The first thought of most people when they hear the R-word is something along the lines of "ewgrossyuck!"
These folks are truly missing out on the greatest little pets going.
Let's look at some good things...
Rats are clean, easy to keep, and inexpensive to own. My second rat-a-tat cost me $8 at the pet store, and those were the best eight dollars I've ever spent.
They live for human affection. Unlike hamsters or gerbils who try to escape your clutches and merely tolerate handling, rats will beg at the cage door to come out, and once out, will snuggle and lick and follow you around like micro-dogs. My first rat would sit on my shoulder when I took the dogs out around the block; he'd snorfle the air contentedly and lick my neck.
They're fun to watch and easy to amuse. They don't need any fancy-pants toys. Shredded paper and empty cracker boxes will suffice.
The cons are few...
Male rats have shockingly enormous nads.
They tend to dribble a bit of pee on things they like, and, rats being the happy-go-lucky fellows they are, like EVERYTHING.
Problems can develop in male rattie groups when younger ones reach puberty. We had one little button named Kaiser who became a bully when he grew up, and the picked-on rat got so sick Kaiser had to be re-homed. Shitty.
The biggest con of all is that they will break your heart when they get old, and with rats, old age comes quickly. At ages two and two & a half, respectively, my Fig and Big Barker both came down with pneumonia. Because they were so old, medication didn't help at all, and after two weeks with no improvement, I brought them to the vet to be euthanized. They certainly left their pawprints on my heart! I bawled so hard in the waiting room that the nice people who were before me gave me their spot. So beware: the perfect rodent does not stay nearly long enough!
I was lucky to have all of my pets portraits done professionally (by a wonderful husband and wife team of photographers) before Barker and Fig got really sick. They were really excited to photograph my rats, and I got some amazing captures of my little buddies to enjoy forever.
(The Stubcat was fascinated by the photography equipment and photobombed everyone else's pictures)
So, the moral of the story is: Every life can be brightened by a Rat-a-Tat (or two or three)!
P.S: There are also lots of rats in shelters who would love either a permanent or a foster home! Barker was a foster who never left; fostering a rat can help you to decide if you would really like to adopt one, and your little fosterling will love you for the respite from shelter life. Every Christmas at our shelter, we try to foster out most of the animals in the building to give them their own holiday. Last year we fostered Kabuki, a big goofy rat with the most bulbous eyes I've ever seen. He had a blast at our place, and even met other rats for the first time ever! I'm happy to report he was adopted by a nice family after the holidays, and is hopefully still being loved and spoiled rotten by them.
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