[EmJay]

Hi all

I'm a yet-to-be rat mother but I'm at a loss as to where to find myself a pair of sweeties.

I've contacted my local RSPCA/small animal/rat rescues and they either have none to rehome or they're older (I would feel more comfortable starting from the beginning with a younger pair). I don't drive either so all breeders are out for me..

I'm just at a bit of a loss :-(

Thank you!

 

[iloveme88999]

I went on Craig's list even though it can be a bit dangerous. As you said you couldn't drive, but I supposed you could ask a friend or a family member to bring you to a breeder or to another animal organization near you.

 

[EmJay]

My family don't really agree with me having animals (they're too busy pushing me to have babies!) so they wouldn't help and I literally have no friends haha :')

 

[linkmoon]

my 2 girls were feeder bin rats. I got them from a local feed shop near me.

I did search craigslist, and also rescues and such. Ones I did find were either to far for me to drive (bad back, and arthritis in both knees) or were older. I also wanted to start with a younger pair.

 

[EmJay]

Luckily in the UK we don't get feeder bins unless you're unfortunate enough to come across a really dodgy reptile shop.. I've search everywhere online and every rescue possible :-( My only option is local pet stores really, I didn't want to have to put money into those stores but at the same time I want to rescue the poor souls.

 

[linkmoon]

That was going to end up being my choice too, if I hadn't gone to the feed store.

I had called every one that was within driving distance from me, and they were all out of females >.< I didn't want males.

 

[EmJay]

I think I want females - I've got a friend who has males and they're cuddly monsters but she told me they tend to smell more than females. I dunno - I just prefer female animals a lot of the time! (Plus at the mo its 4 females to 4 males in the house at the moment and I feel like we need a majority haha!).

How would you say your experience with females have been?

 

[linkmoon]

Females rule my house lol 2 males (one human one cat) and 4 females (me, a cat and my 2 rats)

I actually raised both males and females about 6-7 years ago. Had 13 all together. Started off with a male and female, they had babies and I kept them all. My male wasn't to cuddly. But my female was,she rode my shoulder and licked my ear lobes and stayed by me for pets when she was out.

Now, my 2 girls now. Both totally different personalities. Fay (black and white) Is super curious, but still shy somewhat. She is more willing to explore and check stuff out. Nova (albino) is shy and likes to stay hidden. Haven't held her to much, I don't want to force to much on her. Been making slow progress with her, she now sticks her head out to sniff me, and will come out sometimes when we are there.

As far as smells, haven't really noticed any yet. Only have had them for almost 2 weeks now. (2 weeks on Sunday(

 

[raindear]

My son has a snake and when he offered Petey to his snake she wouldn't eat him. Then she went into a moult and by the time he offered Petey to her again, he was too big, so my son gave Petey to me. When I started looking for a friend for Petey, I had a hard time finding one. I couldn't find a breeder nearby. The only rats on Craigslist seemed to be females, the ones listed at nearby rescues were females, Petsmart and Petco seem to have mostly older rats. I finally found a pet store that had young rats, so I got Binx at a pet store. Personally, I don't think it matters so much where you find your rat as it does that you give it the best home and care you are able, that you love it and give it a good life.

 

[FallDeere]

Petsmart, Petco, a feeder breeder, and a breeder friend of mine are where I've gotten mine from. Craig's List is great for finding unwanted rats and of course if you can find a rat/small animal rescue close, that'd be great too. Like raindear said, it's not as much about where as long as you give them the love and care they deserve. And I think it's very important that you find the rats that fit you. Not every rat fits every person. So when looking around, don't be afraid to walk away from specific rats if you don't feel they're a fit. One of my favorite things to do is go "Pet store hopping" and meet every rat for sale at various Petsmarts and Petcos until I find the one(s) that click with me. I've gotten some of the most amazing rats that way.

 

[shelbygrace97]

One of my babies was from an accidental litter off of craigslist, one from a feeder tank in Pet Supplies Plus (my friendliest boy!), one from a hobby breeder off of craigslist, and one from someone who had hundreds they bred for food and pets for local pet stores (my least socialized baby). It just depends on where you get them from. I purchased them off of Craigslist because the others I found in pet stores ended up incredibly sick. I just had bad luck haha.