Has anyone any pet rats ?? Have been told they are quite intelligent little critters and despite the bad press, are very clean in their habits.

Just wondering if anyone has any hands-on experience of them.

Been told to get two of similar age and same sex. Advice welcome.

Yes, they are pretty cool. Unfortunately you have to clean their cage/habitat every two days as they stink to high heaven. I got rid of mine after two weeks of ownership as I could smell them when I walked through the door, just got sick of cleaning them out!
I'd get gerbils or Degu's, they're very clean and intelligent.

Yeah they do tend to smell a bit but they are incredibly smart and curious creatures.
If you do get a pair make sure they are both female as males will tend to start fighting and they can get extremely vicious.
Just make sure that the cage is VERY secure as the clever little buggers will try their damndest to escape

Had 2 some years back, great pets and loving too.

Miss them and they also dont live to long.

I have 3 rats Pinzgauer and I must say they dont bite and mine are all female and truly don't smell much, or sould I say the cage doesn't need changing more than once a week. The rats themselves smell according to where they lay. if you buy a plastic tube or a hammock to sleep in then they dont tend to smell as much as those that sleep in bedding. Females have a lot less smell than males and are more placid.

I've had a few friends with rats as pets, apparently they love to sit on your shoulder and watch television with you.

They drink ya wine, sniff ya beer and try and find the quickest route from A to B in yer tee shirt, while sniffing your pits along the way. Gotta luv em

My favorite rat was Ben.

I had a few rats when I was a kid.

Very placid, and not as frigile as hamsters / gerbils etc.

Think I used to clean them out once a week......

Can we get gerbils?

No!

...have you been discussing this with the cat? She only wants to eat them you know...

I was thinking we could have habitrail pipes going all over the living room and the cat could watch them shoot round them

Im not sure who would be entertained for the longest - cat? Kids?


.....me?

I'm kidding - I couldn't go through all the sadness you get when they bite the (saw)dust. Especially if the cat was responsible for their sudden demise...

Thanks for all the advice folks. Yes bobi1, other folk have mentioned that two females are better from the pong point of view. A little unsure about them sniffing my pits - or anywhere else on their travels !!! A tender, loving nip in the wrong place could bring tears to the eyes ! (There's a gift for someone there!).

Might keep my eyes open for a suitable cage. Average price anyone ?

£30-£40 for a good sized one?

They do need a bit more room than other rodents due to their size

Man Utd supporters are like rats, you're always within 3 mtrs of one. Wouldn't fancy one of them for a pet though.

...you can have pets put down

I built the cage for mine from a metal shelving unit and wire mesh. They had a 2 story wall mounted mansion Onlt problem was after 2 years their pee started to rust the metal as they always used the same spot as a toilet but a plastic tray soon fixed that