Rattus norvegicus domestica (Rat)

Origin: The rat, or tame rat, is a descendant of the wild brown rat. This brown rat is native to East Asia, but has spread all over the world over time.
Length: between 19 and 30 cm. This does not include the start of 15 to 22 cm.
Age: Often around two years old. Females often live a little longer than males.
Rats are friendly, curious animals that like to be active. They are inquisitive animals that learn easily and are also very enthusiastic about this. They are easy to maintain and handle, so good animals for people who don't have much experience yet.

Grooming
Experience: None.
Food: There is special rat food on the market. You can use this as a basic nutrition. As a bonus, you can occasionally give vegetables and fruit, just do not give lettuce and dense cabbage.
rats love small amounts of unsweetened cereal, potato, cooked rice, pasta or stale bread. Note that rats get fat quickly, so feed it with measures.
Spicy, fat, sweetened or salted and dairy products make rats sick.
Rats like to gnaw, so make sure there are branches of willow, hazel, birch or fruit trees in the hutch.
Water bowl: Not necessary
Water bottle: Yes.
Change water: Daily

Food:
It is best to use a stone food bowl for feeding. Make sure that it is slightly elevated, so that the animals do not quickly throw in bedding.
For the water you can use a water bottle with a metal nipple.
Water: You could also use a drinking bowl instead of a drinking bottle. Please note that it cannot be overturned and cannot be filled with ground cover.

Cleaning: The loft must be cleaned at least weekly. However, this does not have to be difficult. Rats can be house-trained. By using a toilet bowl (or a regular washing-up bowl or bottom of a litter box), filling it with extra bedding and a little training, you can quickly toilet train your animals. Make sure you put some manure and urine in the toilet bowl each time until you notice that the animals start using this bowl for their faeces. After this you only have to clean the toilet bowl daily and once a week the rest of the loft. The toilet bowl itself must be cleaned once every week with vinegar. This is to remove deposits.
You can use non-scented soap for the loft.
Do not forget to bring the food bowl with you when cleaning and change the water every day. If you use a water bottle, it should also be cleaned completely. So also the spout of the bottle.
Also make sure that you remove food residues from the cage every day.

Handling
Rats often enjoy being handled once they get used to it. Sometimes they will spontaneously crawl onto your hand while you are in the enclosure.
You can pick up your rat by gently sliding your hand under the belly and lifting the animal.
Never lift a rat by its tail. The skin can roll up or the tail can break. You can grab the animal by the base of the tail if you have to, but the animal does not like this.
Also always make sure that the rat cannot fall.

Housing
Minimum enclosure size for 1 rat: 60 x 50 x 30 cm. Bigger is always better, of course.
Temperature: Between 15 and 21 degrees. 25 degrees or more can even be dangerous for them.
Hours of light: 12 hours. (No extra bulb or heat lamp needed.)
Ground cover: Because rats quickly suffer from respiratory problems, you should also take this into account when choosing a ground cover. This must be dust-free and must not contain harmful vapors. Suitable coverings are, for example, paper, fine beech chips or floor coverings based on clean cardboard, corn or hemp.
Furnishing: The cage of the rat can best consist of a bottom tray with bars on top, so that no bad odors linger in the cage. Horizontal bars are best, as rats can climb on them. Make sure they cannot get caught in it.
Furthermore, there must be a food and water bowl in the loft (a water bottle is of course also allowed). These must be raised higher so that no ground cover can enter them quickly.
Rats are animals that get bored quickly, so they need a lot of variety in their enclosure. Think of sitting boards, branches, paper tissues, empty toilet rolls, climbing ropes, stairs, pipes and clean glass jars. It is also important to change this design regularly, so that there is always something new to discover. Always make sure that it is properly stable.
Provide several sleeping houses. Preferably one more than the number of animals in the loft. Nesting material must also be present in the sleeping houses, but they must not be able to become entangled in this. Paper and tissues are the best option, "hamster wadding" or fabrics with threads coming off are not recommended.
You can also offer an exercise wheel for your rat, but it has many requirements. For example, it must have a considerable size, because the rat must be able to walk in it with a straight back without having to look up too much. In addition, one side must be closed, the tread must be closed and the stand must be attached to the closed side of the wheel. There should be no spokes and bars as these could get the legs or tail caught in them.

Behaviour
Lifestyle: Rats are mainly active at night and prefer to live in groups where there is one dominant male. They are active animals that can travel considerable kilometers in a day in the wild. Rats are omnivores by nature and are therefore not very picky with their food.

Character:
Rats are generally friendly animals and are not likely to bite. They are inquisitive and curious animals who prefer to discover something new every day. It is therefore quite possible to teach and train your rat. In addition, rats are also not likely to bite, because they are such quiet animals.

Points of attention:
Eye and nasal fluid in rats contains a reddish-brown dye. This sometimes makes it seem that a rat is bleeding, but this is not so bad. A real nosebleed is very exceptional. An overproduction of that reddish-brown dye can be a sign of stress and illness.
Rats are also very sensitive to respiratory and skin problems due to parasites.
In addition, rats can also carry the Seoul virus. This is a zoonosis that is known to infect humans through rats. Your rat will not get sick from this, but it can make you sick. So always make sure you work hygienically and always wash your hands after contact with the rats or the accommodation. Any scratch and bite wounds can best be cleaned with water and then disinfected with iodine.

Cost and Purchase
Legislation: You do not need special permits to keep rats.
One-off costs: For the one-off costs you should think of the costs for the stay, the food bowl, water bowl (or bottle), sleeping houses, boards, stairs, toys, etc.
The costs of this can quickly fall into the hundreds of euros, depending on size and quality.
Fixed costs: With fixed costs, you should think of the costs for feed and bedding. This quickly rises to tens of euros per year.
Unexpected costs: Unexpected costs can also occur. These are, for example, costs if your animal becomes ill and has to go to the vet.