Rats or mice? Advice needed!

[darastar]

nm

[Shanti]

Rats are much easier to handle from my experience. They don't bite unless they smell food on your hands. And its more of a taste nip than a painful bite. Wash your hands before handling them.
Mice will nip to if they think your finger or hand smells tasty.
Their intelligence out does a mouse any day!! They will be awake more in the daytime than mice.

They can be taught tricks like ringing a bell for a treat.

Rats are fun. Mice are boring.

My son has had 3 rats. All of them he taught to go to his bed when ever they were loose and not being tended. My son is 6 and has had rats since age 2. He sometimes brings one out and forgets about it somewhere and sure enough, when we are wondering where the rat is, there it is in his bed like a good little ratty.
Once when we went shopping, the rat got out. My son remembered to late that he didn't close the cage door. We were gone for hours. I was worried because we had just moved and the rat didn't know the house. The rat, was found sound asleep in my sons bed when we got home.

Rats are fun too for kids cause of their size...just easier to handle and less chance of loosing it.

We had mice too. They sleep most of the day. They got held. It was boring for the kids.

And both mice and rats stink if they are males. Females don't have the nasty smell. And both species, males only, pee on everything in the cage. And I mean everything cause they mark territory constantly. That really helps with the smell...yuk. So males need complete cage washing and accessory washing 4 times as often as females.

So thats my opinion based on owning both species and having kids that love the ratties!! :)

Oh mice eat seeds and grains. Rats eat anything. They are omnivorous.
Another thing kids like with rats. Sharing their food. Just don't share sweets. Rats get cavities too!!

[darastar]

nm

[RubyRose]

Having kept Rats in the past, I can assure you that they are more affectionate than mice are. I wouldn't know about keeping one rat, cause at one point I had three. As for bedding. Shredded newspaper and hay would work. I suppose cat litter would also work. Wouldn't know as I never used it.
Bendithion,
RubyRose

[Cindlady2]

Rats!
When I had the pet store they were the #1 pet I would recommend for a first pet for all the reasons Shanti said and more.
Rats are very social animals. Most other small rodents are nocturnal and would rather left alone most of the time. Rats love attention anytime they can get it! They can be trained to do tricks (like go to bed when out too long! LOL) and can even be taught to come when called. Grant you not all rats will be trainable as others, just like some dogs don't train as well, but you got a good shot at it. I had 2 of mine harness trained so I could take them out to park and such.

As far as biting goes.... I raised hundreds.... got bit once.... my fault. My favorite female trusted me so much I could pick up her babies as she was still giving birth! Treat them well and you'll have a great pet!

To your questions...
Yes, 2 from the same litter would be good. Especially if they will spend allot of time alone. Remember, they are very social!

Unless your rats interact with the other pets they shouldn't need vaccinations. You can check with your vet. if your worried about it. I never had an issue with worms either. Fleas and ticks are another matter. If your other pets get them your rats could too. What we did during flea season was get the flea and mite killers used for birds. It's a metal "box" you hang in the cage. It worked fine for us, just make sure it's metal and they can't chew it!

I never heard of cat litter for rats... maybe.

Remember, rats need to chew so make sure they have plenty to chew. Hard foods like seeds and dog food is good. Lots of water, and fruit and vedgies too!

There is tons of information on pet rats on the web now. There are even clubs and shows for rat owners!

Have Fun!

[Shanti]

If the rat is going to sit in a cage all the time, get 2 of the same sex, preferable female cause the males smell and pee all over.

If a kid is going to be giving the rat attention and carrying it around all the time and playing with it all the time, get one rat because kid/rat will bound like best friends.

Like me, you have more than one kid. One rat to share and the kids will argue. One rat for each kid works much peacefully. :)

[Willow Rosette]

I am very anti mouse. I worked at a pet store years ago and no matter how much the mice were fed they still chewed on eachother. I plan on getting my 4 year old a rat for her birthday in August. Hamsters and mice will both bite unless you get lucky. Rats are much much friendlier. Good luck and thanks everyone for caring for rats.

[halfwaynowhere]

mice are annoying, lol. They do nip when they get upset. I've got 6 of them right now, 3 younger ones that I handled pretty much since birth, two that were purchased as feeders, and one that came from a pet store. The two that were feeders are the friendliest, the three little girls are mean, they bite me if I try to handle them now. They have squabbles with each other sometimes, stealing food from each other, its scary sometimes. My one male is very friendly, but he does nip sometimes, mostly if I handle him after eating, without washing my hands first. In my opinion, mice are more of a hobby than pets. I really want rats, but my mom is afraid of them, so they are out of the question for now.

[person of shadow]

I love rats, I used to have plenty of both. I have one female rat now(She ws actually supposed to be snake food,) BUt now she lives out in my rabbit barn in a nice cage with a very elaborate wooden bird house for a hideout. She plays kisses with the neighboring rabbit.

Very smart, I used to have one that would play hide and seek with the dog by hiding behind the couch. And another that would climb up my leg and onto my shoulder if I called her.

(I would recomend a girl if you don't want to see the um, boy parts, they get quite big)

I LOVE rats!

[Djiril]

Rats are very social, and my experience is that human owners can't provide them with enough company to keep them from getting depressed unless they can be with them every hour of the day. Having a playmate does not diminish the status of "the giant who brings treats," especially if the rats have been properly socialized by the breeder. Feeder rats tend to be less friendly and more likely to bite.

Also, males will mark not only their territory, but their social group. If he doesn't pee on you, he's just not that into you. ;)

[Cindlady2]

Also, males will mark not only their territory, but their social group. If he doesn't pee on you, he's just not that into you. ;)

LOL.... I never thought of it that way, but I guess your right. Although my male was a pretty good boy and I didn't get peed on much.

If you plan on letting the kids have them out allot I would sedgiest getting harnesses for them. In the house it's not so bad if they get loose (they usually go home after awhile) but if they want to take them other places a harness is safer.

[KaidaMidnight]

Rats seem to be more social... plus, mice are just too small in my opinion. I'd be afraid of smooshing em. LOL

[Tanya]

I've had both and rats are by far cooler... yes all creatures with teeth can bite, they need to learn that they are safe when they are handled... thus treated with respect and gentleness.

rats being bigger are easier to hold and are FAR less zippy.. thus less likely to wiggle out of hands and be injured..

rats are quite bright. just offering them food and gentle pats when they are young and you will end up with a pet as cuddly as a cat and nearly as bright as a dog. I taught my to sit up and beg and come when he was called. They are just soo much more calm than mice... they can ride on your shoulder.. heck mine even rode around on the dog and bullied the cat!

being mostly vegetarians and non-cooperative feeders, you ar never going to train a rat to use a litter box or be as social as a dog... but hop up and sit on your lap and share some popcorn... you bet.... mice on the other hand will never be more than tame.. they will never be a real pet... that enjoys handling and playing like a rat.. also being so small, they can't really be out and about much without getting lost.. a rat... all you have to do, like a cat is shake a box of food (coco puffs was my guy's favorite) and call their name.. and they will come running.

rats are extremely low maintence...they can eat anything so they travel easily. I fed mine a base diet of rodent kibble supplimented with what ever I was eating... (bagels, peanut butter, vegies, pizza, cereal, dry or fresh fruit) I used an old aquarium lined with newspaper for his normal place of residence, but he traveled happily in a small carrier every where (even on the bus!)

finally, rats live a lot longer and have a lot more personality.. a mouse will live about a year, my rat was 5 when he died... and again he was a real part of the family.