My udder mammals 23/08/11 rat and hamster pics

[Crunchie]

This is the wee female hamster we got from P@H whom we were worried was pregnant. It's been nearly two weeks now so it looks like she's dodged the bullet.

We haven't settled on a name yet, I want to call her Poppy but my other half disagrees.

Having a wee snuggle with my other half. She was licking his t shirt.

Frasier wanted his picture taken too

Also here's wee Joey looking like a wee scruffy monster. No amount of spraying seems to do much for his new feathers.:lol:

 

[Crunchie]

no one likes me...

Maybe if I tell mum to post more pictures people will see how nice I am.

 

[Nicola1]

oh look at that grumpy little face in the first pic

 

[Jaysmonkey]

Oh my gosh, only just seen this thread. Your animals are squee worthy! Joey is such a beautiful colour! Your new hammy girl is stunning , I want to squish her up!

 

[happysaz133]

They are gorgeous! Love Frasier especially.

 

[shell1805]

no one likes me...

Maybe if I tell mum to post more pictures people will see how nice I am.

:wave: i likes you, in fact i think you're the cutest hammy i have ever seen soooooo fluffy

 

[Crunchie]

Thought I'd take Marble aside for some pictures seeing as all her recent scars have healed up. Here she was on the 31st March after having the bad luck of losing her one remaining eye.

Here she is now ...

 

[beckie20]

How's Marble doing now that she's had time to adjust?

 

[Crunchie]

How's Marble doing now that she's had time to adjust?

She's doing really well and still manages to find her way around the cage no problems at all. Indeed she's looking a lot fitter than her poor sister who is the same age.

 

[KarenM]

I missed all these the first time round.

I don't know who to comment on as they're all gorgeous and I don't want to miss anybody out. :lol: That video of Niles is so cute though and deserves a mention. I lol'd at the photos of Bounce, the serial rapist, as well. :lol::lol:

I hope Marble is doing ok. She looks well.

 

[Carrie14]

Marble is just amazing:shock: She must be so inteligant to be able to adapt Is she and her sister old? Do you know how the rest of the litter are. She just seems to have had so many problems in her life

Tones of questions coming up now, just in a decade or so when my animal numbers go down, I am really going to consider some rats. They are just so cute and clever, as I am sure you know:lol:

How many rats do you own? How large is the largest group? How easy/hard is it to bond them? What specific illness do they get that are diffrent from dogs, rabbits etc. Do they ever need a dental? Sure I will think of some more

 

[Rhian33]

I'm gonna answer these if you don't mind, won't hurt to get a few opinions

How many rats do you own? How large is the largest group?

I currently have 9 in one group. My largest group has been 10.

How easy/hard is it to bond them?

I frnd this quite easy now. There are a few rules to follow and it helps to know what certain body language means but my last 3 intros were so simple.

What specific illness do they get that are diffrent from dogs, rabbits etc.

Females are prone to tumours so there is an argument to spay them before they reach 6 months. This isn't commonly done in the UK yet. Respiratory infections (myco) is very common and some seem to suffer all their lives. When they get older they can suffer with Hind Leg Degeneration (HLD) where their back legs go, kidney problems which is exacerbated by a diet which is too high in protein i.e. shop bought mix/nuggets, pituitary tumours and strokes. However, if you choose to get your rats from a good, ethical breeder you can eliminate a lot of these problems as they have bred their rats to not get them which is why us rat owners defend responsible breeding because in the rat worl it means more healthy animals.

Do they ever need a dental? Sure I will think of some more

Not normally. Rats teeth continually grow like rabbits teeth but they don't need food top keep them short. They do this themselves by grinding their teeth (bruxing).

 

[Carrie14]

Did you notice I said group:lol:

The dynamics must be fascinating with a group that large. I get the feeling rats are a bit brighter than rabbits:lol:

What sort of body language do they show? Have you a link for me to have a look?

Do you find rescue rats have a lot more illnesses then? (Not that this would stop me rescuing)

All you rat owners need to get your rats to show rabbits how to do this bruxing thing, and chinchillas too I believe. That would be awesome

All a long time in the future, after all, all my rabbits are going to live forever but I know when I get fixated on an animal, one usually turns up in need of rescue:?

 

[Rhian33]

Yes, I did notice, well done for remembering what I said .

Yes, larger groups are really fascinating. You can definitely see the heirarchy in full swing. Rats are definitely a bit brighter than bunnies and are much less scared on the whole so if you have a good relationship you can take them anywhere. For example I am completely against showing rabbits. Under no circumstances would I ever do this but some rats actually appear to like being at shows much like some dogs can.

Rescue rats definitely have more illnesses. I have mainly rescues and a few well bred ones. I always have a sick rescue rat on treatment but my breeder rats (of the same age by the way) have never had even a sniffle. I will continuing rescuing too but like to have my breeder girls as they are nice and relaxed due to the breeder breeding for temperament and handling them from day 1. They help socialise the really extreme behaviour rats that I take in as rescues. I don't tend to have "normal" rescues as they will find a home easily.

The bruxing thing is fab. They also do it when they are happy much like a rabbit purr.

As for body language I've not really found a site which explains it. I've just learned about it by doing lots of intros. When you intro them they often pin each other to establish where they are in the heirarchy. They bog-brush to try and make themselves look bigger and scarier, they barge their bums sideways into another rat to try and show dominance and fighting of the acceptable sort (no blood) normally involves standing on hind legs and boxing.

 

[Crunchie]

Will add my two pence worth as well though I agree with everything Rhian says...

Marble is just amazing She must be so inteligant to be able to adapt Is she and her sister old? Do you know how the rest of the litter are. She just seems to have had so many problems in her life

Her and her sister were pet shop rats which are well known for bad health sadly even my snake food rats seem to be much healthier. Marble and Domino are around 2 years and 1 month old.

Tones of questions coming up now, just in a decade or so when my animal numbers go down, I am really going to consider some rats. They are just so cute and clever, as I am sure you know.

I do that!:lol:

How many rats do you own? How large is the largest group?

I have 9 at the moment but I have a friend who has had groups of up to 15 with no problem.

How easy/hard is it to bond them?

It depends on the individuals and more specifically which ones are the alphas. My first few intros were pretty much a case of bunging them all in together and them getting on from the word go. At the time it was a rat called "Scrabble" who was top dog but despite being in that position she was very loving and accepting of new rats.
However the last intro I did was Bounce, Mouse, Rasha and Reba being introduced to an established group of Jigsaw, Silver, Hidey, Marble and Domino. Out of that lot Jigsaw and Hidey were at the top of the ladder and it took a lot of effort for me to get them to accept the newcomers.
I had them mixing fine on neutral territory and in their carry case but as soon as they went in the tower cage they would fight because Rasha and Bounce were unwilling to accept Hidey and Jigasw as the more dominant. Eventually I had to strip the cage down, hose it off along with their toys, bath all the rats and rub them down with vanilla essence. Once they all smelt pretty much the same and went into a cage with no trace of any rat on it they settled down.

What specific illness do they get that are diffrent from dogs, rabbits etc.

Females are prone to mammary lumps while males often have their back legs go from them when they get older. Both are also prone to respiratory problems and Domino has lung scarring due to this. I've also had them suffer eye infections and lice since I've had them.

Do they ever need a dental? Sure I will think of some more

Never had a rat need a dental before.

 

[Crunchie]

The dynamics must be fascinating with a group that large. I get the feeling rats are a bit brighter than rabbits

They definately are, rats can be taught tricks in much the same way as dogs. Have a look at these videos I found on youtube...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-doDe8JPpRs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNOgpQLDZH8&feature=related

What sort of body language do they show? Have you a link for me to have a look?

I've not seen it much but when my lot scrap they'll try and pin each other to the floor after displaying fluffed fur. They'll also sort of side step into each other with arched backs.

Do you find rescue rats have a lot more illnesses then? (Not that this would stop me rescuing)

Most rescues will be former pet shop rats I imagine so yeah it's a given sadly. Out of my 9 two are definate pet shop rats, 4 are rescues of unknown origin and 3 are snake food rats. So far the pet shop and rescues have been by far the worst and out of the 6 only 1 hasn't had a problem needing vet treatment. Of the 3 others Jigsaw developed a mammary lump when she was younger and had it removed but Silver and Hidey have been fine so far with the only odd thing about those two being that they are a fair bit smaller than my other girls. Jiggy will be 2 in August while Silver and Hidey will be 2 in November this year.

I agree totally with Rhians attitude of rat breeders, there are a fair few out there that breed for health first, temprement next and colour last and I'd definately seek one out if I didn't rescue. Maybe breeder rats would be better as your first ones if you plan to get some in the future as they're less likely to have problems and will likely be friendlier too.

 

[Carrie14]

How long do rats live for? I thought it was about three years? I was wondering if it's bad breeding with them, it's odd how on here we all go mad about not knowing the genetics of rabbits when breeding. But as I understand it, it's more common for chinchillas to have horrific illness than rabbits. Sounds like rats are similar:?

I have a whole list of future animals:lol: Chinchillas, chickens, wild life pond. I was going to get some roborovskis but after the thread on here the other day:shock:

15 rats! That cage must be huge:shock:

Bonding doest sound too bad. Rabbits are mental:roll::lol:

I am liking the lack of dentals

My bun Sally does the walking on the back legs:lol: And the other rat is better at fetch than my dog

Speaking of my dog, she does that side step into my FIL dog we have a lot of the time. She does it when they are arguing or playing. I call it Broadsiding:lol: If you catch it on film, I would love to see

Who knows, maybe in 10 years time, my attitude towards breeders may have mellowed:lol:

Thank you both for all your info. I know who I will be contacting if I ever end up with a rat in need

 

[Barn Yard Bunnies]

Fasinating. Love your bird.

And the rats and hammies too.

 

[Crunchie]

I was cleaning the ratlets out today so thought I'd grab some pics of them and their cage which is full of mums hammocks.:lol:

The top half

The bottom half

Mouse and Bounce - everyone's favourite serial rapist

Two cheeky faces, Mouse and Silver

Hidey stuffing her face

Mouse squashed up in the pinkgloo

Marble in the pinkgloo

Domino seems to have lost weight recently, she's going to the vet on Monday.

 

[Rhian33]

Didn't realise you had an XL. Very nice. Gorgeous pics