# Funniest/most stupid question asked about your rats?



## theRatGirl (Feb 25, 2015)

I got this Idea from the last thread. 

Whats the funniest or most stupid question you get about your rats. Since I take Algernon out in public with me every day, I get a ton of stupid questions like:

"Oh My God there is a rat on your shoulder! Do you know that?" - _No No No! I had nooooo idea that there is a rat on my shoulder. Thanks for telling me. _
"Is that your pet or did you find it on the floor?" This is by far the most common. -_ Yeah, I found him underneath my fridge and just decided to put him on my shoulder._

What funny/stupid questions have you gotten?


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

The most common question I get about rats when I talk about mine is "They come in different colors?!" Most people seem to think white and brown are the only colors a rat can come in and people just flat out don't believe me when I tell them that I have siamese and himalayan rats; the usual response to that is "Oh you mean cats?" I've also been asked if I'm worried that I'll get the plague /facepalm


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## FiMarie (Jan 19, 2013)

"Aren't you worried about diseases?" - "Don't they bite?"/"How often do you get bit?"/similar biting questions - "What do you feed them?" is a surprisingly common question... uhm... I feed them rat food. ??? That one really surprises me!

My landlord needed a lot of convincing, it's not a question that she had so much as a (weird) assumption - that they will get into the other apartments via the air vents. SO many misconceptions about these guys.


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## Millie & Daisy (Mar 7, 2015)

FiMarie said:


> My landlord needed a lot of convincing, it's not a question that she had so much as a (weird) assumption - that they will get into the other apartments via the air vents. SO many misconceptions about these guys.


My housing authority said something similar. The lady over it asked me if they would stay in their cage, citing that they've had "squirrel problems" in some of their apartments. I laughed so hard on the inside, because like, squirrels are SO far removed from rats XD


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## erikablanchettexo (Nov 25, 2014)

My grandfather hates rats to the extreme where he won't even come to my house and he has said many bad things but the funniest was "you should get rid of your rats. You might wake up with Ebola" hahha. It cracked me up. 

Also, when people find out I have rats or I tell them they go "Oooooohh....." In this weird tone and they make a face. It cracks me up because they're trying to hide how they feel about it and don't want to be rude but I see right through it haha.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

The stupidest question I ever got was from a person who walked right up to me and asked to meet my rat... I had my part wild with me while my daughter was carrying Fuzzy Rat....

But as long as I was holding her and we followed protocol she could be quite friendly. She had to hear someone speaking first, then she had to sniff them, then she would lower her head and allow herself to be skritched and petted. Actually she seemed to enjoy the proper kind of attention... and this person had followed my instructions and even got herself a little rat kiss.

After all that she finally asked... "Does she bite?" Naturally I had to answer... "Yes she does, she's actually quite vicious." Which was the absolute truth... Oddly after a half second of surprise the lady introduced her daughter to our rat.... Who again followed proper protocol and had a pleasant encounter...

Now if someone told me their rat bites and was quite vicious, bringing over my daughter to meet her would be about the last thing I would do... And believe it or not that happened more than once...

I suppose there's something debatable about carrying around a vicious part wild rat, but she could actually be very sweet. I was pretty good at knowing what she liked and what set her off. And when we took the rats out, my daughter always carried Fuzzy Rat while I handled our wild child... What was kind of weird, was that when I'd call the rats and ask who wanted to go outside, some day's she'd run to the door, other days it was Fuzzy Rat. She really didn't like or trust people, but she did like to go outdoors.

Still the stupidest question ever is asking "does your rat bite" after you already pet it...


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## QueenBea (Feb 12, 2015)

My rat, who's never bit anyone else, bit my cousin after she was trying to grab at her and screaming very loudly.
My uncle immediately called my father and asked if he should "worry about rabies" ???

he sounded pretty sincere and i was pretty annoyed but also amused.


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## LilCritter (Feb 25, 2014)

Me: "Yeah, they're all female."
Person: "WHAT?! WHAT IF THEY GET PREGNANT?!"

Person: "Don't you find them gross?"
Me: "Not really... I don't think I'd get an animal I found gross for a pet."

Person: "Don't you know you can get diseases from them?"
Me: "Yeah... but they're pretty clean and I'm more likely to die from a cat."
Person: "Cats can kill you?"
Me: "If you're allergic, yeah."


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## Vegn (Jan 2, 2014)

Even if you aren't allergic, cat scratches and bites can get really bad really fast. 

"Do they bite?" is easily one of the most common questions along with "What do they eat?" "She's actually cute" The tails get a lot of comments, most people don't get as bothered by them as they think they will. I love taking the rats places, took one to the barn right before we moved, people were so surprised that they actually liked her. Shocked that rats actually prefer peanuts and chocolate to cheese.


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## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

I get asked, "Do they carry disease?". I just reply that wild rats carry disease just like wild animals do, and domestic rats are as safe to handle as domestic dogs and cats.

My Mother is just cruel about them. She won't even come over because of them. She doesn't ask questions... only tells me they deserve to die and I should kill them.


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## ratluver372 (Jul 9, 2013)

Funniest has to be my sisters' friends, who live in the Bronx, who asked "You have rats on PURPOSE?!"

I've also been asked if that was a ferret on my shoulder....


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

"You have more than one rat? Won't they mate?" It never seems to occur to people that the rats may be the same sex.


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## LittleSparrow (Apr 14, 2014)

Lol, it can be funny how some people are so ignorant. When we used to take our babies in public, we got a lot of people who were surprised to know we even had rats as pets!
But the most confused reactions I get is when I'm picking up fabric and they ask me what I'm making and I tell them "rat hammocks!" .. They don't know how to respond.


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## BasmatiRice (Feb 11, 2012)

"Are those guinea pigs?" Yes. Yes they are. With their guinea pig's tails and everything. 

... people are weird sometimes


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

One time I was at the supermarket and I was buying a some bones for the rats to chew on and there was a employee stocking shelves next to me. i told my mum "I'd cook the bone before giving it to them" And the employee who happens to be a doglover assumed We were talking about dogs so she butts in and says "You should never give cooked bones to dogs" And my mum says "Oh, no these are for rats" and suprising they took it well like it was normal to buy bones for rats. I was expecting the whole "rats? Ew!" Speech


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## Sowa (Jan 24, 2015)

Someone asked me if I found Pepper outside and took her in. Also if she was food for a snake. Urg. My dad thinks they carry the plague (not really but he doesn't like them at all) I've also been asked if they'd jump off my shoulder and break a leg or run away :/


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Actually people think they are being polite by asking if your rat is a gerbil or a guinea pig. Like you might be somehow be offended if you knew you were carrying a rat on your shoulder...


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## Moose27 (Mar 30, 2015)

I usually just get "You have a rat... as a PET? Ew."

I will never understand how people can be so disgusted by rats or mice but think hamsters and gerbils are just the cutest.


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## Tedology (Mar 3, 2015)

Fu-Inle said:


> "You have more than one rat? Won't they mate?" It never seems to occur to people that the rats may be the same sex.


My response: I often fear that...as rats are closely related to earthworms and can mate with each other regardless of their sex.


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## Kuildeous (Dec 26, 2014)

Grotesque said:


> My Mother is just cruel about them. She won't even come over because of them. She doesn't ask questions... only tells me they deserve to die and I should kill them.


I can respect someone not liking a particular animal, but that response goes overboard. Every time your mother says that, you should tell her the same about her children. Don't even blink when saying that. Keep doing it until she stops.


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## Tedology (Mar 3, 2015)

Kuildeous said:


> I can respect someone not liking a particular animal, but that response goes overboard. Every time your mother says that, you should tell her the same about her children. Don't even blink when saying that. Keep doing it until she stops.


I can't equate animals to human children.

However, I do feel that her mother did go a bit overboard. I think you'd have every right to let her know that while she doesn't see the value in them, you do...and that they are living beings that deserve respect.

But I agree with Kuildeous on one thing... people can not like any particular animal. If I knew of somebody who collected mosquitoes...I may want them dead... only because I pretty much hate them (especially if they're sucking my blood!)  But I would most likely choose not to visit that person... and keep my opinion to myself.


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## Vegn (Jan 2, 2014)

I don't mind mosquitoes as long as they don't bother me. But other bloodsuckers like ticks and leeches? Uck. I don't see how you keep that as a pet. Only female mosquitoes bite, and if I'm correct they don't really live off blood, use it for their eggs. Males are harmless. Leeches and ticks can live fine on plants, they drink blood cause they're jerks.


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## Tedology (Mar 3, 2015)

Vegn said:


> I don't mind mosquitoes as long as they don't bother me. But other bloodsuckers like ticks and leeches? Uck. I don't see how you keep that as a pet. Only female mosquitoes bite, and if I'm correct they don't really live off blood, use it for their eggs. Males are harmless. Leeches and ticks can live fine on plants, they drink blood cause they're jerks.


I learned something! Had no idea they could live off plants and just CHOOSE to drink our blood.

Makes me hate them even more.


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## Chunker (Mar 7, 2015)

Kuildeous said:


> I can respect someone not liking a particular animal, but that response goes overboard. Every time your mother says that, you should tell her the same about her children. Don't even blink when saying that. Keep doing it until she stops.


Wouldn't saying the same about her kids mean insulting Grotesque and his/her siblings?


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## Rattenstein (Nov 14, 2014)

Um exactly which leeches and ticks live off of plants? Some leech species eat insects and small invertebrates, and other leeches attach themselves to fish and such, I've never heard of a leech that eats plants. And ticks will starve without a host to feed off of... As far as I know. But female mosquitoes do use blood for making their eggs, yes.

Also, it's never appropriate to tell someone to kill their children, or anyone else for that matter, no matter how much you might disagree with them. It isn't mature, nor will it bring your point across. If Grotesques mom doesn't like rats, that's her opinion, but I agree she should keep it to herself. 

And so as to not derail the thread...

Person: You have more than one? Aren't you afraid they'll breed?
Me: They're both males. 
Person: What if they're gay?
Me: ... (laughs) What? Two males can't produce offspring together!
Person: Oh right...
How do you even forget something like that? Like, what? 
That'd be some crazy miracle if it happened though lol. I'd keep all the babies.


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## Kuildeous (Dec 26, 2014)

Chunker said:


> Wouldn't saying the same about her kids mean insulting Grotesque and his/her siblings?


That's exactly the point. It depends on the relationship between that person and the mother, but kids can get away with saying shocking things that may possibly put their parents' perspective in check. 

I would never tell a stranger that her children should be drowned, but I'll gladly use myself as an example to a fellow family member. Not that this ever happens, but if I had an uncle who said my rats should be killed, I'd simply tell him that the same goes for his nephews. But I have that sort of self-deprecating morbidity where I can say that. If I cared about what I wore in school, I'd probably have been one of the goth kids.


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## Charmify (Jul 6, 2014)

There is this guy that likes me so when he heard I had rats he asked if the dumbo one could fly.... FLY..


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## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

"You have rats?"
Me: "Yup!"
"...on purpose?"
Me: "...yes?"
"And you have more than one?"
Me: "Where are we going with this?"
"Well... It's just that... You look like someone that should have dogs or something..."
Me: "I... what?"


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

My coworkers all know that I own rats and when I missed a party that one of them was having because I had to have Loki pts, I was asked later what I do with them when they die. Ummm...the same thing you'd do with your dog or cat. I also had to leave early to pick up the boys from the vet after they were neutered and the same coworker asked why would I need to neuter a rat. Ummm...the same reason you'd neuter a cat or a dog lol. There were also awkward moments at the beginning when we'd be talking to an employee from a different department and (since we work with rats this comes up) they would say "Oh yeah, she keeps rats. You have like 20, right?" I might be a crazy rat lady, but c'mon. I feel like that last bit was poking fun at me a bit, but it could have been completely unintentional and harmless. I think it's strange that no matter how serious you are about your rats, people seem to think that it's all some sort of joke, like nobody could really be that serious about a rat. Fortunately, the veterinarian at the university has rats at home too that her daughter takes care of; it's nice knowing I'm not the only one


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## madihicks4 (Jul 2, 2014)

-That's a huge mouse!
-what a cute hamster
-Does she crawl up your vagina at night?
-don't they have herpes?
-but don't you have cats?
-woah I thought rats were ugly
-why do you have so many?
-you could get sick!?!
-why do you have them?


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## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

Does she crawl up your WHAT?!


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

Alot of people seem to think that I will be offended by the tales of their cats successful hunts of the mice that are tearing up their homes because of the rats like they'll stop and say "Oh...sorry I forgot you have rats"....no...your cat can hunt wild mice, that is in no way related to domestic rats that I cuddle with 

My cousins pediatrician says that the reason her son was getting sick all the time was because there were rats in the house...a DOCTOR completely dismissed the fact that RSV was going around the daycare that this infant attended as soon as she found out their were rats in the house "yup, must be from those animals in a separate, cutoff level of the house that you never see, couldn't possibly be those other germ ridden children that he actually interacts with every day"....im no doctor...but that one didn't make much sense to me....and I had to let go of 5 of my babies because of it


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## ponderosa (Oct 13, 2014)

Some of the things in this thread are just unbelievable... some people really don't think before they open their mouths, do they?

I've gotten, "What if they got out and crawled on your face at night?"


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

ponderosa said:


> Some of the things in this thread are just unbelievable... some people really don't think before they open their mouths, do they?
> 
> I've gotten, "What if they got out and crawled on your face at night?"


My cousins fiance assumes they will get out. ..but his concern isn't about my face...he. thinks they'll get in the vents and overrun the house


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## DustyRat (Jul 9, 2012)

My neighbor across the hall knocked on my door last year wanting something. When I opened the door with 2 of my girls on my shoulders, she smiled and started to ask me something, then she eeked! and bolted back inside her apartment. I never did discover what she had originally wanted.


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## ponderosa (Oct 13, 2014)

Grawrisher said:


> My cousins fiance assumes they will get out. ..but his concern isn't about my face...he. thinks they'll get in the vents and overrun the house


Was he scared that a few rats would get into the vents and then there would somehow be hundreds of rats pouring out of the vents and infesting the house?


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## Sabatea (Aug 23, 2014)

Grawrisher said:


> My cousins fiance assumes they will get out. ..but his concern isn't about my face...he. thinks they'll get in the vents and overrun the house


My step-mom thinks the same. Pretty interesting, since the vents in my room are on the ceiling. She also thinks they'll get in the walls.


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## erikablanchettexo (Nov 25, 2014)

ponderosa said:


> Was he scared that a few rats would get into the vents and then there would somehow be hundreds of rats pouring out of the vents and infesting the house?


Hahaha


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## Kuildeous (Dec 26, 2014)

kksrats said:


> "Oh yeah, she keeps rats. You have like 20, right?" I might be a crazy rat lady, but c'mon.


Friend of mine came over for the first time since I got my rats, and he jokingly asked, "So how many rats before you go full Willard?" I've never seen that movie, but I feel like I should just so I can craft the appropriate relevant humorous pithy response. 



madihicks4 said:


> --Does she crawl up your vagina at night?


*blink blink*

Whhhhhhhut?


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Actually, Fuzzy Rat once crawled up into my swim trunks at the beach. And I was surrounded by little girls and their moms... And no not a single mom who was watching was in any way helpful in distracting the little girls from my predicament.

And FYI, there is no dignified way to extract a rat from your swim clothes or underwear in a crowd.



As to the "ladies parts" question... just explain that's what the tail is for...


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## EmS (Feb 10, 2015)

Charmify said:


> There is this guy that likes me so when he heard I had rats he asked if the dumbo one could fly.... FLY..


Please tell me you got the joke?


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## Tao.and.Laughter (Jan 24, 2015)

Rat Daddy said:


> Actually, Fuzzy Rat once crawled up into my swim trunks at the beach. And I was surrounded by little girls and their moms... And no not a single mom who was watching was in any way helpful in distracting the little girls from my predicament.
> 
> And FYI, there is no dignified way to extract a rat from your swim clothes or underwear in a crowd.
> 
> ...


Your entire reply. I choked on my coffee. I just... Oh wow did I need that today.


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

Ew lol


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## Mball77 (Jul 3, 2013)

"Are you sure its really a rat?" Is the most common I get from my family.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Better yet one night a fellow actually argued with me that Fuzzy Rat wasn't a rat... yes he was somewhat intoxicated but he knew rats and what I had was definitely not a rat! As he was holding Fuzzy Rat and skritching her behind the ears and they both seemed happy I decided I'd be best off just agreeing with him.

It actually gave me the brilliant idea to come up with the line...."NO she's not a Rat - rat she's a trained fancy rat. Yes, she looks a lot like a rat, but she's actually quite different. You have no idea how much that put people at ease...

Until I met a smart little boy at a convenience store who kept asking questions...

Boy: She has a tail like a rat? 
Me: yes
She has whiskers like a rat?
yes
She has a pointy nose like a rat?
yes
She has ears like a rat?

The kid didn't want to give up... until his mom finally intervened and told him to stop asking stupid questions and that Fuzzy Rat (actually introduced as "Fuzzy Rat") clearly wasn't a rat.

Poor kid... he came so close... But to be fair, he was right on target, not a stupid question in the bunch. 

On the topic of good qustion with a stupid answer... Max liked to hang out in shrubs or trees and watch people rather than walk about at the park. One day she found a bird's nest and snuggled into it... A little boy asked me why a rat was sitting in a birds nest... I explained she was incubating her eggs. I truly wish his 7th grade biology teacher the best of luck explaining that one... as in "NO teacher, I actually saw a rat nesting in a tree hatching her eggs..."


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

ponderosa said:


> Was he scared that a few rats would get into the vents and then there would somehow be hundreds of rats pouring out of the vents and infesting the house?


Basically yeah...and that was when I had females exclusively


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## Meghann (Jan 15, 2015)

"Can you tell them all apart?" Yes, because they all look different.

"So, do you like... love them?" Yes, just like I love my cats and my dog, too!

"What do you feed them?" Rat food, vegetables and some fruit, whatever I'm eating if it's not complete junk food, baby ravioli... gets some interesting looks.

"What do you do with them?" Pet stuff? Same stuff you'd do with a cat - play with them, feed them a healthy diet, cuddle them, provide them with an enriching environment.

"Do they bite?" Anything with teeth can and possibly will bite.

"You have HOW MANY?" My favorite, haha.

And then I have tons of people that make faces, ask questions, make comments when they come into work. One of my rats is not doing well so she's going to work with me every day, getting every-other-day exams from the vet (she's off tuesdays and neither of us work thursdays). During really slow periods, I sometimes take her out in her snuggle scarf while I work. If I happen to be up front for something, usually people at the desk will notice her. It's astonishing how many people will say something negative about my pet rat... considering they're in an animal hospital and I'm one two full-time technicians, so they all know me.


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## Tedology (Mar 3, 2015)

Meghann said:


> "Can you tell them all apart?" Yes, because they all look different.
> 
> "So, do you like... love them?" Yes, just like I love my cats and my dog, too!
> 
> ...


Saw your signature. My boys, Oliver and Barry, approve of the names Thea and Black Canary.


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## Meghann (Jan 15, 2015)

My rescue litter of 16 all received Arrow themed names. My friend kept four of them - Oliver, Slade, Diggle, and Merlyn who he may rename, and he added a 5th, Harper.  I am secretly hoping I only find homes for 5 girls, not 6, so I can keep Felicity too... I really adore her. <3

I approve of Oliver and Barry! The crossover episodes are my favorite ones haha.


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## Aeyna (Jun 16, 2014)

I recently had a coworker pet Gadget (the hairless) in the parking lot at work (she had just been to the vet). Cue 10 minutes of him running around screaming "Omg I touched a rat!" and freaking out.


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

I've noticed some people purposly refer to them as mice when mentioning them infront of someone else even though they refer to them as rats when they are talking to me alone. Probably because mice have a better rep as being dainty, fragile and quiet while rats are big, ugly hellspawns of satan.


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## madihicks4 (Jul 2, 2014)

Lol while reading replies Pandora came over and put her paw on my phone and started scrolling and messing things up. I wonder if I could teacher her to do stuff on my phone, simple games maybe. Idk just an idea


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## Shine (Feb 20, 2015)

I recently took my rat Amadeus with me to a group event at a friend's house, and everyone was so surprised and delighted to see him. They all kept passing him back and forth and getting their feelings hurt if he didn't want to crawl on them (I explained that he prefers to climb up instead of down, so then they figured out that it was easiest to hold him in order from shortest person to tallest. That was funny to watch.)

The weirdest thing was that all night, even though they were all playing with him and having a blast, everyone still kept warning me (his owner, the person who is most used to him and experienced with holding him) that I should be careful of bites. I thought that was just so hilarious. xD

Though, to be fair, these people used to have a pet chipmunk that they caught wild and were under the ignorant impression that all rodents are the same, so since their chipmunk wasn't so friendly they thought Amadeus was weird for being friendly. lawl

Then I walked in front of their parakeet's cage with him on my shoulder, and she flipped out and started screeching and flapping her wings like crazy. I quickly got away from there, not wanting to upset the bird or the rat further.


People also kept wanting to know where I got him and if I'd trapped him wild, but I suppose that was understandable since I didn't have an actual carry cage and was temporarily using a trapping cage in case of emergencies. (It looks so cruel putting them in there, because... it's a trap! but they actually don't mind it at all. In fact, Amadeus likes to hide under the sloping door thing to take naps when he's in it.)


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## Shine (Feb 20, 2015)

Oh, and I was pleasantly surprised when I ran into an old teacher of mine at the store the other day. I had just come from Petsmart and was carrying a bag of rat treats, and I was excitedly telling her about how George and I were moving into our apartment and that we couldn't wait to get his snake in with us but that I already had my rats.
The lady got this shocked expression on her face when I told her we had a snake and rats, but surprisingly it wasn't for the usual reasons. She was just afraid that we might be feeding the rats to the snake, and she thought that cruel. I reassured her that the rats were my pets and would not ever be snake food and that, besides, the snake we have is too small to eat rats anyway. She was relieved. c:


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## Shine (Feb 20, 2015)

ponderosa said:


> I've gotten, "What if they got out and crawled on your face at night?"


If someone asked me that, I would answer with the truth: It happens sometimes, and depending on how tired I am, I'll either let him continue to free-roam until morning, or I'll get up and put him back in his cage. My face, as you can see, is unharmed.


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## Chunker (Mar 7, 2015)

Shine said:


> If someone asked me that, I would answer with the truth: It happens sometimes, and depending on how tired I am, I'll either let him continue to free-roam until morning, or I'll get up and put him back in his cage. My face, as you can see, is unharmed.


I dunno man...it's kinda hard to tell as your face looks like a rabbit. Well at least your avatar does...=)


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## DustyRat (Jul 9, 2012)

Lol.


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## Shine (Feb 20, 2015)

Chunker said:


> I dunno man...it's kinda hard to tell as your face looks like a rabbit. Well at least your avatar does...=)


xD I meant that's what I'd say to a person who asked me that face to face, but your response was clever nonetheless. c:


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## Shine (Feb 20, 2015)

Oh, my dad, regardless of how many times I assure him that all of my rats are male and that I know it's a terrible idea to breed them and would not want to do that, is so worried that I am going to try. Every time we talk about rats he checks again just to make sure that I don't have any females in the group. *sigh* silly people and their unfounded fears...


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