[rat_ratscal]

i gave ozzy a yogurt drop, so she clears a little circle so there is no bedding there, then she places the yogie in the middle of the circle, looks at it, then leaves, it was cute! then hyper, with her extremely long sharp nails (which i cant cut, details later) decides that since my head happens to be in the cage doorway, she would come up lick me, then dig her claws into the inside of my lip and bite! that rat is so lucky she's cute! (joking) i cant clip their claws because even when they are half asleep they are moving, if i hold them firmly they twist and squeak, then i feel bad, it makes me so frustrated and i dont want to hurt them, we've asked my vet the prices (extreme!) im gonna give it another shot tomorrow though. ive tried wrapping them in a towel and my sister wont help, she thinks she can do what she wants while i can do all the work! :twisted: suggestions? thanks!

 

[Forensic]

Have you tried putting a brick or stone (something rough) in their cage for them to climb on? It can wear down their nails.

 

[rat_ratscal]

yup heres a pic of the bottom level

 

[rat_ratscal]

that rock does absolutely peanuts!

 

[Forensic]

Perhaps move the stone to somewhere they'll have to climb on it (under the water bottle?) or maybe parrot perches... :lol:

 

[Rats]

Just a pre-thought, I'm looking for a TALL terra cotta (or unfinished pottery / clay) food bowl that would require my girls to climb and hang on in order to get food.

That much climbing / clinging should have an effect on the claws, and you might find different roughness in different materials. Besides, rats LOVE to climb, they wouldn't mind a bit.

I'll post if I can find someone locally to make what I'm looking for, as I don't see a rat seeing a brick or rock as a nail file.

 

[glindella]

Just a pre-thought, I'm looking for a TALL terra cotta (or unfinished pottery / clay) food bowl that would require my girls to climb and hang on in order to get food.

I can imagine that would make some horrible noises. Like nails on a chalkboard.... It would have to be very high for them not to just jump, too high and its likely to fall over from the weight on one side.

not trying to discourage you, just some ideas

 

[Forensic]

Just a pre-thought, I'm looking for a TALL terra cotta (or unfinished pottery / clay) food bowl that would require my girls to climb and hang on in order to get food.

I can imagine that would make some horrible noises. Like nails on a chalkboard.... It would have to be very high for them not to just jump, too high and its likely to fall over from the weight on one side.

not trying to discourage you, just some ideas

And it would likely absorb pee...

 

[Mana]

I'm a fan of the bird perches. They work very well on my girls' nails - in 6 months, I've never had to cut a rattie nail. I also have a brick under the water bottle, which might help too, but their nails still got long until I put a perch back in the cage (they have to use it to get into their favorite wheel ^_^ )

 

[simbakitten]

I'm a fan of the bird perches. They work very well on my girls' nails - in 6 months, I've never had to cut a rattie nail. I also have a brick under the water bottle, which might help too, but their nails still got long until I put a perch back in the cage (they have to use it to get into their favorite wheel ^_^ )

just a normal wooden parrot perch?

 

[Mana]

They make special perches to help wear down birds' claws, and they work for rattie claws too ^_^

http://www.petco.com/product/100154/Avian-Select-Pedicure-Perches.aspx

Those are the ones I use.

 

[dreadhead]

I use a terracotta pot that they climb on and hide in... it seems to work. It does absorb pee, I just wash good with dish soap, and soak it in hot water for 20 mins, rinse again... good to go. It is a pain to clean but helps I suppose.

My rats hate there nails clipped, they squeek everytime... and trust me I barely cut off any nail and there's no blood. I just deal with there nails now.

 

[madonnaswimmer]

Well, I bought a cement block for my rats and they go on it all the time, but their nails were still painfully sharp. I admit, it's really hard to trim the nails by yourself. I got my girlfriend to help me today for our first nail trim... it went a lot better than when I did it myself!

 

[rat_ratscal]

my stepmom came up to my room when i was attempting to clip them, and she took over, yay!