REACTING TO A RAT CARE GUIDE | Pets at Home

[@VictoriaRaechel]

I should send you a Petsmart rat care Pamphlet to react to 🙊

[@littlepaws697]

I know right that's what I was thinking petsmart's are horrible😭🤮

[@Emiology]

Do it 😂

[@blubarie]

Yes!!

[@skyeeq4712]

Yes pls

[@Jade-zu4ru]

Yeah!!

[@cclecombe]

"Whilst in out care feed our rats Pets at Home Rat Nuggets" Emi: * sharp inhale *

[@angelsadevil]

Sometimes I give my rats rat nugs just to watch their disappointment 😂 "OK, but where's our food?" 🐀

[@Jay-nd6fx]

Ashley Cyril emi I think 🤔

[@clairelizak8051]

This is absolutely amazing compared to any pet store care guides in the U.S. Standards for the well being of both animals and people are so much better in the U.K. The U.S needs to catch up!

[@Hammytreatshop]

The UK does still have issues with their pet care though

[@vaya-dragon1998]

Jon Office manager, Indeed we do, for example here in the U.K., we are so pro outdoor cat that a lot of pet cats are run over and poisoned but no one wants to do anything about it

[@Hammytreatshop]

Osha- Vaya Ender pro keeping bunnies outside and in hutches

[@vaya-dragon1998]

Jon Office manager Is that a thing in the U.K? I don’t know so much about rabbits

[@topsymatthews8484]

@@vaya-dragon1998 cats should have freedom it's better for a cat to have an enriching outdoor life that being cooped up indoors

[@puffinlia2449]

Who needs a rat care guide when you have Emi?

[@kristianspot2683]

Emi is rat god :)

[@kelsie_o3o516]

Props to the RSPCA helping Pets at Home up their rat care game. Quite impressed because like you say most people only nab these leaflets. People still need to be more diligent in their pet research though. Love the video Emi.

[@lluna1266]

Hey, so I actually work at Pets At Home. When you said that you wish the leaflets would go more in depth; basically these leaflets are summaries to our sale. So when a customer comes up to us, we spend 30-40 minutes talking through ALL aspects of care (and reiterating the importance of keeping our animals either alone or with companions dependent on species). I then give them a leaflet and tell them that everything we talked about is in the leaflet in case they forget something, I also advice them to call us as many times as they need to in order to have any queries answered. The unfortunate thing is..... I have been disciplined by my manager for refusing a customer a sale because they were desperate for simply ONE rat. We are not allowed to refuse people because they want one guinea pig either... This is the only thing I absolutely despise.

[@FreyaCatherineMusic]

You're doing good work in not selling lone rats

[@trekadouble757]

Just to be sure, did the person already had rats at home?

[@MadMandyMooo]

Hiya :) I got my pet rats, 2 boys, from pets at home and they were perfectly healthy and happy and settled in with me lovely, the staff there were very caring when I went to get them and went through everything I needed to know with me. I could not fault them for knowledge and advice x

[@lluna1266]

Graham Herbert you do realise pets at home have had to stay open don’t you? We’re essential workers... awkward...

[@kaycollarfeild]

At my pets at home ,nobody talks to you about the care. They just ask if you've had one before and telling you a few illnesses they might get, then hand you a leaflet.

[@ashokazuni9966]

Okay wow your care guides are amazing compared to the ones here. Sad there are such low standards over here for our animals.

[@Emiology]

I’m so confused how you’ve watched this video when I haven’t made it live yet 😅

[@Vanity_YT]

@@Emiology Lol. you make the best videos

[@ashokazuni9966]

@@Emiology What lol!, weird that makes sense why there wasn't any comments!!.

[@definitelynotavegan7285]

The hamster care guides are crap over here :(

[@YantoJones]

The SHADE of it all at 13:40mins in!! Love it!

[@Radiogumdrop]

Pet stores are all over the place in when they sell animals and it comes down to the individual employee. I got my rat Pippa at a pet store because she was alone and had been alone for a long time. She had a friend but someone purchased her friend and not Pippa. She now has 3 friends to play with and she’s very happy!

[@hermit196]

I love your channel you have helped me with so much research and I finally knew what to research, and I honestly used to think you could keep a rat alone but when I watched your channel I now think not. thanks again I am very excited as I am getting my first two rats tomorrow.

[@theflamingavocados5572]

I once went to pets at home and asked to hold a rat and the pet guy who gave it to us was literally moaning on how much he hated them and how they stink Great for me trying to persuade my mum to get rats ☹️

[@reptitan5498]

So sorry about that

[@Bottlethebubbles]

Why though, did you complain?

[@wolfgirl4486]

@@grahamherbert3612 PETS AT HOME IS STAYING OPEN stop spreading false information

[@purpleunicorn9351]

@@wolfgirl4486 but I don't think they sold animals during lockdown though

[@wolfgirl4486]

@@purpleunicorn9351 they did where I live

[@rattails]

Awe! You take such good care of your rats! I have 8 beautiful pet rats!☺❤

[@morganyaste632]

Rat Tails yeah I have 2 rats but one of them appears to pregnant. I’ve only ever had these two rats which I got 2 1/2 weeks ago and I’m not ready to have babies running around. We got her from a pet store who were keeping her with males and females (they were past 6 weeks old) and she’s showing signs of being pregnant :(

[@bekwitt6282]

@@morganyaste632 How is your rat now? Any more obvious signs?

[@morganyaste632]

Sam Witt she’s just fat 😂we think she was jus doing those things outta habit

[@splicerparade4648]

This comment is more about the channel as a whole than this specific video, but I wanted to say thank you for all of the information you've put out there for rat owners. I would like to get rats, and stumbled across your channel while researching, and I've learned a huge amount in such a short time. You've dispelled a lot of the myths I believed about rat ownership (like putting them in an exercise ball and so on) and introduced me to a lot of fantastic methods for giving them a healthy and happy life (can you believe I'd not heard of scatter feeding before your channel!) I'd assumed getting rats from a pet store was best, and you've completely changed my mind on that and a lot of other things. Thank you for all the work you put into these videos, for being clear and informative about what to do and not do for the welfare of the rats, and for showing off your boys and how adorable they are!

[@stereotype5610]

i got my rats today and omg there cuddling and its adorable. Unfortuntly, i cant play with them yet... But also i love your content keep up the helpful videos! thx

[@kamaiwilliams5736]

Good luck with your rats!!!

[@stereotype5610]

@@kamaiwilliams5736 thank you so much! It means a lot!

[@ummmmzzz]

How are they doing?

[@zoop310]

How are your rats now?

[@jasonp6254]

The wire floored cage at pets at home did have a wire floor but you do have the option to put the metal tray in above the mesh to give your chosen animal a solid base to the cage (I have put two together in a stack format for my degus :)

[@Dan.B.Artist]

I think Petsathome stores vary a lot by store. There are two in my town, one keeps the rats in a tiny cage and they look miserable. The other one looks actually half decent. The rats are seperated and labelled by sex and the cages are a good size and there are plenty of toys in there and they look really healthy compared with the bad store. Not rat related but I was looking at getting a dragon from the nicer store a few years back, i didnt get one in the end but the staff there were great, they talked to me for like 30 mins going over everything, needs , requirements etc and even allowing and showing me how to handle a beardy. not sure if they still have the same standard tbh, hopefully they do.

[@cobwebssss]

FINALLY Someone who lives near a pets at home and has the same opinion as me! I went to pets at home earlier to get a present for my friends puppy and the hamster and rat cages were honestly disgusting.

[@Jess-fx8vh]

I’ve never brought rats from Pets at Home as I don’t agree with their care and breeding. However I took on a rescue earlier this year and his previous owner had purchased him from Pets at Home. They sold him as a lone rat along with a completely inappropriate and set up and diet. He’s 15 months old now and until I got him had been living alone in a small cage. He had to be neutered before I introduced him to my other rats due hormonal aggression. Thankfully now he’s happy with them but it took time. I just can’t believe they sold him alone in the first place!

[@sugerwillowsmores5345]

I feed my hamsters like 7 different kinds of food mixes/bags and 3 different kind of veggies mixes, with one small thing of fruit every week or 3. (depending on size of fruit)

[@LynxAQ]

Aspen holds ammonia at a higher degree than other commonly used beddings and therefore can have a detriment on the health of your rats (source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3508182/). The amount of ammonia held after four weeks when using aspen skyrockets after the 4th week compared to other beddings, but is higher at all stages. If you are an amateur/new rat owner it is highly possible that you delay cleaning your cage due to other commitments. Most people deep clean rodent cages once a month, so the highly elevated levels of ammonia due to aspen bedding in the cage may not be a huge problem, BUT a month (except February) is always a few days more than 4 weeks which means you are always subjecting your rat to high ammonia levels a few days every month, and furthermore the ammonia levels are slightly higher the rest of the time with aspen bedding. It is true that rats sleep better in aspen bedding (www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3508179/), however it comes down to comfort vs. long term health implications of your rats exposure to constant higher levels of ammonia. But this is the reason they put non-aspen bedding. It is not always because they are wrong (as you are inferring), but it may just be that the person who wrote that part in this case knew more than you.

[@rue6173]

As soon as I read the title I was like OHhhhhh boyyy

[@trekadouble757]

5:22 also think about your rats aging. Cages aren't designed for older rats who can not climb anymore. For example, there is no door in the base of most cages, but only higher from the ground. So your rat can not go in and out by himself when you are letting them have time outside of the cage. Also, the base is often in opaque plastic, and older rats who can't climb can't at all look outside of the cage. You can easily buy flat ramps for your rat to go from one level to another, but they usually are steep. Also for some disabled or old rats stairs work way better (so they can rest on a flat surface while climbing), but even if you build a custom stair, the cages usually aren't wide enough at the base to put a stair with small enough steps. When I bought or adopted my rats, I got them as babies. But when they got older, some got arthritis, and I realised how much I had to change the cage and my room to accomodate their new needs.

[@sinandcyanide7505]

Someone did a video on setting up a senior cage that was more accessible for rats with bad joints or trouble getting around in general. I think it was either Shadow the Rat or Rat Guru, but I could be wrong. I've watched so many cage videos for ideas that it's hard to remember who did what videos.

[@gwenmccormick5230]

I love your videos. Thank you for being so informative

[@Sophielthomas]

I have seen a mesh floor cage in pets at home in a store so I guess they just don't sell it online

[@Emiology]

I have too but not for a while!

[@rat-tastic422]

Pets at Home always, without fail, put rats in a tank.

[@C.Woodford]

@@rat-tastic422 they put all there small animals in tanks, not just the ratties! It's horrid, they are tiny and not well ventilated

[@rat-tastic422]

Yep, it’s bad. The tanks the animals are kept in are often **way** too small. They also seem to like housing hamsters together. Now I’m no hamster expert, I’ve never owned one, but I’m _pretty_ sure it’s a bad idea to house them together

[@C.Woodford]

@@rat-tastic422 yes, Syrians have to be kept apart otherwise they will probably kill each other, whereas dwarfs can be kept in pairs/3s. However when I went in last to return an item all the Syrians were solitary and dwarfs were kept in happy pairs. I think pets at home are slowly starting to improve their standards. That being said though I always adopt my hamsters and guineapigs from a local rescue about 1hr away.

[@josephineguerrero1802]

Pets at home is so much better than our petsmart in the US but I was still surprised love your videos 🐀❤️😍

[@PrettyParodys]

A couple of my boys have respiratory infections :( I got them from a small pet store. Have to give them antibiotics twice a day. If youre going to get a rat make sure there is a vet that will see rats in your area.

[@amygaddis6518]

One of my rats passed away 3 days. ago he lived a happy 2 years and died of old age i still really miss him.

[@KatiePole]

I’ve kept eleven rats over a seven year period and they had the Pets at Home nuggets as their ‘filler food’ while I fed them other things as well. Only one of them ever got cancer. I’m not saying you’re wrong about what you said regarding the nuggets, it just didn’t appear to be that way for me. Edit - just to add, Pets at Home also add rats to their in store adoption section if they don’t get bought before a certain age. I don’t know if that’s a common practice but I adopted two rats from their adoption tanks, only to be told they were bred in store but nobody bought them and they’re too old to be displayed as new rats anymore.

[@Emiology]

It’s more so when it’s their primary diet for their entire lives. The findings are based on years of personal research done by breeders

[@KatiePole]

Emiology I’d hate to know anyone who just feeds them just nuggets. The rats would be so bored!

[@FreyaCatherineMusic]

It's mainly female ratties that have issues with them (it's not good quality food for any rat but the tumour findings were mainly in female rats). The theory is that the nuggets have poor quality protein in them which can increase the chance of them developing mammary tumours (which are more prevalent in females)

[@charg1nmalaz0r51]

to be honest its just heresay lol. like how would you even know that is the reason why they got cancer. Theres tons of reasons you can get cancer.

[@kittyjames368]

I’m defiantly the sole owner of my rats, i just buy stuff my parents dont even look at it they just let me do my own thing which is good because i didn’t lots of research and you helped my with most of that research (i had been trying to persuade my parents for 3 years and got my rats a month ago from a rescue )

[@garl1cbr3adl0v3r]

i go to pets at home loads and our local one actually are great with their pet care and when i see the rats they seem very happy 😊 but u know this isn’t the same with all places

[@wolfstar5000]

I fed my rats rat blocks, as well as their bagged rat food with seeds, corn and a bunch of other things in it. And her FAVORITE thing, meal worms. Rats LOVE meal worms as a treat.

[@FluffyJellyfish]

Aww I was just like you and used to do the exact same thing!! I think I still have a little pile of all the pet shop leaflets I used to collect! 😅 I'm pleasantly surprised that a lot of that info is promoting good care... I just wish the pet stores would follow their own advice!!!

[@jazmyne5186]

What a great video to watch while i clean the rat cage 😂

[@eggthedog]

15:42 just to add an inside pov to this, keep in mind that a lot of the pets in the 2nd chance adoption parts of pets at home are actually just pets from the mass breeding centres that have been sitting in the regular store for sale tanks for too long, so they just label them as 'rescues' to make people more inclined to buy them, so they can still make money instead of having the pet die of old age, etc, in the regular for sale tanks!

[@randomstranger7845]

Hello! Im going to be getting some rats soon and i was wondering how many times a week you recomend changing their bedding and cleaing their enclosures

[@reptitan5498]

I am not completely sure as I don't know too much about rats. But spot cleaning is all you should do a few times a week only removing the soiled bedding. Removing all the bedding all the time will stress them out as you are getting rid of all their smells. Thus is at least how it is with hamsters. Rat owners please correct me if I am wrong.

[@randomname6425]

With cage liners it should be every 2-3 days or less depending on how much they are pooping and peeing everywhere with bedding it needs to be spot cleaned every day they generally like to go in one corner. Their bedding needs to be “fully” changed every 2-3 days as well (also dependent on how much they poop and pee everywhere) but your going to want to change all of their bedding besides about a handful worth of their old bedding and lightly mix it in to the nee bedding so it still smells like them and doesnt stress them out. As for actually cleaning the cage itself i personally dont full on scrub the bars every few days, i just spot clean and wipe down the bars in the corner that theyve claimed as their potty corner when i change the cage liners (or bedding) and i wipe down the bars if the get food on them (like when i give them some spaghetti they loooove smearing the sauce everywhere after they finish their noodle) every few weeks i wipe down the entire cage .

[@emmaboyle3155]

They don’t let you buy one rat alone at pets at home anymore

[@wolfgirl4486]

That's good!

[@rat-tastic422]

I read this guide before I got rats and I was not very educated on them as I had only just found out about the concept of pet rats... and even then I was thinking ‘this can’t be right...’ for most of it

[@holls9747]

We adopted our rats from pets at home and it was almost forced upon us to buy the nuggets . The rats do not eat the nuggets and so they where super under weight when adopted. We quickly changed their diet and they are much healthier and happy

[@abbyshill6703]

I got my boys a few weeks ago at the pets at home adoption bit and they are my first pets so I was beyond excited and done all my research, after about a week I was handing them treats but then one of them bit me and it was gushing of blood so now I'm a bit too scared to hand them treats with my bare hand so I'm handing it to them using gloves and I also haven't been able to get them out the cage as I haven't got anything to put then in to run around and I'm starting to get worried I'm leaving it too long but they are coming up and sniffing me when I go over to their cage and are very confident when I'm there but even with the glove I still get nervous incase they bite again 😕 Edit: 6 months later and still using gloves but I know they won't bite me, just their nails are sharp and now I let them run around my room and crawl all over me 😂🐀 Update: 2 months after last edit and now I can handle them fully without gloves ❤️🐀

[@lsturgeonify]

Try having them out in your bathroom! Just make sure there are no holes for yhem to escape down

[@aquilinelockheart7578]

One of the best things you can feed rats is buckwheat. I've read several studies showing that buckwheat is really healthy for them, and I actually use it in my own mix, it's super cheap and they love it! So I can confirm that muesli is usually not selectively eaten as much if you choose the ingredients carefully and monitor their intake.

[@sinandcyanide7505]

Thanks- something new to add to the rotation! I feed Mazuri blocks but that only makes up about half of what I give them. I know I'd hate eating the same one thing every single day, so I'm not going to make them do it.

[@rowanmcgillion5671]

the 2021 pamphlet has a comment in it saying "provide lots of space and hiding places so they can get away from each other if they want to. check them daily to make sure they are getting on,if they start to fall out you will need to house them separately to prevent any injuries" i'm no rat expert but i'm not quite sure that's true

[@Emiology]

Oh yikes 🙈

[@nevertoooldfordolls]

Are mineral stones bad for rats? I used to have a Guinea pig, and she loved her salt licks. I got them every once and a while as a treat. I'm kind of a first-time rat owner. My sister had a rat when I was a kid, and my mom had rats when she was in high school

[@littlepaws697]

When I was 7 I wanted a Guinea pig so bad! So I would grab a care guide and write everything down so I could show my parents😂 but now that I now more about pets I will never do it again.

[@paperpenn9923]

My god, this is great compared to the pamphlets here in America! Even though the food is not ideal, aspen is fine, and they could have gotten into a little more detail, this was really surprising and good. Im dissapointed in you, USA! Step up your game°°

[@breezxy_1797]

Since this video has been posted I today picked up and leaflet and they’ve changed it! They’re even better now,

[@Emiology]

Oh wow! I thought these ones were quite new! Hopefully some of the incorrect info has been changed!

[@BelleOfTheBrawl1]

I was so confused when you said leaflet! i'm american and i've only ever heard "pamphlet"

[@zaraisles7658]

We adopted a gerbil from pets at home he came with his three brothers they sold his brothers but left him on his own now he’s happier I love him

[@heather0f]

I just got 4 rat girls from pets at home. I’m not a fan for there’s but I thought this way would be easies way of getting my first rats. However when I went in to ask about what rats they have they openly told me that the male rats they had were ill and had bloody noses therefore were hidden in the back out of sight. She also told me that they were most likely ill because of the stuff they used to fill the cage like hay. I was also told to make sure they always have access to hay as they need to eat it at a different pets at home which is defenetly not correct

[@blobbly8845]

I am getting rats soon and I was wondering if you need to provide bedding or if only using fleece lining and nesting material is enough?

[@leylah3238]

LanaC2 ( you don't have to take advice from me but ) i have got pet rats and if you can litter train them bedding is better for the base of the cage - obviously a different litter in the litter tray - but even my rats who are litter trained love to pee on the blankets in their cage that line the metal levels 😂 . So yeah bedding is better ( dust free especially if you are getting rats with lighter colored fur because they tend to be more affected by the dust ) Sorry that was VERY long winded 😂❤️🐭

[@Emiology]

Providing them with bedding is better than fleece, fleece doesn’t allow them to express their natural behaviours like digging and foraging in the bedding, and it needs cleaning a lot because of the ammonia build up!

[@Oliviab23]

My rats hate bedding. And I mean hate it. I use fleece. I’ve given them nesting materials and a dig box but they hate those too! Rats have personalities and preferences. Do bedding first and if you see they dislike it switch to fleece. Have multiple sets so it’s not a hassle to clean. I cut up strips and squares of fleece that they take into their sleeping areas.

[@leylah3238]

The bartush family !!! That's a good idea💡

[@ttv_clypx8311]

I recently just got rats and I think my boy peach has a respatory infection it always sneezes and I have say red mucus on his nose what shall I do

[@unicorncraftinginc5169]

What do you use for your dig boxes

[@Emiology]

I have a video on it ☺️

[@unicorncraftinginc5169]

Emiology thanks❤️

[@wtfsaplane1233]

My mouse has had torpor5 times this week what do I do? I give them, bedding, water and toys. Could I be doing anything wrong ? Also they have got plenty of warmth

[@Emiology]

How’s the heating in your house in general? If they’re in a tank you might have to get a reptile heat pad to stick on the side of their tank to give them some extra warmth, or make sure the heating is on in the house

[@wtfsaplane1233]

Emiology oh I just realised our boiler is on the blink right now, could that be it ?

[@Emiology]

If your whole house is cold / the room your mouse is in is cold, that could probably be it! Maybe give them some extra soft bedding

[@wtfsaplane1233]

Emiology ok ! Also is it possible she could die from it ?

[@catscared2888]

@@wtfsaplane1233 of course!

[@xxjustcallmejayxx]

Hi Emi, I am planning on getting rats after Christmas but need some advice on things to put in their cage and what gender I should get for my first time. Thanks and love you💞

[@FreyaCatherineMusic]

For cage toys and things, check out various pound shops/dollar stores for baskets and dog ropes (so many toys aimed at pets are overpriced as heck). You can make hammocks out of old clothes pretty easily too. Also stock up on shower curtain hooks (the ones that look like a C ) and/or metal pear clips for hanging everything up in the cage. Males tend to be more chilled out and females tend to be more hyper, though there are always exceptions. We started with mostly girls (along with a neutered boy) and have had a fair amount of neutered boys since so have experience with both. While they're young they handle very similarly, but when they're older boys tend to get pretty chonky and big whereas girls tend to be a little smaller so it depends what your personal preference is and also what kind of personality you're looking for in your rats :)

[@xxjustcallmejayxx]

@@FreyaCatherineMusic Thanks and I have seen the stuff aimed at rats and it's like 10 pound for a tiny hammock

[@FreyaCatherineMusic]

@@xxjustcallmejayxx it's so expensive isn't it! If you or someone you know can sew, you can buy some cheap material (or cut up some old clothes) and double it up with a layer of fleece/fleece blanket and just sew them together and put holes in the corners for hanging :) I don't think I've bought a single hammock from a shop as I make them all

[@angelsadevil]

If you can't afford hammocks, make them out of fleece blankets. Hang up cheap dog ropes. Get sticks from pet stores for them to chew. I wouldn't worry too much about toys, my rats much prefer lots of places to climb and hide. Climbing and chewing. But also you will need to make sure you have money saved up because rats can get ill quite suddenly. I have had my girls only a few months and so far I've spent over 60£ on vet bills

[@alisoldchannel5132]

I think rats will fit my schedule! I am home in the morning and from 5:00pm to night.

[@skimpyderek9737]

Love your profile

[@semiautomatic.companion]

I am going to write a simple yet complete list of proper rat and hamster care on a bunch of sticky notes or print it with some tape and stick them to the disgusting cages they sell at petsmart

[@snakeymffmyekans8553]

Tell me about it. We got Donut from a pet shop, Pets At Home, and she was alone. We couldn't find anymore from various shops for a couple of weeks, which was definitely not ideal as it was very difficult to bond with her. Eventually, we found another pet shop, we were only going to get one more ratto, but ended up getting two more because that was the shops policy. However, when we bought them, they only had an empty Plastic dog food bowl with very little holes in the tub. It was a blistering day, and we had to walk quickly back to the car to open the windows and put the aircon on. It was quite a distance, too, so if I had to walk, taxi, or use the bus, they would've overheated and died. And they were selling Wired Small "Rat" Wheels, which one had a bar missing, so it would've broke and lost its foot easy. They got rid of it when we pointed it out. Also, RSPCA is shit. PDSA is the way. Do not fund RSPCA. Today we went to the pet shop, and they had tonnes of edible houses, which is bad because of sawdust= respiratory problems. They were recommended for rats. There was also tiny wheels which were recommended for them, and best of all, Recommended Plastic Base Rat Cages. They'd chew through it and escape. 🙄🙄

[@matthewskiba7054]

i use pellets and a mix but they don't selective eat is this a OK diet

[@randyq378]

I know this video is a few months old, but I was wondering if those "flying saucer" running wheels are fine as they're solid and kinda flatish

[@sinandcyanide7505]

A lot of people like those now. You just have to make sure they're big enough. You pretty much want the same diameter as you'd need for a wheel. The biggest down side to the saucers is that they take up so much extra floor space in the cage.

[@Biteme1362]

Oh man, my little boy Rocky I just adopted was apparently drawing blood from his litter mates and "had to be" seperated and kept alone in a GLASS tank. For now, he's in a quarantine cage until I can either confirm or deny the stores claims and set him up in the big cage with the other two. I agree, that they should always be socialised unless either 1) their in quarantine and/or medical isolation or 2) it's absolutely, irrefutably necessary for the safety of the others

[@Emiology]

If he’s aggressive towards other rats he will need to be neutered. Most of the time it helps and allows them to live with other rats as they should

[@sinandcyanide7505]

What happened with him? Were you able to get him integrated with your other rats?

[@pinemarten6241]

What would you say is the minimum size cage for 2/3 rats? I think Blue Cross recommend at least 100 x 50 x 50cm - would this be alright?

[@hayleybow4023]

I have a question my rats(2 boys) are 10 weeks old now ive had them for 3 weeks now and one of them sneezes often but there aren't any changes in his behaviour, he eats and drinks properly, he is very friendly, has no red gunk round his eyes or nose, his coat is clean and his eyes are bright is something wrong and should i be worried? Should I take him to the vets?

[@fattyMcGee97]

Use a pen? Nah, just keep the door shut when they are out and about and keep cables off the floor.

[@Aye_leesha]

I scatter feed and hide high value treats like mini milk bone in tougher areas to find but my dominant boy ALWAYS finds them first and my other sweet boys don’t get a chance to hunt for fun treats. Is this ok? Or should I stop since my alpha is pro and collects all the best stuff first?

[@lollyrebekah7602]

What food and bedding do you use for you mice and rats and where do you get it from??

[@deoranjed8118]

Beautiful caring bird🐦

[@fay9184]

I have hamsters and the wood shavings have a little circle which tells you what animals they are suitable for and it has loads of different animals but 2 are not highlighted and the 2 include rats and another pet❤️so if people pay enough attention they won’t buy it and they won’t buy it because they have done enough research💛

[@kerrycotta2178]

I have no idea where to get bedding in the UK that is safe for rats and what's the best brand xx

[@thatellafella1463]

I remember when I was buying supplies for my rats ( from a breader!) at pets at home, I picked up a leaflet while I was there. I thought it was fairly vague and some of the research contradicted (correct) information I had heard from other sources (like your channel) however overall I don’t think it was awful- on its own however, it wouldn’t be enough information Anyone with rats I have a question! One of my boys was sneezing and had porphrin around his nose- I took him to the vets and he does have an infection but they said they aren’t going to treat it and let his immune system sort it out. Is this normal? I’ve never heard of a vet not treating respiratory infections however they are my first rats so I haven’t had much experience. He isn’t really getting better but he isn’t getting worse- does anyone have any advice?

[@oliviaivy6138]

That Ella fella no, it's not! he should have baytril right now. get a new vet - good luck!

[@jackieelizabeth8614]

No he should be on some kind of medication. Some rats are never 100% again but the medicine stops it from getting worse. Definitely find a rat savy vet

[@ellafernandezx]

hi! two of my rats have the same thing, and unfortunately it’s a problem they’ll have to live with for the rest of their lives. your vet should DEFINITELY be offering you medicine, especially if it’s a one who works at the vets in pets at home. my boys have to be given different medicines constantly, so I really think you should take them to a different vet :( hope they’re okay!

[@oversleep9920]

*breeder

[@hellooo2411]

This one is so much better than the PetSmart one

[@amonthonpatreonfornoreason]

y'all have care guides in UK petstores? that's nice

[@sumsum881]

their pamphlet is so much more detailed and accurate than PetSmart's. i saw petsmart selling a single female rat the other day. it was sad.

[@inesnobre3496]

This might sound like a weird questions but where did you get your bedspread?

[@Emiology]

Asda 😊

[@inesnobre3496]

@@Emiology Thank you!! Love your videos btw. I don't even own mice ou rats but like to watch it anyways with my gerbils 😂

[@SaskiaVolders]

is there a good book that you recommend? Alltough i get most off of your channel, i LOVE to have research on the shelf for when i have to look something up!

[@Emiology]

There’s not many good books that I know of the problem with books is by the time they’re published the info is almost out of date. If you want to read up on food I’ve heard the scuttling gourmet is a good one!

[@monicamares9198]

Ok so I'm confused... when it comes to scatter feeding how do you know how often to do ads, you can't see how much they're eating and when they need more and with chewing what if they don't touch thr wood

[@kayleeward7856]

I went to pets at home yesterday and saw the rats there was like 4 in a tiny tank cage with one little toy to climb on

[@thepetobsessedrainbow]

Kaylee Ward that’s what’s most pet stores are like. There only in there for a small amount of time though and if they don’t get bought the adoption tanks are bigger but it would be better if they didn’t use tanks

[@rosieowen6790]

I worked for this company. Stores don't have a choice what food they get for the pets. Head office choose it and we order it in bulk. There is also nutrition producers we have to follow. I.e small wooden chews, 1 willow ball, 1 hanging wooden toy, 1 house, meadow hay, tissue paper, 2 water bottles if there is more than 2 rats, food is weighed every morning and they also get baby carrots. All animals get a health check daily. The cages also get checked by a manager in the morning and night. Pets At Home also have pet reports, which is when the area pet manager comes into the store unannounced! They come in and check for everything.... Everything!!! Dust on shelf around pets metal work round fish tanks, online forums, pets, cleaning producers........... They will decide if the store passes. Golden reports are the best. So mabs go ask your local store what they got. Give the colleagues a break too. They are unpaid and over worked with little contracts and empty promises. As much as hate the place they do have the pets at heart. There's a rule. Pets before profit. You can't judge the store on just walking around. Maybe you should stop and talk to a colleague. I saw another comment saying about pet sales being 30mins longtime talk to the customer, this is right. They don't just sell to anyone, they also have control on putting a temporary ban on you buying any type of pet from them if they feel the pets needs will not be met. The ban goes across all stores to stop people traveling to other stores and lying. They also hold workshops for kids, they can get any of the pets out for exercise during this. Rabbits do get exercise in the morning while store is closed. So don't jump to conclusions. No ones perfect.

[@Emiology]

I’ve worked here too. Your store sounds like one of the better ones, because some of these things aren’t universal.

[@Bottlethebubbles]

I wish a good rat channel could write a book. I used a very detailed book for the basics on cat ownership (Rspca cat care manual) but can’t seem to find anything for rats. This could also raise a lot of money for all the cute ratties

[@Emiology]

The problem with books is they take a long time to get published, and once they are they’re almost immediately out of date because new information gets learnt all the time. That’s the good thing about the internet is you can give updates and change info as you go ☺️

[@Bottlethebubbles]

Yes that is a very good point

[@stuartrafferty2912]

I got my 2 rats from pets and home about 5-6 weeks ago, they're still very nervous and only just this week accepting treats from my hand. Its clear they were put in a display case and not interacted with again, definitely would not go back for any animals

[@kdawg7060]

I LOVE RATS!!!

[@amyplayz9748]

I’ve seen something like this on Victoria Rachel’s channel before

[@Emiology]

Yes, we are best friends and share ideas with each other ☺️

[@MissClassyDoll]

@@Emiology sorry but how can you be best friends if you haven't met and live in different countries

[@justasillygoofyguy]

@@MissClassyDoll you can be best friends with someone even if you havent met my best friend lives on the other side of the world we message all the time it doesn't matter if you cant actually talk face too face

[@coldbean7383]

I have a lot of questions and I need answers 😅....so here we go: 1. I’m getting rats soon and we are keeping them in a critter nation double (the first result on amazon with the purple and blue ramps) and I’m pretty sure the cage is good 2. We are going to rescue two males from a shelter, and we are planning on not getting anything from any chain petstores 3. We got a foraging wheel, a ladder, apple wood sticks, hammocks, a Sputnik, and one of those square rope ladder things 4. We ordered oxbow adult rat food, I’ve heard oxbow isn’t good, but I’ve also heard it’s really good 5. I just need info on what else to add or take away, I want these rats to be spoiled 🤗

[@coldbean7383]

Elizabeth Murray We got the oxbow food but we have better food ordered now, we are used to using oxbow considering we have a chinchilla and three guinea pigs, but good think I saw this comment and got some new food ordered 😁

[@sinandcyanide7505]

Mazuri is a good food brand and there's a hog feed made by Producer's Pride that has the same ingredients- a lot of breeders or people with a lot of rats use that because you have to buy it in large bags. I'd get a litter pan so you can have an easier time cleaning the cage. Don't use clumping cat litter, though. You want something like Yesterday's News which is a paper pellet litter. Have one or two backup hammocks in case they damage the ones you got (my girls like to chew the straps and make them useless) and you can also add other foraging toys. A Lava Ledge or two is also a great addition. It gives them a way to file down their nails a bit and they can chew on it to grind their teeth down. Finally, empty tissue boxes or other things that can be used as little hides are great. Honestly, just pack that cage full of as much stuff as you can fit. They do like a lot of space, but they feel more at home when it's cluttered and they have lots of places to hide and explore.

[@Ameliajane2]

Pets at home have a brand new rat care guide out now. Its much more detailed but I wonder if the advice is better?

[@Emiology]

ooh I don't go in very often but next time I'm near one I'll pick one up!

[@antivaxxnugs7859]

Yes they seel wood shavings but on the wheel it shows was pets can use it, and rats are not coloured in (meaning it's not for them)

[@Vanity_YT]

I clicked this video six minutes after it came out im so intrested

[@col5010]

what are you on about L OL xD

[@deoranjed8118]

@@col5010 what's be you on about? What's anyone on about?

[@GreymanWalking]

Fall or get pushed off by wrestling with another rat like happened a few times with my rats but they landed in one of the lower "levels" and not all the way to the bottom.

[@fabunicorn262marshmallow4]

Ngl the leaflet would probably be good study for my Animal care course good or bad, cuz they make us point out bad things and what they should include

[@rubiemay]

yess !

[@fabunicorn262marshmallow4]

@@rubiemay we live and we learn

[@SubwayBrat]

I fed all 4 of my first boys the p@h and they where all fine but my current boys are on rat rations mix as I've heard it's the best in the UK! Luckily they eat it all and it seems much healthier so I'll stick to it! (A little bit pricier but worth it)

[@that.lesbian_girl2789]

Hey how are ya? Can you pleas make a video of how to see if your rat is sick cuz I think my rat is sick😅

[@morganyaste632]

Is my rat pregnant? We got her and her sister from a pet store (they were more than 6 weeks old) and they were being kept with their brothers, I didn’t think anything of it till one of my rats started getting really big in the belly and started nesting a lot, these are my first rats so I’m not an expert, but she seems pregnant? Is she?

[@Emiology]

I can’t tell without seeing a photo

[@morganyaste632]

Emiology oh ok, I made my profile pic a picture of her stomach, is she just fat?

[@Emiology]

I can't quite tell from the photo, but it's very possible especially if they were in with their brothers, as they're meant to be separated at 5 weeks. How long have you had them home just her and her sister?

[@morganyaste632]

Emiology for 2 1/2 weeks, atm she isn’t wanting to wake up, she’LL know I’m there and open her eyes at me, and raise her head, but refuses to leave her nest and goes back to sleep. I’m worried

[@Emiology]

It might be best to take her to the vets, ask them for something called galastop or similar it’s a medicine they can give her that if she is pregnant it will stop it. It can be quite dangerous for young rats to be pregnant and give birth when they’re still babies themselves so it’s usually the best choice

[@akuaowusu923]

Hi emi could you please make a video about how to introduce rats to each other

[@Emiology]

I’ve made many 😊

[@lokithorn9413]

i want to work at a pets at home so i can give buyers proper information about rats, hamsters and guinea pigs, i love animals and pets at home don’t treat them great, if i can do my part to ensure even a few pets have a better life then i will

[@irisravenhild9060]

Emi: unfortunately a lot of people this is where their research starts and this is where the research stops. Me: Like Me! I scour the brochure to make sure I have the most important thing, and then I study the animals afterwards, to find out what they like, and buy new things for them, because my kids(animals) will be spoiled.

[@sinandcyanide7505]

She meant that, unfortunately, some people will take that pamphlet and it'll be there only information they ever get on how to care for the animal, and those pamphlets aren't complete at all. There's so much more to know before getting a pet!

[@jademarshall1177]

Luckily enough my rats didn't eat the rat nuggets I provided, then I found out on an internet site about rat nuggets being bad for them, so now we have a big bag full of rat nuggets that we don't know what to do with. Also hearing that buying rats from POH is not good is rather unsettling to me, as that's where I got my boys from. But the POH I go to, some of the staff there own rats themselves so I often get advice from them that seems pretty accurate. And I can safely say that I've had my boys 5 months now and they are very healthy, so I must be doing something right.

[@sinandcyanide7505]

There will be exceptions always, but most chain pet stores don't put a lot of time or thought into breeding and you can end up with animals that don't live as long as they should. Some will do just fine, but most will die younger than the average lifespan for that species.

[@akuaowusu923]

Please make s care guide

[@m00shmallow81]

I really really need advice. I'm suspecting that my rats are in the early stages of raspitory infection, and my mom did take them to probably the only vet we have in our town? The vet was clearly uneducated in rats, and said they were just fine and we did everything right.. Despite them making grunting noises and sneezing on occasion. They didn't even give us any tips on how to prevent it. Neither any medicine of any kind. I'm not sure what to do as my mom believes I'm exaggerating. She trusts the vet. I read that exposing them to steam for a few minutes can help decreasing the chance of respatory infections, but I don't know if it's true. Despite the noises they make sometimes(ive noticed it mainly happens when they're happy or excited), they're very energetic, groom several times daily, happily explore when they're outside of the cage and eat and drink as they should. We are using dust free shredded paper bedding, and give them nuggets from another, actual trustworthy brand. If anyone has any advice to what I can do to try to prevent infections at home, it would be greatly appreciated.

[@angelsadevil]

Make sure your rats are in a well ventalated place not too close to heater or cold drafts. Dark chocolate can help ease symptoms. Look out for red discharge on the nose if you see that then they probably need to see a different vet, especially if they seem a lot more tired than usual. If they're new rats they're probably just getting used to your home and sneezing when excited could be to do with stress. Uhm.. Also make sure to clean out any wet litter everyday and poop.

[@angelsadevil]

Just keep a close eye on them for if they get worse :) as for the steam I don't think it prevents infection but it might help ease existing symptoms the same as it does with humans

[@angelsadevil]

Weekly vegetables should keep them healthier, and apparently you can get vitamin C to put in water that can help keep infections away. That's might be worth looking into.

[@m00shmallow81]

@@angelsadevil ah thank you so so much. I have noticed a little bit of occasional red discharge on one of them, but it's usually right after he's napped and it gets cleaned off soon after. So I'm assuming I shouldn't worry about that unless it gets worse? Thank you so much for all that good advice. They get a lot of fruit and veggies, but I think I'm gonna start feeding them more tomatoes and carrots as I heard that should be very good for them. And I'm definitely gonna look into the vitamin C to mix in with their water. I'm endlessly grateful!! ^^

[@m00shmallow81]

@@angelsadevil im also gonna look into some dark chocolate to give as a little treat. They've never had that before, so I'm curious to see whether or not they like it!

[@belief7768]

What did you make of the recent news that rats are happy driving mini cars

[@FurryYeetBoi]

me: sees pets at home leaflet thinking its a good guide *sees emi be shook* me: oooohh fuuuuuuu

[@jeanlove8664]

I have a friend who has rats and he feeds them cat food..... And one of my other friends also had rats and she loves them so when I told her one of my other friends had rats she asked what breed so I asked him and he didn't know. He said his dad got them for him.... (I don't plan on getting rats I'm getting a hamster. I just love animals so I decided to do research on them because sometimes we take care of his rats) My other friend who doesn't feed her rats cat food had made sure to do her research while my other friend didn't do much or didn't care....😔😔

[@sinandcyanide7505]

Cat food is okay if you're in a pinch or for a nursing mom rat because they need extra protein, but it's really lacking in other things because cats are carnivores. As far as the breed thing, rats don't really have breeds. Pet rats are almost always Norway rats, also called fancy rats. They just come in lots of different colors and patterns and coat types. You do have either dumbo or top eared, but they're still both Norway/fancy rats. Even hairless rats are really just a coat type. Think of it like looking at humans. You can have all different shades of skin and hair colors or textures, but we're all homo sapiens.

[@cutiezpets5392]

Do thye sell mice?

[@Emiology]

No thankfully

[@sadie6950]

I need help!! I am trying to introduce my pet mice with each other and now one is bleeding they are both females HELP!! !! !

[@angelsadevil]

This happened when I introduced my rats, just keep at it and break up bad fights, use an area that is neutral to them. A small space is best for rats because they hurt each other more when they can run away from each other (maybe it's the same with mice?) try and distract them from each other by using treats.. A powder to make sure their wounds are clean is good. Don't start of with lots of toys or things for them to be territorial over. Gradually add things when there behaviour improves

[@angelsadevil]

I hope that helps, they're like rats but small right? XD