More Fancy Rats

[JDWest]

HERE IS SOME CONTROVERSIAL JUICY ADVICE about taming:
AR people swear rats must be in large groups to be truly happy. But like Dayna, I (and others) have found that some rats need one-on-one. It helps right when you get them, to ride with you for days. Just you, just them. It can just work wonders. Stuffing them under your hoodie (I know, it sounds crazy) and keeping them in the crook of your arm (I don't care much for rats at my neck all the time - when you thought you had allergies, was it because of red nail-scratch welts or sneezing? Their hair & dander is almost a cross between a bird and a cat, and like Dayna mentioned, that urine can give people problems. SO you might not have been wrong at all.) is where I liked them best, you can keep good track of them.
I used to break mine up for taming sessions, then put them all together again when everyone was people-friendly.

To AprilW:
Thanks to the deterioration of the rat fancy (there is weird fracture; the AR minded *breeders, and the Common Sense breeders. Guess which type is the loudest & growing the fastest?) it is really hard to get ahold of colors, coat types, or just plain nice rats in health & mind. What a shame; it is no way to grow interest in the fancy. I used to be in Luvabunny's position and it's disheartening

Yes to all of this!

 

[Desert Rose Rabbits]

@luvabunny It was most likely the stress of actually going home and being put into a new environment that flared everything up and they are most likely suffering from Mycoplasmosis. When I was in the Fancy, my understanding was that the ONLY rats that didn't carry it were those in labs. Just like rabbits with Pasteurella they can be carriers and not show any symptoms, rats do the same thing with Myco (which I believe is in the same general category as Pasteurella, not sure though). Once they are showing symptoms they can be given baytril, and sometimes Doxy is given as well. There is no cure, though, and stress will be a trigger as well as old age. If they are really struggling to breath, then you might consider a vet, but you can also try using a humidifier (I've had good luck with that).



I really miss having them around, but when I was breeding it got so hard with their little lifespans! I bred for several years and successfully got the lifespan up of my line to an average of 4 years before tumors began to show and old age settled, but I just couldn't take watching them get old. It was heartbreaking. The mammary tumors I could deal with (always went to the vet and had those removed), but watching them get to the point where they couldn't move or feed themselves was hard and they seemed to do it overnight. I'm a firm believer that rats were never a species intended to reach 'Old Age' and they don't handle it well. They're so amazing, though! It turns out that I'm HIGHLY allergic to them so between that and the sadness about watching them age I got out of the Fancy, but they are such cuddly, smart little suckers.

 

[DumansArk]

...I watched the cage the rats were in at the store and didn't see ANYONE rubbing noses or sneezing. I made them open the cage and listened carefully, still no sneezing. I picked them up and held them at the store for a few moments and still nothing. However, as soon as I get them home and out of the box, the sneezing/snorting/snuffling is almost non stop.

Kitty102 is right - think of Pasturella & Rabbits = the stress brings it on when the rats have their version. Not all rats show symptoms, and like rabbits, it's frowned upon to use stock (that have breathing issues) for breeding.
Myco may be what it is, I know that SDA has been identified in the rat community as an issue too. I haven't looked them up in a while so I don't recall specifics, sorry :/

...May I ask how you got the colors, and the rex fur, in the first place? The gene has to be there somewhere to even get the sport. They have little calico hamsters now. Wouldn't it be cool to have a calico rat?

The Calico hamsters and Calico mice are little beauties! However, a good Calico is something rat fanciers have yet to really see. Tri Color is also on the "wish list" of rat breeders around the world. From a genetics standpoint, rats are fascinating in that there are new colors & coats popping up all the time so it's just a matter of keeping your eyes open for the rat that displays that little something extra

Towards the bottom of this page are some calico/Tortishell colored rats of mine.
http://dumansark.com/?id=14

and here are a few pics that aren't on that page:

http://dumansark.com/dumansark/photos/rats/w_line.jpg


As far as how I ended up with the colors/coats/markings; it's the "right place, right time" bunch of stories. Selective breeding will take a person far too - when I had the white baby with black eyes out of a litter of Siamese, I was tickled. Fast Forward careful pairings and now I have a whole litter of them But in the case of the lovely Merle line for instance, they came from the wonderful Caprice Acres.


Kitty 102 you bring up a really good point about Old Age & Rats.

JDWest sounds like you have had some experiences a time or two!! =D (With Taming rats, or the Rat Hobby Today or both)