New to Rats

Question
Fist I would like to say thank you for making you knowledge available to others.  I am new to the pet rats, but my partner is not; he had rats almost 10 years ago.  We both know that rats are quite susceptible to respiratory infections/problems.  My first question (and let me make a quick note by saying that I have also done my reading on rats as well) is what kind of bedding would you recommend?  We currently use a paper like material but the main reason that I ask is the bedding is dusty, and I do not know how good that is for them.
  I have also read that rats will need many a toys to keep their busy little minds occupied through the day.  I know that they need things to chew on as well to help keep their teeth filed, so what kind of toys do you suggest?  I was thinking on getting some parrots toys, the one with the brightly colored wood on rope, what do you think of those?
  I also want to know if there is a way to age the little guys.  We have three (3) male rats, all different sizes so we assume different ages.  Any tips in that area you can offer?  
  I do have more questions but I do not want to over load you on the first e-mail (maybe the second..LOL), I am still doing all of my reading on the little guys and working to be a better rat parent, my partner is very good with them.

Thank You again for sharing knowledge.


Answer
Hi AJ

Welcome to the world of rats. First off I do want to let you know there are alot of good websites on rat care out there but alot of them are far from accurate too. The best site to focus on would be THE RAT FAN CLUB and click on RAT INFO. You will also find alot of answers there. ALso, you can check my website, Critter city for rat lovers, or just skim through some old stuff here too.

As for the bedding.....myself, I prefer aspen, and I also suggest you try to litter train them. Its really easy and once you get them going, the ammonia odor is cut down, which is one of the things that contributes to respiratory problems.  I also like LIFEMATE HEMP LITTER but only PETCO has it and our Petco is far out. That is my favorite, but aspen is inexpensive and great for litter boxes and of course contains no phenol oils like pine and cedar do so no worries there either. TO litter train them all you need is a small plastic cat litter box or anything like that as long as it can hold litter and the rats can get in and out easily.  Put nothing else down on the floor of the cage as far as litter goes...this just will confuse them. Instead, you can put down something like plastic needlepoint canvas (found in the craft supply section at walmart) or make it really comfy and lay down a blanket of fleece....but to be honest, newspaper is fine (soy ink only and no ads since that ink may not be soy based) if the rats are going to shred the newspaper and use it to go potty in, that idea is out though so it depends on the rat. My boys have always been litter trained...in fact, all of my rats have been ever since I started keeping them.  Just add the poops as you find them and put them in the litter box and eventually they will get the hang of it. Being patient is your role in this.  The younger rats may not catch on as fast but they usually dont take long either.

As for toys, to be honest, the most amazing toy to a rat is his owner and the change to run around a safe area, like an enclosure with a 3 or 4 foot small animal fence around it (I spread mine around the rat room and it extends from one end of the cage to the other so they can come in and out of the cage as they see fit during playtime, which is about an hour a night) Sometimes the brats scale the fence so I found on another site a good idea to use flat cardboard boxes and attach them together to form a giant cardboard "wall" and they have a hard time climb cardboard.  Next, make sure you have fun things for them to play with YOU in there too, btw, such as lots of cardboard boxes with holes cut out so they can explore...I stack them and all that fun stuff. They also love to find things they smell...so if you take a box or basket and put in some rolled up socks with cheerios hidden in the socks, they will have fun digging for them. Balls like ping pong balls or golf balls that they can push are also fun.  Rats sleep all day and wake up at night but if you disturb them and make them adjust to YOUR schedule they usually adapt. Some people hang bird toys with bells and colorful balls etc...and some rats care...others dont. As babies they like to chase each other and play with each other and wrestle etc...so as long as they have each other and you, they have all the toys they need!!

RAT TEETH

Lets talk about rat teeth. Big funky yellow rat teeth. The more yellow they are, the healthier the rat is. Tell that to a humans dentist LOL!
Rats teeth are what is known as "open rooted" which mean they continue to grow when they are broken etc...this, however, does not mean their teeth will grow 12 inches long throughout their life if they are not given something to gnaw on. Many people compare rats teeth to, say for example, finger nails. If they are not filed down, they will grow and grow. This is not the case.  A rat that is healthy has its own way of grinding his teeth down without the help of any chew toy.
Simply eating is enough to grind the rats teeth down. Think of it as a manicure session for teeth. When the rat eats, the normal placement of the rats incisors cause them to grind together naturally and this manicures and files their teeth. Bruxing is another natural way for the rat to grind and manicure his teeth. I am sure you have heard a rat brux (its when they sit very still and grind their teeth real fast, often done when they are happy to see you or happy your holding and petting them.) The grinding is so strong and the rats jaw so powerful, it causes the rats eyes to vibrate from the bruxing and this is called "boggling" which is freaky cute in its own way.
However, if the rat has a problem with his teeth and they do not align properly, this can cause the teeth to over grow. This condition is called MALOCCLUSION and it is a medical condition that needs to be seen by a vet and find out WHY his teeth are off because they should not be.  Sometimes if this happens, people think it is because the failed to give it a chew toy and blame themselves, but the truth is, its just one of those rumors that got started from a website whos webmaster did not have his or her facts straight.  
The rat has a strong desire to gnaw though but this is only because of natural instinct. They like to burrow and dig and gnaw and explore and eat and sleep and sleep and eat too.  
You can give your rat low fat dog biscuits to satisfy his natural craving to gnaw, but I would refrain from wood products etc....just for safetys sake. The last thing you need is a splinter in his mouth!

As for having male rats....I always suggest new rat owners start out with males for a few reasons and here they are:
They are less prone to mammary tumors like females are. In order for females to avoid growing mammary tumors she must be spayed around 3 to 4 months old or there are very good chances she will develop them after the age of 18months.
Males tend to settle down around 1 years old and are less curious and active as females and tend to want to just flop on your lap and have you rub his back. This also depends on how much out of cage time they get however.  If you only take them out for 30 minutes once a day theyh prefer to play, but if they are out longer, they end up bored and start getting that strong rattie urge to snooze...so they either go back to the cage or climb on your lab!
If you can get past the fact rats love to play wrestle like wild maniacs (males especially) and also get over the fact they have "carpet draggers" always following behind them and they also LOVE to mark you with urine, which, btw, is a compliment in the highest form, you will love the male rat. They also get bigger than girls too. I love my girls, doing et me wrong, but after losing many to mammary tumors and also watching other females struggle with these tumors and the final straw was losing my beloved Holly to them in July 07 just a few months shy of her 4th birthday, I just thought I would stick to males for a few good years till I got brave enough to spay baby females.

Anyhow, I know I blabbed for a long time...I type fast but something is up with the SPELL CHECKER so forgive the typos and major spelling errors. Meantime dont worry about how many things you ask me...that is why I am here...to help guide rat owners in the right direction.

One thing you may or may not have thought of  is a vet. Its good to find a vet before you even need one so you dont have to scramble around looking for one when you need it. If you dont have one that is an exotics vet for rats, allow me to help you find one. I often can go by reputation the vet but sometimes I dont know much about them other than they are certified exotic vets and take good care of rats.
All I need to find an exotic vet is a zip code.

Please, dont hesitate to ask me anything you want about rats, anytime...


Sandra