…or anywhere else, for that matter.

Joanne loves her rats, and has spent over a year researching the viability of having an ethical rattery in her area. Unfortunately, the market for her babies does not exist. If you can't find trustworthy people to adopt your babies and stay involved in the maintenance of a pedigree, then you have the deck stacked against you.

Kimmiekins tells a story that we in rescue have to deal with in many forms, over and over again - only she has a particularly tough case. And it's only preventable by not breeding.

Breeding: please don't do this at home…

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Joanne:

Rats truly have a bad rap. Not only are they considered dirty and vermin, but they are also used for all kinds of experiments in labs, exposed to horrible drug effects – but yet, no drugs are found for how we can cure these sweet gentle animals.

Pet store rats are no better off [and often much worse off] than lab rats. In pet stores, they live in unacceptable conditions. They breathe toxins, they drink dirty water, they eat seeds and then, they have the most horrifying death one can imagine. Being eaten alive by a predator.

A rat mill rat is housed in small accommodations, they eat less than adequate foods, they are removed from their mother at too young an age and then they go to pet stores.

These rats have hidden pasts; should they really reproduce? That great personality is not in the genes, it's because of your interactions with that rat. Rats develop their own personalities, that cannot be bred into a new rat, that new rat will have his own. Personalities develop with the help of his early years with mommy rat and then with his habitat and his interactions with human mommy and daddy.

A rat with a hidden past, can seem really sweet now, but he may carry and pass along the aggressive gene, cancer, zucker gene (obesity), megacolon (certain painful death), and mammary tumors. Should these babies suffer for our mistakes or accidents (how can such an accident happen? It is preventable.)

What I'm about to write is the hardest thing in the world for me:

A few years ago, I picked up two pet store rats: my beautiful Blue rex named Reef and a sweet PEW named Prin and bred the two together. I was ignorant of genetics. I had done research on birth, but not breeding. I put the two together and three weeks later 12 beautiful black/chocolate babies were born: Charlie, Pinto, George, Sven, Lex, Sullivan, Niko, Tanzie, Candy, Celia, Tiki, and Mitsou.

These babies were wonderful. In fact, I was suppose to sell them to a pet store, but decided against it when I saw their sweet little faces. But when a couple of the boys matured, I noticed they became aggressive to people: they had the aggressive gene. Pinto needed to be castrated and a couple needed to be socialized and showed that alpha was the human. Meanwhile, Reef, the dad, became sick with myco. Then at 15 months, Charlie died of lung cancer. Sure enough, Mama Prin develops cancer herself. Now we know that the gene is passed along in her kids. Prin suffered immensely, while we watched and wondered which other of her kids will suffer too. Well, it's sweet gentle Sven. Sven has indeed cancer, he has suffered through a really hard leg operation and may even lose his leg.

Never mind the unbelievable emotional turmoil we all suffer, there's the money thing. Prin cost Nic, my sister, well over $1000 just for treatments. Sven has so far cost my mom $600 and more if his leg is amputated.

I was STUPID. I didn't do my research, I didn't look into genetics. I wish I came to PetRatsCanada first and have a bunch of people jump on me and tell me DO NOT BREED!

So there you have it:

•Are you ready to assume the responsibility of babies that don't have homes? Pet stores are not homes.
•Are you ready if complications occur during labour or miscarraige, such as a baby stuck in the birth canal? This happens especially with older first-time moms.
•Do you have money to pay for emergency caesarean?
•Do you have money to adequately house these babies?
•Do you have the time to socialize daily with these babies?
•Are you ready to accept the responsibility for the genes your rat may pass along?
•Can you watch your babies die of cancer? Zucker gene? Megacolon?

Good ethical ratteries are here to help make the life of our beloved rats better. They try to produce babies with the least fewest health problems. They are not here to make money, they know they will lose money, but that's ok, if it means your rats will live longer and happier. Their time is spent on the rats, food, research, vets, habitats, climate, everything is for the rat. Above all, always researching and asking: why? or what can I do now to make a happier, healthier rat?

Please think long and hard before you make that very important decision to breed. Please think first about all the lost rats in shelters. Please, just think about these new lives you will be creating...

Thanks,

Joanne

Anna Banana's Blog

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Until there are none... rescue one.

Kimmiekins

To those who come across this, and are thinking of breeding their pet store rats, let me tell you a story about one of the best little rats in the world who will have a tragic end, due to a human thinking breeding pet store rats was okay.

Her name is Lil'Bit, and she is the best rat I have ever come across. She's the perfect blend of sweet and feisty, she's an enthusiastic "rodentist" and fingernail groomer, absolutely loves humans and riding on shoulders and has a heart made of gold.

Sadly, she probably won't live more than another week or two.

She has Megacolon, and in a rat this young, it is always fatal. There will soon come a point where she will be in too much pain and will be suffering. If we let nature continue, her intestine will rupture, and she will die of septicemia.

We are trying, for a few days, the treatment that has helped only a few rats (generally late-onset, which Lil'Bit obviously doesn't have). We know it's not going to work, but she WANTS to live, so we will do what we can to try. She puts up with it all with no complaints, and hops onto our hands with glee, even if it's to "torture" her with massage. But sadly, we will probably end up having her put to sleep very soon. It breaks my heart.

Megacolon is a genetic disease, and any good breeder stays as far away from encountering it as possible. Most people who breed without knowing what they're doing, breed the "cute" rats - the high-white blazes and whatnot.

Sadly, that's what happened with Lil'Bit. Her mom, dad and older brothers and sisters were dumped on Rattie Love Rescue. Mama, still with dad (despite us being told males and females were separated) when they arrived at the quarantine house, was only two days away from popping Lil'Bit's litter, we didn't get mama into for an e-spay in time. Three died in the first week, which may have been for the best. Lil'Bit pulled through and has made it to five weeks... But will probably not make it another week more. She is one third the size of her siblings - who are, happily, healthy. It's too bad Lil'Bit won't get the chance to grow up, go to a new wonderful home, and enjoy life.

We do what we can, but it won't be good enough in the end. We're stretching our funds thin, but it doesn't matter. Whatever happens to this little girl, she has touched our hearts so deeply. We only wish she had the chance to continue doing so.

Please don't breed. Rescuers like us have large hearts and they break every time a case like this is dumped into our hands. It could have and SHOULD have been prevented.