what cage and food ??

[haydenolsen]

hey everyone im new to this forum as u can tell but im wanting to get maybe two female rats and was woundering what is actually a good size comercial cage for two rats ? as most i have looked at are tiny yet they say its good for like 5 :S

and what would a daily amount of food would 2 rats need ?and what sorts of things do i put in the bowl for them ?

[Kelly]

Welcome to the forum!

First of all: Don't believe what any pet shop employee tells you about cages. Most don't actually know how much space a rat needs. If you want an idea of how many rats a cage can fit search for a cage calculator (there's one at www.rattycorner.com/) and plug in the dimensions.

I know there are some decently sized cages around, I've seen a few in at Petbarn, but I don't know what they're called. Just shop around. You can often find decent cages on ebay, for instance. Keep in mind that with rats, the more space you can give them, the better. Get the biggest cage you can!


As for food... A lot of people mix up their own dry mixes for their rats, because commercial food mixes are often full of things that aren't good for our little ones. There are recipes and suggestions for dry mixes you can find online (try dapper.com.au, their dry mix is supposed to be pretty good). My rats have dry mix available to them at all times, just a small bowlful. I change it every couple of days.

They should also get some fresh food. I just save a bit of everything from my dinner. My ladies love steak, and they have great fun chewing on chicken bones. And don't get me started on how they feel about peas...

I hope that helps.