Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

Mine haven't ever escaped, unless you count hiding under a futon during 'out' time escaping. (The look on his face when I pull him out was hilarious though.) I think if you're careful about the safety of the cage them getting out shouldn't be an issue... and there are ways to find/catch a missing rat...

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

My one rat koi escaped once- but it was my fault we had to give my girl Tara her medicine and opened the roof of the cage to get her- and I guess we didn't secure the roof down tight enough when we put tara back and we found Koi in my moms closet underneath some clothes.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

My rats have never escaped, ive left the cage door open a few times and they just ignored it, theyd go back in by themselves if they were hungry anyway.

Ive had mice escape before, when i had them. They did half chew a few wires and nibble some paper though, but the damage was minimal. They were escape artists before i got a proper covering for their tank, lol.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

My one rat, Tori, escaped a few times in the middle of the night because she could fit through the bars of my old cage. I discovered she was out everytime because she jumped on my head while I was sleeping and started licking my face. It was really cute, but ultimately stressful being woken up out of a sound sleep three consecutive nights. A new cage with 1/2 inch bar spacing solved that.

My alpha, Nyah, and Tori got out one time during a top-level wrestling match, when they took a tumble and knocked the door open on the way down. Once again I was woken up by Tori licking my face and then Nyah's pudgy frame running across my back. I keep my bedroom door closed so it was just a matter of scooping them up and putting them back in. I lock my cage with a miniature padlock now.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

One thing I have to say which is slightly irrelevant-I had a rabbit, he was THE most amazing animal and I miss him like ****, he was a house rabbit and very much trained and proofed to my whole house, although he managed to get the phone wire/t.v wire etc and eat them. I left his cage unlocked (closed just 4got to lock) 3 or 4 times in th 3 years i had him, every time I came home he'd eaten all my barbies, had a very fun running around and throwing my toys (although he still peed in his tray) but STILL we came home the next morning to him being in his cage with minimal damage done. My rats seem to be the same, I have been irresponsible and left the cage open a few times for a few hours BUT they have never left it, apart from ONE time. I trust them, so when I am not sure if they want to come out I leave open the door and go out of the room for about 2/3mins, if when I go back they are hanging out waiting for me I will get them out, being sure they are not tierd, if they are where I left them, I think they are just awake because I woke them so will just shut the door. Once i 4got i left the door open and Moscow got out, he walked about one foot in 10 mins, I wouldnt worry with boys, they are too lazy!

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

No escapes yet, as I am a new rat mommy. I love my Martin's Skyscraper and Petco Rat Manor! But I am a complete and total airhead, so leaving the door open in the future might well happen. (Admitting my problem is the first step in overcoming it!) :wink:

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

One of my boys figured out how to escape from their cage which is on top of a dresser a good 4.5 feet off of the ground. I used to leave the door open all the time cause I figured there's no way he'd make it down - but he did.

He managed to be loose for a whole day until I found him . . . apparently, he couldn't figure out how to escape back INTO his cage - he managed to climb all the way up the dresser again but couldn't get around to the front of the cage on his own.

I scolded him - and me. and put him away.
crazy rattie.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

one of my rats has escaped because the doors arent properly closed. 2 of the doors are against a wall with some books and what not holding them closed. ive bumped into a couple times and one of them has crawled out but ive always noticed it before they got off the side of the cage. never any real problems from it.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

lol My two younger boys only escaped once, because I didnt't latch the cage. I didn't think they could get out of it, but the litle smarties did it anyways. One lifted the door open and the other crawled underneath and waited for his brother to get out and then fallowed suit. XD They were on a mission to get my cheese bread.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

OK thanks everyone for votes and comments!

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

Rats are NEVER going to burn your house down. Your dad's claims have no basis.

Knock on wood anyway! Anything is possible, a chewed wire could spark on a rug or on built-up dust or even a candle could get tipped by a curious rat.

My neighbors car engine caught on fire this past winter, due to rats chewing through the wires.

Remember after all, a cow once burned down an entire major city. I think a house for a rat isn't completely out of the impossible range.

Its nice that at least no one has had any 'major problems'!

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

I have always been freakishly careful with my dear rats as if they escape they will become toys for my sister's cat. They still try though! Amazingly, if I leave the door open for to long it's my big scaredy rat that is the first who tries to make a break for it! They all know a name (not necessarily their own) to come to when they're out, and always come to it, without fail (so far). I have checked and double checked every place they could try to escape in their cage and watched them closely at first to make sure they couldn't get out, especially since they're in a cage that is for ferrets, not rats.

A long time ago, back before I was even the owner of 'my' rats they lived outside (it was a covered patio, but was still basically outside) and one time the door was left open to their cage and one of the rats inside did get out into the great outdoors, and we thought she was gone forever ( and technically she should have been), but I did manage to find her under a bush by calling her name and she was just fine, thankfully.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

A long time ago, back before I was even the owner of 'my' rats they lived outside (it was a covered patio, but was still basically outside) and one time the door was left open to their cage and one of the rats inside did get out into the great outdoors, and we thought she was gone forever ( and technically she should have been), but I did manage to find her under a bush by calling her name and she was just fine, thankfully.

Awww that's lucky you found her!

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

It would be a miracle if my rats could figure out a way to open up the 2 latches to the front of their cage to escape =P

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

Well, another one of my rats escaped last week - bringing the total up to two escapees since September (my cage has a big plastic tunnel over it that sometimes comes loose).

When my boyfriend got up that morning he found the rat sat in the middle of the kitchen waiting for him because she wanted to go back to bed!

From my experience, it's not a problem if they escape. I think they enjoy the freedom for a bit but usually they want to go back in the cage and they even seem to get upset if they're out for too long and can't find the way back in.

I always shut the door to the rat room as well - so even if they do get out they can't leave the room. There's nothing they can damage in there either.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

My boys are still small enough that they can slip through the bars of their cage. They don't for the most part, though. In fact, when I try to get them to free-range in my room, they just toddle back home...

On that note, Starbuck has gotten out before. I found him in my pillowcase. I didn't really mind.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

Mine have yet to escape *knocks on wood*

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

I've only had 2 rats, but in 2 1/2 years I never had an escape.
I had a Martins cage with a flip-top lid, and I never put the latches on the flip-top. I don't know how easy it would have been for them to escape that way, but they never tried to.

My hamsters, on the other hand, were very good at escaping. :?

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

OK thanks guys, we might just get to 100 votes! lol

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

I had an incident the other night where my rat Ziggy escaped, but it was my fault. My two rats have a makeshift playpen on top of our dining room table where their cage sits. We've been using the table for weeks because they won't jump off of it. We open the doors during the day and close the cage doors at night for their own safety. Oddly, they had a nasty sounding fight the previous night (my husband and I have never heard them do this before) this was full on rat screaming, not playful squeaks, and when we checked on them they just stopped and looked at us like "what?", so I really don't know what they were up to but it scared us to death and that's another story. Anyway, the next night we left the cage door open hoping that all the extra room on the table would prevent any quarrels during the night. I'd been dozing on and off for a few hours when I heard a very Ziggy-like sneeze. Being half asleep I asked my husband if that was him...no reply. So I checked things out and sure enough...Ziggy had been roaming our bedroom floor for who knows how long. Thank goodness she didn't get into any trouble and get herself hurt (we have so many cords everywhere in our house.) We still don't know if she fell off of the table by accident or decided to be daring and jump to a nearby chair. :roll:

So much for leaving the cage doors open at night like I'd been thinking of doing.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

My rats have escaped their cage. I didn't leave the cage door open, they opend it themselfs.

As they know where the door is and how it opens, they lift the door, or use their heads to bang it open.

Sadley, i found both female and male together, and im suspecting little ones in a weeks time.

Now i use heavy objects or paperclips to keep the doors closed

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

I have to add that, last night, I had Ahab and Starbuck out with me for several hours while I was reading in bed. I then put them back but Starbuck apparently didn't want to spend the night in his cage. Twice I woke up to him lying on me. LOL. I put him back the second time and made sure he was tucked into his hut before going back to sleep. He's stayed in there since.

I'd say that my boys are about a week or two away from being too big to slip through the bars. I'm waiting for that time. I really don't mind Starbuck getting out (his forays last night make escape numbers three and four; Ahab's never gotten out) but I'd feel more comfortable if he was only out when I'm there (and awake) to supervise.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

Once upon a time when i was younger and living with my parents, one of my girls discovered how to open her cage door (cheap cage, the door was a bit loose). she escaped while the other much more shy girl stayed in the cage.

she decided it would be fun to go visit people, but she got to see me all the time! that would be boring. she ran down the hallway and into my parents' bedroom. my mother awoke to a strange noise. she looked for where the noise was coming from and all of a sudden, a little rat head popped out of her purse to say "hello!"

my mother isnt a rat person so it was interesting to say the least.

 

Re: Help me get Rats, have yours escaped? (Aiming for 100 vo

:lol:

almost at one hundred!