hoping to be a rat owner soon

Question
QUESTION: Hello, i am soon hoping to get a pair of rats to keep for myself as pets. I am concerned, however, with any diseases/illnesses that a Petco or Petsmart rat could pass on to me. Also, i was hoping to find out some information on the rabies virus (the incubation period in rats mainly)and if a pet rat could infect my other household pets (I have three dogs, a few guinea pigs and various other rodent and reptilian friends) with any diseases such as parvo, bordatella, etc. And is it really better to get male rats because they get less tumors than female rats? Any knowledge will be greatly appreciated!!!

Thank you so much!
Bridgette

ANSWER: Hi Bridgette

Glad your going to get rats. You will love them!

Anyhow...where can I start?  Pet store rats do not carry any germs or disease that they can give you nor any of the animals you have already. They are not like wild rats that harbor certain diseases that they can carry to humans.
As for rabies, although all warm blooded mammals can get infected by rabies, rats do NOT carry the rabies virus at all and are not required to receive any rabies shots what so ever. The only small pet other than dogs and cats that by law need rabies shots is the ferret.
It is a told myth that rats are rabid and in fact I can point you to various professional websites that will agree with me that, at least in this country, there has never been  one report recorded in history of a case of rabies in a rat that gave it to a human.  Here is why: Rats are small animals. If they were attacked by one of the natural carriers of rabies, (which would be one of three of the most common carriers: The skunk, raccoons and bats, although the fox and opossums are also natural carriers as well.) the rat would NEVER survive the attack and would be dead long before the virus could even incubate. Again, rats have gotten a very bad rap due to the plaque they were accused of carrying over long ago, and in fact, it really came from fleas from that of a dog, not the rat. Ever since that time, rats have been feared as disease carrying vermin that foam and froth and growl and hiss and attack at the throat of man, sucking the blood right out of them. Its just so funny when you think about it. Once you own a rat you will never believe anyone could ever fear such a timid and gentle and highly intelligent little critter. They are cleaner than a cat and  can be just as loyal, if not more, than a dog. You will fall in love the minute you bring them home.
As for males and females, your right to say females are more prone to tumors than males. Female rats that are not spayed at a young age have a very high chance of developing estrogen fueled mammary tumors after menopause, although male rats are not totally exempt from getting them as well. Males still have mammary glands, minus the nipples, but it is not real common for them to develop mammary tumors like it is for females. However, if you want females, you can simply find a vet skilled in rat care and have them spayed around 3 months of age and you wont have to worry as much about mammary tumors developing.
Also, a word of caution about buying from pet stores. Although I have had some wonderful rats from pet stores, this is not always the case. Many pet store chains have a contract with a breeding mill. These mills breed mostly feeder stock rats and they are not bred for health or temperament and are often inbred and sickly. What some of these stores will do is simply pick out the more interesting looking rats other than the pink or red eyed white rat or black rat, and take them aside and sell them as pet rats, suggesting that there is a difference between the two rats when all along they are litter mates with different colors and patterns. You are still getting inbred sickly little rats. Its very sad indeed. However, it is not fair of me to suggest ALL petstores do this, but chances are, they do. You have to watch also for these stores that allow sexes to mix together. Rats can breed as young as 5 weeks old and also, due to the fact that alot of times, pet stores will hire anyone to work in the small animal section without proper training, these employees are not trained how to tell male and female baby rats apart. Often, a scared male rat will draw his  testicles up and retract them and the employee with little experience with rats will not notice the testicle stump and assume its a female, and will accidentally sell a male and female as a pair of females. 21 days later, a surprised rat owner has a cage full of baby ratlets.  Another complaint is skittish rats that bite out of fear and are terrified of people. Again, this all stems from the poor breeder the pet store has a contract with. These breeders have so many baby rats to deal with they do not handle them and take time to properly socialize them.
In order to do this, baby rats should be exposed to the human touch from the day they are born and picked up and touched and held every day after that. This makes for a rat that is comfortable and trusting of his human keeper. I have spent alot of time training skittish rats and advise people how to do this as well, and all of them have purchased their rats from petstores.
A good hobby breeder with a good reputation is the way to go if your looking for healthy and friendly rats. A good hobby breeder only breeds one or two does at a time, never using the doe more than twice, sometimes once. A good breeder will only breed from a line of healthy rats and has access to the background of the rats she uses for breeding by keeping record of the off spring. The breeder should know about the parents, grand parents, great parents etc... and if, for example, there is a health problem with some of the rats from a specific litter,such as the fatal mega colon, the parents are retired and are not to be used for breeding again. The good hobby breeder also spends alot of time with the new ratlets, getting them used to being handled by humans. You rarely find that with a breeder that pet stores use. Yes, some people luck out and end up with a super sweet and friendly rat from a petstore, but this is only due to
the fact that the rat was, by nature, already with a good disposition on its own and had no help from the breeder.

If you are interested in a hobby breeder, I can provide you with a list of breeders in this country.

Sorry for such a long post...I had much more to say than I thought.

Education is KEY when looking to own a rat. I applaud you for doing research before buying rats. Its better to educate yourself about them first instead of learning from your mistakes as you go, with the rat being the one that suffers from your mistakes. Please refer to my website to learn alot about pet rats, from proper diet, cages and bedding and how to litter train your rat and all about rat illnesses that they are prone to and the most current treatments available for pet rats.

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/index.htm

Its also a good idea to have a vet before buying the rat so this way if there is any problems, you wont have to waste time and scramble to find a vet. The best vet to have is an exotic specialist. They are no more expensive than a general vet. There are just 150 world wide so if you find many vets that claim they are exotic vets, look closely at their degree on the wall. Chances are they are not certified in exotics and instead, they have a "special interest" in exotics, but never took the courses needed to pass the specialty boards. These vets may know some about rat care but they may not carry the proper implements in the right size and shapes for a small animal such as a rat and an exotic vet usually has everything needed to care for smaller mammals.
If you need help with a vet, let me know where your located and I can help you find a vet registered with the Association of exotic mammal veterinarians.   

Please let me know by doing a follow up.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi again! First off, thank you so much for your previous answer. It really helped me see things in the ratty world more clearly. Anyways, you mentioned that you could give me the names of some breeders? That would be fantastic. I am in the Miami, FL area, so anything around there would be great! Also, I would get two rats and males i believe, so really how big should their cage be (theres so many answers online.) Thank you once again!!!

Bridgette

Answer
Hi again, to you, too!

For starters here are two names of exotic vets in your area.
I wanted to at least start by giving you two names but I can come up with more later on today for you.

The first clinic with Dr.Kramer would be my first choice.
**********
Dr. Marc Kramer
Avian and Exotic Animal Medical Center    
12125 S. Dixie Highway
Miami FL 33156
Phone:    305-234-2473
Website: www.avianexotic.com

***********

Dr. James McCoy
Bayshore Veterinary Clinic
2043 NE 140th Street
North Miami Beach FL 33181
Phone:    305-940-2287
Website:www.bayshorevet.com
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As for cages, the bigger the better. Get the biggest you can afford. This way you can litter train them and have room for a nice litter pan etc...

Here is the URL to Martins cage:

http://www.martinscages.com/products/cages/rat/

People seem to rave about the R=690 powder coated. Always powder coated, btw.