Smelly Boys!

[oibeerpunk]

I recently looked after my friends rats

there boys and about a few months old

but they really stunk! like i took them to my house and they smelled really bad! is this just a boy thing? (like scenting the area) or something?

their cage smelt bad too!

I'm after some pet rats myself but if girls arnt as smelly then i'll probably buy those!

any help?

 

[starfoot]

I've never had boys myself, but of what I do know, they can tend to smell more musty with a bit of a stronger scent than the females... If they really stunk, then it could be down to their diet. A nice healthy diet can easily redeuce smell, mainly since their poos smell less and are harder, but it can also affect the smell of the rat itself.

It may just have been through lack of cleaning out though.. Any rat, female or male will smell if it's not cleaned out regularly enough. As a guide, I do spot cleans every day of my girls 2 cages, wiping down the pee-y bits and taking most of the poops out their tray, and they get the bottom tray emptied out twice a week, and the hammocks etc are washed weekly unless they are peed on or smell more than usual, along with a full wash of every single surface, at least once a week. Follow your nose... as soon as you smell them, you know they should have been cleaned.

But once you get into a routine of cleaning, and your rats are on a good diet.. there should be barely any smell at all!! No more than a dog, once you get used to the initial smell.

But no, I wouldn't let the smell affect which gender you want... get which ever you like, or whichever needs rescuing, or whichever leaps into your heart first

EDIT: oo you don't live that far away from me!

 

[user 78]

Rats shouldn't smell bad. A bit musky maybe, but not actually something that makes you wish you hadn't just eaten or anything. As starfoot mentioned, a good diet and a clean cage would fix that problem. Since their cage smelled that bad, I would assume it had alot to do with the smell.

 

[oibeerpunk]

i think it must be their diet, they definitely seemed confused when we offered them bits of fruit, seeds and other nice treats. I think the owners dont seem to clean them that often.

also apologies if im mistaken, but are the wire floors and ramps bad for the rats feet? im sure ive read this before. and the cage they are currently in didnt seem right!


oooh and hello to you in middlesbrough! im there at the moment in college haha

 

[starfoot]

really? I do a human biology class on wednesday nights at the kirby college.

Wire in cages can be ok SOMETIMES if it's coated and thick and not at all sharp, but in anycase if I had wire I'd cover it regardless of what it was like. It can aggravate their little feeties an hugely increast the risk of bumble foot - sores they get on their feet that can swell and blister and be quite painful! It's like the steps at fairgrounds, you know the metal grid ones with rectangular holes? If we walk barefoot on them all day we'd get blisters and sore bits too.

 

[oibeerpunk]

yeah i was really concerned that it looked a bit painful for them,

they also were spending most the time in the bottom part
(its kind of a plastic tank thing at the bottom, then a wire ramp up to a wire floor.with an extra wire floor on the top too)

also i was very concerned at how nervous the rats were, i mean they are so timid that they wanted to hide whenever they were let out the cage, and tried to hide when anyone entered the room.

it took a lot of time before the rats were happy enough to come and sniff you and get a stroke, but i think that may the owners fault.

they dont really interact with the poor things or let them out much.

and im at the CCAD art college!

 

[starfoot]

that's just over the road from Kirby isn't it? On Roman Road? Small world!

That's horrible about not letting them out.. rats are hugely social and benefit a lot from human contact and stimulation of being let out intop different environments. Poor things, at least they have each other though.. How old are they? and how long has your friend had them? Is there no way you can sort of say how shy they are and that the should be handled and be friendly, or jsut say you can't believe how afraid they are, you should let them out more. x

 

[SQ]

Those poor boys.

As previously said, boys shouldn't stink.
As previously noted, it is probably due to poor diet and uncleanliness.
Tanks are not good homes for rats and a huge hazard to their health if not kept extremely clean.
I cover all wire floors in my cage.
Rats need to be taken out and played with for at least one hour a day.
Rats also need lots of toys, etc. in their cages.
I'm sure you will get a lot of ideas from posts on this forum.

Since your friends aren't that interested in the boys, maybe they would find them a better home ...

 

[user 78]

In a new space, with new people, I wouldn't expect the average rat to be bouncing around without a care in the world. Rats are prey animals, so new smells and places can freak them out a bit. Even my very well socialized girls take a minute or two before they get used to new places/smells. That may have had alot to do with their skittish behavior. It would have been compounded by the fact their owners don't spend too much time interacting with them, though.

The bottom of cages are generally the most 'protected' area, where they have places they can run to and hide when they get nervous. Upper floors/shelves tend to be in the open, which can make a rat in a new environment nervous.

Wire floors don't cause bumblefoot. Genetic predisposition, unsanitary conditions, and obesity are what cause bumblefoot. Wire floors, if not coated properly, can cause abrasions and scratches on their feet, which will leave an opening for infection. If the cage isn't clean, then infection is likely to set in. I know many rats who are on wire floors in their cages, and have never had any problems directly related to that. It is, however, highly recommended to offer a variety of surfaces for rats to walk on. It's just a good practice, so that there's no chance of anything. Covering the shelves/floors with fleece or something does make it easier to clean the cage, too.

 

[Pauley]

I have nine and they aren't stinky, but they do have their certain aroma. They will use a litterbox, and it needs to be changed when it gets smelly. I agree about the diet theory too.

 

[oibeerpunk]

thanks for all your help and suggestions

i have passed lots on to the owner and he assures me a new cage and more time with the rats, so they hopefully will be much happier and a lot less scared

 

[oibeerpunk]

yeahh they seemed confused by things like fruit and cereals so i dont think they had had them!