Rats are nocturnal, meaning they are most active during the night They live about 2 years Rats are very social creatures. They can live in same-sex groups and must not live alone unless they specifically don’t like being around other rats
Enclosure Set Up
Along with a properly sized enclosure, rats need other basics like food, water, hidey houses, chew and climbing toys, a properly sized wheel, and plenty of bedding for them to burrow in one section of the cage.
The enclosure should be at least 900 sq inches. Multi-level cages are beneficial and encouraged.
When picking out an enclosure for your rat, most pet store cages are not suitable. Glass tank, wood, and plastic enclosures are not recommended since rats love to chew and can easily chew through plastic and wood cages and tanks do not provide enough ventilation.
Single level MidWest Critter Nation/ Ferret Nation is a great option. 900 square inches of floor space (multiply length times width) as the base is the minimum recommended cage size for two rats. If you have more than two, it is recommended to get a double unit cage.
For bedding, most people use aspen shavings (do NOT use pine or cedar), paper bedding and or blankets/fleece. They love to dig around so leaving as many inches of bedding in the bottom tray as possible is great for them. Some people use a large concrete mixing bin from a hardware store for the bottom to add more inches of bedding.
The bigger the cage, the more clutter and deeper the bedding, the happier your rats will be.
Toys and Hides
Rats love to chew and have teeth that are constantly growing and need to be worn down so it’s essential that there are toys and chews to help with this. Safe wooden blocks, applewood sticks, cardboard and toilet paper rolls work great.
You can add fleece hammocks and blankets to make their cage extra comfy but remove them if they start destroying them.
Not all rats use wheels but it’s a nice addition to see if they like it or not. When running on a wheel, the rat’s back should be as straight as possible, a curved back can cause pain and injury. Also be sure to get a wheel that is upright with a solid bottom, (no metal bars, thin plastic, mesh). Thick plastic and acrylic wheels that are 12 inches or larger are recommended so their toes and tails don’t get injured.
It is good to have as much clutter in your rats cage as possible so that they have plenty of places to hide, play and to help prevent them from falling and getting hurt. You can add rope toys and different platforms for them to walk across.
Diet
Rat’s are omnivores meaning they eat a variety of different foods including fruits, vegetables, meats, insects, grains, ect. so it is very important that they are fed a proper diet that meets all their nutritional needs. The most popular food is Oxbow Essentials Rat food with fresh foods a few times a week.
