Author: scruffians

Rats on the pet bus

Costs (for up to 4 rats):
North Island – Pet bus: $75 Carrier: $30 Drop off: $30 TOTAL: $135
South Island – Pet bus: $98 Carrier: $30 Drop off: $30 TOTAL: $158

I’m happy to send rats out of Auckland on the pet bus. You can find out all about the process on the pet bus website and I will briefly outline how it works here too.

The pet bus is a company that transports pets around NZ. They do a run every month or so. They operate with a main bus and a shuttle that takes animals to places that main bus doesn’t go. You can see their usual route here (or scroll down a bit – I’ve added to the bottom of this post)

If you wold like to have you babies sent to you please let me know when I send out the preferences survey. If you are chosen as a new home I will book your babies on to the pet bus and they’ll send you an invoice that you will need to pay before their travel date. The prices (at the moment) are $75 within the North Island and $98 if they will be going to the South Island. This is for up to four rats with no insurance.

I’ll set up a carry cage and get your babies used to it. I usually use the $20 cat carriers from k-mart as they’re a good size and one of the more cost effective options (though I’m happy to get you something different if you’d prefer) I include a hammock, a travel sized water bottle, and a d-cup for food also which brings the overall cost of the carrier to $30.

Sometimes I can drop babies off at the pick up point (in the school holidays – I’m a teacher), but more often than not I’ll be at work so I pay someone else to do it – this adds another $30 to the cost.

On the day they will leave I settle your babies into their carrier with a dry food mix (enough to last them the whole trip), some cucumber for them to nibble on to keep them hydrated, and a full water bottle. I also tape extra food to the top of the carrier and make sure your name and phone number are clearly visible. They’ll meet the pet bus at Manukau Tennis Center, check in, and start their trip to you! You can track their journey on the pet bus website. You will need to make sure you (or someone) are on time to meet the pet bus when it gets to your stop, where you’ll sign over your babies and take them home!

The Pet Bus dates for 2019 are:
25th January to 2nd February
22nd February to 2nd March
22nd March to 30th March
​17th April to 25th April
24th May to 1st June
21st June 29th June
26th July to 3rd August
23rd August to 31st August
20th September to 28th September
25th October to 2nd November
13th December to 21st December ( to confirm)

These are the usual pet bus stops, though this is subject to change – it’s a good idea to email them and ask if you have any questions about their route.

Day One
6.30am Te Awamutu mobil s/station – Arawata Street, Te Awamutu
8.00am Hamilton Animates – 787 Te Rapa Rd, Te Rapa Straight
8.20am Huntley river Haven Carpark – 160 Great Sth Rd
8.45am Mercer Mobil Truck stop Main road
9.00am Bombays BP truck stop – 203 Mill Rd
10.00am Manukau Tennis Centre Clover park sports bowl 44 Te Ir irangi Drive by greyhound racing track
11.30am Ngatea Hall – Main Road
12.00 Paeroa Engineering – 152 Normandy Road by Coopers tires
12.30pm Waihi – Past BP Service station on main road on left
1.00pm Katikati opp robert harris coffee shop at park area
2.00pm Tauranga racecourse float parking area or Pyes pa cemetery car park Pyes Pa road
3.00pm Rotorua Bunnings carpark 26/48 Old Taupo Rd, Mangakakahi, Rotorua
4.00pm Tirau Caltex Service Station Main road
4.20pm Putararu Challenge Main road
4.45pm Tokoroa KFC Main road
5.30pm Taupo Z Station by mega mitre 10 at 138 Thermal Explorer Hwy, Hilltop, Taupo
7.00pm Napier – BP Bayview Service station Main road

Day Two (Shuttle – only if viable with bookings)
Tiahape – Hunterville – Bulls – Palmerston North – Sanson Masterton Wellington

Day Two (Main Petbus)
8.00am Park estate winery car park – 2087 Pakowhai Road
9.00am Waipukarau Mobil S/station 2 Takapau Rd
10.00am Danniverke Mangatera dog Park North end of town opp Mangatera Hotel 2 High Street
11.30am Woodville opp caltex s/station On to Masterton- Featherston
12.00 Palmerston North Memorial park Entrance – Main Street East, Terrace End
1.30pm Sanson loo carpark Corner of state hwy 1 and 3
2.30pm Levin opp eel factory on main road
3.00pm Wiakanae by Mobil S/station
3.30pm Parapariumu countdown car park
5.30pm Marina Motor Lodge MANA Wellington

Day Three
2:30am Ferry crossing early morning
7.45am Landsdowne Park Blenheim – Lansdowne street
12.00 Kialkoura estimation
5.30 pm Woodend Fire Station area – 4 Eders Rd, Woodend,
8.00pm Johns road holiday park – 219 johns road

Day Four
Depart Christchurch 6am
6.30am Rolleston BP – at truck stop main road
7.30am Rakaia by Big Fish Statue and Toilets
8.00am Ashburton opp bunnings BP truck stop Main road
9.15am Timaru racecourse entrance – Pharlap statue, north end of town
10.30am Omarau z Truck stop North end main road by Toll Transport
11.30am Palmerston toilets Main road
1.00pm Dunedin southend warehouse carpark – Kensington Ave entrance
2.30pm Milton white horse Pub car park 161 Union Street
3.00pm Balcultha by Wrightsons on main Road
4.30pm Clinton opposite horse statues on main road
4.00pm Gore – 35 broughton street by motor camp
6.00pm Amble on Inn holiday park Invercargill 35 Chesney street

Day Five
24 hour break for log book – Bus sterilization

Day Six
6.00am Gore 35 Broughton street by motor camp
7.00am Clinton by Horses statue main road
8.00am Milton – white horse car park 161 Union Street Main road
9.30am Dunedin southend warehouse carpark Kensington Ave Entrance
10.30am Palmerston toilets Main Road
12.00 Omarau z truck stop north end of town Main Road by Toll Transport
1.00pm Timaru BP S/station Racecourse entrance way pharlap statue
3.00pm Ashburton by bunnings Main road
3.30pm Rakaia by Big Fish Statue and Toilets
6.00pm Johns road holiday park – 219 Johns Road

Day Seven​
Depart Christchurch at 5am
6.00am Amberley Caltex Truck Stop Main Road
9.00 am Kiakouria
12.00 Blenhiem lansdowne park – Lansdowne road
530 to 6 pm Wellington Bluebridge Ferry Terminal Car Park
630 to 7 pm Wellington Marina Motor Lodge – 57 Mana Esplanade, Mana

Day Eight
6.30 am Paraparumu – Countdown car park Main Road
6.45am Waikanae mobil service station Main Road
7.00am Levin by z Station – Main Rod
8.00am Sanson Loo carpark Corner of state hwy 1 and State Hwy 3
9.00am Palmerston North Memorial park entrance – Main Street East, Terrace End, Palmerston North
9.45 am Woodville behind Caltex Service station main road
10.15 am Danniverke – dog park car park north end of town opp hotel
11.30am Waipukarau Opposite Mobil s/station
12.30 Park estate winery 2087 Pakowhai road
1.30pm BP Bayview Napier
3.30pm Taupo Z Station carpark – Will go via Rotorua if bookings allow
4.30pm Tokoroa BP s/station
5.00pm Tirau BP service station Main Road
6.00pm Cambridge Golf Course Car Park
6.30pm TeAwamutu opp Mobil S/station Arawata Street, Te Awamutu

Day Nine
Depart Teawamutu 6.30am
8.00am Hamilton Animates Terapa Straight 787 Te Rapa Rd, Te Rapa
8.30am Huntley River Haven carpark 160 Great Sth Rd
845 am Mercer mobil truck stop Main road
9.00am Bombays Bp Truck stop 203 Mill Rd
10.30am Manukau Tennis Centre Clover Park by Greyhound race track 44 Te Irirangi drive
12.30pm Hamilton Animates 787 Te Rapa Rd, Te Rapa Straight

Shuttle goes to Tauranga, Rotorua, Whakatane, Opotiki

Rat Colour Genetics

It took me quite a while to get my head around rat colour genetics because information specific to the colours we have in New Zealand is really limited. We have significantly fewer colours than overseas and this means that almost all the information I could find online was way over complicated and confusing. I think I’ve got it now though so I’ve written this analogy to help others figure out the genetics of their (NZ) rats…

RAT MOUNTAIN

Imagine a mountain with separate territories for all the different rat colours. There are fences surrounding each of the territories and you can only get into each territory if you have the keys (genes) to the gates.

Pick a bag, the letters are the colour genes each rat has, these are your ‘keys’:

Mouse’s bag:   aaMmRrPPCC
Cricket’s bag:    AaMmrrPpCc
Fred’s bag:   AammrrPPCC
Dusky’s bag:   aammRrPPCc
Ember’s bag:   AAMmRrPpCC
Rufio’s bag:    AAMmrrppCc
Finn’s bag:   AAmmRrPpCC
Gus’s bag:    Aammrrppcc
Delphi’s bag:    aammrRPpCC
Nano’s bag:    aammrrPpCc

(these are examples only, there are many different genetic combos that could go into creating each colour. These also might not be the exact genetic codes of these rats – I’d have to do a lot of test breeding to find out for sure!)

Look into your bag of keys. You should have 10 keys in total, each with a different letter on it. If you have two tiny lowercase ‘c’ keys you can unlock the chairlift and shoot right up to the top of the mountain to hang with the cloud rats – the albinos or PEWs (pink eyed whites). Your other keys will still work though so if you’d prefer to walk up some of the way you totally can. Do you want to go straight to the top? Hop on the chair lift and go and hug some cloud rats!

If you have a capital C key (or 2) they wont work on the chairlift so you’ll have to walk…

The path splits into two at the foot of the mountain and you come to the first two gates. To the west are the ticked/agouti based territories and to the east are the self based territories. Look into your bag of keys again. The two biggest keys have ‘a’s on them – either capital or lowercase. The west gate, the ticked one, has just one lock labeled with a capital A. If one of your keys has a capital A on it you can go through to meet the ticked rats regardless of what your other keys are labeled with. GO THROUGH THE TICKED GATE.

If you don’t have a capital A key you can try the other gate. This one has two locks so you’ll need two keys, two lowercase a keys. The path through this gate will lead you through to the self territories. GO THROUGH THE SELF GATE .

TICKED TERRITORY

Did you open the west gate? You’re now in the ticked territories. At the bottom of the mountain are the agouti rats with their mottled brown coats and grey tummies. If you keep walking you’ll come to another group of gates. They are in the ring fence that loops round the whole mountain. This time there are 3 gates, each with 2 locks. The first gate is the pink eyed gate. To open this you’ll need two lowercase p keys. If you have these, open the gate and go on through. GO THROUGH THE PINK EYED GATE

If you have a capital P key (or two) you won’t be able to get through the pink eyed gate so go and have a look at the next one. This is the mink gate. To open it you’ll need two lowercase m keys. Got them? Through you go to the cinnamon zone then! GO THROUGH THE MINK GATE

Do you have a capital M key (or two)? No cinnamon for you then for you then. Have a look at the last gate. This is the ruby eyed gate. You’ll need two lowercase r keys to get though. Have a look in the bag and if you have them trek onwards through the ruby eyed gate. GO THROUGH THE RUBY EYED GATE

If you couldn’t get through the mink, ruby eyed, or pink eyed gates your hike ends here with the goots (just check your bag for the tiny chairlift lowercase c keys before you unpack your picnic though)

END – AGOUTI

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

PINK EYED TERRITORY (Champagne)

On the other side of the pink eyed gate you’ll find the pink eyed rats. On the ticked side of the mountain these are silverfawns, pale goldy-yellow with creamy tummies and brilliant pink eyes. There are no gates leading out of this zone so settle down with the beautiful silverfawns (do check your bag for the chairlift keys leading to the albinos first though).

END – SILVERFWAN

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

MINK TERRITORY (Cinnamon)

Onwards through the mink gate! On the ticked side of the mountain you won’t see any mink rats, even though they have the exact same ‘m’ gene as their self based mink cousins on the east side of the mountain. The rats though this door are cinnamons, with golden brown coats and pale grey tummies. The path carries on up the mountain where there is another gate. This is another ruby eyed gate with two locks identical to the ones on the first ruby eyed gate that you possibly didn’t see earlier because you were to busy unlocking the gate that got you to the cinnys. The rats on the other side are slightly different from the one’s further down the mountain though. If you have two lowercase r keys you can go through. GO THROUGH THE SECOND RUBY EYED GATE (ticked) If not, stay here with the cinnamons.

END – CINNAMON

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

RUBY EYED TERRITORY (Argente)

Through the second ruby eyed gate you’ll find the argente rats They look similar to fawns, though they’re often slightly lighter and they have cream instead of grey undercoats. There are no gates out of this territory, so end your journey here with the argentes.

END – ARGENTE

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

RUBY EYED TERRITORY (Fawn)

Through the ruby eyed gate are the fawns. Fawns are a warm orange-brown with a light grey undercoat and ruby eyes (these are different from the pink eyes you see on white rats, ruby eyes are a deep reddish brown that can look black some of the time). Here’s where your journey ends, with the fawns.

END – FAWN

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

 

SELF TERRITORY

Did you open the east gate? You’ve entered the self territories. At the bottom of the mountain are the black rats with their glossy dark coats. Walk along the path and before long you’ll come to another group of gates. They are in the ring fence that loops round the whole mountain. This time there are 3 gates, each with 2 locks. The first gate is the pink eyed gate. To open this you’ll need two lowercase p keys. If you have these, open the gate and go on through. GO THROUGH THE PINK EYED GATE

If you have a capital P key (or two) you won’t be able to get through the pink eyed gate so go and have a look at the next one. This is the mink gate. To open it you’ll need two lowercase m keys. Got them? Through you go to see the minks then! GO THROUGH THE MINK GATE

Do you have a capital M key (or two)? No minks for you then for you then. Have a look at the last gate. This is the ruby eyed gate. You’ll need two lowercase r keys to get though. Have a look in the bag and if you have them track onwards through the ruby eyed gate. GO THROUGH THE RUBY EYED GATE

If you couldn’t get through the mink, ruby eyed, or pink eyed gates your hike ends here with the black rats (just check your bag for the tiny chairlift lowercase c keys before you unpack your picnic though)

END – BLACK

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

PINK EYED TERRITORY (self)

On the other side of the pink eyed gate you’ll find the pink eyed rats. On the self side of the mountain these are champagne, creamy coloured with brilliant pink eyes. There are no gates leading out of this zone so settle down with the champagne ratties (do check your bag for chairlift keys leading to the albinos first though).

END – CHAMPAGNE

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

MINK TERRITORY (self)

Onwards through the mink gate! Here in the self side of the mountain, unlike the ticked side, the mink gene actually creates mink rats. The rats though this door have grey coats – some paler, some darker – and black eyes. The path carries on up the mountain where there is another gate. This is another ruby eyed gate with two locks identical to the ones in the first ruby eyed gate that you possibly didn’t see earlier because you were to busy unlocking the gate that got you to the minks. The rats on the other side are slightly different from the ones further down the mountain though. If you have two lowercase r keys you can go through. GO THROUGH THE SECOND RUBY EYED GATE (self) If not, stay here with the minks.

END – MINK

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

RUBY EYED TERRITORY (dove)

Through the second ruby eyed gate you’ll find the dove rats. They look similar to the buffs further down the mountain, though, with thier pale grey fur and ruby eyes, they’re a cooler colour than the warm beige buffs. There are no gates out of this zone so end your journey here with the doves.

END – DOVE

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

RUBY EYED TERRITORY (buff)

Through the ruby eyed gate are the buff rats. Buffs are a warm beige colour that sometimes has pinkish undertones, and thier eyes are ruby (these are different from the pink eyes you see on white rats, ruby eyes are a deep reddish brown that can look black some of the time). Here’s where your journey ends, with the buffs.

END – BUFF

Want to go back and start again? Go back to the bottom of the mountain and grab another bag of keys!

Temperament Scoring

Up until now I’ve just judged my rats’ temperament by the overall feel of them, but the other day I found a grading system for temperament and decided to write a similar one to use on my own rats and future babies. (Feel free to use/modify it as you like!) A lower score suggests a rat with a less ideal temperament and a higher one suggests a calmer, more laid back rat.

Test 1: Hands
Put your hand in a limp fist in the rat’s cage and observe what it does.

  1. Runs and hides and does not come out, or bites
  2. Ignores you, does not approach
  3. Cautiously sniffs but does not touch your hand, or touches but uses more teeth than you’d like
  4. Touches/sniffs but backs off of you move your hand
  5. Touches/sniffs/licks, does not react in a nervous manner if you move your hand

(Sorry for the rubbish quality, but here are a bunch of 5s)

 

Test 2: Scruff
Pick the rat up by the scruff, hold for 5 seconds.

  1. Lots of squirming, squeaking and general uncomfortable signs
  2. Less vigorous squirming which may start after a second or 2
  3. Squirms for a second or 2 and then stops and holds still
  4. Holds still
  5. Tucks back feet into tummy, is limp, relaxed, and still

(Azriel, Mouse and Otter: 4.5, 4.5 and 5)

Test 3: Fingers
Poke a finger through the bars of the rat’s cage and observe how the it reacts (skip this if you know you’ll get chomped though!)

  1. Biting (not gentle nibbles, actual biting)
  2. Runs away/does not engage with you
  3. Runs away at first but then comes back to have a look
  4. Sniffs fingers cautiously
  5. Licks fingers/grabs with paws/gentle mouthing

Test 4: Upright hold
Wrap your fingers around the rat’s shoulders and hold it upright with its back feet either dangling or on the palm of your other hand.

  1. Vigorous wriggling and trying to get away without giving up
  2. Wriggling, but not as committed to escaping as a 5
  3. Mild wriggling, or stays still for a few seconds but then tries to get away
  4. May wiggle for a few seconds but then stays still
  5. Stays still and relaxed, does not mind what is happening

Test 5: Lie Back
Hold the rat in two hands and lie them on their backs between your hands with fingers holding them in position.

  1. Vigorous wriggling and trying to get away without giving up
  2. Wriggling, but not as committed to escaping as a 5
  3. Mild wriggling, or stays still for a few seconds but then tries to get away
  4. May wiggle for a few seconds but then stays still
  5. Stays still and relaxed, does not mind what is happening

(Azriel can be a 3, 4 or a 5 depending on how silly/sleepy he’s feeling)

 

Test 6: Noise
Clap loudly and watch the rat’s reaction.

  1. Jumps, runs around, climbs walls (general panic that does not stop within 10 seconds)
  2. Jumps of freezes and then finds a place to hide, does not come out within 30 seconds
  3. Jumps of freezes but recovers when touched, distracted, or reassured
  4. Freezes, but only for a few seconds and recovers without interference
  5. May freeze or pull back for a second but then comes over to investigate

Test 7: Unfamiliar area
Place the rat somewhere it hasn’t been before (either in another room of the house or, preferable, outside somewhere you know it will be safe)

  1. Jumps, runs around, climbs walls (general panic that does not stop within 30 seconds)
  2. Searches out hiding places or huddles in a corner
  3. Becomes clingy, looks to a person or another rat for comfort
  4. Cautiously explores
  5. Confidently explores

 

Test 8: Food manners
Offer the rat a small amount of food (try with both wet and dry food) from your fingers.

  1. Bites on purpose (not because it is mistaking your fingers for snacks)
  2. Takes the food carelessly biting your fingers in the process, or runs away scared
  3. Sniffs the food but may be too nervous to take it, or snatches and runs
  4. Cautiously, but gently takes the food
  5. Confidently comes up and gently takes the food

Test 9: New rats
In a neutral area, introduce the rat to another of the same sex and observe its reaction (to make this a fair test it’s better to try this with a new rat that you know plays nice with others)

  1. Attacks or acts extremely aggressively
  2. Puffs up, crab walks, acts defensively but does not actually attack
  3. Runs to a person for comfort, or runs away
  4. Sniffs and then ignores the new rat
  5. Sniffs and takes friendly interest in the new rat

Test 10: New people
Get someone that the rat has not previously meet to handle it. They should try picking it up, patting it, allowing it to sniff their hands etc.

  1. Attacks or acts aggressively
  2. Is excessively wary and mistrusting, struggles to get away when held
  3. Acts somewhat wary, wont approach the new person but allows them to pick it up
  4. May be a little wary but allows the person to touch and pick it up without resisting
  5. Sniffs and takes friendly interest in the new person, is relaxed and trusting when picked up

The maximum a rat can score is 50. A nice, friendly rat should score at least a 4 in most categories though there are some (like lying back) that are harder for most rats to score highly in.

Introductions

Rats are social animals and need to live with at least one friend. However, it can sometimes be a bit of a process introducing a new rat to into a group. I have found that, usually, new rats are happily living with the others within a few days, but sometimes it can take a few weeks to get them settled, and I know of some rattie combinations that have taken even longer to become comfortable in the same space.

Here is what I do when adding a new rat to my group.

Step One: Put the cages side by side but not so close that someone could get bitten through the bars. They should be interested, but not super aggressive.

Step Two: Switch the rats into each others cages to let them get a good sniff of their future friend.

Step Three: Allow the rats to meet in a neutral area (out of their cages). Watch for any signs of aggression, particularly from the dominant rat. Some people do this in the bathtub but my rats are a bit scared of being in the bath so I let them all meet on the floor after making sure there’s nowhere they could get lost or stuck. It’s a good idea to have a towel handy in case you need to break up a fight (an aggressive rat might bite you without thinking about what it’s doing, so be careful). Hopefully the rats are interested in each other but not violent. The new rat may squeak when it’s approached by the others, and the others may try to roll the new rat onto it’s back. If the new one starts looking terrified, put everyone back in their cages, let them look at each other through the bars, and try again the next day. After they’ve been together without anyone getting too mean for at least 30 minutes you can move on to the next step.

Step Four: Let all the rats hang out in an area your original rats usually play when out of their cage. Watch for your dominant rat showing sights of aggression – an arched back, raised fur, ‘crab walking’, or chattering. Put the rats on your knee or on your shoulders to get them close to each other and show the others that you like and accept the new rat. If they can go 30 minutes without a problem they are ready for the final step.

Step Five: Give your cage a really good clean and rearrange things a bit so that it feels like a new cage and not your original rats’ territory. Put the rats in the clean cage and watch closely. You’ll probably see the new rat being flipped over and pinned quite a bit, as well as being held down and licked. You may hear squeaks as they sort out a new pecking order.  If you see the new rat constantly being chased around the cage, or you think the fights are too rough, move the new rat back to a separate cage and redo step four. Most of my newcomers have picked a ‘safe’ place in the cage and have mostly hung out there for a day or so. I make sure that they have easy access to food and water from their chosen spot and avoid feeding anything too delicious for a few days to lessen the risk of food related arguments.

Usually I can get through step one to four in a day and complete the process the following day. Having a big-ish group of rats and a big cage means no one cares that much when someone new moves in. My dominate girl has her hands full keeping everyone else in line so she doesn’t have a lot of time to terrorize newcomers. However, it can take much longer so be prepared to take it slow if you need to.

Rattie Food Diary

One of the very best things about rats is that they can eat almost anything. That means you can use them for cleaning up your leftovers and you never have to worry if you forgot that they needed more food while doing your grocery shopping and went home without it.

To give an idea of the variety our rats get I tracked what Lyra, Vanilla (six month old girls) and Dusky (one and a half) ate for a week. The bowls I use for all the rat’s food are the little ceramic ones you can find at most pet shops. They’re good because they don’t get tipped over and they’re easy to clean.

Rats need a grain based diet that can easily be put together from things you’d find in any supermarket. Our rats have constant access to a mixture of oats, cornflakes, weetbix, and rice bubbles with a few seeds mixed in as surprise treats. This mix is topped with a few lab blocks. They don’t get more than a few each per day as they tend to hide them and then forget about them and I find a huge pile of them in a corner going soggy when I clean out the cage. I give them about half of a cup of this mixture every morning and it’s usually pretty much gone by the next.

They also get two table spoons of veggies every morning. This week it was frozen mix of peas, beans, and (regrettably) carrot, which everyone ate around and left to go slimy in the bottom of the bowl. Next week it’s back to plain old peas as they are always really well liked.

In the evening the rats get a dinner of whatever we have if there are any leftovers. When there’s nothing extra for them, or on the nights we go out for dinner, they get some baby food, soup, or an extra bowl of veggies. On the first night the girls got a bowl of pasta, with some kind of pasta sauce and a little bit of mince. On the second they got deconstructed chicken sandwiches with whole meal bread, stuffing, lots of greens, avocado, and one piece of chicken each.

On the third night the girls had crispy crunchy salad with noodles, greens, capsicum, and cucumber and on the forth night they had rice risotto baby food because I had fish and chips and didn’t save any for them despite them peering longingly at it through the doors of their cage.

On the fifth night they had nachos with guacamole, tomato, sour cream, corn chips and a bit of mince and on the sixth night they had stir fried veggies (broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and courgette) with rice.

On the seventh night I was to lazy to cook and had crackers for dinner so they had salmon and avocado on a bed broken crackers  too. On the eighth night I went out for dinner and they had spaghetti which was the only dinner this week that they seemed a bit disappointed with and didn’t finish, though they enjoyed licking all the sauce off.

 

 

 

Rat Growth – One to Two Weeks Old

This post tracks the growth Blink and Otter’s 13 babies during their second week (you can read about their first week here).

The babies have grown quite a bit more hair in just 24 hours and now have super shiny, velvety coats. They also have fingernails! I’m pretty confident there are 4 boys (2 hoods, a black berkshire, and a dilute) and 9 girls (5 black berkshires, 2 hoods, and 2 dilutes) in the litter.

It’s getting easy to tell the babies apart. The berkshires have slightly different amounts of white on the tips of their tails and their ‘socks’ reach different points on their legs. The dilutes are changing colour, one is a hood one of the others is a darker berksire (possibly mink?) and the other is quite light (dove?). The hods of course are easy as they all have different patches down their backs. One little boy even has a teeny tiny head spot!

The babies have been getting more and more mobile throughout their second week. They don’t pull themselves around on their tummies now, instead they ‘walk’ slowly and haltingly like little zombies. They have also started claening themselves which is super cute to see.

Some of the little ones have started venturing out of the next in their cage but are very quickly put back by their mother. They are starting to look much more like little rats now, their eyes are less bulgy, their ears are not so stuck down to their heads, and they have lots of fur.

Today is the day the babies ear canals drained allowing them to hear. They are moving around a lot when I get them out and will crawl to wherever I put my hands and squish themselves up against them. Their mother no longer frets when I get them out and sometimes comes out with the other girls when they are out of their cage. She’s excited, and a little bit pushy with them, but I think when the babies are grown there will be no problem moving her back in with her friends.

One of the babies has one eye open! They are all getting quite quick at crawling around and are starting to hop and jump a bit too. They wear themselves out quickly though and after scurrying round for a few minutes they quickly find some friends to pile up and sleep with.

All the babies now have their eyes open. Their fur is less like velvet and more like normal rat fur, although they don’t have guard hairs yet. It’s easy to see the different markings on the berkshires tummies and I’m confident that there are 4 boys and 9 girls in the litter.

Marking Genetics

I’ve found it quite hard to find information on rat genetics that’s relevant to New Zealand. We have a very limited number of colours and markings compared to other countries due to import laws so often the information online is confusing as it talks about genes that we don’t have here. The genetics of the three most common marking types – self, berkshire, and hooded – is straight forward though.

A self rat (HH) has no distinct white markings. Often their undersides are a lighter shade than their backs but they are basically all one colour. Berkshire rats (Hh) have white paws, white makings on their undersides, and they usually have white tail tips. Hooded rats (hh) have a coloured head and shoulders and a coloured stripe or blotches down their spine but the rest of their body is white. If a self is breed to a self they should produce get 100% self babies. Similarly, two hooded rats together should produce a whole litter of hooded babies. Two berkshire parents however should produce 25% self, 25% hood, and 50% berkshire. Punnett squares for these three crosses look like this:

There are three other pairings possible: hooded and berkshire, hooded and self, and self and berkshire. A hooded rat paired with a berkshire should produce 50% berkshire and 50% hooded babies,  a hood and a self should produce a full litter of berkshires, and a berkshire and a self should produce 50% self and 50% berkshire babies. The Punnett squares look like this:

 

It’s not really that simple, and more in depth research suggests that the genetics denoting markings are not as pure as as they would seem from the Punnett squares, but they serve as a good estimate for what will come out of a pairing.

 

 

Toilet Training Rats

Rats are pretty clean animals, and are usually easy to toilet train.

If you are planning on toilet training rats you’ve already had for a while you’ve probably noticed they do the majority of  poo in one or two areas of their cage. Take note of the most popular poop spot.

Now you need to find a suitable litter tray. There are a few types commonly used. Some people like to use shallow plastic rectangular containers, like cat litter trays. These work well if you have a big cage with lots of room for them, or if you have a large group of rats. Other people use corner trays with grills on the top that the rats stand on. This stops the rats that feel that they have to rearrange everything from scooping litter out and getting it everywhere. We use corner trays without the grill because our ratties are mostly pretty tidy. Most pet shops should have a suitable tray (we get ours from animates), but you could also make one out of any shallow, easily cleanable container.

The next thing you will need is litter. This stops poo sticking to the bottom of your tray and makes everything considerably less smelly. We use recycled paper cat litter but you could also use aspen shavings or shredded paper. Be careful that the litter you choose will not harm your rats if they nibble on it – clays and crystals are not a good idea. Also make sure the litter is different from your bedding/whatever you put on the floor of your cage. If you’re using aspen as your bedding your rats will not differentiate between the ground and their toilet if there is aspen in their litter tray too.

A pee stone is an optional extra. This is a large-ish flat rock that you place in the litter try that most rats will choose to pee on instinctively. It’ll also make your tray less easy for boisterous rats to tip over.

Before you add the litter tray give your cage a thorough clean and add a few poos to your new ratty toilet. Then put the tray in the most popular poop spot. Some rats will figure out the new system straight away, but most will take a while before they’re using it 100% of the time. The key to getting them fully trained is consistency. You need to move any poo that’s in the wrong place to the litter tray at least once per day. It can help to increase your cleaning a bit too, so that the only area that smells like a toilet is the toilet.

Be patient, most of my rats took a few weeks to really get it. Toilet training is definitely worth it, it makes cage cleaning a lot easier and you can leave the cage much longer between cleanings as you can just change the litter and get rid of all the poo.