A Colorado Rat Breeder & Rattery : Colorado Mountain Meadows Rattery / Colorado Rattery

My Rattery...

This is my rattery! The bottom left is the boy’s cage, middle bottom cage is the girls cage, and the right cage is currently not in use. It is intended to be an extra female cage. The smaller cages on top are the breeding, nursery, male and female baby cages, and are also used for quarantine.

I keep my rattery very clean! Cages are completely cleaned every 2 days. I love these cages because they are big enough to hold all my breeders and light enough for me to clean without help. These cages fit right in the tub so I can scrub them with soap, spray them with bleach, and rinse them with scalding hot water every time I clean the cages.

I want to stay a small rattery, no more than 25 breeder adults total. I like to make sure each and every one of my breeders get a lot of one on one attention as well as out of the cage exercise. I like to let my rats roam outside of the cage for short periods of time under close supervision. When not free roaming they get to cruse the house in the rat ball. I am worried that if I let my rattery get to big my breeders will not have the life I want for them.

"Open" or "Closed" Rattery?

My rattery is a "closed" rattery meaning that I don't allow anyone into my "rat room". Rest assured I have nothing to hide. I have my rattery set up this way to insure that my rats stay as healthy and happy as possible. A sickness can spread like wildfire in a rattery which can be costly to treat, or even worse lead to death. I know that this may raise some concerns with potential adopters but there are a few tricks you can learn to catch on to a bad or unhealthy rattery.

Check out the babies, make sure they have bright clean eyes with no discharge. Look at noses they should be clean with no discharge. Watch out for babies that look thin or small, baby rats should be at a nice weight and a nice size. Look for alertness, baby rats should be alert and interested in new activity and people, a lethargic baby can be a sign of a sick rat. Smell the babies, if they smell fowl that is a good sign that the cage they are being kept in was just cleaned because the rattery owner was expecting you. Fowl smelling babies means the rats are normally kept in poor and unsanitary conditions. On the flip side watch out for freshly bathed rats which can be a sign that the rats were un presentable before bathed.

Feeding the colony...

I feed my rats a home made blend of grains, seeds, & healthy cereals mixed with a good quality dog food.

For the most part this is what my food looks like, it varies depending what cereal I mix in. I change it up so the rats don't get bored with the selection.

My rats get fresh fruits and vegetables every night. A couple nights a week I offer them different items like yogurt, eggs, chicken, cooked pasta, peanut butter celery, walnuts, banana chips, raisins, hard dog biscuits, the list just goes on and on. Rats can eat just about anything, just keep it healthy and you should be all set.

I don't have any recipes because my menu always changes. I just mix and match things I would eat and serve. A good rule of thumb is to never feed your rats anything you wouldn't eat.

I add a vitamin supplement to my rats water, you can pick it up at your local pet store to make sure they get all the vitamins they need.

Some items are BAD for your rat! For a list of things to stay away from, and a list of ideas to feed your rat click HERE.

Raising the babies...

I like to make sure all of my babies are sweet and well socialized. Because of this I only breed two or less litter at a time. I spend a lot of time with my babies to get them used to human contact and to observe for any problems. I feel that if I have to many babies at one time I may not be able to get each one the attention I feel they require for proper socialization. It doesn't matter what color, pattern, or pedigree a rat has, if it is un handable or flighty it will not make a good pet. Genetic characteristics are important aspects of breeding for better fancy rats, but I feel socialization is a key ingredient to a good rat!

It's who you know...

My rats are raised with and constantly exposed to many sounds and other animals. My dogs come into the Rattery often to inspect for bits of food that have been tossed out of the cages. My rats even get to be raised around the feline type. My cat will often visit the Rattery to watch "the rat show". Exposure to may sights and sounds helps socialize baby rats and prevent them from being flighty and skittish.

Although a rat and another animal will often get along well in your presents, never leave your rat alone with another species of animal. Rats are often viewed as pray to most pets and when the dominant figure (you), leave field of view your rat could suffer injury or death. On the same note rats should only be handled by young children when under close supervision.

Bedding and accessories...

I only use Aspen bedding. I absolutely recommend it to anyone. Just watch out, sometimes you can get an extra dusty batch and that may irritate your rats. The best thing to do is inspect it before you purchase it. Some bags will have a lot more dust settled at the bottom, look for the ones with less dust. I prefer the wood over paper and other types but that is only my preference, there are other bedding options to choose from. As you may have read and hear from other sources Cedar and Pine bedding's are bad for your rat. The reason is the smell, that wonderful pine and cedar smell will cause permanent respiratory damage in your rats when they are forced to smell and breath it.

The accessories I recommend are just a basic list.

Shelter - Rats like to sleep in some kind of shelter, I use large Igloos. At times I can walk into my Rattery and not see a single rat, they all pile up in one igloo and sleep.

Watering Hole - When you pick out a water bottle I recommend you get one without any print on the sides. The print can prevent you from seeing the water level and cleanliness of the inside. Bigger is not always better in the case of water bottles. You should change your rats water everyday, get one only big enough to prevent them from running out of water in 24 hours. I always add vitamins to my rats water.

Dinnerware - I use ceramic bowls for my sweeties. My rats like to stand on the sides of the bowls while they pick out what they like to eat. A good sized ceramic bowl has the weight to allow them to do this. I use white bowls, it makes it easer for me to check cleanliness.

Rats love toys! Keep things interesting.

Wheels - My rats love to run on the wheels, when you purchase one make sure you get one that your rat will not grow out of. I get the biggest ones I can get to fit in my cages.

Explore Balls - A rat ball or 2 or 3. I like to let my rats explore, some are somewhat shy at first but after a while they really get going. These get the rats out of the same old room and around the house and safe at the same time, be sure to block off stairs.

Other Odds and Ends - Anything that looks fun! Baby toys work great and can be hung in the cages. Rats are playful and curious creatures. You can use many things as toys just be safe. Don't use anything they can get stuck in. Watch out for sharp edges and keep in mind whatever you use will need to be washable or regularly replaceable to keep things clean.