Rat newbie questions c:

[howlerkos]

I decided to just make this board instead of making a new board for every new question I can think of. Plus I imagine a lot of other people might be wondering the same things?

When it comes to shredding up fabric for bedding, Im guessing T-shirts that have printed stuff on them are a no no?

As for fabric, what kind is the best for rats? the worst?

How do you rat proof your house? How do you protect them from wires and such?

this next ones more of a joke, but.. xD

Can rats kill dogs? I have quite the pansy for a dachshund. x3

 

[eagle]

I decided to just make this board instead of making a new board for every new question I can think of. Plus I imagine a lot of other people might be wondering the same things?

When it comes to shredding up fabric for bedding, Im guessing T-shirts that have printed stuff on them are a no no?

As for fabric, what kind is the best for rats? the worst?

How do you rat proof your house? How do you protect them from wires and such?

this next ones more of a joke, but.. xD

Can rats kill dogs? I have quite the pansy for a dachshund. x3

I have not ever shredded up a t-shirt for bedding although I do use old t-shirts (with and without stuff on them) for hammocks and have not had any problems. If in doubt don't use it.
Some on here will argue that fleece is the worse thing to use. I use fleece with no problems for liners on my cages. For hammocks I use fleece, flannel and some cotton. We have one hammock maker her that uses recycled denim jeans for hammocks.

The best way to rat proof your wiring is to put all cables and wires in a hard plastic covering that can be found at Home Depot/Lowes and places like that.

As for the rat killing a dog, not sure. Rats can and will kill snakes so I guess it could be possible although I would think it would take more than one rat to kill a dog. Best way to make sure nothing happens is to make sure the dog and rats are not out together.

 

[howlerkos]

Thanks for the answers! :3 Its nice to know i can easily get ahold of that material.

Oh, and.. would two male rats fight more than two female rats?

Do male rats smell worse than females?

How much does it cost to get male rats fixed, usually?

 

[jorats]

I use fleece all the time in my cages. I love it that it doesn't ever fray, it's easy to wash and it's half the time to dry as well.

I keep my rats enclosed in an area using coroplast. It's these huge plastic sign boards, ziptie them together and make it into a coral.

Non aggressive males don't fight with their buddies. Circumstances can change that though, like being exposed to females, or too many stresses or hormonal stress as well. A neuter takes care of that.
I don't know how much it costs in your neck of the woods, but here, a neuter is $180.

I don't think the rat can kill your dog but they can certainly hurt him. But... the dog can certainly kill a rat.

 

[Marylou Mader]

I decided to just make this board instead of making a new board for every new question I can think of. Plus I imagine a lot of other people might be wondering the same things?

When it comes to shredding up fabric for bedding, Im guessing T-shirts that have printed stuff on them are a no no?

As for fabric, what kind is the best for rats? the worst?

How do you rat proof your house? How do you protect them from wires and such?

this next ones more of a joke, but.. xD

Can rats kill dogs? I have quite the pansy for a dachshund. x3

Your pansy Dachshund could suddenly find drives to kill your rats. I have Dachshund and they only see my rats from a distance, they would surely kill them if they had a chance. Dachshunds are bred to go to ground and there are trials using Rats (safe in cages) as quarry...