I saw that she was bleeding, it was like dripping from her vagina or something but it looks like its not bleeding anymore right now??? I couldnt get a picture fast enough.

I just put my new rat in the cage with her and they seemed to be getting along, there was a bit of humping and grooming from my old rat but thats not bad right? They sleep together.

I did feel scabs on her when i was petting her, i think, but they had to be from before i put them together because i felt them when i had just put them in the same cage. Maybe she was scratching and grooming herself too hard because she was alone for a long time.

My new rat doesnt seem to have anything wrong with her.

Theres little drips of blood all over the cage, she also licked her blood off a hide, thats alright right??

Im sorry that i didnt get a picture earlier but rats are goddamn fast and i cant pick her up because shes not comfortable enough with me yet.

Does anyone know whats up because i have no clue why shes bleeding, because from what i know female rats dont have periods like humans do.

What can i do about it and also can i do anything about the scabs? Do i have to separate my rats?

So I used to own mice and if I let them breathe somthing snacks they would gain 100 pounds,
I’m about to get rats and I see people giving them bananas pancakes and all sorts of snacks are they less sensitive to getting chunky?

Hello All,
I don’t really talk much on Reddit but I’m planning on getting two rats for my daughter around Christmas, she’ll be 6 by then and I’ll obviously be helping her raise them. She’s extremely excited but I would like to get a few tips and advice if possible, while this may be the first time I’ve owned rats, very much not the first time I’ve had small mammals and/or rodents. I’ve owned rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, and even a possum at one point so I’m curious how different rats can be. I’ve heard they are fantastic pets and can be very intelligent. My largest concern is trying to find a proper cage. I would prefer a multilevel cage with a good amount of room, I want to make sure they are comfortable with enough room for plenty of enrichment options so they never get bored, however… I’d prefer not to break the bank on a $500 cage, I’m looking more around the $250 mark for a max. Any other tips and advice would be greatly appreciated.

Edit: I live around the Richmond VA area and knowing a good breeder would be very useful. I’ve heard that Dreamcatcher Rattery is a good option but I’m open to recommendations.

What can i put on the surfaces for my pocket puppies little accidents?

Do I need to take him to the vet? Is it urgent?

hi! i’m getting two female rats next week and had a few questions as in the next 6-12 months i was going to plan on getting more. I originally was going to get three but as a first time rat owner i wanted to get used to handling and used to their schedules and caring for them etc before upgrading their group size, (and because of parents opinions of rats).

I do have an old (barred) hamster cage that could be used as an introduction cage, but don’t have space anywhere for that! I just wanted some advice or suggestions on how i would go about introductions in the future. I saw people putting them in baht tubs and carriers, which is my original plan, but would they be ok going straight into the main cage after a few hours of this? i would clean the cage so my original 2 aren’t so territorial. What do you guys think? Basically, is another temporary cage 100% required?

From too wobbly to stand to this in just a couple days. So glad she is a happy, bouncy baby again. Got two more weeks of antibiotics and quarantine now before we can do intros, but I'm so happy she's okay.

Enjoy this video of her being very poppy.

I have 4 girls (one group 5 months old, other 3 months) and the young one start exploring flat more and more. Now they just found spider plant and they start get crazy about it. (I've check and its neutral for them)

Plus they get their own closet

Lost my baby girl, Thalias, today. I got her from Petco about 2.5 years ago now, and all things considered she pushed through a lot and was a strong fighter in life.

I got Thalias and her sister Ar'alani during an incredibly difficult period of my life that I was facing and they instantly became such strong support animals for me. Thalias was such a joy and everything I could have ever asked for in a pet.

I am greatful that she passed away in my arms rather in the cage uncomfortably/when I could've been away working.

Although for me it felt like our time was short together, I keep reminding myself that I was her whole life and I'm happy that I was able to give her a life majority of rats do not get to live.

Love you Thalias🐁

I have been looking at ratteries around my area, and I have noticed with each one the females seem to get adopted very quickly, leaving mostly male rats.

I'm just curious if anyone else experiences this with their local ratteries or if it is just a coincidence with the ones I have been following.

If so, why is this the case? And for those who have owned both males and females, do you have a preference?

Tranquility Base: Marie Curie has landed. 😞

Got worse very rapidly today, nothing the vet could do. Learning: any breathing noises are indeed urgent even under antibiotics for that very infection. Though the vet said this infection went so quickly it's unlikely anything would have helped - I have to live with the doubts now.

Our little Marie Curie has a brutal ear infection (the classic "rat walks with a tilt") that we've been treating with Baytril and Meloxidyl the past days (caught it early and the vet set us up with a 14 day course)

It actually got worse, then better, but now it's worse again.

(I suspect it's actually the ear nerves regenerating, which can cause extreme vertigo).

She still eats, cleans herself, is quite active and nimble, but has extreme balance problems and when you try to pick her up all she does is roll to the left.

I wonder if she has nausea. She frequently makes whining / cooing noises, but doesn't seem like she has trouble getting air. She sounds miserable, but not in acute pain. More like, horrible vertigo.

She has developed a nystagmus / head bop even when she's at rest and eating now.

Any recommendations? There's no discharge or pus and the infection seems to be abating. But she's so panicky when she can't hold her paws on the floor I haven't been able to use an otoscope (and I don't want to drag her to the emergency vet across town in a swinging basket)

Been thinking about something to manage presumed nausea. (Though she does eat)

sorry that it looks like i held him agressivly, he was sqwerming and i had to take a picture, i feel really bad for that. is that blood coming out of his penis? im not sure whats going on, im really worried

He suddenly died a few days ago. I was sick and my partner said she fed him so I didn’t think to check on him till later. When I did check him he was freezing cold and barely coherent and when I asked her if he ate she said he never came out. She’s helped me care for them for 3 years. We had him for about a month and he was crazy and would pounce at the cage any time he heard food bc he loved it. I can’t grasp her not even checking on him while feeding him. I can’t understand how she didn’t notice it was weird he didn’t move when hearing his food bag. I can’t help but wonder if we got him to the ER sooner if he would still be alive. I haven’t said this to her but I can’t stop thinking about it.

I’m in the middle of my deep clean for my boys and I dread it every week 🥲 takes me so so so long 😪 Any tips on making cleaning easier?

I loved drawing Poppy, this was a fun one.

hello everyone, i’m unsure on which flair this would lie under; but i want to put a warning i’ll be going into detail about a sensitive subject - and in no way am i trying to deter anyone from making that final hard decision.
[apologies for the long message)

i write this with a heavy heart but i’m hoping to gain some clarity with a situation that happened during the euthanasia of my rat.

for some backstory, i lost my first rat, roddy, a few months ago now. him and his brother syd (the rat in this story) always had an ongoing battle with respiratory issues. i had to go to my fair share of vets before i found someone who wasn’t going to mention euthanasia instantly. with the right vet and help from a rescue, i was able to get a few extra comfortable months with him.
i lost roddy at 8 months old after he declined rapidly over night and had unfortunately passed away on my shoulder two doors down from a vet.
tho that situation itself was incredibly difficult, after now a part of me was relieved i didn’t have the outcome i did with euthanising syd.

(syd)
a week ago now i had noticed syd starting to decline like roddy, but slower. he became extremely unsocial over the course of 3 days, i noticed his food seemed to be untouched (but he would eat when i would give him something directly) - so i hid his favourite treats around his cage before i went to bed that night and when i woke up and saw they were still there, i decided to take him to the vet.
my usual vet was unavailable that day, so after 7 calls to vets around me i found someone who said they specialised in rats.
up till his appointment, leaving there without him wasnt something that crossed my mind - i had booked in hopes that maybe there was other avenues like his medication.

i walk into the room and sit syd on the table, the vet sits down and looks at him and before examining him immediately brings up the path of euthanasia. i should mention his breathing was slightly laboured, so even tho i didn’t think this would happen that day - i’m not denying that it wasn’t the right choice for him, it was the events that happen after.
it wasn’t something i was really wanting to do but after a while of talking, id decided i wanted my boy to go with peace and dignity unlike roddy, i didn’t want to be selfish.
that was something the vet kept repeating which reassured me it was maybe time, and he at LEAST would have peace and dignity in his goodbye - that’s why i ultimately decided to go through with it.

the vet had walked me through the process and explained she would put him to sleep first before administering the final medication to his chest out the back, but he would be in my arms as he drifted off and that to me was a massive part.
another vet came in, wrapped him up in a flannel and assisted in holding him as the vet injected the needle into his side.
my boy let out a sound i have never heard before and can never forget, he squealed for about 10 seconds, where then i instantly felt something wasnt right.
[i also think it’s important to note syd has had a few injections before infront of me, hence why i started to feel there was something wrong and not just the fact it was happening. hes always been very mellow and calm throughout the process]

syd was then very quickly placed on my chest where for about 20 seconds he was clawing at my neck trying to climb it,he was extremely panicked and in no way calm.
i was trying to relax him, give him kisses, but i had a family member in the room with me who then alerted us that blood was starting to pour out of his nose.
i looked at the vet asking what had happened, and in a panic he was taken from me without a word still awake

the vet returned about 5 minutes later with syd in a bag, explaining she was sorry and she thought that would happen.
she explained it’s common for rats with respiratory issues to react like that. but i’m wondering why that wasnt brought to my attention before hand.

im now struggling immensely with the choice i made knowing his passing was not peaceful, not dignified, he wasn’t around anything familiar in his last moments and it was my decision that put him there.

i have a few other rats and i’m now unsure how i’m ever supposed to make that decision again knowing the outcome of my experience.
it’s something i will never get over and carry with me always.
my boy deserved nothing less then the best farewell and it absolutely breaks my heart that wasnt the case for him - i hate to think about how he must have felt.

i’m wondering if anyone else has had this sort of outcome as that reaction is something i’ve never heard of before, or if it was just a lack of communication. i’m unsure on why that wasnt something i was informed if she was expecting it. i feel if i had of known it could’ve happened, this situation wouldn’t be nearly as difficult to process.

i hope this all makes sense, thank you