" how do some women get into and love rats..."

[adoptaratcanada]

(slightly edited: This is a spin-off from the knit toys thread where DF said he posted to another group that he had a bra hammock --or, rather, his RATS did ;D-- and got lots of replies from people assuming he must be female. I remarked:

It seems fairly universal that rodent parents are female -- which is kind of surprising especially where rats are concerned: most uninformed people think rats are a freaky pet to have, and expect that the parent will be a Grunge teen boy ;D

At the first rat show I went to, there was around 1% males, and I think they may have just been husbands or sons of the rat mom, in tow for the afternoon.

Then DF asked the question which serves as the subject of this thread)




Speaking for myself...

I just love all animals. I don't have any maternal instinct to speak of, but that might be because I feel so maternal towards animals

I never really thought about a rat as a pet until a roomie had one. I never saw much if it, but it seemed pretty cute. When she was moving she thought she wouldn't be able to take the rat and asked if I would take it, which of course I agreed to. I didn't know anything about them, and I'm a research junky so I was boning up and learning all I could. Next thing I knew, she was gone and so was the rat.

It was a let-down, but she inadvertently got the ball rolling, and right after that I adopted my first rats from the rescue!

Admittedly, there IS a bit of a fun "shock factor" to tell people you have rats, but the "freakiness" of them really just doesn't exist. They are SO UTTER ADORABLE that there's nothing scary about them at all! For the record, "creepy crawlies" don't bother me...spiders and snakes don't frighten me. I hear alot of people say a rat's TAIL is the big issue with them, and quite frankly it never occurred to me! It's kind of like someone telling me that cats scared them because of their "snake eyes". Non-round pupils....who knew? Like I say, never occurred to me.

One lady I know said, "oh my husband would just LOVE to have rats," and I could tell it's because they are perceived as freaky. I didn't want to burst her bubble, but I did. If you like cute n cuddly, a rat might well be the pet for you!

People who don't get it are very surprised when I tell them a rat is (to me) like a cross between a puppy and a monkey!! A puppy for their "I love everyone" that so many rats seem to have, and like a monkey for their antics and how they can make you laugh. How can you NOT fall in love with them??

[ladyjosephine]

my first "rat-experience" was with a big albino-male at a friend's home when I was about...6 of 7 y.o.
I was very facinated by that animals, my mom was horrified
But I refused to touch it, because my mom was afraid of "it" so it MUST be scary

Few years later I stopped believing everthing my mom says is the truth, At a petshop I touched and cuddled a few kittens and my heart was sold....but my mom&dad wouldn't let me have 2

I kept searching information about rats, talking about them, going to the petstore to see the kittens there(I drove my best friend crazy at that time..she allways had to come with me )

when my parents divorced I finally got my rats!
They really are one of the loves of my live... They are close to perfection

I don't really like shocking people, but when people make stupid comments about rats I can't help myself (A)

Last week I was at a big rodent show, Busy cuddling the newest member of my friend's rat-family...A lady walked up to me and askes: Ooh, what's that? A Guinea pig? What a beauty!
So I replied; no It's an, almost, adult male rat...she gave me THE evil look and made a verrry disturbing comment to her husband... As if it was my fault she's stupid, and doesn't know what a guinea pig OR a rat looks like
The rat was still as beautiful and sweet as before she knew it was a Rat, so I don't really get why people react like that.

[Die Fledermaus]

>> If you like cute n cuddly, a rat might well be the pet for you! <<

Last December after the litters of Moet and Chandon had passed away - a well-known story here - I was in a pet store I know well. I had already gotten Max and Telly, and this time grabbed two "slate" or rather black youngsters, male and female. Annie and brother Petey. I had them walking on my shoulders. . . and two girls about 15-16 nearby went "Ewww! Rats!". They did not say another thing as they saw me play with them and handle them and kiss them. Of course they are here now - the rats not the girls. Maybe those girls were somewhat enlightened. I made a point to say to the worker there whom I know well how clean they are.

But let us go back in time many years.

"Dear Old Dad" never let me have pets; I had to smuggle in "Sea Monkeys" (as eggs) - brine shrimp. My mom would have loved pets and been helped a lot by them in terms of stress and doing something useful.

So, the years went by and I got distracted with other things. And then I started hanging out in parks more and noticing the squirrels. In some NYC parks they are very tame, such as Battery Park where they sit on the bench with you and take peanuts out of your hand as you eat them. Foreign tourists got a big kick out of seeing that.

Not long after I started considering other rodents as pets and doing research. Gerbils were first up, and I got six just weaned pups from a breeder, a High School kid: Chrissie, Crystal, Tommy, Cliffy, Dill, and Phil. They were so cute coming home on the rail road and subway (it was a 90 minute trip) I missed my stop! They are all in my Memorial Gallery in my signature.

After that I tried a Syrian, Blackie, who died too soon of a respiratory infection. After that soon came Rainy and her surprise litter. And then this place was filled with rodents!

I got dwarfs next, and then mice. The stories are on RR. Guinea pigs also. And a rescued rabbit and then another.

I wondered about rats though. How much poop? What about the tumors? That was the main concern. Short lives. I did not realize how cuddly and gentle they are.

And then in late October of 2006 I saw some in that same pet store, and Moet and Chandon came home. And that story also is related in detail on this board.

I never found them "icky". I always thought the idea of vicious rats as in "Willard" to be hilarious, and everyone loved Ben from that movie.

Well, I am not a female, so perhaps I intrude on this thread and am OT. But what the hell. That's my story.

P.S. People who are put off by the tail are being ridiculous. Some people are put off by gerbil tails, which are soft and furry! Yes, I have heard in pet stores adults refer to gerbil as as "rats".

BTW, one thing I was struck with by all the rodents, starting with the first gerbs (who were related) is how different each is. They all had different personalities and each are unique.

NOTE: I do not normally frequent pet stores. I discourage buying from them. Most of my animals are rescues. But when I see a lovely blue rat or a hairless I will grab them.

I pretty much love all animals, those with no more than four legs that is. I respect reptiles but not the jerks who breed giant pythons and such in their basements. That should be illegal, and often is.

[adoptaratcanada]

They all had different personalities and each are unique.

Of all my pets, and all the pets of everyone I've known have had different personalities, and people I read online, likewise. Therefore I have to extrapolate that all animals on the planet have different personalities, and that's one more reason (beyond that they are a living entity) I feel they deserve respect and compassion.

I believe we are all variations on a theme.

[doctorbob]

As a male, I can only relate the things I've seen with my wife and friends of mine, hers, and my son.

It is interesting - many of the female friends I have do not react negatively if I say that we have rats here. Many of those also have pet rats. And that's great. Very few ladies I know react like "Ewww! It's their tails I don't like." It's always the tail. It was my wife's idea that we "rescue" Dizzy and she was our first. Snowballed from there. And my son has a good friend who's a girl (but he's quick to point out, not his girlfriend; he's 11) that has rat-sat for us if we've gone out of town and she loves our rats. She cannot wait until things change so that she can get rats of her own. She even came to Oreo's funeral.

Fun topic!
db

[adoptaratcanada]

Apr 12, 2009 22:45:37 GMT -4 doctorbob said:

And my son has a good friend who's a girl (but he's quick to point out, not his girlfriend; he's 11) that has rat-sat for us if we've gone out of town and she loves our rats. She cannot wait until things change so that she can get rats of her own. She even came to Oreo's funeral.

Awww. And awww