Neutering isn't necessary by any means.

As to the lone rat, even Rat Daddy doesn't keep a lone rat and he had the only way of doing it - he works at home I gather, he takes the rats grocery shopping out to eat out to the park etc. Not normal for anyone else.
Us normal people work or have school 8 hours, sleep 8 hours, spend anoth 2-4 doing nothing other than shower and eat and travel. That's 16-18 hours out of the 24 that you can't spend with your intelligent social creature, leaving it to waste alone in a cage alone.

 

My mom wants them neutered to cut down on the smell. But alright so yeah they need a companion rat, I take.

 

Neutering can actually be pretty risky unless you have a really experienced vet (not to mention the cost). There are drops that you can buy for ferrets to put in their water. Apparently it works for rats, and it eliminates smell in only a few days. I only have girls, so I've never tried it.

As to keeping only one, I don't think the rat will just waste away and die, but lonely rats can get neurotic and aggressive. Besides that, it's just more natural for them to live together. Wild rats live in huge colonies with dozens of other rats, and fancy rats have retained that need for companionship. I would very very very strongly recommend against keeping a lone rat. It's just not good for them.

 

Neutering doesnt too much for smell.

 

If you are getting boys then there is no possible way for them to get pregnant. I have two boys of my own and as long as you clean the cage frequently then there really isn't a smell. I would highly suggest getting a litter box, it really helps with the smell. There are lots of examples of good daily routines on the forum and YouTube.


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I really should have finished my thought. I meant to say that if you get a pair of boys then you can't end up with a pregnant rat even if they escape their cage. There have been a few stories of females ecaping the cages or getting lost and then being found pregnant. Neutering, just like with males of other species, does not always stop scent marking. But if you do get the boys neutered then later if you wanted to get a girl then you could. But regardless if you did without the neutering then you would save money.


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Okay I'll have to let my mom know that neutering would really only be a risk. I'm 18 now (well in 2 weeks) and I've owned rats since I was little. I've always had lone (male) rats though, and no once had an agressive rat, and I kept them in tanks. It was a huge 55 gallon tank, but it was still a tank which I've learned is unhealthy even though they lived until old age. Hence why I'm on this site actually. I want to educate myself before getting another rat, to make it's life even better than my previous rats. (I did that with my rabbits too). I have an experienced vet around me; he spayed my guinea pig after she got cysts on her uterus, and I trusted him with my eldest of my two rabbits. I'm calling tomorrow just to be sure he is experienced with rats. I know there's no way for a male to get pregnant. My mother actually informed me today of getting him fixed for scent reasons after I get him. I think she wanted to stop the urine marking as well? But anyway, I'll show her this thread tomorrow and let her know that he will need a friend. Thank you guys! Any more advice would be fantastic C:

 

As long as you have an experienced vet there shouldn't be too much risk (you can ask them their success rate )... The procedure has improved a lot in the past years. It won't do much of anything for smell BUT it does decrease marking.

The neutering is up to you , really

Hope everything goes well !



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Definitely don't want your new companion to be lonely. Tell your mom that they come in pairs. Right now i have a single rattie and that's only because she was the only one left at the store i took her home we named her Juliet. In just the time she's been home which is under 5 days she has become a little down in the dumps and this is with me spoiling her and spending over 6 hours a day out of the cage... No matter how much you have her out and are playing with her she needs a cage mate rats are extremely social and experience depression just like us humans. Explain these things to your mom and show her articles online to prove it there are tons out there. Tomorrow I'll be picking up another little female rat to be Juliet's cage mate.

 

Thank you guys a lot. I don't really mind if they're fixed or not as I don't really like female rats, so I'll most likely never be getting one. I don't want my baby to be depressed so I'll definitely talk her into getting two. I mean, she let me get my second rabbit because my eldest was getting depressed. (I am now getting rid of the new female for aggression reasons). I'll let her know that there really is no need for the neutering, thanks guys