NOTE:
Due to the Holidays,there may be a short delay in receiving answers as fast as I usually do.However,any emergency question should be addressed by writing EMERGENCY in the subject line.If I read it and see its not an emergency at all but just a way to get my attention first,I will reject your question and you will not get answered at all.Any life or death situation, of course,should be handled by a qualified Vet.To request a telephone consultation, please email sandyscrittercity@yahoo.com. in order to schedule a date and time that is feasible for both of us. There is no time limit on weekends or after 9 pm M-F or if your cell phone carrier is Verizon Wireless.There is no charge for a telephone consultation. I offer my advice free of charge since my goal is to simply keep your rats happy and healthy for as long as possible. My reward is knowing that people learning as much as they can on rat care in order to provide the best care possible. Thats all I need to know. You cant put a price tag on love:)
As one of the top experts here at allexperts for 2008, I am happy to be able to help advise others on the proper care of pet rats.
I am a rat care specialist/advisor for area vets and have 20 plus years experience working with rodents.
I can advise you on the most current treatments available to your rat for common and also complicated ailments that seem to affect domestic rats during their life time. I do telephone consults and have even had some wonderful Vets call me to compare notes/stories. I also have training in animal behavior with the main focus being the study of rodent behavior.
I also have experience with wild rats, raising one myself.
Experience My expertise
Includes the following:
1. Education on prevention of tumors, lung and heart disease and disease of the kidneys too.
2. Up to date treatments for tumors in rats,both benign or malignant tumors.
3. The most current treatments used successfully to treat lung and heart disease
4. Prevention and treatment of the mycoplasma organism that our rats are plagued with since the day they are born, among other common ailments that attack our rats, just to name a few.
My job as a rodent consultant is to educate the owner on proper care of the animal but in no way does my advice take the place of seeking professional treatment by a qualified Veterinarian.
However, I will contribute to this site by answering your questions about raising pet rats and any problems that may arise regarding their health, diet, husbandry and over all well being of the rat to **the best of my ability.**
Organizations I maintain my website, Critter City and update it often to keep up with current treatments concerning pet rat health care. Please click the link above to take you there!
Publications My own website of course, and also I have brochures on rat care that are found in various animal clinics in my area.
Education/Credentials
Mentored by highly noted exotic specialists in my area. I am a member of the ASPCA.
Awards and Honors Was honored by being chosen to be one of the top 50 experts of 2008
Past/Present Clients My past clients have been through various animal clinics and I also am mentor to new rat owners that reach me through here and my website too.
Question QUESTION: I am in the Bay Area. It would be around San Jose or Morgan Hill. thanks soooo... much for looking. It is a big help because I have no time with school, homework, volley ball, dance, playing with rats while doing homework, and sleep which I don't get much of. Well anyway, I appreciate it! Also I want a rescue, not a breeder! my friends looked online, thought they were cute, and ordered them which bugs me. They didn't see their personality! And I feel good when I get it from rescues! My cage is a ferret cage available to see if you go to http://www.petco.com/product/15487/Super-Pet-Multi-Floor-Ferret-Home.aspx
You can find a list of exotic vets at the site above. This site has the names of the only real board certified exotic vets in the world. If your vets name isnt on there, that means he or she is NOT a real exotic vet and did not have the proper education to earn this title.
As for a rescue, I will have to look better but you can always try to google RAT RESCUES IN CALIFORNIA and it may pop up tons of info for you.
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QUESTION: For my previous question I told you the cage I have but not the queston. Will the cage be big enough?
ANSWER: Yes thats a great cage!! It would fit several rats at once although I only suggest 3 or 4 males at once unless they are neutered just to avoid any aggression issues. As long as the cage is roomy though usually everyone is happy!
It does seem as if small rats could fit through the bars though, but its hard to tell. If that is the case you can fix that using hardware cloth.
Check out my website about how to make a cage BABY PROOF if need be.
QUESTION: Hi! I was wondering if you could paint rat's nails. I was hoping it would help with the scratching. I also was wondering what wouldhelp the scratches. Oh yeah! one more thing. How do you rat proof wires behind desks orextension cords on the ground.HELP! Thanks a ton!
Answer Nope, cant paint them. The stuff is toxic to them and it wouldnt help with the scratching either. You can use a finger nail file and gently file the tips down. CUtting them is tricky because if you cut the vein they will bleed like crazy!!
As for rat proofing wires etc....behind stuff...they actually sell long casings that you feed the cords through so pets cant chew on them.
I cant remember the name of them but they are long hard hard plastic tubes you feed the cords through. They are used to keep things neat and organized but I have seen them advertised on pet rabbit sites too. Of course the name escapes me but its still a general idea for ya:)
Me, I have four hermit crab tanks that have cords coming out the back due to the heaters and I simply have big pieces of cardboard cutting off areas so they cant get behind those places and get into trouble. In fact, I have a giant cardboard wall I open up every night and put it all around the entire room. There is about a foot of space all the way around the room they cant roam in and the rest they have access to safely. I fold the cardboard wall up and thats that!
My husband works for a company that ships HUGE boxes every few days so I cut the bottom and top out and was left with a long, rectangle, three foot piece of cardboard that wraps half way around the room and connected with another piece, can be made into a huge square the size of a small room! I just put it as a "U" and connect it from one side of the cage to the other and since they have a ferret nation and its high off the ground, I made them "steps" out of boxes so they can get in and out of the cage easy and safely too! Otherwise they would JUMP and this is NOT a good thing since its about a 2.5 foot drop down.
Hope this helps and meanwhile I will try to remember the name of those cord and cable protectors (tubing) Its probably easier to just bind them together with a zip tie and rise them up high off the ground and fasten them to the wall OR like I said, the easiest solution is to make a big play pen for them and add toys and rat approved stuff. Keeps them safe. HEy, did you see on my site about the rat that bit into an electrical cord and lived to tell about it? I have photos of him after the accident and the pics of him all better....he was a lucky little guy. Despite how over protective his owners were, it took just one lamp cord that was over looked and scampers went to town on it.
Here is the URL. Its listed under THE DANGERS OF FREE RANGE RATS about half way down the page on the health care page.
