# Ewwww...you people have rats...gross



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

So, I was just wondering if it bothered anyone else any when people absolutely HATE rats. I am not rat obsessed or anything, yeah they're cool pets and all, but it still bothers me when people do that.

My brother's friend has been hanging out with me a lot lately and he is pretty cool. He loves my naked rat, Trixie. He thinks Luna is cool, too, but Trixie is cooler cause she doesn't have any hair. He always wants to hold them when he comes over which they are glad to oblige him to do so. He brought his new girlfriendish person over the other day and she literally spoke the subject of this thread. She wouldn't even get within two feet of the cage. 

I just think that is so ridiculous. It's not like she was afraid they would bite or anything which is reasonable. She was just like "Ummm, no. That's gross."


----------



## courtuhknee (Jun 18, 2008)

Oh, yes. 

My aunt was over the other day, and I can understand that some people are just stuck in that whole "rats = vermin" mindset.. but she just WOULDN'T stop! She was talking to my father and I had one of my young boys, Inigo, on my shoulder, and every few minutes she would turn and shudder, or say "ew" or "you aren't bringing THAT to the party" (they were discussing a graduation party for my cousin). That's what really got to me. I don't mind when people don't like them, but have a little bit of respect, or TACT at least!! Realize that these are my pets, and obviously I love them, so even if you hate them just keep it to yourself. > 

There's usually no concrete reason people hate rats. Just their bad rep. I've converted a few family members who were just so surprised about how sweet they are. I'm sure they expected them to be covered in slime and hissing.


----------



## coyote-walker (Jun 20, 2008)

I sometimes take my rat shopping with me, so totally just loves to chill on my shoulder, and one time I went to walk into a little shop and the guy behind the couter FREAKED, it turned out he was phobic. 8O


----------



## ratlover4everrr (Jan 31, 2008)

oh my lord i hate that!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! it happens to me all the time. these are responses i get when i tell ppl i have rats. EWW. WHY RATS THEY ARE SO UGLY. JUST FEED THOSE THINGS TO MY DOG. and so many other rude comments. it gets me soooo madd! ahh!


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

At least he wasn't phobic to something more commonly paraded about. If you seriously had a phobia for like Shitzus or lamp posts or something, you'd be a lot worse off.


----------



## Hallie-Mae (Jul 31, 2008)

Once I was in the vet with Amorette, and this little boy came up to me and said "that's a vermin". 
I was so ready to scream and ball at him (yes, even though he was about 6 years of age :lol but it took me a while to comprehend what he'd said, and by that time he'd sort of wandered off. I was so outraged though :x


----------



## courtuhknee (Jun 18, 2008)

ROFL. Hallie-Mae.. I absolutely would have been the same way! Child or not, I'd have wanted to set him straight! Bratty precocious kids!! 

My sister is phobic, too. She claims she gets physically sick when she looks at them too long, because of their tail. I don't know if I believe her. I've never really understood the aversion to the tails. I mean, yes, they have no hair.. but they aren't all that gross to me.. I don't get it! So many people say to me "They'd be so cute if you'd just chop their tail off.." and I'm like "THEY ARE CUTE!!!!!!!"


----------



## Marysmuse (Apr 28, 2008)

I'd reply "Yeah, and you'd be cute too, if someone just chopped your lips off!" 

Some people are indeed phobic. They can't help it. But others are just narrow-minded and rude. Met my fair share of those lately. :roll:

Rejoicing in the day,
-Mary


----------



## Vixie (Jul 21, 2006)

Those kind of people are either unintelligent or ignorant, and it's quite easy to tell the difference once they open their mouths.

And when people do say anything rude I just burst into laughter because of how silly they sound. :lol:


----------



## Forensic (Apr 12, 2007)

Oh, yes, I get my fair share, often at work.

Though I've learned to tone down the "DIEDEATHKILL!" reaction after one of my coworkers and I had a chat...

"You have rats?"
"Yeah."
"My brother has a snake"
*INSTA-Death Glare(tm)*
"I feel so sorry for them. And he feeds live too.  I'm glad yours are pets."
8O


----------



## rattielvr (Aug 4, 2008)

my grandmother and aunt have it set in their minds rats are super nasty. Its so annoying. I'm like ugh. I wish people would understand theyre wonderful creatures. And the tail thing gets me too. Whats gross about a tail? Dogs have tails! Its so annoying. And its even worse when people bring up the whole my cats will get them or my snake would get them. I've even had my grandma say "haven't them things died yet?" It really hurts me cuz I love my ratties


----------



## Hallie-Mae (Jul 31, 2008)

My nan is sort of squimish with the rats, which I understand. I'm squimish around the millipede but I still respect it, my nan's the same around my rats. She had one on her knee once, and she was quite nervous but wasn't freaking out and she was petting her and stuff which I thought was nice haha... I like trying to convert people. 

And she does get concerned for them like "oh she's making noises, is she okay?" and stuff. 

Why can't more people be like that :? Fair enough if you're squimish, but have a bit of respect.


----------



## cinderella (Sep 10, 2007)

My mom didnt like my rats, until my sister got 2 ferrets.

Now whenever my mom comes over she commends me on how clean they are


----------



## phaidraft (Apr 9, 2008)

My husband loves them and so do our parents, so I'm lucky in that respect.

But I have several friends who think they're nasty. It's usually the tail thing. Everyone is absolutely convinced they'll bite.. it's hard to convince them otherwise!

For my friends who are on the fence about the issue... I let them feed the girls. That usually turns them around. I dunno if it's the adorable way rats eat or the fact that they don't attack when you offer them food... I dunno.

What I really hate is I have a few pals who love HAMSTERS but think rats are nasty. C'mon now!


----------



## Neverstrayed (Jun 16, 2008)

My boyfriend was dubious about the rats at first and wanted a hamster. He was amazed at the rats, how friendly and intelligent they are. He says he loves them now hehe.

Woman i work across from, posh stuck up floozy, pulls her face everytime i mention them. I was telling someone in my office who was interested and all the time the stuck up c*w was screwing her face up and shivering, yet she'll have a dog that almost resembles a rat...strange.


----------



## ratlover4everrr (Jan 31, 2008)

yeah i had always had pet hamsters and gerbils but then i researched rats and was like oh my gosh i need to give these little guys a try. i told my mom "i wanna get some pet rats!"and she was like what?!?!!? she told me she wouldnt have anything to do with them, but then she researched them a bit and has fallen in love with all my pet rats. its takes awhile but i think everyone can learn to love rats. =)


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

My mom did sort of the same thing, but she grew up on a farm and had kept many different kinds of animals as pets (and she's a real softy when it comes down to it). She was, however, not fond of the idea of me owning rats in her house. I have had hamsters, dogs, cats, gerbils, ferrets, fish, frogs, turtles, lizards, you name it. So she is aware of the fact that I am responsible enough for. I already had a dog and cat at the time, though and had just gotten rid of my gerbils. She told me no until we went to petsmart for kicks and giggles one day (we had to go to a nearby store) and my mom was looking at the rats and the employee let her hold one and she fell asleep on my mom. That was it. It was Trixie who actually did the falling asleep and convincing. That is all it takes if for an animals to fall asleep on you and then the bonding process is done, over and out.


----------



## AceYourFace (Jan 4, 2008)

courtuhknee said:


> ROFL. Hallie-Mae.. I absolutely would have been the same way! Child or not, I'd have wanted to set him straight! Bratty precocious kids!!
> 
> My sister is phobic, too. She claims she gets physically sick when she looks at them too long, because of their tail. I don't know if I believe her. I've never really understood the aversion to the tails. I mean, yes, they have no hair.. but they aren't all that gross to me.. I don't get it! So many people say to me "They'd be so cute if you'd just chop their tail off.." and I'm like "THEY ARE CUTE!!!!!!!"


My grandma told me the other day the reason she doesnt like their tails is because it reminded her of when her mom would pick the wild ones up from the tail after killing them. And no she didnt just go outside and kill rats. My grandma grew up mostly in Mexico and her mom was Aztec. Hahah my great grandma was hardcore ...anyways I guess rats would get into their kitchen through the walls and cupboards and she said on mornings when she wasnt allowed in the kitchen she knew there was a rat. And I wont go into detail on how they were killed. I still think it's kinda of a weird reason to not like them and their tails but if you grow up seeing them as vermin then it will take time to see them as anything else. I wouldn't have been mad at a 6 yr old for saying such a thing you have to keep in mind it's what he has been taught and doesn't know any better. I would have told him how smart and cute and gentle they really are. He probably doesn't even know what vermin means. As far as that guys girl she sounds like the kind the doesn't like to get her hands dirty. Either thats how she was raised or she is just a biotch lol


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

I found out later she was just a crazy beotch. She told him...umm afterwards... that she was only 15 and now she won't stop texting him and calling him. She also saw us smoking and so decided that he would think it was cool if she told him all about her 15-year-old drug and sexual exploits. Yeah, can you say attention-seeker? I now feel perfectly justified. And Cory played with Luna and Trixie for like an hour yesterday, so he makes up for her. (He's trying to get Luna to warm up to him. I love it when people really take to them. Personally, I don't really like other peoples' pets so when people actually like my pets, it makes me feel warm and fuzzy.)


----------



## Dexy (Aug 11, 2008)

Slightly off topic but what really annoys me is when people know you have rats and then insist on telling you stories of times when they have had to kill wild rats/mice :evil:!

I don't go up up to people with cats and say "oh, I knocked a cat down with my car the other day".

I KNOW wild rats are totally different to our little sqishes but it's still not nice to think about is it?

Dexy


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

There is no such thing as off-topic. It doesn't matter. It's just a conversation among several people. Topics change as conversation progresses. It's a law of nature.


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

Hmm, I just realized that was quite ironic. I was talking about off the topic about being off-topic. 

Awww, Luna just fell asleep on my stomach while I am typing this. It's raining and she half under a nice snuggly blanket. Wish I had a camera but again, there is a rat sleeping on me...


----------



## Caity (Apr 1, 2008)

One of the other managers at work said to me "the only thing rats are good for is snake food."

I told this guy, "Well, uh, it turns out lots of people have found other uses for them, such as companionship, so not only are you rude, you are also inaccurate!"

It's not that I'm saying rats are equal to children, but say I don't particularly like children (which is not the case, I'm just making an example). When someone is droning on about their sweet little kids, would it be in good taste for me to assert that "the only thing children are good for is sitting in a hot factory, making my clothing"?

People are typically brought up to derive pride from things which they did not earn, such as the accident of where they were born (patriotism) or the accident of their sexual orientation (gay pride) etc., and it also seems that people derive pride from their preferences. They feel that happening to like or dislike things distinguishes them from other people in a superior way, but this is not really the case. Saying "Ew, you like rats" is about as valid a putdown as "Ew, you like bowling." Unfortunately most of us are guilty of this at one time or another.


----------



## geebus (Jun 23, 2008)

Agreed - rats are gross - and don't get me started on their owners!



Geebus -


----------



## lele_deja27 (Jul 28, 2008)

awhile back my dad tried to pick up one of my girls by the tail. 8O (he thought that's how you do it)But now I pretty much got my parents to my side. 8) My mom will even give them kisses.  Now my sister thinks their vermin and doesn't want to be near them.  The funny thing is her 3 kids LOVE my girls!  Her youngest(18mo.) calls them "pup pups" and gives them kisses. :lol: But what really gets me is when people find out I have rats and the kids play with them they freak out.I've had a couple people try to tell me"you can't do that they carry disease". :roll: :x


----------



## Hallie-Mae (Jul 31, 2008)

Lol, my little cousin Tyler, he's about two years old I think, he's totally completely and utterly in love with the rats. He's so gentle and careful with them too, and whenever he comes round he always asks to come see the "ra-raz" :lol: Bless him

LOL I just wrote this then read the "pup pups" thing :lol: Kids are so cute with naming stuff hahaha


----------



## geebus (Jun 23, 2008)

lele_deja27 said:


> .I've had a couple people try to tell me"you can't do that they carry disease". :roll: :x


Well.. sure most animals carry disease tell'm it will put hair on your chest! lol


----------



## twitch (Jan 4, 2007)

when someone tells me how gross their tails are i ask them to look at their own armpit and tell me how attractive that is. a rat's tail is their armpit essentially, it how they regulate their body temperature. its not meant to be gorgeous, its meant to be functional. i can think of similar areas on the human anatomy...

my mother once tried to not let me take a walk with my rats on my shoulders. she said that i had to take other people into consideration and that a lot of people don't like rats. my response was that i don't like dogs but she has me living with 15 of them... that shut her up pretty good. and i don't like dogs. they are fine if they are on a leash and someone else's problem but i don't want to have to care for them and train the buggers. and most dogs are not trained like they should be and so are little brats. don't have to worry about that with our rat buds. in any case, no one thinks about people that don't like dogs when they take their dogs for a walk, i'm not going to consider the people that don't like my rats. 

i used to take my rats with me when i walked to the store to get milk. normally the employees and most customers were very nice about it. then one was hired that was phobic. she freaked out screaming and crying. then all the customers took it on themselves to tell me how we are not really allowed to have animals in stores and how they never take their dogs in and all that. 

after taking my rats with me to the backyard of the BF parents to let my son play with some of the kids there for a while (nearly a year-the father loves them, the mother, not so much) the mother called me up to invite me over and asked if i don't bring my rats with anymore. it sucks. they liked going down there and being spoiled by their papa and playing the grass. the places i can take them is dwindling unfortunately. 

but more often then the negative comments when i have them out or talk about them i'm met with surprise and curiousity i was in the farmers market not too long ago with chop suey. i was stopped a number of times for kids to pat him, one man stopped me to have his picture taken with chop and me. we were almost late getting home when one man stopped me and told me all about this rat he had once. he held and cuddled chop suey and told me how much he missed his buttercup. it was a nice day. and i was only there an hour.


----------



## Hallie-Mae (Jul 31, 2008)

twitch said:


> we were almost late getting home when one man stopped me and told me all about this rat he had once. he held and cuddled chop suey and told me how much he missed his buttercup.


Awww bless him :lol: !!


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

He had a rat named Buttercup...sketchy


----------



## Abrakyusqueak (Jul 31, 2008)

Mmm, yeah, when I take one of my ratties out with me to the store or something I occasionally get a nasty look and sometimes people even comment. This one time a lady said, "Why would you have that!?"

I just looked at her dead in the face and then decided to refrain from saying something I'd regret later. I said politely, "What, my rat? I have them because they make awesome pets and I love them."

She then just stared at me and kinda smiled the "you have to be freaking insane but I'll just try and wing a smile so we don't have any issues" smile. I was _very_ straight forward with her, and she shut up after that. haha

People really need not discriminate, because sometimes I see people with children who are screaming and smacking their parents and I don't go up to the parents and say, "Ewww, why do you have _that_?!" *rolls eyes*


----------



## sourat (May 9, 2008)

My mother loves and praises her cat who will *actually* bite and hiss at people, but she gives me odd looks and is terrified of my rats. She keeps telling me, "Just you wait. One day they'll tear your face off or bite your neck and eat you!" I roll my eyes. Though she's not the only one. It's also her boyfriend and various other people who will say how gross it is and tell me about how much they hate rats.. Like I want to hear that! Now I'm careful about who I mention my rats too. I'm proud of them and love them and enjoy chatting about them, but it's not often I find someone who's interested or friendly about it.

I also find it funny that my little brother found my past hamsters to be more scary than my rats, and also rolls his eyes at our mother. Hahaha!!


----------



## twitch (Jan 4, 2007)

SteakBreakfast said:


> He had a rat named Buttercup...sketchy


:lol: nah, she used to belong to his sister but she got bored with the rat and he stepped up to care for her instead. took her home and for the most part she was a free range rat she was out with him so much. in any case it was the sister that named her and the man just never changed it as she was already responding to it. she lived to be almost 3 years old. she had just passed a couple weeks before he ran into me and chop suey.


----------



## Marysmuse (Apr 28, 2008)

:lol: You should've seen the look on the lady's face in the fabrics department at Walmart tonight when I said I wanted to buy fleece for the rat cage. And when I said I was going to line the cage floor so they'd have something soft to walk on!! :lol: :lol: :lol:

Hopefully things will work out and we'll have ratties soon. 

Rejoicing in the day,
-Mary


----------



## Punk-Kay (Aug 13, 2008)

Conversations I have genuinely had 

Random guy at work 'I would cut a rats head off with a spade if i saw one'
Me 'I would stab your child and sterilise your missus so ya can't breed more scum'

Harsh but I made my point! He laughed after and said 'Fair play'...Least he didn't complain! 

When I was 12 lol
Boy at school 'Rats tails are disgusting I want to cut them off'
Me 'So is your face, move it into my compass'

How childish! I hate the whole 'Rats are vermin' thing! They aren't! I'm lucky as all my family love my rats, I don't live at home so it doesn't matter, but as soon as my mum comes to my house, she boycotts me and goes up to my rodent room to see the babies and give them treats! Very uber cool! Got a few mates converted to the joys of rats too XD


----------



## zimmyzam (Sep 9, 2007)

Lol, in my Let's Get Ratties campaign I had to convince most of my mom's friends that rats are sweet little creatures. I googled/printed out pics of diseased sick sewer rats, and on a different page, sweet cuddly domestic rats. I was like, "So, this is what you think I want to get, right?" and I'd hold out the bad rat pic, and they're like, "EW GROSS AHH GET IT AWAY. THOSE THINGS ARE FILTHY, YOU ACTUALLY WANT ONE?" And then I'd say, "Heck no, those are sewer rats. These are the kinds of rats I'm talking about," and show them the pics of the domestic rats. They always said, "Awww.... those are pretty cute, I'm not gunna lie." Before they could get away, I'd always add "No they don't bite they're very very clean they're super smart and super sweet and you can litter train them."

..."Really?"

"Yup" =D

So I think I got some education in.

Only my grandpa and my older neighbor can't stand them, but they have pretty legit reasons and show their respect =P


----------



## chevalrose (Aug 13, 2008)

Omg I absolutly hate that. 

Some of the time you say "I have rats" to people, and they act squeemish, but once they meet your rats, they learn to love them. I hate when people just hate them for no reason!

Our old roommate didn't like them. He didn't mind them, but he would always make comments, calling them ugly and stuff. It's just...not needed. 

My mom likes our boys, up until the tail. The tail just freaks her out a bit. 
My boyfriends mom tolerates them, thinks they're cute, WANTS to like them...but any time they get near her, she screams (and I mean SCREAMS...like she was getting murdered).


----------



## Siwain (Feb 25, 2008)

I took my rats to the vet the other day. While i was waiting for my turn i placed the carriers on the shop (?) counter and a woman aproached. She looked at them and asked with interest if they were hamsters. At which i answered: No, they're rats!

You should have seen her! She jumped back and almost yelled "EEWWW!!! That's SO GROSS!!" I just told her that "Oh no, they're domesticated! They don't have any diseases and they're very friendly!"

I don't think she believed in me, though...

I just found her to be pathetic. When she thought they were hamsters, they were interesting, maybe even kind of cute.

When i told her they were rats, they wee suddenly gross.. Way to be prejudicial! (hope i said it right... again.. english is not my first language!)


----------



## chevalrose (Aug 13, 2008)

That completley reminds me of when I had to take my rat Clooney to the E-vet for pneumonia. THE VET was disgusted!!! She even said "disgusting animals" after he peed on the table. She was holding him by the scruff of his fur and holding him out away from her. I was SO ANGRY. Shes a vet for goodness sake!!!

I do have a main vet that I see, and I'm hoping I never have to go to the E-vet again with my rats.


----------



## kimby37 (May 6, 2008)

I have never been disgusted by any animal with the exception of maggots and cockroaches but I have to admit that I wasn't crazy about keeping rats. I am ashamed to admit it, but I had a problem with the tails. We got Sniffles and Templetina because my daughter begged and the moment I touched their tails I was hooked. I love how they feel.

Six of them have pink tails and I try to keep them clean because I love how pretty they look. Templetina's black tail is pretty gorgeous too.

I love bringing my friend's in to see my ginormous FN142 full of rats. I've seen a couple of wrinkled noses but no one has been rude enough to make a negative comment.

I will admit that my mom and husband aren't crazy about them. I sent my mom a picture of my daughter sharing a bowl of carrots with the rats. Four were perched on her shoulders and three were trying to climb into the bowl in her lap. My mother said she couldn't stop humming the song from the movie "Ben" after looking at it. Haha.


----------



## Cate (Nov 12, 2007)

When my dad met my first rat, Charlie, he said 'oh god, you've gone and bought a bloody great rat, have you?' Charlie really liked my dad though, and every night when I cam home from work Dad would be sitting in his chair watching tv and Charlie would always sit in the armchair next to his, bruxing occasionally. They ended up being the best of friends. When Charlie died it was my Dad who cried the most. 

I've never had any problems with taking my rats out in public. When Charlie was alive it was considered odd for him not to attend family meals at restaurants with us. We never let on to the waiters, but often the people around us would see him and say hello and give him scraps of food to eat!

I think the trick to getting anyone to like rats is to force them into holding one. Don't ask them properly as they'll make an excuse why they can't, but if you stand near them holding your cutest, best-behaved, least likely to pee on strangers rat and, acting like you're struggling to do 6 things at once, say to the other person: 'can you hold this a minute please?' while passing over your rat before they have a chance to think about it. 9 times out of 10 they will completely fall in love with the rat. This works especially well if you do it at the vets -preferably right in front of the vet. Next time one of your mischief has an appointment, simply bring a couple more along for the ride as well as your rat-hating friend/family member, you'll all end up juggling rats - and no one wants to say anything bad about an animal in front of a vet


----------



## twitch (Jan 4, 2007)

that vet experience reminds me of one i had recently with chop suey. this was back when i panicking over a ruptured abscess and so into the vet we went. i was heading to fredericton for vacation and because i thought i would have to do something to help chop heal we took the hospital cage and crammed it in the back seat. we were not going to fight with it at all so i just took chop out and carried him in in my hands. he sat on my shoulder or in my lap while we waited. 

there was a pomerian owner in before us. i did mention i didn't like dogs already right? well poms are big fluff balls of annoyance for me, but i will admit they are cute too. anyway, she was all smiles and asked if i had ferret and how pretty his markings on are. when i corrected her and said it was a rat she made a horrid face that i was almost worried it was going to run out the door without her and she shuddered. she turned her back to us and paid the vet, with every once and a while looking at us and shuddering and making more faces. ok, first reaction i can forgive. but to continually make such exaggerated body motions...? yeah, no that was uncalled for. but i just smiled back at her and cuddled chop suey all the more. 

the other people waiting on the other side of the room would look over a lot and smile a kinda forced smile but at least they had the decency to pretend. 

after the appointment (free because there was nothing the vet could do or recommend that i wasn't already doing) i walked out and there was a woman in a car with her husband outside. the vet tech came out behind us and told her "it" was gone she could come in now. the woman screamed and said "nOooOoOo!" they had to reassure her over and over that the rat was not there and they couldn't use the word rat. when they did she got panicky again. i felt bad for her. to be that scared of anything that it affects you in such a way. and because of that fear she will never even be able to coaxed into the loving paws and big hearts of rats. 

sitting beside me at the clinic was my friend who kept stealing chop suey from me to cuddle herself. she didn't say anything about it but i think she was more worried about then i was from her actions with him that day in the vets. and that's saying something because i was a wee bit panicked... 

do in the course of maybe 30 minutes i experienced the rude, the polite, the fearful and the enamored, i think covers all the bases for reactions to rats.... :lol:


----------



## SteakBreakfast (Jul 23, 2008)

As this thread was going on, I converted a good friend to rats. She is more a feathers an scales person, and well, I am kind of, too, but I love my little furry things. I had them out last night because we had been gone all day and they needed to be let out and as Trixie was running and cavorting about the room, Luna sat on the couch staring at the sleeping kitten in my mom's hand and slowing working herself up to getting close to it and then running back to the other end of the couch. My friend was on the other end of the couch so she was frequently visited and then (Luna is usually terrified of new people) Lu just plopped herself down on Leah. And it was over from that point on. She did the thing she always does with me and that is stick her head in the crook of my arm and flatten her body for some good petting and skriching. I told my friend what she wanted and she fell in love. With Luna, that is and not Trixie, she is a little iffy on the naked thing, which I totally understand. They are not exactly the most overly adorable things. But I am proud of myself.


----------



## Siwain (Feb 25, 2008)

chevalrose said:


> She was holding him by the scruff of his fur and holding him out away from her.


Boris' old vet would do that. Not that she was disgusted (she didn't show any signs of it at least), but she was terrified that he would try to bite her. So she would hold him the exact way you described.

That was one of the reasons i stopped taking my rats to that clinic. Their new vet is amazing, though! She so sweet to them. Boris even licked her hands once as she was giving him a check up!



Cate said:


> When my dad met my first rat, Charlie, he said 'oh god, you've gone and bought a bloody great rat, have you?' Charlie really liked my dad though, and every night when I cam home from work Dad would be sitting in his chair watching tv and Charlie would always sit in the armchair next to his, bruxing occasionally. They ended up being the best of friends. When Charlie died it was my Dad who cried the most.


My dad loves my rats. Specially Boris! He'll lie down on the floor when Boris is free ranging so that he (Boris) will climb on my dad's back.

Actually i'm pretty lucky! My whole family love my rats! Even my two grandmothers!


----------



## icecube730 (Mar 13, 2008)

*Well, my aunt is more than all those stories put together. You know cat and rat are basically the same words? Only a change odf letter? Well, she says they are different things. She says "cat" normal, but to say rat, she says raaayt. If that makes sense. She says they are horrible vermin, teh most horrble things on earth, we need to kill them, etc. I get so mad! I don't even have rats, and I syill love them to bits.*


----------



## sorraia (Nov 10, 2007)

I tend to have a personality that ignores comments I don't like. So when someone finds out I have rats and says "ewww gross!" I tend to ignore it and go on "Oh they make wonderful pets! They are the best of dogs and cats put in a smaller package!". If that person keeps up their idiotic comments, I keep up mine. So far, the other person has given up before me.  (of course, I can be pretty stubborn too!)


----------

