Why I Only Keep Female Rats

Finally got around to making a video on one of the most common questions I get!
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[@charlottemoocow]

I have had male and female rats, and personally, I found the males more calm and cuddley than the females. I did have two males and two females at the same time once, and when one of the males died, I had the other neutered so he could live with the females, which worked really well and they got on perfectly

[@biolumen_]

Males are much much calmer. Females are energetic. If you like to play with your rats, get a female. If you want to cuddle with your rats, get a male.

[@aryastark3148]

​@@biolumen_ my cuddliest rat was a female. More about the individual.

[@garycard1456]

I've always had girl ratties; if I had males, I would be not be keen on neutering them; gonadal hormones including testosterone play an important role in wellbeing, and they serve a number of important functions. Just as they do in humans. I am surprised that condoms for pet rats have not been designed and marketed, lol.

[@jenn2894]

Yes, my boys are so much sweeter than my girls

[@breannalowrie8446]

Me too I dealt with females and males and I found that the males are way more friendlier and cuddlier and I rescue so I've dealt with a lot of different rats male and female so it's not just one specific group

[@rizumumeister9513]

I recently found a HEAVILY pregnant female in a plastic container by the local dumpster. I took her to the vet a few days ago and got her the proper things she needs. She gave birth last night and has 8 healthy babies!

[@maryamtehrani7629]

Oh wow, good luck with them!

[@MooseCall]

That's so sad. Thank you for saving them.

[@jandavison7288]

Bless you 🐀🕊️

[@lookwhatidonemade.3306]

So pleased it was you that found her in time. Really hope it all goes well. 😃

[@LiamGutierrez]

I never noticed anything different in smell with males. They don't have a musty smell at all. And neither does my family notice anything different smell wise.

[@demogorgens3715]

We adopted two female rats from a pet shelter and they were pregnant. As we already had two girls we wanted to keep the group all female. When the adopted girls gave birth we had five boys we wanted to give away for adoption. We kept them in a seperate cage and at first didn't give them any names so as not to become too attached. But in the end they grew on us and we decided to let them be neutered and stay. 😀 So we had a mixed group and it worked great.

[@aslan1306]

wow! we also bought 2 female rats to ad to my current group and both were pregnant too! it was amazing seeing how the babys grew up, very special❤🐁🐀

[@MsMistyMaiden]

I have a mixed group too!

[@aryastark3148]

Awww thanks for rescuing from a shelter instead of buying, and for giving so many a loving safe home!

[@oliviastar3812]

did the males get on or did they fight when mature?

[@demogorgens3715]

@@oliviastar3812 The males were pretty chill. They were much to lazy to fight. 😂 Even with the girls they were just like "Okay fine, you win. Where's my hammock?" 😂

[@kenny6920]

I had a male years ago and had no idea how big those suckers were gonna get. I mean it was actually impressive. He never bit and was such a sweetheart and indeed smelled like fritos.

[@samholdsworth420]

Especially during the summer 🤣

[@SanskritBlue]

I had 4 in-tact males. 😂 We used to say that Eddie’s special greeting was the “golden handshake”! 🤣😂 I’m so curious about the difference in smell! They definitely had a little whiff going on for sure. My boys were a bit slower and lazier than female rats, which was the perfect speed for me. Super cuddly and sweet.

[@AnastasiaPlantlegs]

My 3 intact boys STAAAAANK. I don't mind it until like the day before cage cleaning usually, but my family kind of despises it.

[@Lavenderskullz]

I have 4 intact boys and they can smell a little bit if I don’t change them but in general they don’t smell that bad.

[@marmar92828]

Golden handshake 🤣🤣🤣 One of my boys, a fat squishy albino dude named Jamie used to settle down on my lap and let loose with pee when he felt cozy. He did that with my mother (who loved pet rats too) as well. I joked that he was saying, "I love you with all my bladder" when he did that. I agree that older males tend to be very cuddly. One of the main reason I prefer them.

[@ambriadaniels8786]

That's called buck grease I don't think it stinks it's an earthy musky smell that goes away after a neuter

[@tonyahinrichs8828]

I have two natural boys in pretty decent size cage and it takes weeks to stink. I I have several sets of boys. They aren't that smellyl

[@Robin-xt7yo]

That opening shot of the 3 girls cuddling on their hammock is so adorable and sweet.

[@Ratty_77]

I've had both male and female rats (not at the same time for obvious reasons), but I haven't yet met a rat I didn't love.

[@krystaldaniels7940]

I used to breed ratties back years ago so i kept multiple separate cages. My boys were generally calmer and more cuddly BUT i also had a couple of very special girls over the years that bonded very strongly to me. One would climb to her door to be let out whenever i walked into the room and would follow me like a puppy. Shed slip under the bathroom door and sit on my slippers wanting to be picked up while i was on the toilet 😆 she was super special💖💕💖

[@dollymama957]

Yes. There are special ones, I call them my heart rats, because they take a little piece when they leave us but give so much love and joy in a short time.

[@TmGRAV3Z]

Would you say it’s worth it in the long run? Sometimes I kinda worry I made a mistake. I don’t think I’ve ever loved another pet the way I love my 2 girls.

[@dollymama957]

@@TmGRAV3Z So worth it. The love helps us learn to grow and the grief helps us learn to cope. I rescue feeder babies who would otherwise have short lives which end in some reptile's stomach. Instead they get comfort, affection, enrichment - a good life. They add so much joy to our lives, I wouldn't trade it just to avoid the days of heartache.

[@TmGRAV3Z]

@@dollymama957 Good points. Thanks for sharing your insight.

[@ambriadaniels8786]

Rattie ppl are the best

[@RowanWarren78]

They do (small rodents) breed quickly. I brought home, as a pet, a little white female mouse. She had supposedly been housed only with other females, except for a single minute she spent being transferred from one pin to another at the pet store. Well, after having her for a short while, she started looking "lumpy"😆. I was so worried she had a growth or parasite. Well, she definitely had parasites, four of them, and they were adorable. I raised them until sex could be determined and separated the boys from the girls immediately!

[@eliskadvorakova1717]

I have a miscellaneous group, Bob: an intact male (who's deaf and blind from repeated ear infections - he also has some neurological damage, but he makes up for it with his personality, always super active and is absolutely obsessed with foraging toys), Lil' Mama: a neutered female (feeder rat, she's the sweetest of them all, I brought her home and she was already pregnant - she was so young not even the vet wanted to believe it - I wanted to give the babies a chance, but due to her malformed uterus they were all stillborn, after that I got her neutered as well) and then there's Lucifer: a neutered male (he's my oldest at the moment - his origin is unknown - got him neutered for hormonal aggression...) In the future I'd like to keep females, but I don't want to take Bob through another surgery, he just had two abscesses removed. Luckily I come from a country that charges around 80-120$ per surgery, which is still costly, especially for their short lifespan, but sometimes so worth it.

[@aryastark3148]

Awww thanks for taking such good care of these special needs angels.

[@magnarcreed3801]

Lmao that’s not a lot at all.

[@eliskadvorakova1717]

@@magnarcreed3801 depends where u live... For example, my country has an average monthly salary around 1200$ so for people living here it's still a lot - especially if u have a rat pack that gets sick all the time

[@magnarcreed3801]

@@eliskadvorakova1717 Lmao same except vet bills are in the thousands.

[@eliskadvorakova1717]

@@magnarcreed3801 look - two weeks ago my rat had an abscess, my dog got her teeth cleaned the following week and my other dog went in for an emergency surgery, 3 surgeries down - I also have a bill that's very much in thousands. Nobody is excluded to this 😉 just depends what ailment they're having...

[@Umbreona]

I have a friend with rats and she keeps only females. This is for the smell and she prefers the look of females, more cute in her opinion, and their softer fur.

[@RedNightDragon1]

Males who've been neutered get softer fur.

[@oroontheheels]

I like rats but never had one as a pet. And I was so surprised when I learn form my friend how much work and care and effort she put into caring for such small and seemingly independent creatures.) Now I like watching rat owners channels on KZbin learning even more things about pet rats.

[@abraxas511]

My rule of thumb, as a person who has had both males and females at different times is that I choose the most laid back female, and the most energetic male I can find. Not housed together of course, but in same sex groups. The female ends up calming down perfectly and the male doesnt end up a floppy bean bag of mush. Ive had some males that ended up too lazy to do much but change positions in the hammock. And some females that just never calm down.

[@rluzinski]

We like smaller and more energetic rats, so females are perfect. Females will cuddle, you just have to let them run around for 2 hours first :)

[@caitpetracco4973]

i currently have 5 girls and a neutered male. he was my first rat. he’s 3 now, his brother passed away a month ago. i have honestly always preferred my boys. i’ve had 3 counting my current one. i loved how cuddly all my boys are/were. my girls are all little nut jobs lol

[@adelemadden8639]

I have had both male and female rats and they were all wonderful.

[@franck4727]

I had 4 male rats, all of them had completely different personnalities. My oldest one was very cautious, prudent with other human but very cuddly with me, his son was a ball of energy, he liked to be pet after he had his share of adventures, Kiwi was a bit dumb xd, clumsy but also very calm and his brother, Hazelnut was pretty chill

[@heatherhartman6474]

I LOVE all of your rats! Even the boys you fostered. They are all so amazing! 🤩 you care for them so well. And everyone commenting about their rats on here. Thank you! I love reading about everyone's rats. ❤️ such cute creatures!

[@Rattysauce]

My first pair of rats were female. They were from a friend. When our pet store was selling pet rats, they were all male. It's pretty much the reason I have all male rats. I am very good at keeping the rat smell located to the room they're kept in. No one else minds their smell, either. Also, to me, that muskiness is a comfortable, relaxing smell.

[@HexagonPankake]

I love how relaxed rats can get, like they look so chill when they’re relaxing

[@cryptidofthevoid]

We petsat for 2 boys and fell in love with them, we were able to keep them and so intact boys is what we ended up with. When we had one left we had to get more, seeing a depressed rat without other rats is utterly heartbreaking. Weirdly enough, everyone says boys are far more calm and cuddly but none of my boys have been cuddly and they have been utterly chaotic also had hormonal aggression from 2 different breeders which is when we got them neutered. Only one has started showing signs of cuddles as hes 2.5 years and likes the scritches! Are we doing something wrong or did we just get personalities that dislike cuddles?

[@vipervenom7804]

My older males are both about 1 year old and like cuddles after they calm down from free range time the younger boys are about 6 months old and are chaotic and don't cuddle with me yet

[@vipervenom7804]

It could just be their age or just they aren't big cuddlers

[@arsonsnail]

thats how i ended up with my first rat otter! we were petsitting for my moms ex coworker while she got her apartment inspected and i fell in love with otter, from day 1 i had a bond with her like i had never had with another animal, and so i asked her original owner about keeping her, her response was "please take her, i dont want her, i hate her" and that settled it! so i got her a buddy and a massive cage i could fit 3 of myself inside of and shes doing so well now!

[@oredssonemma]

I have had intact and neautered rats of bouth sexes, neutered most often to be able to keep with the other sex. For me it has always worked out pretty well. I was worried my boys would annoy my girls when i neutered the girls and put them together but honestly ive had more issues with intact females and nutered males than the other way around. The girls would often hump the boys and they boys would look confused and not like it while when it has been the other way around the girls would have said no and then the males would basically leave them alone. Now im defenetly not an expert and i dont know if this is common or not or if any sex is more beneficial to neuter than the other when keeping rats of different sexes together! The reason we got different sexes was because i wanted to learn more and get more familiar with bouth sexes. In the future tho ill probubly stick with males! Even tho they have a bit more of an odor they are more my speed in the long run. While i do play and interact with my rats daily, i dont quite have the energy id like to have when owning females. I also take my rats outside and travel with them a lot and in my experience male rats are a bit easier to do this with. They are usually just calmer in general and i dont have to worry about them to much if i freerun them in an unfamiliar area. Boys, in my experience, also tend to climb around much less when im out and about with them in my hoodie or my designated rat hand bag. Im so impressed by your energy and skill tho! To have so many females and still give them so much interaction, freerunning, and training is truly a feat! They are so well cared for and so spoiled!

[@vipervenom7804]

I had 3 females b4 I got my males when my sweet girls passed but my girls would ride in my zip up jacket pockets and on my shoulder but they fell asleep in the pockets and cuddled on my shoulder once they got comfy I now have males and they are calmer all rats were unaltered BTW my 5 boys 3 are kinda skittish still but we're working on it and the 2 older ones are lazy next I'm getting females again they were more fun to play around with they loved to play fight with me and it always made me smile

[@anthonyberube946]

Yeah I used to have the dual cage system... We gave them gigantic cages like 4 ft cages each.. We had some free time and I took one of the boys and one of the girls and we were playing as you do.. I didn't even have a chance to recognize the fact that he had mounted her.. and it was already over.. like a month and a half later we had a litter of seven. So yeah! It is really tough and I found out the hard way. No pun intended. Oh my gosh

[@nikkik4603]

My daughter has only had intact male rats, most were sweet but all did their business everywhere and anywhere. 😣 despite trying to train them they wanted nothing to do with that. I don’t know if that’s because she always bought feeder rats, trying to “save” them and they are possibly inbred. I would like to get female rats next.

[@vipervenom7804]

It is not bc they are feeders 2 of mine are feeders the older 2 but the 3 younger were rescues from a horrible breeding situation and none of mine wanted to be trained my females b4 them hated me trying to train them I specifically just "train" them to stay in my bra if it's the safest option for them or on my shoulder which I just did by putting them there and pushing them back up there as they tried to slide down and they started over time to just stay up on my shoulder unless it was safer in my bra same for my females and now my males too so it's not that they're breeders it's just methods or they just don't want to be trained

[@ericamassey1112]

I have male rats in one cage and female rats in another. All of my rats have accidents but my males use their litter box a lot more than the females do. It's just my opinion but I think it just depends on the individual rat.

[@awetistic5295]

I only had male rats so far, from all kinds of backgrounds, neutered and intact, old and young. They're absolutely wonderful, many of them were so cuddly (especially at an older age), but of course every rat is different. My last pack were neutered grandpas, absolute sweethearts and super snuggly. My current boys (three neutered, one intact) are the weirdest and craziest rats I ever had, it's hilarious. Every one of them has odd habits and they always make me laugh. That's the best thing about rats, they have huge personalities inside their tiny floofy bodies. When it comes to smell, it varies greatly between individual rats. I had a pack of three intact males and one neutered boy, they barely smelled at all. My current guys, even though three of them are neutered, are the stinkiest rats I ever had. They mark A LOT. My two lab rescues refuse to use toilets. It takes more work to keep the cage in a good condition, but it's a first of all 22 rats I had over the years. When it comes to two packs - I had it once because I had old boys with health issues that I didn't want to put through the introduction process. Even though I loved every single one of my rats, it was a lot of stress and I wouldn't do it again.

[@kangaroo9816]

One of my boys had a super intense musky odour. I loved it lol, I would always press his back to my face and sniff him. XD Luckily he didn’t seem to mind. On another note, how did you teach your rats to use the toilet? I failed miserably, though it’s true I wasn’t trying very hard.

[@Eternatease]

Sometimes it is what you feed them that makes them smell stronger. But (as you probably know) never wash rats to 'get rid' of the smell. It only makes them smell stronger, because you wash away their natural scent, so they think "I have to produce stronger scent to compensate". I would only wash elderly rats that were incapable of cleaning themselves properly because of various types of paralysis, and even then not a full bath, but more washing their butts and bellies with a damp wash cloth, and I dried them with a soft towel afterwards.

[@Eternatease]

I use a toilet tray with a different substrate in it than their regular substrate. They're small corn pellets. I also put a (cleaned) rock in it, because they seem to like to sit on it when they do their business, and they scentmark it. But even then they sometimes still poo in front of their house or in a different place.

[@awetistic5295]

@@Eternatease Two of my grandpas had trouble keeping themselves clean in their last days, but I did pretty much the same thing, just washing their butts. Gladly, most of my elderly guys did great at cleaning themselves, for example using the curve of a sputnik to lean back. The scent of the pack is nowhere near as bad as it was, I wonder if it was just a hormonal thing and their habit of peeing on absolutely anything. They're older and way more chill now and don't have to prove their manliness anymore.

[@ponetium]

I have had mixed groups, but they were all stirilized.

[@tricciavillela]

I've only had male rats so far because it's almost impossible to find females to buy here where I live... I don't know why, I wonder if it's because the breeders keep the females to themselves maybe... Well thanks for the vídeo, I learned a new thing today, that females don't smell so strong as males, so I appreciate this information a lot ❤️

[@aryastark3148]

Adopt girls who are being abandoned and from rat rescues.

[@tricciavillela]

@@aryastark3148 here in Brazil it's really difficult to find rescue rats, cause it's not a very common pet around here, at least not in the city where I live...but thanks for the tip, I'll get informed if there's such a thing 🙏🙏🙏

[@incanusolorin2607]

De onde vc é? Tem alguns criadores que enviam pra outras cidades e até Estados, se for na mesma região.

[@tricciavillela]

@@incanusolorin2607 sou de Piracicaba - SP... Aqui só encontro twisters na Petz ou na Cobasi, que são grandes pet shops...

[@reviewaccount469]

I've never had a female rat that wasn't hyper when they were young, while I've never had a male rat that was ever hyper. There are pros and cons of males and females, but hyper animals are much more difficult to deal with.

[@wrenbracken3522]

one of my girls got out and met a friend (without my knowledge) and had two half wild babies who turned out to be male (All parties have been checked by a vet). I plan on neutering them to combine the groups in a couple of months to be able to free roam them all together and because my girls are getting old and I dont want either on their own! I never planned on changing the sex of rats I kept but I have completely stumbled into this situation and couldn't be happier. I have noticed behaviour differences (more digging and less jumping) but can't tell whether its the sex or the fact that their (behind on child support) father was wild!

[@aquabluerose7734]

How interesting! You might wanna put out some humane live traps though if your girl found a mate inside your house, since there's never just one rat and you probably have several uninvited ratty guests. I would imagine the half wild babies might be healthier than the average rat and possibly live longer since the parents are from different gene pools.

[@wrenbracken3522]

@@aquabluerose7734 I actually think she left the house (we have a very old very unsealed house). I also think they might live longer! Hopefully anyway!

[@ghirathim]

i still had the misconception about trainability. thanks for clearing that up!

[@briannacaron7893]

Awe the clip of Meatball! I remember when you posted a video of him, I ended up getting a male a few months later who looked super similar so now I have my own Meatball!

[@cockatielbirdcompanions7941]

Cute video. I had 7 boys who have all passed away now. Only one was neutered due to aggression issues. I love the slow motion of your boy running with his balls swinging back and forth lol

[@jojooffaraway2675]

Marshmallow was such a cutie! I miss seeing him in videos. Very nice explanation video

[@colleenandres3800]

I have four males! They are snuggly and so kind!!! Couldn’t live without my lil men! Stinky sure but so worth it! Love these videos!!

[@TonyBanks21]

Marshmallow is a lovely rattie-so was Meatball,as featured in another one of your videos !!

[@Altitudes]

I mostly kept boys because bigger and squishier. I did like that my boys were calmer, but the few girls I had were all very affectionate and bonded to me so it was whatever. I leaned boys if given the option but I didn't particularly care. It is true that boys have a bit of a musk. Personally I don't find it unpleasant at all but a lot of people seem to.

[@crystalheart9]

That was a fun video and informative.

[@gruvee9334]

Can't say much as I only have 4 gerbil girls right now, but thanks for the video! I love the chubbiness of any of these ratties. Keep it up :3!

[@AnnaRubenstein-co6yn]

I also went from gerbils to rats! Both such lovely pets ❤

[@Jezziha]

THE SWINGING OF THE MALE RATS BALLS. WHY WERE THEY SO BOUCY XDD😭😭

[@UwUImShio]

It's the same with male (Syrian/golden) hamsters. They're just… yeah

[@Shawnsatisfiedwife]

So freaking cute when they were are piled in their grass hut ❤

[@danielb2135]

1:30 I do love their eyes

[@Just-Darcy]

I have 6 girls and 2 neutered males and I loooooove the mixed group! Highly recommend

[@jordyplaysgamesAUTISMYEET]

Before seeing I'm gonna assume because A males can be agressive incurably more often than females, B male rats can sometimes take another male out if they won't settle the dominance chain there's also C male rats may not ever stop using the potty on the floor but you can train them to run back to their cage and go potty but it can spread illness if you aren't a clean person. Not that fancy rats are what people think of them but because boys do potty more, they do. One thing about males is that you have to be careful about how much space they have as they can get into trouble. We have a cat, the cat knows not to hurt the rats, but the male rats sometimes chase the cat, and put it this way if a male bites my dog my dog isn't gonna stop biting it back... So I'm gonna say if you ever do, give them their own room. And for the odor there are those cat litter pellets that remove odor that work well for rats, I recommend it for all your rats actually. We don't free range unless they have their own space with the boys, and because the dog will defend his food bowl from anything, even a rat, we also put the females in a room to run. We do breed rats, we do have snakes we have to feed or my mom does, I have pet rats only my males just get to breed with the females every odd time so we don't get inbreeding. One thing I've noticed is having them near each other so they can smell each other is a good way to have your males keep clean as they should start to groom more knowing a female is around. If you are going to breed rats please never put two males together. Two females and one guy, sure. But one female and two guys no no no don't do it. I don't know why you'd think of that but don't. And if you do have free range males lay down puppy pads, as you can over time train them to use the pad, and then their cages, which for my 5 boys stays open all day because they have a room to live in that's been safety proofed. But other than that... Really you don't need male rats unless you have something like we have, ball pythons. This is why we have nearly 40 rats, and it is a pain to keep them all happy but we do it. So if you read this, and you can do all that go right ahead. But know this, after all that... My little guy still sometimes tries to bite me hard, for dominance. The odd male isn't mean but will bite your eyes and other areas because he feels you need to fear and obey and respect him. Just like a dog, we pick up, and flip over on the back, and that is how you have dominance over most mammals anyway, excluding apes. And really any highly solitary critter... As it's harder to dominate a mountain Lion that a rottweiler. But know this, your male rats probably aren't scared of you at all. If their gonna bite you gotta have control of em, and you can tell them no. But they can learn all kinds of things. Our old boy beans would even steal our medical cannabis. Doesn't hurt them because they break it down like us, but you have to keep your stuff up. My females don't care about my ganj ever or my coffee. The males will spill coffee cups to drink them, steal the leftover bits of my roaches, leftover of a burnt joint basically, and they actually don't eat it they use it as bedding for the smell I guess. Keep your cannibis up with rats around especially males. It's not gonna hurt them I learned this, but it's still misbehavior that it's best to avoid. As if they learn they can have it, the smell of it on your hands may make them bite thinking you have something for them. But yes females get into things, males get into everything and you have to do more for them for them to free range, lot of money I spend doing it too

[@jordyplaysgamesAUTISMYEET]

But if you make it work good on you, thank you for dedicating your time to caring for them

[@Sweetnsour2023]

I love both but I must admit, the three boys I had were very lovable. They were my heart rats ❤

[@PetConnectionInternational]

I never knew you had gerbils! I have two girlies at the moment (one of which is being a big butt to the other like some of your rattos 😅), do you think you'd ever own gerbils again? Also love the comparison of males Vs females! I was wondering myself, I've considered rats, but the potential smell is something that doesn't exactly fill me with excitement, gerbils are so inoffensive I feel like it'd be a big adjustment 😅

[@melanierechnitzer2812]

I started with girls because there was a group that needed a new home. I live in a single room apartment so having more than one group is out of the question, I simply don't have the space. I had two neutered boys though and they were absolute sweethearts. They were already neutered when I got them, because they were former lab rats and the rescue I got them from handled everything. I'm also open to getting another neutered male but for now I only have girls. Got two new babies on Friday and they are so tiny!

[@MsMercury]

I’ve always had both. Never been a problem.

[@critterallywithjohnernest.]

Really great points you touched on. I prefer females myself but for other reasons. I had 3 intact males that would fight pretty much daily. 😩 it got so bad that at times they would draw blood as none of them would back down. Males are less prone to getting tumors (but still can) than females and males tend to cuddle more which is great but females just seem to get along with each other better. The males never really smelled to me but do tend to mark or dribble on your arm more. Great video and great information Esther 👍!

[@usernameisusernam]

This sounds like one of my girls. She always picks fights with my other rat and dribbled on my arms non stop. I've been trying to train her and I think we've made a little progress lol

[@critterallywithjohnernest.]

@@usernameisusernam 🥰🤣🤣🤣sounds like she was marking you to tell the others that you are hers only.🤣🤣 that just means she loves you!🥰👍💘

[@viridiantheforest1037]

My boys were neutered, and they would get into fights all the time. But they rarely drew blood and it would always end pretty quickly. There was one time that got a little scary.

[@jacksolitaire697]

Heya. I know this video is about a year old now but I just stumbled across it....great vid! I completely agree with the things you said, I just wanted to share a couple of my thoughts with you. I currently have a neutered male with my non desexed female, both free to roam if I am home and toilet trained. For the first 12 months my boy and girl had monitored time together when she wasnt on heat, and yes it is hard to relax, and half the time my girl would start to get frisky and they would be separated. I actually succeed without mishap until he was fixed, but not recommended. I have had both males and females but find the females much more affectionate due to their maternal instincts. They are also more interactive (and active) tending to explore and forage a lot more off the leash whereas males tend to stay closer. They are the best!!

[@tracihollan3536]

Ngl, I was a little freaked out by how large the testicles are on male rats, so I got female 🤣

[@msg4925]

I’ve always preferred male rats because they do tend to be calmer. Funny though, my sister prefers female rats.

[@hannahs4624]

I have had both male rats and female rats (at separate times) and I don't have a preference one way or the other. They are all sweethearts. I never really noticed much of a difference in smell, although that was quite a few years ago that I kept rats.

[@Merchenta]

Shadow dear I had two brothers and one well ya know so he is only only one left. Should I get him a friend or leave him solitary? Hes been flourishing since his brother passed. (his brother was a bully)

[@beanieslife3365]

I had females and now I have males. I preferred the female rats as I wanted them to be more energetic ❤

[@Ninuturu]

how are rats compared to gerbils? I have gerbils atm, havve kept gerbils for over years, but tempted to get rats sometime

[@heidibee501]

When l was very young someone gave me two male mice. They fought all the time. Eventually one died. Many years later my granddaughter was given two male rats. I warned her they may fight and they did. One achieved dominance but still harassed the other one. We have had separate male rats and they did well. I did not know that neutering a rat was available. That might make a difference. My female rats got along very well.

[@ShadowTheRat]

You can even neuter mice, and in fact its quite popular in the mouse community now because male mice are still social despite not being able to live together when intact (the other option is housing male mice with female african soft furs - they are different species and so can't breed, but if introduced young they do really well together. Only downside is ASF's are usually bred as feeders and tend to be either very agressive or very skittish)! Intact male rats usually don't fight, they tend to do just fine when intact in groups, so unfortunately it sounds like you got unlucky and had males with hormonal agression. This is genetic, so you can selectively breed away from it - but pet store rats or feeders typically aren't selectively bred for anything and so its not super uncommon for these males to develop hormonal based aggression. If they develop hormonal agression then a neuter or hormonal implant is the only thing that helps - after that it takes 2-6 weeks for hormone levels to fall and after that they can be reintroduced safely to their male buddies or to females.

[@Zofficinale]

I wanted males because they were bigger and everyone said they were more cuddly. Now I have 2 neutered males and an intact female. I didn’t plan to get a female, I got her from someone who didn’t want her but thought she was a male. I realize she was a female right away but took her bc I was planning on getting my male neutered. This wasn’t ideal though because I had to house them both separate until he was safe. It sucked. But now they’re all together. My female is actually more friendly and I love watching her run and climb. I would like to have more females one day.

[@somegirl558]

THEY ARE SO CUTE. ❤️

[@yoteawhirl1987]

The odor seems to differ. I got males from Florida and they smell like roasted almonds. My rats from NC and GA were VERY STINKY though, until we got into bathing.

[@wyattdoi3761]

the thumbnail toes go hard

[@niamhrose]

I have my first set if rats now, and they are two males, I'm thinking of having female ones next. But my 2 makes now, keep fighting at night and I can hear their squeals, are they ok?

[@marmar92828]

I've had many rats over the years (but no pets at all for far too long). Most of them have been males, but a few were girls. Both sexes were equally good pets, but I think the main reasons for males was similar to yours: my first rat was male. So I just stuck with what I knew whenever I got a new one. That, and my mother (I was a teen at the time when I had my first ones) believed- perhaps rightfully so- that females would attract wild males if any were around. This proved true a few years later when we were renting a house that became infested with wild rats from all the blackberry bushes right outside the back door. The rats got inside, and our female rat that we had at the time was pursued by I don't know how many wild males one night as we slept. Fortunately they couldn't get to her inside her cage, but she was NOT interested in mating and in fact nailed one of them through the bars of the cage! We saw blood on the outside and at first that she'd been injured. But we thoroughly inspected her and she was fine.

[@arowland1741]

what is that stuff on your finger? the stuff youre rewarding her with

[@lookwhatidonemade.3306]

My fiance and I completely agree with your reasons and choice. We always have male rats only mainly for the free time and the ease of one cage, Hope there's no-one out there that genuinely believes there's a difference in speed and ability to train, yhay;s just crazy!!! Lucky for us we live alone and boyh find the boys scent really comforting as long as you keep them cleaned out as much as you should,

[@lookwhatidonemade.3306]

*that* and *both* typing failure

[@starreyed1]

Off topic question-what is the gray, rock-like item at the bottom left of the cage? Inquiring minds wanna know! =)

[@ShadowTheRat]

I think your talking about the hollow fountain - it’s an old fountain which I removed the bits from and since it has 2 entrances on the sides the rats love to go inside and sleep there! Plus it’s great for them to climb on and adds more varied texture to their cage.

[@benjamindegadoi8924]

When we had rats we got 3 intact males and they all got along and barley cought them fighting/being aggressive towards one another.

[@_deyra_6470]

i Love your videos

[@oliviastar3812]

Do runt males not smell then? Friend had one and he had a baby smell when young, then no strong smell. ?

[@nokiac7826]

I have both females (3) and males (2). I rescued the boys after I got the girls. I completely agree with every statement you made. I probably won't have two different groups again because like you said it's hard to get both of the different sexes out for roam time. Alongside that there is a pretty big difference in personality from my boys to girls. I'm not sure which I prefer if I'm being honest. They both have their pros and cons.

[@rollyflan]

The first rats I fell in love with and rescued were males, and when I had the chance to adopt more after they passed, I think I stuck to males simply because it's what I was used to! They are a little stinky, but they're so sweet and cute, I don't mind cleaning up after them a bit more often. I notice the odor is noticeable every 5 days, so I do a 5 day light clean and a 10 day full clean. I would consider getting a spayed female though if one was available!

[@aryastark3148]

Check your local rat rescues or small animal shelters. Often they are being abandoned on craigslist or kijiji too.

[@HeilRay]

4:20 Ping Pong is also a apt name for Meatball.

[@conwayc1257]

how can you deal with the constant heartbreak of losing a rat..

[@ShadowTheRat]

Its difficult, and their short lifespan makes them not for everyone imo - but I think for anyone that has rats or other short lived pets long term you learn to live in the moment with them, enjoy their companionship while they are around and be thankful that you can be there for them their entire life. Plus their short lifespans allow for you to make a good impact on more rat lives, since you can easily have dozens of rats in a few years and give them great care, where caring that many larger and longer lived animals like dogs is much more difficult.

[@captainngoose]

The best way to think about it is "They may not have been your whole life, but you were their whole life." Bonding with rats is incredible. They love their owners dearly and the friendship is real and strong. However, this makes the losses incredibly hard, but rats are incredible pets.

[@FoleysAquatics]

Got 3 new 4 week old females yesterday

[@justsomeonewithtoomuchfreetime]

I have only ever had girls because I prefer more playful and rambunctious animals over slow and cuddly ones. Also, all my local breeders never have males available lol

[@user-pe6uw2oe3o]

How do you train them so well

[@SwatiSharma-ux8gy]

Can you help me 🖐️ I have a white female rat 2 months old but she is itching her body continuesly I had visited many vet but no solution came out . What should I do right now??

[@EstyJami]

I have 2 neutered males in with my females, mostly because I am friends with someone who runs a rodent rescue and they do a neuter event a few times a year through an exotic vet college program. I had to keep the boys separate from my girls for a couple of months before their neuter happened, but the trade off was that the neuter was being done at no charge. At the time I had 6 females so I split the DCN while they were separated. Now that I have 7 females plus my 2 boys I would not want to do the separation thing again unless my mischief shrunk some. I do love and adore my boys though, they are brothers. Stormy is a Rex and Yoshi is a double Rex, they are the sweetest most chill guys ever. Any time I have to take one of the girls into the vet I bring one of the boys as a companion because of their gentle nature, and when my Star girl had to be in a hospital cage for safety due to her mobility until it was time for her to cross the rainbow bridge I kept one of the boys in there with her and they were such an excellent companion for her. When I have ultimately had to send any of senior girls over the rainbow bridge I've brought them along and they have given them kisses and snuggled them after their passing. Truly a wonderful pair of boys, but I also love the spunk and playfulness of my girl group.

[@sarahsnursery]

I have 4 pet male rats, also have a marshmallow as well in my group, and a pickle too. I do hear where your coming from about the group thing and the smell. I guess I've also thought about having females later on down the road. But I also guess I prefer males over females, they have that calm and cuddly personality. And are not as prone to getting tumors as much as the females are more higher risk for that. But I love all animals. So I'm not picky. But I can agree that smell is the worse for sure. But there are ways I try to prevent it to a point. Lol 🤣 I enjoy your videos. Keep up the good work! And give your pet rats some love for me!!! Junior, Pluto, marshmallow and pickle say hello! 2 partly hairless rats, a dumbo and a rex I have! I'll always love them. They best pet for sure!!!! I did just lose my pet rat Charlee this year but have my other ones to love on as well. These guys have such great personalities and empathy, it's incredible. I love them more than people at times! Way smarter at times than me, makes me feel dumb at times too. Lol 😂

[@Leafjade]

Esther I am really struggling with solo training. I started training my rats during free range, and now whenever I take my training kit out allll the rats run towards me. I tried to take them out individually but they are less focused and all the other rats just stare at us grabbing onto the bars.. If you don’t free range separately, how do you do your solo training sessions?

[@abraxas511]

I had the same problem and changed my free range room into a room separate from the cage room. So the rats I take out for solo training are not visible to the ones in the cage. They each get a solo training session then free range together.

[@Leafjade]

@@abraxas511 Thank you!!

[@Centurion101B3C]

Being myself very much an (admittedly ratty) male, I noticed that female rats did quite strongly react to my presence even when not in estrus with acting receptive and inviting to certain reproductive behaviours. They would even react frustrated when such was not forthcoming and that completely stopped when in presence of capable, but infertile, male rats. I have over the years had multiple ratpacks with both (more or less) intact males and females and all went fine without being overrun by their offspring. Secret of it was having the males have a (admittedly spendy) vasectomy and keeping the ratios between 3 female and 1 male rats. The effect was amazing. The overall happiness between them was much higher/better than compared with the unisex or castrated mixed situation. The smell is manageable with proper care and feeding. No aggression whatsoever. The males were and remained the more laid-back and lazy to the point of being a bit slobby and the females remained their cheerful perky and busy-body selves. Both appeared to live longer and maintained better health. Anyway, just thought that I mention it.

[@KittyKyomi]

Much of the same reason I only have females is that my first was a female and she was a lone rat, so I adopted more to live with her and adding more girls when I only had single girls left is how I've owed only females for 3 years. I'd love to experience owning a male but unless a pre-neutered male needs a home Its not likely I'll get one. Just too much hassle for all the exact reasons you said.

[@MontagZoso]

My husband and I have always preferred male rats. They are more relaxed and chill than females and we love their smell! Like Fritos or tortilla chips. Love my boys!

[@susanberube445]

Just curious about how you keep the cages and carpet clean.

[@ShadowTheRat]

Just ordinary cleaning does it - rats don’t produce much waste so with proper bedding cage cleaning is easy enough, and keeping the carpet clean isn’t too bad because rats naturally go back to the cage to potty when possible. The marking is kept in check by us rug doctoring (washing) the carpet yearly, plus I vacuum and use an enzymatic cleaner daily when I clean up the area.

[@sabrinareddington5801]

Aww www so presous!😍

[@virgo1986ful]

So cute

[@snowyowl611]

I have both male and female, separate cages of course. The only reason I have both is because I was told they were female and they weren't. But I feel in love with them. I've also had some females I've rescued that were pregnant and in my area people aren't that crazy about rats as pets. So they end up staying with me. I do have free range time for them separately and it is tough but I don't mind so much...at least they aren't snake food ( which is where they were rescued from a snakes cage).,♥️

[@sabrinareddington5801]

There so cute!

[@ShwintyKat]

I've had both and will likely always consider mixed groups, though the rescue I adopt from spays and neuters all rats that come through them before adopting out. I've also started to prefer males because of their size, I love a big rat, and the lack of mammary tumors

[@shinjiwolf]

Only been keeping rats for about 4-5 years now, but I accidentally had to change the sex of the rats I kept when I was missold two girls after one of the two boys I had died, I let them mingle a tiny amount since the girls were very small when I got them (about 9-10 weeks) and the boy was over two years and was losing the use of his back legs (plus he was a big hefty boy, and was never very agile, clumsy sure, but not agile!). The females were a little fast for me at first, just bolting around and one in particular loved to escape! But honestly, now that the girls are around 2 years old, I have preferred having the females to having the males, there is less of a pronounced odor to them as you say, and although they may have slowed down a little since I first got them, they're still very active at the age of 2. Though my little escape artist has down periods as her front teeth aren't aligned, so she 'lets me know' when it's time to get them trimmed by hiding a lot and not moving around much, once she's had her vet trip however she's right back to getting everywhere again! I'm hoping to get more girls soon, though I'm a little intimidated by introductions, I have 2 large cages and about enough space that I can maintain two separately for a few months, so hopefully sitting them next to each other after quarantine and swapping various cage elements back and forth will all go a ways to them get along.

[@charlottesmom]

Food for thought: I currently have 3 females and one male (formerly have had 5 other males this is my first time with females). The three girls were together and Edward my male was a loner because he and his brother tried to murder each other at the pet shop. I couldn't stand to see him alone so I brought him home with the thought I'd adopt another male and hopefully they would get along. Fast forward to two months ago Blue one of my females developed a mammary cyst behind her front leg, too her to the vet. They advised removal of the cyst and spaying, I agreed....$1,300 (!!) later she is now in the cage with Edward and they adore each other. Earlier this month my highly shy REW (Sugar) was showing signs of a mammary lump near her back leg, i also noticed a smaller one behind her front leg....my vet saving account was okay for a other huge hit but I had to pray Daisy (my other female, and or Edward never got sick as it would be depleted!)....so I bring Sugar to the vet and they say due to her age the possible complication from removing two lumps wasn't worth the risk. I asked if there was anything I could do short of putting her down. She is on meds and a low carb diet (my vet recommended, it was funny to me since I'm on Keto and now my rats are too!😂). Vet bill was $180.00. Hopefully she will live a while longer, she is still very active and has tamed down a lot because of the daily meds and snuggling sessions. The point is PLEASE make sure you have money socked away for your babies, especially if you have unspayed females! Daisy is going in for her spay very soon (will run $500 or so) If I had a brain in my head I would have gotten all 3 of my girls spayed when they were tiny (and maybe looked for a cheaper vet, our vet is notorious for charging more). Only one of my males has ever been sick and the operation was "only" $400.00 at our old vet.

[@mirandagarrett4231]

Can anyone help with a question I got two female rats as babies they were sisters Raya one of the sisters passed away at about 3 in a half I didn't want her sister to be alone but she refuses to take in another rat she seems to want to be alone and just with me is that ok I have been told rats should always have a buddy but Rita just doesn't seem to want a friend except me

[@Agentanimation404]

I’ve had 48 rats total and only 8 have been girls we currently have to do 4 different free range times it gets to be a lot

[@kateprowd5687]

I have two pet rats and one of the girls a super cuddly alll are so different 💓💓🌼💕

[@emisratland1486]

I do too and only will

[@saratavington5435]

I don't understand when people talk about the "odor" of male rats. All of my boys are intact, and while they marked a lot when they were younger (Less than six months old) they have pretty much stopped within the last few months, and they barely have any smell. They smell very faintly like popcorn or clean straw, and you have to put your face in their fur to smell them. The only time their smell has been unpleasant is when they have gotten URIs, the antibiotic made them smell kind of sour but it went away within a couple of days of finishing their doses, and all of my animals have smelled different while taking medication.

[@lauryniti1807]

i know this was about a specific topic but i just loved watching the rattos

[@kathytiseling5140]

I had boughten 2 baby rats that were brothers. They were fine when babies but once their hormones kicked in they fought. I mean fur flying, screaming & injurys. I stupidly tried breaking them up because I thought they were going to kill eachother. I got bit. Once they got to be old men they mellowed out.

[@asha2957]

My white rat is hurt by a black rat... He is breathing soo heavily and also crying... I don't have any animals doctors around meeee.... What should i do? My rat is 2 yrs old.

[@marilyn148]

I wished that I would have seen your videos when I had my male and female rats. They never did have babies for some reason and that was great. I would have enjoyed teaching them tricks.