# Feeders



## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

I know there's a lot of controversy over feeders but I've made the decision to rescue them for now on, once one of my mischief passes. Breeders, at least good ones, will make sure that their babies go to a good home. Feeders don't have that love or luxury. I can't get the horrific way that store treats their feeders. And yes I've heard the argument "you're funding them so they can get more" that's bull crap though. They're going to keep buying and breeding more regardless of my involvement. When there's space in my cage a feeder will have a home. And they will be loved.


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## moghue (Mar 6, 2014)

all four of mine were being sold as feeders. They are so great plus in delaware you pretty much dont have much of a choice. I personelly dont see any problem with that at all.


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## LeStan82 (Dec 31, 2013)

I feel the same way. 3 of my boys from petsmart. 3 of my boys from feeder bin. I think I'll keep getting them from feeder bins. , my feeder bin boys have been healthier than my petsmart boys.and they have a lot of cute rats in feeder bins, too cute for food. Feeder rats need love too.


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

I got my Toast from a feeder bin at 10 days old. At that time the rat I had reserved at Petsmart wasn't able to be picked up week after week because they said they would not sell me a sick rat. (I checked the rat the day I picked her out and she just had a mild URI.) Eventually I gave up on Petsmart and went to a local neighborhood store that sold feeders to see if I could find any companions to keep Pastoolio company. I walked in, saw Momma rat nursing a whole bunch of rat and mice babies, and asked to hold one of them. I never put him down and walked out of the store that day with the challenge of feeding a 10 day old feeder rat.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Fuzzy Rat, the rat that actually co-founded Immersion was a feeder bin refugee as is Max our current true shoulder rat...

I do however recommend that you try to rescue rats from the feeder bin as pups... Rats are often mistreated in the feeder bin so the older the rats you pick are, the more likely they are to have emotional problems. Female jumbo feeder rats that are kept with males are most likely pregnant too...

I strongly encourage anyone to adopt or rescue any and every rat in need, but don't bite off more than you can chew.

Best luck.


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## kindhearted (Aug 4, 2011)

Hey-Fay said:


> I know there's a lot of controversy over feeders but I've made the decision to rescue them for now on, once one of my mischief passes. Breeders, at least good ones, will make sure that their babies go to a good home. Feeders don't have that love or luxury. I can't get the horrific way that store treats their feeders. And yes I've heard the argument "you're funding them so they can get more" that's bull crap though. They're going to keep buying and breeding more regardless of my involvement. When there's space in my cage a feeder will have a home. And they will be loved.



I completely agree. 2 of my rats were rescued feeders. My first one was a feeder and was my first pet rattie. I miss her so much. I used to work at a pet store and that's how I got into them. So many of them were so loving. My second "feeder" rat was going to be frozen as a day old pinkie for snacks for some reptile. I hand raised him and his sister. Sister passed away a few days later but Gilon was a survivor. He'll be 3 in August. I quit working at the pet store due to how the animals were being kept (not just rats but there were other animals as well) thankfully they shut down due to no business. 

Rescuing feeders is so rewarding knowing that they'll have a loving home instead of being reptile food


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## veimar (Feb 19, 2014)

Ugh, it's just makes me so upset when I think of these cute, affectionate and smart animals being fed to the stupid and emotionless snakes! Yikes. I adopted my two babies from a shelter (I found them on adoptapet.com had to drive 1.5 hour each way), but I totally agree that it's a great idea to rescue a rat that will otherwise be fed to reptiles.


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## tpab23 (Apr 6, 2014)

sorry but whats a feeder? i assume feeders are an american thing because I've never heard this term where i live


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

This term is used for rats that are bred to be fed to something else; usually snakes.

The actual vast bulk of the US rat trade is in feeder rats and lab rats rather than pet rats.


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## thenightgoddess (Apr 2, 2014)

Never owned a feeder. My first 5 came from the petsmart I used to work at which doesn't sell rats for food and my last baby came from a breeder.


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## tpab23 (Apr 6, 2014)

Ooooooh


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## Leraine (Feb 21, 2014)

Over a decade ago, as a young child, I bought two feeder rats (albino) and they turned out to be extremely friendly (though initially a little skittish) despite being unsocialized and kept in a tank in the back room.

I live in NYC, and I have noticed that feeder rats here are usually albino. I personally have never seen a non-albino feeder rat for sale. The first non-albino rats I saw for sale were in Petco and Petsmart, where they're actually shown on the floor (vs Petland Discounts, where the feeders will be kept in the back room in a crowded tank, all albino)...though a lot of Petcos here carry mostly albinos too (8 albinos, maybe 1 colored). Maybe it's just a New York City thing?


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

Rat Daddy said:


> I do however recommend that you try to rescue rats from the feeder bin as pups... Rats are often mistreated in the feeder bin so the older the rats you pick are, the more likely they are to have emotional problems. Female jumbo feeder rats that are kept with males are most likely pregnant too...


I was going to get one female feeder about four months old but they had mixed genders in every single tank, even the "pet" tank, and every female over five weeks was heavily pregnant. I couldn't in good conscious bring a young mama home with me; I couldn't guarente her or her pups well being and if she had a large litter I don't know if I could re-home them all. 
I ended up taking home two tiny feeder babies, even though I had no intention of bringing home babies much less two. But they stole my heart the second they were plopped in my hands and I couldn't give them back to be fed to a snake. 

When I rescue more I'll get pups or rattlets. It took less than a week to get Mica and Violet fully socialized and they've bonded to me like glue. They're honestly the sweetest girls i've ever had.


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## portkeytonowhere (Dec 24, 2007)

Ive been looking for a hairless or double rex rat for quite some time. There was a breeder for feeders and she had 3 double rex. I was told they were 8 weeks old but my new boy Dobby is only 3 weeks old. But hes soo very sweet. Im glad I could rescue him from being snake food. 

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## BlackAce (Apr 18, 2013)

All of the rats I've had have been feeders! And they've been absolute sweethearts, and like everyone has said it makes you glad you've saved their little personalities from a more bleak fate.


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

Mica and Violet are honestly the sweetest and most loving rats I've ever had the pleasure and fortune of having. Mica can't go without kissing my face and snuggling in my shirt or crook of my neck and Violet is a up and coming rodentist; when she's not trying to crawl in my mouth she's sleeping under my shirt on my chest. When I first got them Mica was only barely socialized, she was handled a few times before I showed up, and Violet hadn't been socialized at all. The only time she had human contact was when they took her away from her mum and put her in another tank and then once more when she was taken out of the tank and placed in my hands. It took about 6 days to get them both used to people and to get used to and ok with being picked up and petted. Now neither can wait to come out and play and frequently trip over each other to see me when I pass the cage. 

These two are perfect and I'm glad I got to save them and give them a loving home. They deserve it.


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## Mattsrats (Feb 24, 2014)

Can you believe I had a rat from PetSmart that lived to nearly 6 years old?


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

Mattsrats said:


> Can you believe I had a rat from PetSmart that lived to nearly 6 years old?


Wow!! That is awesome!! I can only hope my girls live that long.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

These threads always devolve into the inappropriate discussions for this forum regarding feeders. I am seeing some of those posts now and must ask to keep on the topic of RESCUING, regardless of whether or not you agree. Any other details regarding feeding are not to be discussed.

Thank you for your understanding.


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

cagedbirdsinging said:


> These threads always devolve into the inappropriate discussions for this forum regarding feeders. I am seeing some of those posts now and must ask to keep on the topic of RESCUING, regardless of whether or not you agree. Any other details regarding feeding are not to be discussed.
> 
> Thank you for your understanding.


Absolutely! I don't want it to spiral out of control, that's not my intention. Honestly I just wanted to share my decision, there's not many people where I live that I can gush to. My family doesn't really understand or cares why I love theses guys so much, so when I tell them they just say "ok, why?" and doesn't really care about the explanation. 
I felt like I had to explain in my initial post that I knew all the arguments about feeders but this was my own personal views and decision and I didn't really want to debate it. 

I am glad that others share my view on them but I don't want anyone bashing anyone else, we all have opinions and we're all entitled to them! No need to let anything get out of hand. 

If things do take a turn for the ugly I'll alert the admins myself.

Thank you, Caged for reminding everyone (myself included!) not to take things too far.


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## moghue (Mar 6, 2014)

Hey-Fay said:


> Absolutely! I don't want it to spiral out of control, that's not my intention. Honestly I just wanted to share my decision, there's not many people where I live that I can gush to. My family doesn't really understand or cares why I love theses guys so much, so when I tell them they just say "ok, why?" and doesn't really care about the explanation.
> I felt like I had to explain in my initial post that I knew all the arguments about feeders but this was my own personal views and decision and I didn't really want to debate it.
> 
> 
> ...







I know what you mean about people not understanding why we keep rats as pets. My wife realy thinks they are dirty animals and cant stand when i take them out and let them crawl all over me. i try to explain but she wont hear it. 
I am glad that others share my view on them but I don't want anyone bashing anyone else, we all have opinions and we're all entitled to them! No need to let anything get out of hand.


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