should my feeders be counted as pets now?

[xreinx]

I have two snakes and was dared by a friend to feed "Live" so I went out and got two live baby rats. I put them in a tank in the shelf with my snakes to wait for my friends to show up for the next feeding.

... that was 10 months ago...

My snake shelf is sitting beside the couch and the lid is proped open so I could slip things into their tank easily. a while ago they started lifting it up and looking at me from the crack begging I think, and thats saying something cause its a big board with air vents drilled into it.

Anyway they eat anything that I eat, the other day I offered them a banana and nearly lost a finger... needless to say.. they are too big to feed to my snakes now... should I add them to my list of pets? they really dont have names, just rattins.

two generic white rats with beady red eyes. females from my guess. they let me pick them up for their weekly bath and seemily like to beg... as they are both looking at me right now.. creepy ** giggles**

 

[Sabbath]

Bonding with food isn't good, but then again when I eat a steak those adorable eyes don't moo to me D:!

They are pets! Name them Dinner and Diner :3

 

[xreinx]

lol thanks yea, they dont have adorable eyes, they are creepy when they poke their heads out of the tank like that... but.. they greet me like the cats do when I come home and announce that I am back.

one of them emptys her dish and sits in it, squeezing her fat rump into it and just sits holding her tail when shes tired and her sibling isnt sleepy. I guess they are kinda cute... in a creepy way.

yea.. I guess they are another set of pets I accidentally aquired. oh well, until I come up with something better.. I guess its rattins rattins... I think they answer that.. they both just looked at me when I said that.. Creepy! lmao

 

[nofearengineer]

I once owned a caiman, and I would give him feeder goldfish. Well, he must have taken a liking to one of them,because he never touched it. It grew up to be about 10 inches long, swimming around in the same 55 gallon aquarium as the caiman. My take on it was..."that one?...he has spirit....let him live".

I guess they're your pets now.

By the way, if you think a rat opening up his cage is creepy.....try sticking your arm under a chest of drawers to see if your escaped caiman is under it. SNAP!!! I'll never forget that.

 

[xreinx]

yikes, I think I know how that feels though. I had a adult female corn that somehow managed to get out of her tank twice, wellll they eat on the same day every week.. I didnt have time to look for her the few days I had lost her and was just going to feed everyone and get going again.. well she knew it was feeding day...

try walking into a room and finding a 5 foot snake at eye level whipping around at you because you had a thawed mouse in your tongs. I still dont know where she came from, just that she fell on me from above and was wipping around like a livewire as I tried to keep her from biting me, while she struck at the mouse I was holding.

 

[xoaprilox]

I would! I could never feed live. It just makes me so sad, especially when they give you those eyes. ): Mickey and Minnie?

 

[xreinx]

I dont feed live, I never have. I was dared, and they even gave me money for the rats.

but... it never happened and now I have a set of new pets that like bananas vary much. who are as clean, if not cleaner then my cats and have a wicked sense of humor, if you can call it that, cause they thump the lid, making it bounce at night, if they want something.

(and have CREEPY eyes!) I need to get a picture for everyone to see, cause they hang onto the edge of the tank and poke their heads out... side by side.. and LOOK at me.. its so.. creepy... whats worse is when I am getting ready to clean the tank, they sit in the corners and their heads sway slowly from side to side... like a slow dance.. its freaky, but they let me pick them up without tearing me a new one soooo.. I guess they are ok.

 

[xreinx]

it is Normal for them to get excited, dart around and try to jump up to meet me when I open the tank and talk to them? (or are they terrified and are just trying to eat me?)

 

[xoaprilox]

My niece has pet rats and they are very docile and friendly creatures. If your rats have been in a cage for months and aren't tame, they may be scared. They could be excited though. I really don't have a liking for those nasty red eyes. My nice had brown and white dumbo rats, and they are very cute and sweet pets. They look like this Google Image Result for http://images04.olx.com/ui/4/08/76/1266263291_74410276_3-Baby-Dumbo-Rats-for-Sale-all-colors-blue-and-blue-carriers-StrickLeeRatswebscom-Huntsville.jpg

 

[darkling]

I had pet rats once. They were awesome really. Rats are super smart if you take the time to train them.

 

[HRH Di]

My husband said you should name one Tira and the other Misu. We can come up with lots of food names for them. But, yeah, I think you've got pets there.

 

[xreinx]

they were kinda big when I got them, but were eating solid food, from what I understand anyway. I know they are smart, the cats upturned their cage once and cornered them in the corner all night... they remember that and STAY in the tank, its kinda cool, I removed the lid and came back after a day at work and found them sitting on the edge, but Not leaving it. they know danger exists outside of the tank.

I can handle them, vary lightly, but Ive come to conclustion that they just want to eat me. Ive made the mastake of training them that every time I lift the lid, they get something tasty... so yesterday when I went in to look at them again, all I seen was teeth as she climbed onto the edge the tank, then she looked at him as she cling on.

Lmao, I do like the names Tira Misu... being soaked with wine is how they do act on a regluar basis to!

 

[Anna]

I am very glad you didnt go through with the Live feeding. When I think of feeding live I think of these photos. Warning! They are horrific. The wounds inflicted on snakes by rats.

http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=209260&d=1310615737

[URL="http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=209142&d=1310541129"]http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=209142&d=1310541129

[URL="http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=209174&d=1310549302"]http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=209174&d=1310549302

[URL="http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=197628&d=1303918180"]http://www.aussiepythons.com/forum/a...8&d=1303918180[/URL][/URL][/URL]

Rats are very intelligent and clean animals. If you hang out with them for awhile you will see thier personalities shine through. Lol congrats on your accidental pets.
​

 

[Mayden]

Live feeding is apparently illegal in the UK! Which I'm very happy about, post some pictures of your rat babies! + Maybe start trying to handle them without constantly feeding them so they don't bite you so often? ^^

 

[suebee]

By the way, if you think a rat opening up his cage is creepy.....try sticking your arm under a chest of drawers to see if your escaped caiman is under it. SNAP!!! I'll never forget that. :30: sorry nofear! but i'd have used a stick!!! or some1 elses arm lol

oh them white lab rats scare me too, but they sound cute enough to allow to be pets lol

 

[xreinx]

sadily Tair had a upper respiratory infection, I was advised by the vet to humanely put her down insted of bring her in for a check up, the entire visit was going to cost me 156 dollars. He told me it wasent worth it, if she survived, she would only get it again, because she was born with it, being a feeder rodent.

And more bad news.. Misu coughed today... I changed their bedding from wood shavings to paper a month ago, then I changed it to shredded newspaper to try and help her breathing.. it hasent helped, and the stress that Misu is going threw now that her sister is gone is showing.

RIP Tira

 

[Netty]

i will show you this in advance incase you decide to own more rats in the future,
A) fishtanks + rats = respritory infections and myco flare ups
B) Pine and Cedar bedding = respritory problems and myco flares - use fleece fabric or care fesh (fleece should be changed every few days to wash use vinegar and water thenrinse and dry as normal this also minimizes smells from their urine.) You can also litter train rats for where to poop!
C) Standard "rat and mouse food" WAAAYYY to high in protein for rats, they should get something more like hamster extrustion which can be found in pet stores, or Oxbow which can also be found in stores.

for more info on rats check out these forums: The Rat Shack


i owned my own rats for years here is some pix (i had some cuties: rats pictures by Jannette2006 - Photobucket )

 

[xreinx]

I used care fresh, that even proved too dusty, and the stress she went threw the last few days of her life was bad, not even holding her helped.

I dont think Ill be getting more rats, they were a dare by a friend, who never came over to see it threw, and they keep trying to get me to feed live even now. My snakes dont know how to eat live anymore.

FYI for Everyone here, Please Understand CEDAR is bad for animals! it releases Toxins whenever water or urin is released onto the shavings, and if the animal eats it, even just alittle, (and they will if they need to chew) they will go into a slow system shutdown, starting with their kidneys. If you want your animals to live in perfect health NEVER use Cedar!

I have not and Will NEVER use Cedar for any of my animals, even at a young age, I knew it was bad for animals.

 

[Netty]

I used care fresh, that even proved too dusty.

Yea i find allot of beding like that, i used fleece for my rats as its easy to clean (spot check with a klenex for poop everyday and then wash weekly). and Cedar is highly toxic to animals but Pine is also just as bad for them. the fumes given off by the oils cause respiratory irritation which leads to infection and myco flares. and the toxinx are present whether water or urine is present on the shavings or not.

the only "safe" wood shaving on the market is aspen.

 

[xreinx]

yea, I only use aspen for most of my animals too but I moved from all shavings to paper towels and towels themselfs. (you can get 10 hand towels for 1 dollar at a second hand store) I like those, if they are soiled too much, or too chewed up, just toss it, no dust, and washable too. it took a while for her to get useto it.. but after I lost my first rat, I couldent... handle hearing her cough and watching her suffer.

yes, Misu passed away, I gave in and took her to a friends of mine who put her down humainly (free of charge, though she did squeek when they poked her with the needle)

I will never get feeder rats again. I was offered a hooded silver (has no Idea what that is) but he was already 5 years old and his buddy died, so he was depressed already too. I dont think I can go threw another rat passing.. (NEVER thought Id say that, I thought I didnt like rodents)