Down to one rat

387 Views 2 Replies 3 Participants Last post by RatPappy, 9 mo ago

mrskrable4

Discussion Starter · 9 mo ago

So, In a previous post I asked for help regarding my elderly rat who had a large tumor growing on his side, unfortunately the vet did decide the best course of action would be to put him down given the location and size of the mass, as well as his age. Now I have a problem, I am down to one rat. He is behaving normally and I have been spending as much time with him as possible, but with my job I can not give him the attention he needs. I know everyone says to get more rats, but this isn't an option for me. Given that he is older I was hoping to find some recommendations on what to do. As I said before, he is behaving normally (eating, drinking, playing) should I give him away to someone who can provide him with the companionship he needs? Or would it be ethical to let him live out the rest of his days solo with me? I would really appreciate anyone with experience on this weighing in.

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Tinytoes

· #2 · 9 mo ago

Where are you located? Rescues will take in an elderly rat and keep them in Twilight care, which means they stay with the rescue and are not adopted out.

Our rescue always tries to make room for these types of situations

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RatPappy

· #3 · 9 mo ago

That's a tough call, msrk. I recently kept a single Rat after his brother died, of a tumor incidentally, and he did very well. If he's happy with you and you have a close relationship I'd recommend keeping him with you. Spend as much time as you can with him, let him sleep with you, play with him, give him a variety of new things to keep him mentally stimulated and you should be fine. Ideally Rats should have company but we this isn't an ideal existence and we have to do the best we can.

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