I think you should wait until you move like your mum suggested. Why don't you focus on the animals you have rather than buy more just now. Honestly, alls I wanted to do was rescue animals and I felt like I couldn't stop, 2 cats a parrot and 10 rats later and I'm still constantly checking to see if a animal needs a home. Anyway, my point is during the time between now until you and your family move you could save up all your money for an extra nice cage and accessories so that when you do move your prepared. Rats are not cheap to own! And if you live in America you are worse in terms of prices, rats can get sick easily and it can get bad fast! One day they can be fine and the next be at deaths door needing a lot of vet care which is costly. The only thing you can do is research research research, show them that youv put the effort into studying them and hopefully they come around! I know how desperate you are to have rats, trust me! They are amazing pets I honestly would be so lonely without mines but it is hard work!!! Good luck

 

Unless you pay rent, accept what your parents say. It is always a risky situation to rent and own animals -- especially animals like rats which have a preconceived stereotype attached.

I've always been against minors "owning" pets if they don't have an income. If the parents want to take full financial and ethical responsibility for the animal, that's fine. If you're close to going college soon, what are your plans? Do you have a job to pay for the rats? What happens when you have to take one to the vet and it costs hundreds of dollars?

 

I agree that it's best to wait until you can pay for everything they need on your own. Start a rat fund, save a few dollars a week, it really helps. I'm in college with a job, and my start up costs on my rat boys easily hit $300 and up fast. Most was the cage but still. You also want to find the proper food, bedding and other things of that nature. I also had to take my boys to the vet for a minor respiratory issue, and that ran me $100 just for the check up and the medication, I know my folks would never have let me take them, let alone pay the bill for me, and my boys would have suffered for it. Respect your parents, wait until you move, do your research, and save. I know how hard it is to wait, I've been waiting 4 years for a bloodhound and I still have at least two to go but I know it will be worth it in the end, and I promise waiting to make your rats as happy as possible will be well worth it.

 

Guinea pigs and gerbils are pretty cool little animals too

 

Like everybody else said. I would wait to move. Not just because your renting and it better to have animals in an environment you own. It is very stressful for a rat to move. Its stressful for any animal. If your rat died right after you got it. It wouldn't help your cause.

 

Okay, I was thinking the same thing, to wait, and I'm going to do that. Thanks


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I just got mine and didn't ask. I was in college and needed a buddy so I got a couple and came home during break with them. My mom and dad hated rats and never let me gave one as a kid but my mom admitted to me that she regretted it greatly after meeting my heart rat, Ruby. She made a connection with them and loved joining me in play time. It's just one of those things they don't know until they get to know them. I know its not the best advice...just to go get one but maybe if you share with them that even rat haters such as my mom and best friends ended up absolutely loving them.

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I would never just get them. We had a member whose father rejected her just getting them and literally tossed them out the window.


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Never ever just get a pet. Do not try and hide it from your parents, it will not work 99% of the time, and it's always the animals that suffer for it. Please just wait.

 

Yeah, I did the same thing as habana, but I'm also in my 20's and can kinda deal with my parents with respect. I really needed the companionship, and I knew my parents would give in (I also don't even live in the same country, so....)

That being said, if I were any younger at all, they would have just given them to the humane society, and you don't want that to happen, right?


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Bring your mom to the pet store and have her ask questions. Be super responsible. And keep giving them facts.

 

I did that with my dad, and( as stated, he kind of actually liked them and he was grinning ear to ear when I was holds them haha)

Next time we go to PetSmart I'll ask to hold the ratties to show my mom that they aren't diseased creatures that bite.

Thanks

And also.. I would never ever just get a pet because if the parents rejected them then that would be horrible. Also I can't 'just get a rat' because I'm still too young to get a pet without parents (I'm under 18.)


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Hey guys,
I'm still new to to this forum, so I'm not sure if his post goes here.

But anyways, I was wondering how I could convince my parents to let me buy 2 rats to keep as pet. They used to say no and not listen but I kept talking about it to them and they 'softened' up a little. They used to think rats are disgusting, but I showed then videos of rats and told them about rats (how they're really clean, can be taught tricks like a dog, how long they live, and that sort of stuff) and they are a little bit more used to the idea, but they say no. I took my dad to PetSmart (only place he would let me go and our PetSmart is really clean and good) and I handled all of the rats they had (only females) a and my dad said that he kind of liked them but expect for their tails, which I told him to get over it because it's just a tail and without it they can't really maintain body temp. My dad said that he maybe would let me buy a rat only if my mom let and if they only lived longer. So my dad actually kind of likes them, but my mom doesn't. She said that when we buy a house that's when she'll let me buy a cat, dog, rat, etc and whatever I want (we currently rent a townhouse). She said she doesn't want any more animals in the house, because we have had 2 guinea pigs, and 5 hamsters, and we have a pair of parakeets that we've had for about 4 yrs (and currently have.)
Is there any way I can convince my parents
because I think I am responsible and ready to keep pet rats. (Handle them every days for a couple of hours, I can buy a nice cage for them, can buy food, and cover vet check ups and bills.

Any info about how to convince them would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks

~Diana


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hey im doing the same thing but my parents haven't lightened up yet. but I'm working on a power point to show how nice they are. but you should not always talk about them maybe every now and then. and show how responsible you are by playing with the others and helping around the house and no talk backing parents hate that. also show how committed you are by saying you'll by the things and if they say yes do buy it unless they already did. goo luck and contact me if they say yea. stay connected.

 

My mom t me to get rats so

 

thats raelly cool. sry i didnt notice how old it was. but have any ideas to convince

 

yes one sec

 

cool thanks

 

Here is some stuff Rats can make great pets! Rats are easy to care for, have very little odor, and they rarely bite. They are affectionate and intelligent animals that often will bond quickly with their owners and easily learn new tricks.

 

They are very social and love to hang out with human family members on the couch or on peoples' shoulders or in their laps. They will even try to groom their human companions as if these people were other rats in their “rat pack.” Pet rats love the warmth and contact of their caretakers and are actually very cuddly

 

thanks i will add those things to my power point

 

And get mo than one

 

yay i know that all the websites say that becuse thet need a buddy

 

So if you want a rat you need the right stuff. They like a lot of toys and if you get a rat you should get 2 or more or they will get sad. Now if you get more than one rat they might fight, rats do this because they have to find out which one is the alpha or they are they or play fighting.

 

ok and can fighting turn to death ever if not when do they stop

 

If it’s a dominance dispute, where the ratties play fight to figure out who’s the boss, most people go by the ‘no blood, no foul’ rule.

If a rat is pinned on their back by another rat, as long as they have no injuries, they’re probably fine. They’ll squeak loudly and it can sound concerning, but all you need to do is look out for injuries. If there are injuries, you can try to seperate them, but not by hand, since you could get scratched up.

If there’s no injuries and the pinned rat hasn’t been recently been sick or removed from the cage for some time, I’d say it’s fine to let them play fight it out. It’s how rats decide who’s higher up in the hierarchy.