# Can I get rats NOW?



## ilovemyfatcat (Apr 14, 2012)

So sometime last year I posted a thread asking about rats and cigarette smoke. This question got so many people enraged that I 'was going to get rats no matter what I was told', since I kept trying to give alternatives so I could get them. ANYWAYS, I told everyone I had so many months to get a solution (since I was waiting until this summer to get them). Long story short, they had to close that thread because it got so bad, everyone 'going crazy', you could call it. GUESS WHAT? I moved! And guess what? My mom smokes outside now! Whoop! Everyone flipped out on me for nothing because I found a solution LIKE I SAID! (Thanks to the people who gave encouraging answers).

Anyways! After that rant, I just want to tell you some amazing news! I can finally get rats! I don't know when, and it might not be for another year, but I will get them when I have enough money saved up! We moved to a house that has 2 inside cats and 3 roommates (not including me and my mom). I share my room with my mom and she recently got a new bed and cats are NOT allowed in our room for that purpose, so they wont be a problem! The 3 roommates also keep to themselves and never come into our room, so the rats will stay safe. As for it getting hot here, I'm pretty sure if it gets too hot for my mom (especially at night), we'll either get a bunch of fans, or she might even break down and have an AC unit put in here, so heat wont be a problem (which I was worried about at the other house). Coldness also wont be a problem because I do believe we have central heat. And if not, we can always go buy some space heaters and keep our room warm that way and I will also get my grandma to sew me some rice bags so I can heat them up (not too hot) and put them in the cage at night, making sure to wake myself up throughout the night to swap it out. But I will make sure these critters wont be too hot or too cool! I will also be sure I get them from a breeder. I can't wait, AGAIN!

Even though I might still can get rats, here's some bad news, we don't have safe rooms in this house for free ranging, not even the bathroom, since the cabinets and walls are so bad off. Our bedroom is also not large enough to add a big enough playpen for me and the rats to sit in, so this might pose a threat at the chance of me getting rats, since I wont get them unless I know this life will be the best they will have. Are there any solutions to THIS problem or should I just wait another couple of years until my mom can afford a house of our own, or I move out? If this is the case, I'd just stick with either a hamster, or just wait to get any new pets and get a canon rebel (camera).


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## mistymornings18 (Aug 13, 2012)

What was the deal with cigarette smoke ?
Anyway you can let them free range on your bed with supervision. Lots of people do it that way. 


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## Jenzie (Dec 26, 2012)

If you can't free range them, you can also let them out for play time on your bed. Just cover it with a spare comforter (I just buy cheap ones from Goodwill) and voila! A decent-sized play space with easy clean up.


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## JessyGene (Feb 27, 2012)

My rats almost always free range on just my bed or the couch, because I'm usually too lazy to set up the bathroom. I think free ranging on your bed would be just fine. Maybe the cats and roommates could get used to your rats too, and then maybe the rats could ride on your shoulders around the house? I'm happy for you that it is finally a possibility for you to get rats!


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## Freecia (Jan 24, 2013)

I'm impressed at how much thought and preparation you are putting into this. I think it's wonderful. I tend to be more impulsive and don't always think things through. This usually results in my having to figure it all out quickly. Lol. I need to take a lesson from you in patience. I hope you can get your pets soon. I do agree that a bed would do just fine for out of the cage time.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

I think you might have us confused with some other intolerant rat board. Some of us rat owners are smokers. I smoke a couple packs a day and my rats never had respiratory issues. And I'm told rats can usually tolerate smoke free environments too.

I had a similar problem with my rat when it comes to indoor space. I live with a true rat phobic who had to stay outside the house when the rat was out at first. Things have improved since, but my rat also ate wires when free ranging indoors....

This was my solution...












Seriously, don't try this yourself! My Fuzzy Rat has a very rare personality and is specially trained to be a true shoulder rat. Mostly, if your take your rats outdoors you will just kill them. But the point I'm trying to illustrate is that if you try hard enough rats can adapt to many different lifestyles. A cellar, attic or common hallway can make for a fine play area. And Fuzzy Rat is no fancy breeder rat, she started life as $2.49 snake food and she got her first real rat cage last Christmas and she's almost two years old. 

One thing... fan's don't work as rats don't sweat, you would have to keep them constantly wet in order to use a fan and that isn't practical. We water down Fuzzy when we take her out in the summer and in the heat she dries in just a few minutes and literally deflates. You need a cool basement, root cellar or air conditioning to keep a rat if the temp goes over 85 degrees F. in your area. This is absolutely not negotiable. Lots of warm rags will work like blankets in the winter. Otherwise 60 degrees is about as cold a rat can tolerate.


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## LightningWolf (Jun 8, 2012)

Sadly it was us that this happened to. I didn't get too involved in the fight since my parents do smoke (outside) and I've never had an issue or my rats. Niko was even outside with my mom when she was smoking (He wouldn't get out of her hood, so we just took him outside. She didn't sit down and I made sure to watch him) and he is just find. He did sneeze Once while outside, but I think it was a coincidence more then anything.

I'm honestly not going to voice my opinions on here, I just don't like joining in on conversations like this. 

Do you still have your hedgehog though? or am I thinking of someone else?

Oh and for the playpen, if you can't have them on the bed get some pieces of large cardboard or corrugated plastic (needs to be over 2 ft though or higher) and zip tie them together, and on one panel have a way for you to connect and disconnect them so you can just fold it up and put it under your bed when you don't need it out.


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## mistymornings18 (Aug 13, 2012)

My husband is a smoker and our rats have never had an issue with that. We've had many many many rats over the years and all have been exposed to smoke at one time or another. No ill effects???


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## zurfaces (Jan 16, 2013)

It seems that you're both having financial issues. While I'm happy for you to finally be able to get rats just make sure you're aware of the financial responsibility. I just don't want you to have to watch your rat suffer or for the rat to suffer because it can't get vet treatment. 

I'd say for day to day care you'd need at least 5 USD a week which would be saved for future purchases. You won't have to buy food every week but it can cost a bit to buy it when you do. They will need chewies and fun stuff. You can reuse a lot of items you'd regularly just throw away and the dollar store is fantastic for fun things. Every rat needs a hammock and they like to chew them to pieces so I'd expect at least one of those a month which can be about 15 dollars depending on where you get it. I do spot sewing and mine last months but looks terrible lol. fleece and flannel combos seem to work best for mine.


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## KelseyShea (Jan 20, 2013)

Do be careful if free ranging on the bed only- my rats are jumpers and climbers, and figured out how to get up and down in no time!


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## Willieboo (Oct 22, 2012)

Agreeing with KelseyShea, haha. One of my girls is a wicked athletic jumper (she's got that personality type I guess). She figured out how to launch herself off the bed and the cage pretty quick, so I just made sure to keep the doors closed and secure of course when I let them out and closed off the underside of my bed. C: But, all in all, atop the bed or the couch (covered with towels or the like) is still an excellent place for ratties to play. <3
(Word of caution with couches, if you ever use one as a playplace, I would check to make sure your couch doesn't have any miscellaneous fabric holes under the cushions that open into the framework. Because lo and behold, my rat found one in our couch that we didn't know existed till that day, and it took me 3 hours to coax her out of inside the couch frame.)


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Hint: My part wild rattie could slice through fabric like walking through air. You most likely didn't know you had a hole in your sofa until that day because you didn't have a hole before that day.


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## Willieboo (Oct 22, 2012)

Rat Daddy said:


> Hint: My part wild rattie could slice through fabric like walking through air. You most likely didn't know you had a hole in your sofa until that day because you didn't have a hole before that day.


It actually wasn't a chew hole, no worries, I know what those are like. 
Was a defect in the couch, where the framework was wonky and the fabric that was supposed to be stapled to the end of the couch and supported got stapled around the end wood support and onto the inside instead, leaving a gap. Don't quite know why our couch wound up that way, but I've seen other similar instances on here and other forums of framework gaps behind cushions, and the incidents that followed. Just suggesting checking for them in couches as a friendly precaution.


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## HelloClarice (Feb 1, 2012)

My boys play on the bed because they jump off the couch the ladies I trust have had longer so they run around the bedroom floor and on the bed I just put a sheet down thank don't use but if it's a new bed I would convince the mom by getting a cheap comforter for more fabric between the bed and the rat pee haha my girls go under my bed too though my girls wonder all over my room I just close the closet. I hope you get your ratties =)


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## pelirrojo (Feb 16, 2013)

Hello,

As far as the smoke goes I have no opinion, but if you happen to smoke tobacco (ie roll your own or rollies as we call them) I find they love the papers. spread them over the floor and they spent hours looking for more and placing them in their box.
Nice cheap way to entertain them.


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## ilovemyfatcat (Apr 14, 2012)

Yes, it definitely was with this forum as I haven't joined any other forum. The problem with the smoking was my mom and her current boyfriend smoked inside, daily. Everyone flipped saying how that is not a good idea and how I shouldn't get rats until they're in a smoke free environment... Kept trying to give solutions which got them even more worked up because apparently I wasn't going to listen to their suggestions. Anyways, yes, I was the one with the hedgehog, but my 12 year old niece has been wanting one and has done so much research, even more than me, and she worked very good with her and got to know and love her faster than I did, so I decided it'd be amazing for me to give the hedgie to her. She is still doing amazing with her and I'm really impressed. Thanks for all your suggestions, guys!


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## ratclaws (Nov 11, 2012)

I'm glad you've waited since last time. I know it may have seemed people were getting angry but it didn't seem that you were in such a good situation last time to get rats. Imagine if you got them last time and ended up moving somewhere where you couldn't have rats? But it sounds all good now! I'd just be thinking about the vet bill situation and also the fact that there are cats around. You'd be surprised how cats can quickly run into different rooms when the doors are just slightly open. Also, don't forget vet bills can hit you suddenly and cost a lot of money (in total I've had to spend the equivalent of $380 in vet costs!).


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## Flashygrrl (Feb 8, 2012)

Yup that was us. I'm glad that you found a good situation for your hedgehog and that your own situation has improved to the point where I think it would be ok to have them....as long as your not going over your mom's head on this and she won't be complaining about smell, mess or any of the other things potentially associated with rats, or if you will possibly have an issue with the roomates coming in and trying to play with them or feed them (a situation that can turn very very bad very quickly). Just remember to keep putting money away for possible vet bills, food and all the other stuff associated with having rats.

ETA: As for the cigarette smoke thing...these rats have the potential to spend a good chunk of time dealing with URIs anyways. Why make them breathe in nasty air?


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## ilovemyfatcat (Apr 14, 2012)

Thanks everyone, I would never get rats without having at least $400 saved up for vet bills. I'd have to do some major saving, but I have decided that I want to wait until next November, when I turn 16. This way, I can get my own job and have my own license. Then I wont have to worry about having to save $25 a week (not complaining, just takes longer than having a job) since I'll get more money a month, then I will have a stable situation for my rat friends!


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

I am glad that you came to a mature and responsible decision! Good on you!


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## Roxy&Spot (Aug 31, 2012)

zurfaces said:


> Every rat needs a hammock and they like to chew them to pieces so I'd expect at least one of those a month which can be about 15 dollars depending on where you get it. I do spot sewing and mine last months but looks terrible lol. fleece and flannel combos seem to work best for mine.


I bought a bulk stack of washrags from walmart, it was something like $5 for 15 or something like that. I use these as hammocks and hang them up with 3inch safety pins (sold as basting pins in the quilting section of walmart).

I've also sewn a couple of hammocks from old Tshirts and holy jeans. Owning rats can be as expensive or as cheap as you want it to be.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Roxy&Spot said:


> I bought a bulk stack of washrags from walmart, it was something like $5 for 15 or something like that. I use these as hammocks and hang them up with 3inch safety pins (sold as basting pins in the quilting section of walmart).
> 
> I've also sewn a couple of hammocks from old Tshirts and holy jeans. Owning rats can be as expensive or as cheap as you want it to be.


This is absolutely true! Rat toys and accessories can be dirt cheap and often free. Just use your imagination!


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## Eden10 (Aug 11, 2012)

Really am impressed with how mature you are & patient! I know when you do get your ratties, they are going to have a wonderful home with you ....so many other people would just rush out & buy an animal, only to realize they don't have the means to care for it....you are very smart to wait until you are 100% ready! It will all be worth it in the end!
I was just like you when I was younger & living with my parents, only I really wanted guinea-pigs...took me aaaageeesssss to save up & have everything ready...had to do loads of extra chores...when I FINALLY got my piggies I was SOOOOO happy, was the best day ever going to the shop with my mum & choosing the pefect pair!

Anyway...your doing the right thing! ;D


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## MommaR (Mar 1, 2013)

I don't have any rats yet myself, but I want to commend you for your maturity in this decision! Seriously! I would not have had the patience to wait until I was in a better situation to get them if I had wanted them at your age. I bet your Mom is so proud of you! I would be! 

I hope you get your little ones and can't wait to see pictures!


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