Bath Time

Who gives their boys/girls a bath, and how often do you bath them? Do they like it?

I used to give my first girl (Alice) and Abby and bath once every two weeks, just because it used to make Alice feel better, I would only shampoo them every two months (if needed). Abby never needed to be shampooed.

Now that Alice is gone, I don’t bother putting the girls in the bath, they all smell really good, which is weird.
Now the boys ..that’s a different story ..5 males in one cage get pretty smelly, especially their tails (I wash their tails every other day with some shampoo (ratty shampoo)). I usually stick them in the bath every two weeks to get some of the oil off them and for a swim, I don’t shampoo them often because it dries out their skin. But I find just putting them in the bath make s a difference. They don’t overly like it all that much ..they swim for the first 2 min, then there looking up at me saying mom take us out now ..and they hate to be dried with the towel ..I dry them as much as they will let me then I crank up the heat in their room so they can dry.

 

[ryelle]

my rats HATE a bath and will happily slice my arms to bits trying to get out of it. They will play in a bowl of water if it is on their terms though. I only ever bath if its needed - if a rat is incontinent or has a skin issue and needs medicated shampoo.

my siamese currently has some dark smudges on her back that i will attack with a wet toothbrush later lol

 

I find my arms get torn to shreds to, as soon as I pick them up lol.

 

[SQ]

I do not bath my boys.
It isn't necessary and like cats ,it is not good for them. Although a bath is not harmful if done infrequently.
Some people who have boys with a lot of buck grease will give them a bath once every couple of months.
Others will wipe them down on rare occasions with a warm damp cloth.
If you do a search, you will find a post where jorats has recommended what is ok to use on rats who need a bath.

 

It's not the bath itself thats bad, its the shampooing, which I do very little and not often. Bath time without shampooing is good for exercise and play time ..if they like it.

 

[SQ]

Semantics I guess.
The water and soap dry out the skin and disturb the oil balance.
Putting rats into a tub of water will cause them a great deal of stress, which is harmful.

Many of us give our rats the opportunity play in water by providing access to shallow containers of water containing peas during hot weather .. ie. fishing for peas.
They are given this choice and mine rarely choose to enter the water, instead they reach for peas from the side of the container.
I have known only one person whose rats enjoyed playing and swimming in the water in the bath tub. She provided her rats with toys when they did this.

I do not put my rats into a tub of water, this would be very stressful and stress in rats causes illness.
My rats dislike getting into water although many like taking what looks like a sponge bath using the water dish.

 

[Moon]

Shampoo-free baths are only "good" for rats that enjoy it. Forcing a stressed out rat into water will just make the more stressed, and heighten the possibility of them getting sick.

 

My male rat's do enjoy bath time, for only a short time, I take them out when they are ready. Also I put very little water in the bath tub, I include toys and I actually put pears in there too.

 

[Rachael]

You said they shred your arms coming out which kinda seems like they are desperate to get out.

 

Yes they do, because they jump on my arm to get out, just like if their on the floor or couch and I put my arm out ..they jump on ..and they have nails. But they do enjoy bath time, but only for a lil bit.

 

[sketchi]

I bathed my boys because they had that buck grease, and smelled funny. >_> I've bathed them twice so far; they don't smell anymore and the amount of buck grease is... tolerable. lol. they got better with the second bath, once they figured it won't kill them. plus I got better at handling them. they really enjoy being towel-dried though! maybe because I use really soft fluffy towels. :cheeky: but Milky, the new rat, smells REALLY good :shock: I have no idea why! chelle said she never bathed him, so yeah. he just naturally smells a bit like shampoo to me.

 

[Chevalrose]

I bathe my boys every three(ish) months. Too much bathing will dry them out, but shampoo will dry them out more than just water. If they get dried out from using just water then they can be given bread in olive oil to help keep their skin and coats well hydrated.

As for their tails, every month or so I fill the tub with a little water and let them "soak" their tails for a few minutes and then use a soft toothbrush to brush them down. Every other day seems a bit excessive to be using shampoo on their tails, it will dry them out.

 

Mine get olive oil and bread 2 times a week for that their skin don't get dry. I also use a tooth brush on their tails with warm water every few week. My vet also told me putting a little bit of olive oil on your hands nd rubby it on their tails will pervent thier tails from getting dry. So I do this once a month (just a little bit though because their tails regulate heat). Also I usually only put enough water in the tube to cover their feet and thats way they can play with toys and their skin don't dry out. When I shampoo them (which is every few months) I fill it up enough so they can swim ..nut my bath tub is slanted to its shallow on one end where they can stand.