[JAnimal]

So I have been asking my parents for one new rat to be mates with my two I had. They finally said yes!!!! So we went to the Toronto Humane Society and they have lots of rats there. So we narrowed it down and they was only two rats that we could take home in terms of personality. The problem was they were bonded. So with much pleading I got them both!!! Yay!!!They are 1 month old male rats. One is an albino and I don't know what the other is but he is cream with dark red eyes. Almost black. They are so sweet and the first time I held them they sat in my arms and when I put them back they ran away and then ran back. I'm so lucky that I found good ones.

So now my questions:

1. They are going to be introduced to my other two who are about one year old. When should I start intros? Should I let them bond to me first or not.

2. The shelter person said that albinos can become blind. True or false? And if it is true than around what age?

3. Last question. What kinds of foods can I feed them to give them more protein? My rats are currently on oxbow regal rat and the shelter gave me a sample of the food they are eating to switch but the they will be eating the same as my older guys. Ps pics will come soon!

 

[RattieFosters]

1. I would quarantine them for at least a week, maybe even two weeks to be safe. Just so that you can be 100% sure that they don't have any illnesses. After that, you can start slow introductions, as well as out of cage time with you.

2. I don't know about blind, but some people think that albinos have a diminished sense of sight. Others say that there's no difference. I've never had an albino so I don't really know whether it's true, but they aren't blind.

3. If you want to give them some extra protein, a good idea is to hard boil an egg and then slice it up for them. You can also use chicken bones (as long as they aren't super greasy!), cook up some chicken liver, or some pieces of cheese. However, all of these should be given as a special treat. 1-3 times a week maximum, definitely not daily.

Hope that helps!

 

[Rat Daddy]

Generally pink eyed rats have poorer vision, but it's not necessarily progressive. Bright light will harm their eyes though. So basically keep your pink eyed rat out of bright sunlight to protect the eyesight he has. It's also a good idea to make sure he has a totally dark place to sleep and hide in when things get too bright.

Best luck.

 

[JAnimal]

Well they are in the basement because of realities and we have no space upstairs so they get sun from the little windows but it isn't direct so that's good. As for the proteins I have eggs for breakfast so that's easy.

 

[JAnimal]

* relatives

 

[JAnimal]

And here are the pics. And also the cage is just temporary until I can intro the babies to the older guys.

 

[moonkissed]

If they are only a month old that is quite young. I don't suggest taking babies to a new home until 6-8 weeks even. But I would take time before housing them with older rats. Babies are hyper and haven't quite learned social graces and can be easily injured from an adult rat trying to show them who is boss. I recommend 8 weeks but upwards of 12 is better before housing them together.

They can do supervised playtime in the meantime though.

He is probably not true albino but a PEW (pink eyed white) they have poorer vision and you may see them sway back and forth sometimes as they try to get a better look. But I have several pink eyed girls and have no issues with them.

I give mine scrambled egg and chicken.

 

[JAnimal]

Don't worry moon kissed I ment 7 weeks. The shelter has their birth date but they didn't update it so I was fresh in my mind.

 

[Rat Daddy]

Never having owned a pink eyed rat, we've had two rats with black-ruby eyes and both could see pretty well. We adopted the first at 7 months old and she never worked out as a true shoulder rat, but our most recent rat has done pretty well. It took a long time for her to learn to see though... when she was young she preferred to be in complete darkness and used her eyes as simple motion detectors... something moved and she ran for cover. She still has a habit of standing very still and staring until she can make proper sense of her surroundings. But once she puts the picture together she tears off and has no trouble with open spaces. And the black ruby eyes are actually darker than normal eyes so I don't worry about sunlight.

So to some extent rats off color eye'd rats have to learn to use their vision and to understand what they see so you can't diagnose a rat that's too young or inexperienced in navigating by eyesight. But if they can freely and confidently cross open spaces their vision is OK or even good. If they stay by the walls and scurry from one close object to another or sway their heads, their vision is impaired. If they only follow walls and guide themselves by their whiskers, they are blind or nearly blind.

Best luck.