So pleased your still posting videos about rats even though u stopped owning them, im researching getting 2 or 3 and your videos helped me so much thank you❤
please get 3!! i know almost every resource will say 2, however 3 is genuinely way better in every aspect! you said you've been researching so im sure you already have an idea why 3 is better, however i'll explain just incase (: - as we all know, rats have short lifespans. unfortunately, your rats will inevitably die and if you have 2 and then one dies youll be left with 1. even if you plan on getting more rats after, it's still not good to have only 1 rat even if for a short time! - imagine being stuck in a room with one other person for your entire life. you'd eventually resent them a bit, right? get sick of them? that can happen with rats too! imagine one wants to play but the other just wants to rest; the playful rat will pester the other until it gets annoyed. having 3 rats is overall promotes a better hierarchy and dynamic!
@fluffywuffypuffy Yeah, I've been thinking about getting 4 rats instead of 2 as: I've heard on multiple websites and platforms that it is better to get four. the cage I was looking at is apparently suitable for UP to 16 rats. Obviously, I was only looking at it for 2. But it should be suitable for 4 as it's a 159cm tall 65cm across and 92cm wide, with just below half an inch bar spacing. Please correct me if I'm wrong 🙂
@@EmMay-x4q i'm not very good with dimensions but that cage sounds plenty big enough! and getting four is great, the more the better as long as you can handle taking care of them all (: im not sure if you use any cage calculator sites, so im not sure where you got the information of the cage you were looking at being able to hold 16 rats; however i'd say it could probably hold half of that! cage calculators are usually inaccurate, so it's recommended to cut in half the amount of rats calculators say cages can hold! sorry if any of this doesnt make sense haha ive been up all night
Emi im loving the way ur still making rat care videos even though you dont own them anymore. I recently got 2 rats and uve helped me so much with them. Thank you for everything ❤
Hi Emi! I'm getting my first 3 rats in a week (a mother and her two daughters) and you have helped me prepare and learn so much and i am so grateful to you! Thank you for your videos!
Dang girl!! 😂 They've been watching you! They have to have been. It's not perfect but it's overhauled. Still pushing some agenda on their end.... but It is so fascinating to watch you do a video on this thing where it's so obvious you have been a resource for them to do things a little different. Hopefully for the better. I should go check and see if ours have changed her in the states. PETCO pamphlets! Ugh. That's one place anyway. I was literally just talking about this yesterday with my dear friend who also had rats growing up. We were talking about something that a lot of rat owners have in common, but the important part was how it's not fair to the animals or the kids. Nobody can win with the way those pamphlets have been for so long and you brought that to our attention back then so thank you. They need to just pay you to help them do better. 😂 one could wish. That WOULD be a win/win. Yes , the social needs aspect of it has been really , really difficult as we are also having an impossible time wrapping it up.
Im currently rat'less for the first time in 14 years and i just never realized how much time they took. Lol im going to two different colleges and still working full time and i knew they needed more. I miss them tho
Hi, all your videos are really helpful and interesting, thanks. We have just set up our cage and are now about to get a couple of rats. I do appreciate what you are saying about Pets at Home, however, the NFRS no longer provide lists of breeders so I really feel that PAH is our only option. I think if we lived anywhere other than Cornwall finding a breeder would be somewhat easier. I just wish someone had a list available!
So I just got two rats recently, cyn and tessa. They are 10 weeks, I bought them from a local store that claimed they bought them from a breeder, but the rats are terrified of me, if I get near them they usually hide, sometimes if I try and pet them they let me, other times run away. Not to mention they WILL NOT let me pick them up, they start screeching when I do try. I've tried everything I can to help them get used to me, taking tips from your vids, letting them lick yogurt off my fingers, etc. But they maintain terrified. I would bring them to my bathroom to let them roam, but I can't due to the fact they won't let me pick them up for a second, they just hide in their hammocks when I try interacting with them. Although when tessa sniffs my finger she tries nibbling my fingers. So anyways I don't believe they were socialized, atleast not well. So how can I get my rats to trust me more, and faster. Because it seems like I'm not making any progress. Also, what can I add to their diets other than yogurt to make it more protein enriched? And how often do I clean their cage?
I saved three 3 week old girls from a reptile store. I had to be their mumma. I got them proper kitten milk formula, which was quite expensive for 5 weeks. They grew into very healthy little girls. They'll be a year old. I never recommend rats from a pet store, esp if you aren't an experienced owner.
I had rats but sadly i just couldn’t get them to stop biting me, i tried everything but in the end we sent them back to pets at home, i miss them so much but honestly pets at home didnt mention that the rats we bought bit all the workers. It is quite sly to not mention that considering i had been so excited to get rats only for them to be taken back to the shop.
Unfortunately it ruins a lot of people’s experience getting rats from a chain pet store because they have bad genetics but also the only times they’ve likely ever been handled has been really scary for them. Saying that my boys that originally came from pets at home turned out lovely with a bit of time and patience 🥹
@@Emiology yes i completely agree, i think if i did more research i would have decided to get my rats from a breeder and not a pets shop for my first time getting rats. It was all just a bit overwhelming with trying to take care of them, especially when they weren’t the nicest. I may be getting a dog in the spring, instead of rats but i’ll always try and get rats again in the future, I’ve always been obsessed with rats ever since i was little
@@robynjones8291 rats make amazing pets and im sorry you had trouble with them ): i hope one day youre able to get healthier rats with a good temperament!! they really are amazing
Rats who bite are usually suffering from either illness or have been abused. Rats just don't bite out of nowhere. Never get rats from.a pet store. Get them from rat rescue.
I don't support pets at home any more. They just don't know enough about pets. They have made a couple of improvements over recent years, but it's just not enough. Rodents are bought by so many people that don't have a clue xx
I had made a couple comments on your recent videos about stopping keeping rats, about how sad seeing rats makes me because I miss my old rats. By a twist of fate, within the same week, a baby pet rat was abandoned under my work’s dumpster. I spent the better part of 24 hours befriending him until I could trap him in a carrier and bring him home. I’ve just got 2 more babies to introduce him to, and so now have gone from missing my rats to having 3 in the span of a week!
Do you have any care guides you recommend? I work at a vet and the company that updates our website deleted our library, but we didn't really have anything good there anyway
hi! if you plan on getting any animal that can be found in pet stores, please don't get them from there. keep reading for more info (: pet stores sell many animals as we know, such as rats, mice, hamsters, chinchillas, gerbils, reptiles, fish, etc. these places get their animals from pet mills, which are places that forcibly breed animals until they cant be bred anymore. they have horrible living conditions and sell unhealthy animals to pet stores in bulk. pet stores are notorious for selling sick or pregnant animals, and mistreat them. the living conditions in pet stores arent good either. by buying animals from pet stores, you are contributing to the terrible pet mills. some people argue that you're saving the animal, however by buying it youre putting 10 more mice or rats or whatever animal it is in its place! instead, i recommend getting your first mice from a reputable breeder in your area! it may take a bit of searching to find one, but it's overall the best option because good breeders breed their animals for good temperaments. you could also find someone rehoming their mice, however i recommend getting from a breeder if you want younger mice with a higher chance of a good temperament! sorry this is a lot, let me know if you have any other questions!
how often should i be fully cleaning out my rat cage if 7 days is overkill? I know it’s not the best place to get info but google said once a week. i’m getting 2 boys in a few weeks please someone help!
Ik this video is about rats but im interested in getting mice as pets i have a 20 gallon front opening tank left over from my leopard gecko who passed away. Is that enough space? If so for how many mice. Can I also add shelves and such to add more space for the mice to run around?
Hey, commenting bc i need a little advice. Basically, i have 3 mice now: Sprinkles (almost 2 yrs old), Starburst (1 yr) and Skittles (1yr). Starburst is very small and never fight back. Idk if this maybe led Skittles on? Idk. But skittles relentlessly attacks Starburst and has made her bleed multiple times. She deis however get along just fine with Sprinkles. I have done intros on and iff for probably about a year now? Ive tried it so many times but Skittles just keeps attacking Starburst. I feel that it is unfair for Starburst to be forced to live like that so Skittles currently lives in a cage on her own. I know mice arent meant to be on their own but i also know that she cant live with Starburst and i dont think its fair on any off them (especially Sprinkles as she gets older) to keep trying tbh. Idk wht to do. I wonder if Skittles could get along with someone elses group of mice if we were to give her away but then would she just fight their weakest like she fights Starburst? I hold Skittles every day and atleast once a week i put them in my carrier or play pen so she can still socialise but i think itsnt not rlly the same. Pls give advice. Edit: Starburst and Skittles are from the same litter so yh
Personally, if you have the resources, I'd try getting a new pair of young mice, and introducing them to the bully. It should be easier than introducing adult mice. If they don't get along, pair the new mice with your current pair, and house the bully alone. I think rehoming a possible bully is a bit risky and probably not a good idea.
@valkeakirahvi Yeah we are thinking if getting another pair soon acctually as my oldest is getting quite old but I'm not really sure because Skittles made the other bleed multiple times and was quite horrible to them so idk if I wanna risk her being with younger mice but I'm not really sure tbh
So pleased your still posting videos about rats even though u stopped owning them, im researching getting 2 or 3 and your videos helped me so much thank you❤
I'm also researching to get 2 or 3 rats! Good luck on your journey of owning some one day!
please get 3!! i know almost every resource will say 2, however 3 is genuinely way better in every aspect!
you said you've been researching so im sure you already have an idea why 3 is better, however i'll explain just incase (:
- as we all know, rats have short lifespans. unfortunately, your rats will inevitably die and if you have 2 and then one dies youll be left with 1. even if you plan on getting more rats after, it's still not good to have only 1 rat even if for a short time!
- imagine being stuck in a room with one other person for your entire life. you'd eventually resent them a bit, right? get sick of them? that can happen with rats too! imagine one wants to play but the other just wants to rest; the playful rat will pester the other until it gets annoyed. having 3 rats is overall promotes a better hierarchy and dynamic!
@fluffywuffypuffy Yeah, I've been thinking about getting 4 rats instead of 2 as:
I've heard on multiple websites and platforms that it is better to get four. the cage I was looking at is apparently suitable for UP to 16 rats. Obviously, I was only looking at it for 2. But it should be suitable for 4 as it's a 159cm tall 65cm across and 92cm wide, with just below half an inch bar spacing. Please correct me if I'm wrong 🙂
@@EmMay-x4q i'm not very good with dimensions but that cage sounds plenty big enough! and getting four is great, the more the better as long as you can handle taking care of them all (:
im not sure if you use any cage calculator sites, so im not sure where you got the information of the cage you were looking at being able to hold 16 rats; however i'd say it could probably hold half of that!
cage calculators are usually inaccurate, so it's recommended to cut in half the amount of rats calculators say cages can hold!
sorry if any of this doesnt make sense haha ive been up all night
Wait she did? I haven’t watched her in ages. Why did she rehome them? 😢
Emi im loving the way ur still making rat care videos even though you dont own them anymore. I recently got 2 rats and uve helped me so much with them. Thank you for everything ❤
same i have 2 girls and her older vis helped a lot i love you thax emi
Hi Emi! I'm getting my first 3 rats in a week (a mother and her two daughters) and you have helped me prepare and learn so much and i am so grateful to you! Thank you for your videos!
Getting rats soon and you have helped me out so much with research over these past months
Hoping life gets easier for you real soon ❤
Dang girl!! 😂 They've been watching you! They have to have been. It's not perfect but it's overhauled.
Still pushing some agenda on their end.... but It is so fascinating to watch you do a video on this thing where it's so obvious you have been a resource for them to do things a little different.
Hopefully for the better.
I should go check and see if ours have changed her in the states. PETCO pamphlets! Ugh. That's one place anyway. I was literally just talking about this yesterday with my dear friend who also had rats growing up. We were talking about something that a lot of rat owners have in common, but the important part was how it's not fair to the animals or the kids. Nobody can win with the way those pamphlets have been for so long and you brought that to our attention back then so thank you.
They need to just pay you to help them do better. 😂 one could wish. That WOULD be a win/win.
Yes , the social needs aspect of it has been really , really difficult as we are also having an impossible time wrapping it up.
It’s been FOUR YEARS????!! SINCE WHEN
Im currently rat'less for the first time in 14 years and i just never realized how much time they took. Lol im going to two different colleges and still working full time and i knew they needed more. I miss them tho
Hi, all your videos are really helpful and interesting, thanks. We have just set up our cage and are now about to get a couple of rats. I do appreciate what you are saying about Pets at Home, however, the NFRS no longer provide lists of breeders so I really feel that PAH is our only option. I think if we lived anywhere other than Cornwall finding a breeder would be somewhat easier. I just wish someone had a list available!
A proper rat guide is at least 5 pages. I've been writing one for 2 years, rewriting it, trying to make it perfect.
So I just got two rats recently, cyn and tessa. They are 10 weeks, I bought them from a local store that claimed they bought them from a breeder, but the rats are terrified of me, if I get near them they usually hide, sometimes if I try and pet them they let me, other times run away. Not to mention they WILL NOT let me pick them up, they start screeching when I do try. I've tried everything I can to help them get used to me, taking tips from your vids, letting them lick yogurt off my fingers, etc. But they maintain terrified. I would bring them to my bathroom to let them roam, but I can't due to the fact they won't let me pick them up for a second, they just hide in their hammocks when I try interacting with them. Although when tessa sniffs my finger she tries nibbling my fingers. So anyways I don't believe they were socialized, atleast not well. So how can I get my rats to trust me more, and faster. Because it seems like I'm not making any progress. Also, what can I add to their diets other than yogurt to make it more protein enriched? And how often do I clean their cage?
Rats are sweet pocket puppies but commercially breed ones don't have nearly as good health as the ones of some breeders.
I saved three 3 week old girls from a reptile store. I had to be their mumma. I got them proper kitten milk formula, which was quite expensive for 5 weeks. They grew into very healthy little girls. They'll be a year old. I never recommend rats from a pet store, esp if you aren't an experienced owner.
hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii i love you you make my day when i watch your vids:)
Hi! 🤎
I had rats but sadly i just couldn’t get them to stop biting me, i tried everything but in the end we sent them back to pets at home, i miss them so much but honestly pets at home didnt mention that the rats we bought bit all the workers. It is quite sly to not mention that considering i had been so excited to get rats only for them to be taken back to the shop.
Unfortunately it ruins a lot of people’s experience getting rats from a chain pet store because they have bad genetics but also the only times they’ve likely ever been handled has been really scary for them. Saying that my boys that originally came from pets at home turned out lovely with a bit of time and patience 🥹
@@Emiology yes i completely agree, i think if i did more research i would have decided to get my rats from a breeder and not a pets shop for my first time getting rats. It was all just a bit overwhelming with trying to take care of them, especially when they weren’t the nicest. I may be getting a dog in the spring, instead of rats but i’ll always try and get rats again in the future, I’ve always been obsessed with rats ever since i was little
@@robynjones8291 rats make amazing pets and im sorry you had trouble with them ): i hope one day youre able to get healthier rats with a good temperament!! they really are amazing
Rats who bite are usually suffering from either illness or have been abused. Rats just don't bite out of nowhere. Never get rats from.a pet store. Get them from rat rescue.
@@mouseandryforever6848 yeah I realised that
❤❤❤
I don't support pets at home any more. They just don't know enough about pets. They have made a couple of improvements over recent years, but it's just not enough. Rodents are bought by so many people that don't have a clue xx
I had made a couple comments on your recent videos about stopping keeping rats, about how sad seeing rats makes me because I miss my old rats.
By a twist of fate, within the same week, a baby pet rat was abandoned under my work’s dumpster. I spent the better part of 24 hours befriending him until I could trap him in a carrier and bring him home.
I’ve just got 2 more babies to introduce him to, and so now have gone from missing my rats to having 3 in the span of a week!
Do you have any care guides you recommend? I work at a vet and the company that updates our website deleted our library, but we didn't really have anything good there anyway
I linked a good book in the description
ive got a question abiut mice where can i get mice from other then the pet store and why are mice from the pet store not recommended
hi! if you plan on getting any animal that can be found in pet stores, please don't get them from there. keep reading for more info (:
pet stores sell many animals as we know, such as rats, mice, hamsters, chinchillas, gerbils, reptiles, fish, etc.
these places get their animals from pet mills, which are places that forcibly breed animals until they cant be bred anymore. they have horrible living conditions and sell unhealthy animals to pet stores in bulk. pet stores are notorious for selling sick or pregnant animals, and mistreat them. the living conditions in pet stores arent good either. by buying animals from pet stores, you are contributing to the terrible pet mills. some people argue that you're saving the animal, however by buying it youre putting 10 more mice or rats or whatever animal it is in its place!
instead, i recommend getting your first mice from a reputable breeder in your area! it may take a bit of searching to find one, but it's overall the best option because good breeders breed their animals for good temperaments. you could also find someone rehoming their mice, however i recommend getting from a breeder if you want younger mice with a higher chance of a good temperament!
sorry this is a lot, let me know if you have any other questions!
how often should i be fully cleaning out my rat cage if 7 days is overkill? I know it’s not the best place to get info but google said once a week. i’m getting 2 boys in a few weeks please someone help!
What cage have you got and how deep is the base?
@ I’m not sure what cage it is but the base is around 7-8 inches deep. Thanks for the reply you are amazing!❤️
Ik this video is about rats but im interested in getting mice as pets i have a 20 gallon front opening tank left over from my leopard gecko who passed away. Is that enough space? If so for how many mice. Can I also add shelves and such to add more space for the mice to run around?
40g minimum for a group of around 3-4 female mice depending on how you set it up 😊
Mice make great starter pets for first time rodent parents. I highly recommend rescuing them from a mouse rescuer.
Hey, commenting bc i need a little advice. Basically, i have 3 mice now: Sprinkles (almost 2 yrs old), Starburst (1 yr) and Skittles (1yr). Starburst is very small and never fight back. Idk if this maybe led Skittles on? Idk. But skittles relentlessly attacks Starburst and has made her bleed multiple times. She deis however get along just fine with Sprinkles. I have done intros on and iff for probably about a year now? Ive tried it so many times but Skittles just keeps attacking Starburst. I feel that it is unfair for Starburst to be forced to live like that so Skittles currently lives in a cage on her own. I know mice arent meant to be on their own but i also know that she cant live with Starburst and i dont think its fair on any off them (especially Sprinkles as she gets older) to keep trying tbh. Idk wht to do. I wonder if Skittles could get along with someone elses group of mice if we were to give her away but then would she just fight their weakest like she fights Starburst? I hold Skittles every day and atleast once a week i put them in my carrier or play pen so she can still socialise but i think itsnt not rlly the same. Pls give advice.
Edit: Starburst and Skittles are from the same litter so yh
Sorry for giant comment lol
Personally, if you have the resources, I'd try getting a new pair of young mice, and introducing them to the bully. It should be easier than introducing adult mice. If they don't get along, pair the new mice with your current pair, and house the bully alone. I think rehoming a possible bully is a bit risky and probably not a good idea.
@valkeakirahvi Yeah we are thinking if getting another pair soon acctually as my oldest is getting quite old but I'm not really sure because Skittles made the other bleed multiple times and was quite horrible to them so idk if I wanna risk her being with younger mice but I'm not really sure tbh
Though not perfect, its a HUGE imp[rovment over their last guide.