# Lost...



## somesomething (Sep 16, 2007)

I can't find Terrance.

When I realized that their home made, mainly plastic cage wasn't enough to keep them in, I ordered a metal one. 

But before it came, Phil and Terrance escaped from their cage on Friday morning (Phil has done this before). Due to a very complicated and irrelevant reason, I had to leave before I could capture them and I didn't get back until Sunday night. I left them food and water, which was gone on Sunday. Like I said, Phil's done this before, and I see him frequently, though he's difficult to catch, so I wasn't too terribly worried, but, and this sounds so cliched, I got a bad feeling Terrance. 

My roommate hasn't seen him, she said, since before he went missing (though she'd seen Phil plenty of times). I managed to trap him in his new cage, but the food left out now for Terrance remains untouched. There's no sign of him and I've searched everywhere in our small apartment.

Even with Phil, at least when he escaped, I'd see him all the time poking his head out of places, here him scurrying behind the dishwasher or something. Terrance hasn't made a sound.

I have a horrible feeling, especially because lately I've been having dreams that they've escaped and end up in dangerous places and I have to save them.

I don't know what to do, I just, I don't think he's here anymore. I can't stop crying. He was my sweet, cuddly one. I'm so upset. I thought of posting this in the rainbow bridge section but I don't know that he's passed, which is maybe worse than knowing.

I'm so sad.


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## madeittothemoon (Nov 1, 2007)

I'm so sorry... does he respond to his name? That's really the only thing I can think of... I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!


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## Meliss (Sep 1, 2007)

I hope you find him soon and that he is alright. The only thing I can think of is to call his name and maybe give him a treat. Did you try looking in a closet or under clothes, sofas, or the stove. I know when my littlest one Koi escaped we found her in my moms closet under some clothes.


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## sweet_dreams91 (Oct 19, 2007)

I'm so sorry.

I really hope youfind him.


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## Poppyseed (Feb 1, 2007)

Leave their cage opened and on the floor full of nice cozy blankets and food that smell like them. You may want to try putting a plate of flour out in a couple of places to see if you get rat tracks. If you get rat tracks more around one place you know around abouts where they are.

You could also try purchasing a humane trap.

Another thing you can do is put a ramp up to a bucket or something they can't easily jump out of and put food in the bottom but no easy way to get out.

Are they new rats that don't respond when you call? My squishy boys love their cages. I find it odd you've seen him poke his head out but havn't been able to catch him. Don't chase after him if you see him, just slowly go around there and squeek a little to get his attention. Perhaps get some treats nearby. Sit on the floor making some interesting noises calmly and he should come to you. Moving fast with a timid unsocialised rat will only make him run away again.


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## somesomething (Sep 16, 2007)

no, I caught the one that I see poking his head out.

I caught him in his cage, you know, with food and stuff to entice him, then shut the door on him. But that's Phil. Phil is fine.

It's Terrance that's missing, that I'm worried about. He does respond to his name, but when I've called him over the past couple days, no response. Not even noise or scurrying anywhere. Usually he comes right up to me when he's playing around on the floor.


So I dunno, I'm pretty sure that if he were around, I'd see him. He's pretty attached to me. Terrance is my baby. This is so sad, I didn't even go to class today. I can't stop crying.


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## BlueSkyy (Sep 27, 2007)

check inside couches and beds; check inside drawers of cabinets; get down on your hands and knees and check the area under your sink cabinets...these are all of Panda and Scout's favorite places to hide. rats like to run along walls by nature, so try setting up plates of food along walls that are hidden from view (behind couches, beds, etc.)

check each room thoroughly, and then once you are absolutely sure he is not in that room, close the door and isolate it. move to the next room until you have searched everywhere. if you can't find him by this method, it becomes a waiting game.

i hope you can find your little boy  i've had many mice escape, but lucky have been able to capture them all. it's tough, but in the end they turn themselves in


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## AustinXAPMX3 (Oct 23, 2007)

Oh no 

I hope you find him.


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## taralyncouture (Aug 23, 2007)

Fiona did that but my crazy mother in law let her out on purpose. OUTSIDE! 
Thankfully Fiona heard my father in laws voice and ran from under the shed into his hand the very next day. So keep hope!
and good luck!


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

Check the kitchen

Often the sides of cabinets are open & there is all kinds of space for them to get in & scurry around. These little cracks & crevices are places that even the cleanest cooks will lose a morsel of food to. This will make for good eating as far as the rat is concerned. 

If you have a laundry area check the point in the wall where the dryer vent is located & the rest of the plumbing. Hopefully there isn't a breach in the wall board that hasn't been sealed up to the pipe. In fact, check all places where plumbing enters the wall in the kitchen & bath rooms.

Continue to leave food out & check it daily. Count the pieces that way you can tell if even one piece was snagged. 

Good luck


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## xxpinkfunxx (Oct 14, 2007)

I was gonna suggest a haveaheart trap but depending on how big he is ...he might not even fit (i had to use one for some hamsters YEARS ago)....but i remember it being pretty small, altho they might have bigger ones i have no idea....Ralph got out once when he was little....he was missing all day, scared the crap out of me b/c my boyfriends dad isnt too fond of them...and swears he'll kick em out the front door if they get out and find their way into the downstairs apt. But Ralph was out roaming all day until i finally found him in my closet snuggled up in all my unmentionables, if he hasnt found his was farther than familiar territory chances are hes snuggling somewhere. I he comes to his senses and find his way back to safety. Everyone that posted in here seems to have a good game plan to finding him....


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## yashu (Sep 14, 2007)

Good luck... and I don't want to sound like the bad guy, but I can't imagine being able to lose a rat in an apartment unless you have a messy and disorganized place. If one my my rats escaped, it would take less than 5 minutes to look through all the places that they could hide. Aside from the fridge, dishwasher, stove, or anything that is harder to move around to look under, you should be able to look in every spot in just a couple minutes... unless your place is just that messy.

If you lost rats before, you should have blocked any openings that would lead into the walls, like under sinks, backs of cabinets, and so on. 

If you DO have a clean place, and you cannot find the rat, then the only place the rat could be is in the walls, and from there he could be anywhere. Look for any opening that could lead to behind the walls... and then go from there, that is the only advice I can give, other than leaving food out, which was a good idea on your part.


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

I have a friend who recently lost a rat. She has a very small apartment... a very clean small apartment but it still took them 4 days to catch the escape artist. 

They flipped every piece of furniture, pulled out the fridge & stove from the wall to check for any holes that could have allowed the rat to crawl in... nothing.

One night while they were sleeping she ran right across her chest & scared the beegeezus out of her. They looked for her for about an hour but it was the middle of the night & both had to work the following day. The next day after work they finally found her under the bed. 

They had already flipped that bed over every day from the time she escaped but that was where they finally found her. That little pain in the butt set up camp in a couple different places within the house & evaded capture while peering out at them from several locations while staying on the move. Only a couple raisins were found & most of those were by the cage were the rest of the rats where at so she couldn't tell if it was from the escapee or if it was the stray raisins that had bounced from the inside of the cage. It is almost as if she had held it until she could go over to the cage where they others were at & say nanner-nanner, drop her load & scamper off again. 

Don't assume a home is messy when one can't be found. That is rather presumptuous. Rats are just very good at not being found unless they wish to be found.


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## Nightfallspy (Nov 5, 2007)

I hope he comes back  My thoughts are with you


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## somesomething (Sep 16, 2007)

Well, thanks for the nice scolding there, yashu.

I have blocked off almost all of the crevices he could have crawled into, but I just don't have enough towels and sheets to cover everything. My apartment is clean, but that doesn't mean furniture, storage bins, appliances, etc, don't create plenty of hiding spaces. 

With that said, I've pretty much tired everything, short of pulling out the dishwasher.

He hasn't taken any of the food. 
For all I know my roommate may have accidentally/unknowingly let him out with the open door, or threw him out with the trash. 

if he ran out the door, I wonder how likely it is that he'll find his way back. 
I miss my ratty.


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

give it a full week

After that... I don't know where to suggest to look. At that point you may have to face the reality that he did get in a wall or out the door. 

BTW, did you plug holes since the escape or prior? Plugging them now may trap him if he did sneak into some hole.

Once that week passes, wait one more just because & then plug every crack & crevice you can find. Towels & such isn't going to do it. They sell a spray foam sealer at hardware stores that expands to fill holes. Get some of that & go to town. It really expands so start off with short bursts. The stuff also sticks to anything it comes in contact with so make sure where ever you spray the stuff there is nothing below for it to dribble or foam over on. 

We had a gerbil escape in our home once. It wasn't even ours. My girls were very young then. One of their friends brought it over & it escaped into their room. I didn't even know she brought it into my house until after it was lost. We never found the thing. 

It is a very unfortunate thing & it will tug at your heart for a long time to come but you really can't blame yourself for these creatures being true to their nature. 

You aren't a horrible person, in fact I think you are quite courageous for coming onto a public forum & sharing this story. I really do hope it has a happy ending but if it doesn't do what you can to patch holes where you are & investigate any other ways that a rat could get away & then look to adopting from a rescue. You can at least cancel out a negative with a positive... save the life of a couple of rats that may otherwise not have a happy ending.


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## yashu (Sep 14, 2007)

I doubt he ran out the door without you knowing it. Double check everything... think like a rat... rats like low lying areas that will be warm and also have something close to their backs. I am afraid he could have got into a wall... he might have fallen too far to get back through where he came. Some walls have vents that lead outside. I do hope you find him though, I wasn't assuming it was messy, I was just saying that, if your apartment is small, it could be one of several things, and that was one of the things.


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## rat_ratscal (Sep 23, 2007)

if my rat got out, i would get on a rat costume and be a rat for a day trying to find her, thinking like her,.......


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## yashu (Sep 14, 2007)

Yes, think like the rat... where would you go if you were a rat. Also, you DID say you lost your other one many times, and that is not exactly normal, that is why I came in with the messy house argument.


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## somesomething (Sep 16, 2007)

I didn't say I lost one many times.


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## jellybeanqueen (Sep 6, 2007)

aw, i'm so sorry.
one of my girls (Baby) managed to escape into this wall vent thing in my room today, and i was so worried that she wouldn't come out and she'd get trapped and die in there.
but after i made a racket(banging on the wall above the vent) she poked her head out and ran out underneath my bed, and to her cage, where i scooped her up and cuddled her.
i was scared stiff just from that hour long event, so i can't imagine how it must be to have a ratty missing for over a day.  
i hope you find terrance soon!


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## yashu (Sep 14, 2007)

You mention Phil's escape 5 times, that is "many" to me. I am not trying to argue though... I hope you find him. I am worried about the walls still. He could have climbed through a hole and fell a bit, if the opening is too high to get back to you then he is stuck. I think it is time for you to check all openings to the walls, like under the sink, in closets, behind appliances, and take a flashlight and look for "signs" of him being there, like droppings. He could not have vanished into thin air.

It is also very possible that your roommate could be lying to you, and perhaps he/she did allow for an opportunity to escape to the outside. In that case, I am not sure what to say... I don't even know if a scared rat outside could find his way back... but set some food out just in case.


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## rat_ratscal (Sep 23, 2007)

what if he got into a wall and everything is blocked off and he cant get back in?


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

That is why it was suggested to not block things off until a point of time comes when the reality that he won't be found has set in. 

After that, the well-being of the remaining rat(s) has to be a priority. At some point everything will have to be sealed up so that there is not a repeat of what has happened & also this person will need to consider getting a house for the rats that is more secure so that they have less success with escaping.

Don't blame the human because the rat was being true to his nature. They are escape artists & explorers. Somesomething is not the first person in history to have had a pet stray away from them.


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## Berks (May 15, 2007)

I dont know what kind of housing situation your in but if he did get out of the apartment are there ppl there that wouldve been able to pick him up if he was seen? wouldnt hurt to call your local shelter. Our shelter seems to get in quite a few "found domesticated rats" . Sounds funny, but it happens.


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