Most loved toys

Jessica marie · May 14, 2018

HI guys! I'm just wondering what your ratties favorite toys are (pictures if you have them, please)...I currently have two boys (getting four more around the end of the month)...I love just observing them playing/chewing, and really enjoy making them toys myself, but I'm getting discouraged. I know males are supposedly more chill and a bit less playful than females, but my boys don't seem very interested in much of anything, store bought or homemade....I've tried so very many things already but now I'm thinking that maybe I just haven't found the RIGHT thing yet....so I need more ideas, PLEASE!!!

Petunia · May 14, 2018

what *do* your boys enjoy doing? I've got boys who are quite old (they'll be 3 in Aug) and I *thought* they had no interest in toys but I recently discovered that they actually enjoy just moving them around the cage. I give them small pebbles, straws cut in half, some small willow balls, etc and they will more these things to different spots. I found some of the heavier pebbles on TOP of a hammock!! they also like to kick the litter out of the litter box. soooooooooooo I figure if that makes them happy, I'll make sure they have plenty of litter to kick out LOL I'm going to try a digging box next with some coconut coir fiber stuff that's been dampened. It's like potting soil but sterile. One of my boys likes to chew wood so he always has a wooden chew toy or two.
Some rats just don't use toys much, and would rather climb, explore, or cuddle with mom or dad

SqueakingJellybean · May 15, 2018

Our rats enjoy customizing cardboard boxes and redecorating the DCN. Nothing brings them as much joy as a full box of Kleenex! We go to bed with a freshly cleaned ratstack; we wake up to an indoor carnival.

Milo has a particular fondness for a yellow dingle-ball (one of those little plastic balls with a bell inside). He carries the wicker/willow balls around as well, but that dingle-ball is his favourite. It's the one toy he'll take with him inside the Mini-wheats box, almost like a kid with a teddy bear. Over the years, we've watched many of our rats enjoy a game of midnight dingle-ball. We'd get up in the morning and find the ball in the food dish. They're easy to carry, and the sound seems to be pleasing.

Chew barrels are another consistent favourite. Two wooden circles connected by lengths of dowel, generally with a wooden ball trapped within. Our fuzzies love 'em. They look heavy (relatively speaking) but they get hauled everywhere.

A basket full of dollar store pompoms is often another winner. They carry the pompoms around, nest in them, fling them about, and, on one occasion, attempted to store the Kleenex box in them.

Fidget · May 16, 2018

Great ideas from Petunia & SqueakingJellybean, my kids don't go in for toys much, but they love to chew on a cooked bone (freeze them when you have spareribs or chicken wings), and they're especially great straight from the freezer in summer. If you want to watch some fun give them 1/2 a raw corn-on-the-cob, or even a whole one, they go nuts for it and love to haul it around..

Sheldon · May 16, 2018

Mine loved ANY wooden bird toy they could destroy. The favorite was popsicle sticks! Just have to be careful there isn’t any plastic beads on it also. Choking hazard, you know. They also loved fresh newspapers (no ink printed on them yet). They would shred them everywhere and make a glorious mess.

Mordikus · May 16, 2018

My boys are a bit young right now and don't seem to be into most things but they absolutely LOVE boxes. I recommend making four way tunnels and little houses, mine also really enjoy exploring so maybe build some mazes or even teach them some tricks. If you are having trouble looking for ideas, you should search up ferret or bird DIYs. It's good to explore with them.