't get everything I want in one spot. 

The main reason I wanted to ask was because all I can find online are either low quality good reviews, or bad reviews for certain products (especially for january). I was actually wondering what the service was like long term. 

I plan on feeding my rats a homemade rat mix, but treats, chews, tunnels and extras are very hard to find. Especially when the shipping is more than the actual product! That's what made me interested in this service.


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## InuLing (Dec 26, 2015)

For treats the best ones you can find will be in your grocery store or fridge. Cheerios and Rice Krispies cereal make great training treats. Veggies like peas, broccoli, and apples are always loved. Eggs and chicken are great protein treats as long as you don't add anything to them. Some things are better than others and some things you have to give in moderation. Certain veggies and fruit cannot be given to rats at all while others they can have every day. Just do your research. Bobbing for peas is a great activity for rats to enjoy and have some fun. It's also great to watch.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Gerber's baby puffs and Yummies by Rattitude are my rats' favorite treats and they are healthy too😉


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

Too bad they don't do a toy/hammock only pack, that would be something I'd like to get because Australian websites and petshops are pretty limited when it comes to small animal items. But as for food, Australia has strict laws on what you can and can't import, and I can see some possible no-nos in those packs.


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## AmberlynKnight (Apr 11, 2016)

InuLing said:


> For treats the best ones you can find will be in your grocery store or fridge. Cheerios and Rice Krispies cereal make great training treats. Veggies like peas, broccoli, and apples are always loved. Eggs and chicken are great protein treats as long as you don't add anything to them. Some things are better than others and some things you have to give in moderation. Certain veggies and fruit cannot be given to rats at all while others they can have every day. Just do your research. Bobbing for peas is a great activity for rats to enjoy and have some fun. It's also great to watch.


I can't TELL you how excited I am for this because words cannot express!! I'm totally going to have them bob for peas when they get a bit bigger :3 I have Cheerios and baby puffs ready for them too :3 Anything I can get my hands on! I do! -- I am also curious about hard boiled eggs. Anything interactive I'm excited for. I plan on introducing treats like that during free roam time so they have something to do *and I don't have to clean up egg in the cage later when things smell funky* XD




Gribouilli said:


> Gerber's baby puffs and Yummies by Rattitude are my rats' favorite treats and they are healthy too


Ooh I've never heard of Yummies-- but I have a bunch of baby puffs for them as special treats :3 Plan on using them to help with the litter training and to give my little sisters something to give them hehe



Fu-Inle said:


> Too bad they don't do a toy/hammock only pack, that would be something I'd like to get because Australian websites and petshops are pretty limited when it comes to small animal items. But as for food, Australia has strict laws on what you can and can't import, and I can see some possible no-nos in those packs.


Oh wow, I can imagine. I've been making my own hammocks but honestly I'm horrible with a sewing machine. I didn't know about those laws!! Fingers crossed that something comes along soon!! I think it would be great. Make a bunch of different kinds of hammocks and throw in surprises monthly xD Personally I'm more excited about the extras than I am about some of the treats xD i think I'll have to be selective there. But the chews, toys and hammocks are the things I'm super excited about!


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## Adrasteia (Apr 1, 2016)

I just had to say how much I love your name choice for your rats and your avatar, I'm a huge Supernatural fan and Fruits Basket is a one of my favorite anime/manga


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Oddly, rats are so adaptable that you can _almost_ do without a cage, without special foods or special toys... or fancy just about anything... They can pretty much live in a hole in your wall and eat your trash.... Well almost... and I'm not recommending anyone try it... just to be clear.

So far there really haven't been many, if any, successful business models built on pet rats. I sort of like the subscription model, it almost guarantees repeat business and it works well for gifting... someone gave my wife fruit of the month once.. it was nice to get a box of fruit every month... not that I would buy it for myself though. But subscriptions tend to work based on distributing other successful products ... like fruit or dog treats and toys. It will be fascinating to see if there are enough products common to rat owners that they would want on a monthly basis or enough rat owners interested in a box of goodies each month. 

Some years ago, my daughter wanted to give our rats a yummy treat from the pet store, we settled on Oxbow rat treats... dried strawberries... I think I still have a 90% full bag left. It wasn't something the rats even wanted, and my little girl.. about 6 at the time was so disappointed. Thankfully I bought a snickers bar (for myself) from the vending machine on the way out of the store... I cut a few thin slices, and wrapped them up, the rats were all enthusiastic over that... and Christmas for the rats was saved... as far as my then 6 year old daughter was concerned... And that was the last time I spent a dime on a rat-only treat. That's not to say our rats don't get treats. They just get a taste of ours. I can't imagine how anyone can build a successful business on animals that have so few special needs.... Maybe... vet visit gift cards?

A successful rat product might even increase the popularity of rats, like the habitrail did for hamsters. Basically in marketing the build it yourself tubular hamster home the company ran TV commercials showing cuddly and friendly hamsters. More than likely, for every tube home that was sold for Christmas someone had to buy at least one hamster. I think that commercial ran against "Subaru; It's ugly but it's cheap" That was a long time ago. And locally, I recall Petland Discounts running TV commercials on how great tropical fish are in order to sell more aquariums and fish food. There's something about seeing dogs and cats in cute commercials that no doubt supports the demand for those animals. If someone could come up with a must-have rat product that could be mass marketed on TV or online, rats would be marketed as the must have pets, for better or worse.


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