Rat owners, if you had to go on vacation, what would you do with your rats?
1) Leave them at home with a sitter
2) Take them with you with a spare cage, food, litter and a travel cage (specially designed for rats).
Please tell me what to do. I'm not going on vacation, but I would like to know what would happen if you had to go, or if you have gone, what did you do?
Thank you in advance!
Answers:
I have around 100 rats so it's never been easy for me to find someone who likes rats, let alone someone who knows enough about rats to come into my home and look after that many.
But I found someone and she has been a gem. I rarely if ever go on vacation, but if I do I prefer my mischief to stay in their own home where they are surrounded by everything that is familiar to them.
I'm assuming you have only a couple of rats so with that assumption...If you are away for a weekend, say 2 - 3 days, you can keep your rats happy in their cage by providing them with *2* water bottles that are functioning properly and plenty of *dry* food. Do not give them any moist food, or fruit and vegies, while you are away because if they stash these, they will go rotten and make the rats sick should they nibble on it.
If your vacation is longer then 3 days then you really need to get someone to come into your house to look after your rats once, preferably twice, a day.
Some pet stores will board small animals, and that way there will be somebody watching out for your rats most of the day, every day.
Or do you have a friend who loves your rats, can be a responsible pet-sitter, and her house is rat-safe? You can take a confident rat over to her place where it might like a change of scenery.
Maybe you have chosen to take your rats with you?
Travelling with your rats
http://www.rmca.org/articles/training.ht...
http://www.goosemoose.com/component/opti...
http://www.rmca.org/articles/flyingrat.h...
Hints if you choose this:
You need to be travelling in an air-conditioned car
A cage small enough that it is easy to carry around
No water bottle while you are travelling in the car. The motion of the car can cause waterbottles to drip and soak the bedding. Use apples and watermelon instead for the rats' water intake, and put the waterbottle on the cage during the rest stops.
Your rat can stay on it's usual diet because you will be there to remove uneaten wet foods.
It's not a hassle to take your rats with you if you have done some pre-travel preparation, especially if you have only a couple of rats. Those who feel it's a hassle have not done their homework, or they haven't talked to other rat-keepers who have done it successfully. These people can talk to you on the rat-only Yahoo forums, about how they have done it and both they and their rats have enjoyed the experience.
spazrats
"my life has gone to the rats"
leave them at home with a sitter. if you are gong on vacation you probably wont be spending too much time with it. also your rat will be ok for a day or so, you would only need someone to come over and make sure it has food and water.
take them to a trusted individuals house, and let them watch them there.
Since they are so cheap to buy, a third option is to throw the current one in the garbage, and wait until you come back from vacation to buy another one.
Trying to take them with you may not only be a hassle, but it could end in disaster. What if they manage to escape and get lost? They won't enjoy being couped up in a travel cage for several days.
You should either leave them at home and have someone responsible look in on them for an hour each day, or ask a close friend to take them in for a few days. Your little ratties would be more comfortable in their usual cage without a huge disruption of their routine and strange new surroundings.
i like the idea about the garbage...
I would leave them at home with a trusted sitter. The ride might stress them out anyway. Put a couple new toys in the cage and leave instructions for your sitter. They will be fine.
i would choose a sitter. the carrting case might put stress on them and the sitter would take care of them
Well, when I went away I left my rats with a sitter. If you do, make sure the sitter will play with the rats every day and clean their cage. Maybe a trusted friend or relative. The trip could make the rats stresses out and change of environment like that could start illnesses. Unless it is for a long time and you think your rats are pretty equipped you should not take them with you.
Rats are very resourceful and will do fine at home for a short amount of time (couple weeks). Traveling with my rats has only proved to be a hassle. I recommend buying a large water bottle, and putting lots of food and snacks in their cage. This would allow them to have sufficient food and water for at least 3 days. If needed, a neighbor could easily refill their water and food every 3 days. Just make sure you let them out to stretch their legs as soon as you get home!
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