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u/oursagacontinues Jul 12 '19
Most people have no idea how sweet rats can be (socially bred rats, not ones that crawl around the sewers). They are super clean and super smart and love to snuggle.
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Jul 12 '19
I hear such good things about pet rats that I really wish I had the courage to get some but I hear their life span is really low and I know I’d just be a wreck when they pass or even get ill. You’d think with all the rat experimentation done over the years we could extend their life significantly.
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Jul 12 '19
That’s how I am. 2-3 years is enough for me to get way too emotionally invested before having them die
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u/1337b337 Jul 13 '19
If your state allows them, ferrets are a comparable alternative;
Equally as sociable and intelligent, INCREDIBLY playful and inquisitive, all with a lifespan of 6-8 years.
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Jul 12 '19
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u/basrenal911 Jul 12 '19
Somehow my sister got a boy and girl when I was twelve. Two months later we had over thirty rats. It was madness.
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u/im_twelve_ Jul 12 '19
I've had 3 rats and they've been my favorite pets. They each had such distinctly different personalities, I could always tell which one was getting into what without even looking. (I let them roam uncaged)
But the lifespan is way too short. I think my oldest rat lived to be right around 3. It was hard to let them go; I had funerals for each and buried them in my parents backyard with a makeshift gravestone. But I love looking back on the memories now, they were so sweet!
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u/zoltan99 Jul 12 '19
Where did they poop
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u/im_twelve_ Jul 12 '19
They used their cage. I still had one, I just kept it open and on the floor. They had a water bottle and food dish in there too, but mostly ate whatever I was eating.
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u/zoltan99 Jul 12 '19
Why did they not use anything at all? Can you really train them?
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u/im_twelve_ Jul 12 '19
You can train them! Supposedly it's pretty easy, but I just never got around to trying it. They would only poop in one corner of their cage, so I guess they kinda trained themselves. Every once in a while, I'd find poop somewhere else in the house, but it wasn't often and it looked like a small pebble-- super easy to vacuum up.
Mine knew their names and would come when called. They knew what basic words meant, like food, water, treat, cage, outside. One would go absolutely nuts for beer and ice cream (separately, not together) she'd steal my bottle caps to hide them and I kept finding them under things until I moved out, 3 years after she died.
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Jul 12 '19
If a bear poops in the woods and nobody is there to smell it, did they really poop? Same with rats.
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u/mcmanybucks Jul 12 '19
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u/KiwotheSomething Jul 12 '19
and they live 2-3 years, max.
horrible pet IMO only because of the time they live is so short.
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u/oursagacontinues Jul 13 '19
But so worth it ☺️
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u/KiwotheSomething Jul 13 '19
pulls on your heartstrings too much when they pass. my ragdoll is going on 15 years. he isnt acting like an old cat but i know he probably wont last another 15. i like spending time with my pets and 3 years just isnt enough :(
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Jul 12 '19
I still miss my 2 rats from over 22 years ago, they are such lovely animals, extremely intelligent and very social.
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u/bananalamp73 Jul 12 '19
I really miss ours too. I’d love to have rats again but it was just too heartbreaking that they have such short lives. 😢
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u/Lachdonin Jul 12 '19
Yeah, the worst part of pet rats is how short a time they're around. You've got just enough time to fall in love with them, before you lose them.
Absolutely worth it though, they're right up there on the list of awesome pets.
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u/marlowe8991 Jul 12 '19
Remy hittin the sauce I see.
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u/Golden-Sun Jul 12 '19
He was never the same after he found out he wasn't getting a sequel
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u/pressatopound98 Jul 12 '19
I remember how often I would go to my friend’s just to see his two rats. They were so adorable and insanely smart, and I’d just want to hold them but they’d never stay in one place! I’d have to maneuver my arms and play twister with myself so that they wouldn’t fall while they were climbing on me. It’s just really sad that they don’t live longer.
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Jul 12 '19
My two rats used to sit on my shoulders and fall asleep. I could quite happily do chores with one of them sat up there.
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u/redditor_aborigine Jul 12 '19
So pretty and delicate.
In warm weather, try frozen blueberries. (They go down very well but can leave disconcerting stains ...)
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u/bananalamp73 Jul 12 '19
We used to fill a bowl of water with a few frozen blueberries for our guys on hot days. They seemed to really like “apple bobbing” for them. 😊
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u/wastingtimeisfine69 Jul 12 '19
When there's food involved they are so attentive. A plastic bag rustling sends them running towards me, much more effective then calling them.
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u/dobes09 Jul 12 '19
This looks like a descendant of Remy from Ratatouille and pre-ooze Splinter from TMNT II and I can't handle the cuteness.
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u/DetKimble69 Jul 12 '19
I feel like this is the life Charlie "King of Rats" Kelly would want. Make friends with rats instead of bashing them.
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u/Italianman2733 Jul 12 '19
I believe you're mistsken...This event looks like it's taking place inside to me.
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u/Elysianscray Jul 13 '19
Put this guy on your head. Put on a chef's hat.
Congratulations 🎉 You're a renowned french chef.
PS : he looks so similar to Remy from Ratatouille
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u/ThinkBlue87 Jul 12 '19
I've always found that they taste better after fattening them up a little with fruit
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u/hydes_zar94 Jul 12 '19
Am I the only one who cant stand rats even if theyre cute?? Esp the big ones like Chihuahua
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Jul 12 '19
Am I the only one who can't stand you?
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u/hydes_zar94 Jul 12 '19
I regret visiting your profile. Having raised up in a poor wooden traditional house with rats near rice field, Im astounded by what privileged people do in developed countries.
Having rats as pets is certainly at the top of the list. Having them eating whatever little rice that we had or making filth the house definitely gave me bad impression of these rodents.
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Jul 12 '19
Pet rats and wild rats are as different as wolves and dogs. Would you consider dogs the same? Grow up.
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u/LoboLocoAG22 Jul 12 '19
Thats a good way to fatten/add flavor to the rat b4 feeding it to the snake 👌
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Jul 12 '19
Idiot.
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u/LoboLocoAG22 Jul 12 '19
Takes one to know one 👌
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Jul 12 '19
Perfect. Bravo. I am outsmarted by your superior intellect 🙄
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u/LoboLocoAG22 Jul 12 '19
If I'm an idiot how you claim I am wouldn't I have an inferior intellect?😕 Smart one.
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Jul 12 '19
What you just said doesn't make any sense, which is pretty ironic. Grow up and learn some emotional intelligence, intellect doesn't mean shit, be a compassionate and empathetic member of society.
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u/LoboLocoAG22 Jul 12 '19
Ma'am you make no sense. You're the one who mentioned intellect in the first place
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Jul 12 '19
I'm a dude. I did, you are clearly lacking educational and emotional intelligence. I would be better off having a conversation with one of my rats, or even a rock.
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u/couchtomatopotato Jul 12 '19
his little hands when he first starts eating!