"Before you non-rat fans stop reading, here's a gentle reminder that, contrary to the image of dirty street animals, domesticated rats are some of the cleanest, smartest and most affectionate pets. I've had pretty much every kind of pet you can imagine, and by far rats are my favorite, said Samantha Winegarner, Marin Humane's animal care manager. They're smart, social with both cage mates and people they're incredibly fun to watch and quite fastidious."
"According to an article in the Washington Post, studies suggest rats dream when they sleep, gigglewhen tickled andgrind their teeth (called bruxing) with pleasure when stroked, similar to when cats purr.Rats are also empathetic, according to astudyin which lab rats rescued other trapped rats that previously helped them. Keeping a pet rat is just as easy as keeping other small pets. Ideally, they should live in large vertical cages because they love to climb."
Domesticated rats are clean, intelligent, social and affectionate pets that form strong bonds with humans and cage mates. Studies indicate rats dream during sleep, laugh when tickled and brux when content, demonstrating complex emotional and cognitive behaviors. Rats have shown empathetic actions in experiments by rescuing trapped companions that previously helped them. Proper care includes large vertical cages and habitat enrichment such as ladders, hammocks, mazes and tunnels to satisfy climbing and exploratory instincts. Rats are highly social, so pairing same-sex animals or neutering males in mixed pairs is recommended. Typical lifespan is about two to three years.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]