Mice and/or rats as pets? - Tilted Forum Project Discussion Community

amire · 03-01-2005, 06:59 PM

Hello, all. I have a question for all you pet owners: have you ever tried out mice or rats as pets? And if so, was your epxerience generally positive or negative? Would you suggest that someone else try out these rodents as pets? If anyone has dealt with both...which of the two was easier to deal with? Or are they essentially the same?

I'm a young student, so I'm looking for a pet who can live in close quarters and doesn't need a lot of maintenance (yes, I know that mice DO require regular maintenance, but not nearly as much as your run-of-the-mill dog). I would also think that the small size of the rodent would allow for smuggling into all sorts of fun places.

Thanks very much for your input!

Suzz04 · 03-01-2005, 07:47 PM

Hiyas,

New poster but I have a little bit of experience in this part to share.

I've had white mice, gerbils, and currently am indulging in hamsters. If you go with the white mice, be forwarned, don't put a male/female pair in together... you shall be over run with babies in no time. Within 2 months time, I had over 100 of these things crawling about.

Gerbils and hamsters are very similar, but require alot of handling to keep tame. I currently have four hamsters, two males and two females. One set is the parents and the other two are offspring. My female mother is a black bear and she is very sweet tempered and wonderful to hold. The father is a teddy bear and is slightly still wild and hard to handle even after eight months. The babies are tame but don't like to sit still not one bit. But the 16 month old neighbor hasn't had any trouble holding them.

Being all in separate cages, and litter trained (YES! they use cat litter or you can buy special litter for them) cleaning the cages take me about 20 minutes for all four and I only have to do so about every week or two.

If you've got anymore questions, that I haven't thought of putting the information in here, let me know and I'll be happy to help out as much as I can.

Lebell · 03-01-2005, 08:00 PM

I had a rat several years ago and he was one of the best pets I ever had.

They are extremely intelligent and can be as friendly and affectionate as any dog.

You do need to play with them and deal with the "EWWWW" factor from some people, but I would highly recommend a rat as a pet.

As a matter of fact, I would let my kids get a rat before a hamster or gerbil.

splck · 03-01-2005, 09:44 PM

My sister's girls had two rats and I would recommend them to anyone. They were smart, clean, and had individual attitudes that were quite funny.

JStrider · 03-01-2005, 09:45 PM

i had a pet rat for a while,he was waaaay smart. He learned how to open his cage from the inside, had to use a paper clip to keep it close.

If i undid the paperclip i could call him by his name and he would climb out his cage, down the side and wait for me to get him off the cabinet...

you do need to spend a lot of time with them to keep them tame, and they exhibit their intelligence much more if you give them a bunch of attention.

one thing to keep in mind is that male rats bond much more then female rats, and sometimes will never be the same after transfering owners after becoming bonded to one.

one of the best ways to get a rat for cheap is to go to a store that has them as feeders for a snake and pick out one of the smaller ones, it will be pretty wild at first but if ya get a young one it will tame pretty quick.

Nisses · 03-02-2005, 02:29 AM

right... we get it
free french fries
haha
now let it go already.

I'm keeping an eye on this thread too, I had a hamster a few years ago, and been thinking alot about getting a tame rat, so far, seems like a good idea from what you people tell us...

Suzz04 · 03-02-2005, 07:05 AM

Well, rats are quite intelligent and I'm sure if I could get the daughter over the squeamish portion of having a "rat", we'd have those crawling about as well!

But, unfortunately we have out hamsters. I do have to admit this time around on the hamsters since I hadn't had one since a small child, that it's alot more easier than I expected.

Has anyone tried to litter train their pet mice/rats? I'm interested to know. Trust me when I say that it helps on the clean up tremendously if your pet will do this. It cuts back on the constant cleaning of the shavings. I'm not sure about everyone else's pet, but my hamsters are quite upset after a shaving change. Even with leaving their sleeping area alone.

Heck, I think all my pets are sensitive to move type changes. My oscar goes completely off the wall when I move any thing around his tank!

Edit: I should add that I mean everything including inside and outside of the tank can't be distrubed without the corner balling behavior. Meaning don't move that table... or that vase.. or anything

JStrider · 03-02-2005, 07:13 AM

i didnt have my rat litter trained... just cage trained...he would only go in his cage...

man, this thread makes me want to have a pet rat again.

killeena · 03-02-2005, 07:44 AM

My cousins had a couple of pet rats that were very intelligent and friendly. I have always wondered why people get all squeamish about pet rats. They aren't like sewer rats or anything, and they seem to be very clean to me.

Hamsters however, are the spawn of Satan or something. I used to have a couple, but they ended up killing and mutilating each other. Anyone I have ever known that has had one has some horror story about the hamsters eating each other or their babies or something. I won't be getting any hamsters anytime soon.

World's King · 03-02-2005, 08:13 AM

I've had mice a few times. Cool pets. Don't do much. Hard to hug... without crushng it.

No complaints. Just clean the cage once a week and you're golden.

kurtisj · 03-02-2005, 08:15 AM

i have about 19 pet mice, but they are dead and in the freezer so i can feed my snake.

skinnymofo · 03-02-2005, 10:28 AM

Quote:

Hamsters however, are the spawn of Satan or something. I used to have a couple, but they ended up killing and mutilating each other. Anyone I have ever known that has had one has some horror story about the hamsters eating each other or their babies or something. I won't be getting any hamsters anytime soon.

this is what my gerbils did (two females) to eachother, they were both all white with stains of red

RAGEAngel9 · 03-02-2005, 10:46 AM

My roommate at school had 6 rats at one time.
They were fun pets.
The only warning I'd give is go for females over males, as the males tend to have a stronger scent.

Grasshopper Green · 03-02-2005, 10:54 AM

My best friend growing up had rats as pets and she loved them. They were always escaping their cage though, because they were intelligent.

I've had mice before. I had one that was very friendly; I would put my hand in his cage and he'd jump up on my hand and scamper to my shoulder and ride around with me all day...I'd just have to put him back in his cage occassionally or he'd pee on me. I had two at one time once though, and that was a mistake. One killed the other one and then partially ate him...gross.

RAGEAngel9 · 03-02-2005, 11:50 AM

Yeah it's best if they are from the same litter, no matter which type of rodent you get.
We were lucky and had rats from 3 different litters and they all managed to get along.
I think it was because they were females though.

degrawj · 03-02-2005, 12:03 PM

i've got two rats, and they are some of the best pets in the world. they are so intelligent, and they have tons of personality. i've not ever had mice as pets, but i have been around them, and i can honestly tell you that the difference between mice and rats is like night and day. mice do not have personalities, and are not very intelligent, and so i don't think they make very good pets. just snake food. rats on the other hand, are awesome. they do need lots of attention though, and you can find lots of sites on the internet that have tips on how to take care of rats.

Captain_Murphy · 03-02-2005, 12:18 PM

One thing to keep in mind is allergies. Shortly after I met my wife, her allergies toward her rats got so bad that I had to take over their care. They are great pets. Very smart and very friendly. If you want some extra cute ones, look into dumbo rats. They have big ears that make them look like teddybears. Here's some pics of mine...

http://home.comcast.net/%7Ejeff.ulic...ats/index.html

Other things to keep in mind is that they only live about 3 years and are susceptible to cancer. If you do decide to get some, make sure you at least get 2 so that they don't get bored and can keep each other warm. Also, make sure there's a good rat vet in your area.

Captain_Murphy · 03-02-2005, 12:20 PM

I almost forgot. If you get more than 1, make sure you get the same sex. Rats go into heat every 5 days!

Hash_Browns · 03-02-2005, 12:47 PM

Capt. Murphy, those girls are adorable! I love the pics of them together...so cute.

My Mom used to raise rats before I was born, at the time of my birth she had 64 of them and loved them. She had one that was her most spoiled pet and it went with her everywhere, including school (when she went..haha). She has owned just about everything at least once, except any kind of monkey. She has also raised outside animals (rescued and released squirells, racoons and swans and geese) and she has told me many times if she had more time to devote to just one pet, she would love to have a rat again. Mind you she has over 50 birds, 10 dogs, Hamsters (left over from christmas presents....they had babies...gRREAT!!) and 2 Cats, so it's not like she doesn't have a lack of animals to keep her busy, she just misses having a little buddy to keep in her pocket and take with her everywhere!

Captain_Murphy · 03-02-2005, 01:38 PM

My wife is big into rescues too, which is how we ended up with our 12 animals. (3 dogs, 5 cats, 3 bearded dragons and 1 rat - Chloe passed away in January.)

fallen_angel · 03-03-2005, 10:19 PM

Last year I took a psycology class and part of it was training a rat to climb ropes, go through mazes and and push a lever to get pellets. I can tall you that my Loki was so adorable, first day I got her she climbed all over me and hide in the sleeve of my lab coat. She loved the sprinkles we used to train them and she was the fastest climber in the entire department. I would still have her but she developed a tumor on her side and I had to put her to sleep because it had dotten about the size of a baseball and she couldnt walk. But before that I had her in a 40 gallon aquarium with a homeade mess wood top, she was such a high jumper she would knock the lid off and get out so I had to put a book on it. I can say that the best food to train them with is sprinkles, they love sprinkles. They are very intelligent and loving. She used to cuddle with me on my pillow when I watched tv, she didnt even mind my cats and dog.
I would definitly get a rat instead of a mouse, they are easier to catch and can be trained faster and love to play, but if you want it to play in a wheel you have to start them out with one in there cage and put it in there every once in a while so it knows what to do, also you have to be careful with white rats because they have a tendancy to develop both tumors and cancer. But they are sooooo cute and easier to catch and if you call it by its name all the time it will come to you, even if its hiding under the bed. The males suck they are slower cuz they are bigger and their ba**s are too big for their bodies and they look funny. =P

spindles · 03-04-2005, 12:29 AM

My ex-wife had two rats and a mouse when I met her. They were really fun, though the rats did tend to chew (electrical) cords and things. I second the tumour thing - rats are very susceptible - bad day having to carry the last rat to the local vet to be put down cause she had a lump way bigger than her head growing out her side

Slavakion · 03-04-2005, 03:40 AM

By sprinkles do you mean candy sprinkles? Like the kind you put on an ice cream sundae?

Superbelt · 03-04-2005, 05:22 AM

If you get rats or mice visit this forum

Rat & Mouse Club of America
Especially visit their forum. The site is a great resource to learn how to properly care for your mouse/rat. (you need to become a forum member before the forums are viewable.)
My wife and I found this site a little too late.
We had to mice, one caught rat influenza and died rather slowly. It was hard to watch and we learned many things from the experience
#1. Do not feed a mouse any kind of packaged rodent food (or any rodent pets for that matter)
The food tends to be infested from time to time with rat influenza and can get your pet terminally sick.
Mainly feed them fresh veggies and dry goods that you eat yourself.

xepherys · 03-06-2005, 07:50 PM

I've had a wide variety of rodents as pets... mice, rats, rabbits, chinchillas... and friends have had gerbils, hamsters and guinea pigs (are they rodentia?). I would say rats are the best overall as a pet. They're smart and playful, loyal and interesting. Mice are cutish, but not very bright in the end. Rabbits are terrible pets. They're cute, especially lop-ears, but they just don't make good pets. Chinchillas are a mixed bag. Sometimes they tame VERY well. Often they don't tame at all. Gerbils and hamsters can be cute, but they're not very useful, and gerbils tend to bite often.

03-01-2005, 06:59 PM	#1 (permalink)
amire Crazy	Mice and/or rats as pets? Hello, all. I have a question for all you pet owners: have you ever tried out mice or rats as pets? And if so, was your epxerience generally positive or negative? Would you suggest that someone else try out these rodents as pets? If anyone has dealt with both...which of the two was easier to deal with? Or are they essentially the same? I'm a young student, so I'm looking for a pet who can live in close quarters and doesn't need a lot of maintenance (yes, I know that mice DO require regular maintenance, but not nearly as much as your run-of-the-mill dog). I would also think that the small size of the rodent would allow for smuggling into all sorts of fun places. Thanks very much for your input! Last edited by amire; 03-01-2005 at 07:02 PM..

03-01-2005, 08:00 PM	#3 (permalink)
Lebell Cracking the Whip Location: Sexymama's arms...	I had a rat several years ago and he was one of the best pets I ever had. They are extremely intelligent and can be as friendly and affectionate as any dog. You do need to play with them and deal with the "EWWWW" factor from some people, but I would highly recommend a rat as a pet. As a matter of fact, I would let my kids get a rat before a hamster or gerbil. __________________ "Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." – C. S. Lewis The ONLY sponsors we have are YOU! Please Donate!

03-01-2005, 09:44 PM	#4 (permalink)
splck it's jam Location: Lowerainland BC	My sister's girls had two rats and I would recommend them to anyone. They were smart, clean, and had individual attitudes that were quite funny. __________________ nice line eh?

03-01-2005, 09:45 PM	#5 (permalink)
JStrider Poo-tee-weet? Location: The Woodlands, TX	i had a pet rat for a while,he was waaaay smart. He learned how to open his cage from the inside, had to use a paper clip to keep it close. If i undid the paperclip i could call him by his name and he would climb out his cage, down the side and wait for me to get him off the cabinet... you do need to spend a lot of time with them to keep them tame, and they exhibit their intelligence much more if you give them a bunch of attention. one thing to keep in mind is that male rats bond much more then female rats, and sometimes will never be the same after transfering owners after becoming bonded to one. one of the best ways to get a rat for cheap is to go to a store that has them as feeders for a snake and pick out one of the smaller ones, it will be pretty wild at first but if ya get a young one it will tame pretty quick. __________________ -=JStrider=- ~Clatto Verata Nicto

03-02-2005, 02:29 AM	#6 (permalink)
Nisses Shade Location: Belgium	right... we get it free french fries haha now let it go already. I'm keeping an eye on this thread too, I had a hamster a few years ago, and been thinking alot about getting a tame rat, so far, seems like a good idea from what you people tell us... __________________ Moderation should be moderately moderated.

03-01-2005, 07:47 PM	#2 (permalink)
Suzz04 Crazy Location: Virginia	Hiyas, New poster but I have a little bit of experience in this part to share. I've had white mice, gerbils, and currently am indulging in hamsters. If you go with the white mice, be forwarned, don't put a male/female pair in together... you shall be over run with babies in no time. Within 2 months time, I had over 100 of these things crawling about. Gerbils and hamsters are very similar, but require alot of handling to keep tame. I currently have four hamsters, two males and two females. One set is the parents and the other two are offspring. My female mother is a black bear and she is very sweet tempered and wonderful to hold. The father is a teddy bear and is slightly still wild and hard to handle even after eight months. The babies are tame but don't like to sit still not one bit. But the 16 month old neighbor hasn't had any trouble holding them. Being all in separate cages, and litter trained (YES! they use cat litter or you can buy special litter for them) cleaning the cages take me about 20 minutes for all four and I only have to do so about every week or two. If you've got anymore questions, that I haven't thought of putting the information in here, let me know and I'll be happy to help out as much as I can.

03-02-2005, 07:05 AM	#7 (permalink)
Suzz04 Crazy Location: Virginia	Well, rats are quite intelligent and I'm sure if I could get the daughter over the squeamish portion of having a "rat", we'd have those crawling about as well! But, unfortunately we have out hamsters. I do have to admit this time around on the hamsters since I hadn't had one since a small child, that it's alot more easier than I expected. Has anyone tried to litter train their pet mice/rats? I'm interested to know. Trust me when I say that it helps on the clean up tremendously if your pet will do this. It cuts back on the constant cleaning of the shavings. I'm not sure about everyone else's pet, but my hamsters are quite upset after a shaving change. Even with leaving their sleeping area alone. Heck, I think all my pets are sensitive to move type changes. My oscar goes completely off the wall when I move any thing around his tank! Edit: I should add that I mean everything including inside and outside of the tank can't be distrubed without the corner balling behavior. Meaning don't move that table... or that vase.. or anything Last edited by Suzz04; 03-02-2005 at 07:07 AM..

03-02-2005, 07:13 AM	#8 (permalink)
JStrider Poo-tee-weet? Location: The Woodlands, TX	i didnt have my rat litter trained... just cage trained...he would only go in his cage... man, this thread makes me want to have a pet rat again. __________________ -=JStrider=- ~Clatto Verata Nicto

03-02-2005, 07:44 AM	#9 (permalink)
killeena Crazy Location: Meechigan	My cousins had a couple of pet rats that were very intelligent and friendly. I have always wondered why people get all squeamish about pet rats. They aren't like sewer rats or anything, and they seem to be very clean to me. Hamsters however, are the spawn of Satan or something. I used to have a couple, but they ended up killing and mutilating each other. Anyone I have ever known that has had one has some horror story about the hamsters eating each other or their babies or something. I won't be getting any hamsters anytime soon. __________________ Freedom would be not to choose between black and white but to abjure such prescribed choices. - Theodor Adorno

03-02-2005, 08:13 AM	#10 (permalink)
World's King Here Location: Denver City Denver	I've had mice a few times. Cool pets. Don't do much. Hard to hug... without crushng it. No complaints. Just clean the cage once a week and you're golden. __________________ heavy is the head that wears the crown

03-02-2005, 08:15 AM	#11 (permalink)
kurtisj Insane Location: The Wick	i have about 19 pet mice, but they are dead and in the freezer so i can feed my snake. __________________ Marvin the Mountie Always Gets His Kurtisj.

03-02-2005, 10:46 AM	#13 (permalink)
RAGEAngel9 Insane Location: Vermont	My roommate at school had 6 rats at one time. They were fun pets. The only warning I'd give is go for females over males, as the males tend to have a stronger scent.

03-02-2005, 10:54 AM	#14 (permalink)
Grasshopper Green ...is a comical chap Location: Where morons reign supreme	My best friend growing up had rats as pets and she loved them. They were always escaping their cage though, because they were intelligent. I've had mice before. I had one that was very friendly; I would put my hand in his cage and he'd jump up on my hand and scamper to my shoulder and ride around with me all day...I'd just have to put him back in his cage occassionally or he'd pee on me. I had two at one time once though, and that was a mistake. One killed the other one and then partially ate him...gross. __________________ "They say that patriotism is the last refuge to which a scoundrel clings; steal a little and they throw you in jail, steal a lot and they make you king" Formerly Medusa

03-02-2005, 11:50 AM	#15 (permalink)
RAGEAngel9 Insane Location: Vermont	Yeah it's best if they are from the same litter, no matter which type of rodent you get. We were lucky and had rats from 3 different litters and they all managed to get along. I think it was because they were females though.

03-02-2005, 12:03 PM	#16 (permalink)
degrawj I'm still waiting... Location: West Linn, OR	i've got two rats, and they are some of the best pets in the world. they are so intelligent, and they have tons of personality. i've not ever had mice as pets, but i have been around them, and i can honestly tell you that the difference between mice and rats is like night and day. mice do not have personalities, and are not very intelligent, and so i don't think they make very good pets. just snake food. rats on the other hand, are awesome. they do need lots of attention though, and you can find lots of sites on the internet that have tips on how to take care of rats.

03-02-2005, 12:18 PM	#17 (permalink)
Captain_Murphy Upright Location: Near Pittsburgh	One thing to keep in mind is allergies. Shortly after I met my wife, her allergies toward her rats got so bad that I had to take over their care. They are great pets. Very smart and very friendly. If you want some extra cute ones, look into dumbo rats. They have big ears that make them look like teddybears. Here's some pics of mine... http://home.comcast.net/%7Ejeff.ulic...ats/index.html Other things to keep in mind is that they only live about 3 years and are susceptible to cancer. If you do decide to get some, make sure you at least get 2 so that they don't get bored and can keep each other warm. Also, make sure there's a good rat vet in your area.

03-02-2005, 12:20 PM	#18 (permalink)
Captain_Murphy Upright Location: Near Pittsburgh	I almost forgot. If you get more than 1, make sure you get the same sex. Rats go into heat every 5 days!

03-02-2005, 12:47 PM	#19 (permalink)
Hash_Browns Psycho Location: Right behind you...BOO!	Capt. Murphy, those girls are adorable! I love the pics of them together...so cute. My Mom used to raise rats before I was born, at the time of my birth she had 64 of them and loved them. She had one that was her most spoiled pet and it went with her everywhere, including school (when she went..haha). She has owned just about everything at least once, except any kind of monkey. She has also raised outside animals (rescued and released squirells, racoons and swans and geese) and she has told me many times if she had more time to devote to just one pet, she would love to have a rat again. Mind you she has over 50 birds, 10 dogs, Hamsters (left over from christmas presents....they had babies...gRREAT!!) and 2 Cats, so it's not like she doesn't have a lack of animals to keep her busy, she just misses having a little buddy to keep in her pocket and take with her everywhere! __________________ Smile It makes people wonder what you're up too!

03-02-2005, 01:38 PM	#20 (permalink)
Captain_Murphy Upright Location: Near Pittsburgh	My wife is big into rescues too, which is how we ended up with our 12 animals. (3 dogs, 5 cats, 3 bearded dragons and 1 rat - Chloe passed away in January.)

03-03-2005, 10:19 PM	#21 (permalink)
fallen_angel Psycho Location: Somewhere between the Havens and the Earth	Last year I took a psycology class and part of it was training a rat to climb ropes, go through mazes and and push a lever to get pellets. I can tall you that my Loki was so adorable, first day I got her she climbed all over me and hide in the sleeve of my lab coat. She loved the sprinkles we used to train them and she was the fastest climber in the entire department. I would still have her but she developed a tumor on her side and I had to put her to sleep because it had dotten about the size of a baseball and she couldnt walk. But before that I had her in a 40 gallon aquarium with a homeade mess wood top, she was such a high jumper she would knock the lid off and get out so I had to put a book on it. I can say that the best food to train them with is sprinkles, they love sprinkles. They are very intelligent and loving. She used to cuddle with me on my pillow when I watched tv, she didnt even mind my cats and dog. I would definitly get a rat instead of a mouse, they are easier to catch and can be trained faster and love to play, but if you want it to play in a wheel you have to start them out with one in there cage and put it in there every once in a while so it knows what to do, also you have to be careful with white rats because they have a tendancy to develop both tumors and cancer. But they are sooooo cute and easier to catch and if you call it by its name all the time it will come to you, even if its hiding under the bed. The males suck they are slower cuz they are bigger and their ba**s are too big for their bodies and they look funny. =P __________________ from the Havens I have fallen. . . to the earth as a mangled form. . . writhing in pain, my wings torn and bloodied. . . I have one purpose, only one goal. . . to find you and love you, for I am your. . . fallen angel

03-04-2005, 12:29 AM	#22 (permalink)
spindles Mine is an evil laugh Location: Sydney, Australia	My ex-wife had two rats and a mouse when I met her. They were really fun, though the rats did tend to chew (electrical) cords and things. I second the tumour thing - rats are very susceptible - bad day having to carry the last rat to the local vet to be put down cause she had a lump way bigger than her head growing out her side __________________ who hid my keyboard's PANIC button?

03-04-2005, 03:40 AM	#23 (permalink)
Slavakion Mjollnir Incarnate Location: Lost in thought	By sprinkles do you mean candy sprinkles? Like the kind you put on an ice cream sundae?

03-04-2005, 05:22 AM	#24 (permalink)
Superbelt This vexes me. I am terribly vexed. Location: Grantville, Pa	If you get rats or mice visit this forum Rat & Mouse Club of America Especially visit their forum. The site is a great resource to learn how to properly care for your mouse/rat. (you need to become a forum member before the forums are viewable.) My wife and I found this site a little too late. We had to mice, one caught rat influenza and died rather slowly. It was hard to watch and we learned many things from the experience #1. Do not feed a mouse any kind of packaged rodent food (or any rodent pets for that matter) The food tends to be infested from time to time with rat influenza and can get your pet terminally sick. Mainly feed them fresh veggies and dry goods that you eat yourself.

03-06-2005, 07:50 PM	#25 (permalink)
xepherys <3 TFP Location: 17TLH2445607250	I've had a wide variety of rodents as pets... mice, rats, rabbits, chinchillas... and friends have had gerbils, hamsters and guinea pigs (are they rodentia?). I would say rats are the best overall as a pet. They're smart and playful, loyal and interesting. Mice are cutish, but not very bright in the end. Rabbits are terrible pets. They're cute, especially lop-ears, but they just don't make good pets. Chinchillas are a mixed bag. Sometimes they tame VERY well. Often they don't tame at all. Gerbils and hamsters can be cute, but they're not very useful, and gerbils tend to bite often.