Our rats live in a triple critter nation and a single critter nation. The girls have 2 levels and move between then as the wish. The boys are split into two groups with Rufio and Scribble in the single and the other boys on the bottom floor of the triple. We use Ferplast Mary cages as maternity cages until the babies are 5 weeks old when they move into the adults cages until they go to new homes so that they can get used to being with big rats. These photos are quite old, for more up to date ones check the facebook page.
This is the girls level:
On the bottom level they have a wheel that Vanilla LOVES but no one else is that keen on. It’s a Wobust Wodent Wheel that you can get form NZ Rat Rescue. It’s super hard wearing, easy to clean, big enough not to bend the ratties into weird shapes, and the smooth track means there’s no risk of their legs getting caught in anything. There’s also a Rody house that no one really uses, although Dusky likes to hide her food pile behind it. She thinks no one notices which is why she’s doing the wide-eyed innocent look in the photo, but I notice when I go to clean out the cage and find baked beans smooshed into the fleece.
Hanging under the top platform is a double hammock from Snoopy Rat Hammocks. Dusky sometimes hangs out there when the younger girls are being too silly and she’s sick of them jumping all over her. In the back corner is the litter tray. I use recycled paper pellet litter and there’s a pee rock in there too. The girls are pretty good about using it and probably go there 90% of the time.
The ratties get upstairs via the ramp. I tired having it covered in fleece for a while but they just used it for chewing and preferred to climb up the walls instead so now it is bare. On the top level there is a sputnik which is by far the most popular snoozing spot, and an igloo that serves as Dusky’s second food storage place.
The boys have a similar set up. They had a wheel for a while but they’re too old and bloby to use it so I took it out and now they have a triangle hammock instead. It’s only used occasionally by Otter when he’s sulking because the big boys are being mean.
Both groups of rats have 2 food bowls, one for their dry food and lab blocks (and wood chews apparently) and the other for their fresh food. They get fruit and veggies in the morning and some of what we have for dinner at night. The boy’s bowls are kept downstairs along with a Rody and their litter tray.
Upstairs They have their sputnik and an igloo. The igloo is the boy’s most popular sleeping place though they use the sputnik quite a lot too. There’s also a hammock that is Otter’s favourite place (though he has to be right on the very edge of the cage if the doors are open just in case I have a spare hand to scratch him with so he refused to model it properly).
All the levels are covered with fleece which absorbs up any pee or spilled food and is easy to clean. The fleece is is held on with big bulldog clips which makes it easy swap out. I usually change it every few of days. Both levels have glass water bottles, which are apparently better than plastic ones as they don’t leech anything into the rat’s drinking water, and ceramic food bowls, which are nearly impossible to tip over.