The Rat Room

Ok so those two words really don’t go together but sometimes you just have to turn cleaning into fun.
That’s how it is with my crew or silly ratties. Almost all of them will run after the wet rag, trying to pin it down and then hide it away in some remote corner of the cage. Good luck in retrieving it.
Seriously though, a clean habitat is one of the most important factor to a rat’s health. I do a thorough scrub down of the cage every Friday of every week. But every day I go in and wipe up little messes. I change the fleece that start to smell and always give them a clean dish of food and water. It’s actually quite fun having a half a dozen rats crawling all over you when changing their food dish. Or wrapping a stubborn rat in the fleece when he refuses to get out of the way. Just don’t throw him out with the trash. lol
The most important thing… Have fun when cleaning with the rats.

It’s really quite simple… rats need good air ventilation so cages are really the only habitat suitable for rats.
Tanks are usually too small, have no shelves and have very poor air flow.
Rats thrive on lots of interaction and being part of the family. A tank limits his involvement, not only can’t he see properly but he can’t smell nor hear when in a tank. Rats need constant mental stimulation, as they are highly intelligent.
Wire cages are the best but need to be a good size. I know the old saying goes 2 cubic feet per rat but honestly, even that is too small. Rats are active animals, they need room to run, climb and explore. His habitat needs to contain several nesting areas as well as a clean spot for his food and water.
For two rats, start with a base of 30 x 18… the height is important as well, this means it can hold shelves or levels as well as hammocks and other nests and beds.
Be careful of the bar spacing. Babies, females and small males can squeeze through a 1″ gap in the bars.
Unfortunately most cages with suitable bar spacing aren’t big enough and mainly suitable for hamsters.
Luckily, there are a few cages available to the pet rat and these cages are great.
Martin’s cages make an excellent rat cage.
Midwest’s Critter Nation is also an excellent cage for rats.

Over the years, I’ve tried all kinds… except not the dreaded cedar and pine. The softwood chips contain phenols which in turn can harm the rat’s respiratory systems and kidneys since it cannot keep up with filtering the toxins as well as their liver.
Aspen is another choice but again, I’ve found a study that suggest it’s also not the best to use with rats not as bad as pine and cedar though. Also, aspen is dusty and can get rather stinky once it’s been urinated on.
There are other types of commercial bedding marketed for small animals like Carefresh. I have used this brand in the past and found it excessively too dusty.
Clumping clay cat litter is definitely a no-no. Rats could easily ingest it when cleaning themselves. This litter clumps when moisture is added, think of the issues this can cause in ratty tummies.
Another issue for tummies would be corncob bedding. If not cleaned fast enough it will mold and rats do find it palatable. Corncob bedding is also too absorbent which can cause a condition called ringtail in rats, from which they can lose their tail unless treated. It sucks the moisture from the tail.
The best I’ve found so far is Yesterday’s News… a cat litter made of recycled material. The odor control if fantastic, it’s very absorbent and easy to clean as well.
I have yet to try Boxo which is a shredded box board. I’m hesitant to change since using fleece on my floors and YN in litter trays, my cages haven’t been stinky and it’s a breeze to do daily cleanups.