Pet Forum / Mammals / Rats / October 2004

You can use paper based kitty litter and change that about twice a week.
Alternativly this is not recomended is to use pine shavings, this is really
only to be used in very ventalated cages as the pine fumes can cause
breathing problems for the rats. buy the special bedding from the petshop
thats been filtered and cleaned of dust.

i use a mix of paperbased cat litter and the pine shavings and my rats seem
not smell very much.

different paper litter can cause different smells when its wet, some are
better than others.

rats squeek when they play, cant do much about that, they will grow up and
mature a bit, but they will always talk to each other...

I would first check to see if the cage is big enough for two rats. If the
cage constantly stinks, then this is indicative of small cage and not enough
cleaning. Animals should not be a child's responsibility, they don't clean
thoroughly enough. Rats have very sensitive lungs, if you think the cage
stinks, then these rats are exposed to the ammonia smell much worse and
could be detrimental to their health. Hamster cages are absolutely not
suitable for rats. Aquarium tanks are absolutely not suitable for rats. Does
your son clean the cage with vinegar and water at least once a week? This
includes changing the bottom completely, all boxes, all tissue, all toys and
all cage bars must be cleaned as well. Maybe you could show him a couple of
times and watch him do it. I have two sons whom I consider extremely pet
savvy. But I wouldn't trust them to do a full cage clean up on their own.
The wrestling is normal unless it's due to inadequate spacing in the cage.
If you don't see blood then they are not hurting each other. The squeaking
of one is showing the other that she just isn't happy with the scuffle.
Here are cage calculators to give you an idea of what cage sizing is good
enough for rats. http://www.rattycorner.com/odds/calc.shtml

Also, rats need human interactions, human socializing, out times. Are you
sure your son has the time to play with these rats daily?
They need climbing activity, running space, they need stimulations from new
toys.
I've always told people, rats are a family affair, mom and dad need to get
involved in rat keeping. A child alone simply is not able to give rats the
full care they need.

Hi,

Unfortunately with Wire Cages they will smell unless they are thoroughly
scrubbed.  With some Rats weekly cleaning is not enough.  Back when we had
only two Rats their cage was thoroughly cleaned every day.  If it smells bad
to you then magnify that by 100 or so and you get an idea of how bad that is
for the Ratties.  Sadly those bad smells can affect the respiratory system
of rats as it is toxic.  You may find also that in warmer weather they will
need extra cleaning.  ( We are coming into Summer here)

As for the wrestling ....  Its all normal playing both trying to become the
dominant one of the household..LOL.  The time to be concerned is if they
draw blood etc.  Rats squeek and make a lot of noise which we don't have the
ability to hear ...

Hope this is of some help,

Regards Kate.

1- Galvanized wire cages reek, period. I've had 3 of them, 2 bare wire and
one painted wire, and they all got this sickly smell, not of urine or feces,
but like a cross between metal, vomit and death. Some may think I'm
exagerating, and maybe I'm just more sensitive, but I freaked after going
through all those cages and still smelling that godawful stench. The wire
floors are the worst thing you can have in a cage as they can't be removed,
making carful cleaning a royal pain. The wire floors get peed on the most
(rats are little piss factories in their cages) and there is something about
galvanized steel that has been peed on....something unholy. I broke down and
got a big @ss parrot cage and use easily removable corner shelves, hammocks
and tubing to make their home interesting. See the last few pics of
"geezer's girls" at . http://community.webshots.com/user/old_geezer. It can
get a smell after a week but it's your normal 'petstore type smell', not
that galvanized stink. You just pull all the stuff out and wash it in the
tub. That leaves a huge door to reach in and wipe down the awesomely fat
bars in no time. If you can't stand the stink of a galvanized steel cage,
find an alternative, either powder coated bars or a big bird cage, but the
fatter the bars and the less permanently fastened shelving, the better.

Geezer