Male Rat?

Question
    Hello I'm a 13yr old  living in San Diego. I was thinking of getting a pair of male rats and would like some advice. This is because I've heard that males tend to mark on their owners and they have unatrractive testicles, and I was a little unsure of that. Other than that they sound more my style than a more hyper female. I've never had a pet rat, and only my experience is my family friends' rats. But I have researced a ton and have educated my mom also. I also have found many male and female rats available for adoption so I might get either. So right now I am leaning towards a male pair but I'm still undecided. Thanks, and hope to here from you soon -Rachelle

Answer
I love both rats but prefer males for several reasons.  For starters, females, unless spayed at a young age no later than 6 months, are very prone to developing mammary tumors that unless removed, will claim their life even if they are benign.   Females also tend to develop uterine infections so again, to resolve this, spaying young is the only way to prevent it or you need to be prepared to have a good vet handy as your female rats age.
Males can develop mammary tumors and pituitary tumors but not nearly as often as females do and when males do get them, they usually get just one and dont pop them out every few weeks like females do once they start the ball rolling.

Males do have testicles, no duh....LOL....but they really are no big deal. They are just pink bumps under their tail and if you want to be silly about it, just call them "rug runners" or "carpet draggers" and its more funny than unattractive.  

Do males urinate on you? Yes, but so do some females. They do this as part of their wild trait. Wild rats mark their trail with urine so they can find their way back through the underground tunnels they travel in. They smell their own scent and this keeps them from getting lost.  New rats tend to do this at times also so they can make their new surroundings part of their  own.  
ITs not dirty or gross, its just a little pee that has no odor and if it does, that means the rat must have a urinary tract infection. Just wipe yourself with some unscented baby wipes and your good to go.
Males tend to get all snugly when the get older and will prefer to lay on your lap and watch a movie with your and females would rather explore the tv set. Males tend to get lazy but can get very chubby, sometimes weighing up to 3lbs. which we dont really want so be sure to follow my diet ideas as best you can and not use the fattening seed mixes that are loaded with protein that can destroy your rats kidneys as they age.  

You can find this info on my critter city site if you have not gone to it yet.

http://www.sandyscrittercity.com/gettingstarted.htm