About Rats.
Rat can grow to be about 10cm (4in) long and the tail will be nearly the same length again. They have four toes on teach of their front feet and five on the back feet. They use their front paws to hold food. Their teeth grow all time so it is good if they can have something hard to chew on. Rats have short manageable fur which they tend to keep clean themselves. The don't make much noise, however noise can be made from running about or playing.

Buying Rats.
Rats are best to be brought from Pet Shops or Breeders, however, they can also be brought from rescue centres.

Pet Shops: You may get deals on cages, toys and food etc when buying a rat, however, the staff may not know alot about the rats history. Also, pet store rats may not have been handled well or even at all.

Breeders: Know about the rats history and they handle the rats much more. Downsides are that you may not be able to buy the equipment from the breeder.

Rats can get a bit lonely, even if you give them lots of attention so if you deicde to buy two make sure you get two sisters or two brothers. Don't get two of each if you don't want lots of little baby rats.

Rescue Centres: You are giving a pet, which may never get one, a home. The rat may have been brought to the centre due to many reasons such as the owner couldnt take care of them anymore. You will feel good about giving the rat a second chance at a home, however, due to being moved around the rat may be a bit scared and may not be as easy to bond with.

Picking Up Rats.
Don't quickly grab them from out of nowhere, put one hand under their body and your other hand on top. Hold your rat close to your body as it helps them feel safe if off the ground. It goes without saying, but DON'T DROP YOUR RAT.

Cage and Home.
The best cages for rats are ones with lots of room in. Rat are bigger and therefore need bigger cages than Hamsters. A tall or long wire cage with a plastic bottom is best. Do not use wire base cages as they hurt rats feet and from my friends experience 100% plastic cages may be easy to chew through. Rats need a place to hide and sleep so a bed is needed. Something such as a plastic, wodden or straw bed from a pet store will do, however if you cannot get a bed you could just use lots of rat bedding which the rats can burrow into. (Straw beds may not last long, and sometimes Wooden and plastic beds may last only a few months).
Bedding and Flooring materials: Wooden shavings or scented shavings are good for the floor of the cage.I used these for my first to rats, however, when I later got 3 new rats I found it best to use Cat litter as it absorbs more of the rats urine and produces less of an odour. Also, the shavings may irritate the rat and cause them to sneeze. It is good to use paper flakes and paper tissue frompet stores for bedding, however, if you run out and there isnt any time to get some bedding quickly, shreaded newspaper or shreaded kitchen towels will work.

The rats cage needs to be cleaned out once a week, however, male rats have a stronger smell somay need to be cleaned out twice a week. The rats food bowl should be cleaned out at least every other day and the bed should be cleaned twice a week.

Food.
Before you bring your rat home find out which foods they have been eating.
Rats eat mainly dry mixture rat food which can be brought at most
petstores. Leading brands such as Reggie Rat however, are just as good as less known brands. If you pet store ran out of rat food or if you couldnt find any, you can use Guinea Pig mix. Do not use hamster mix as too many sunflower seeds can lead to overweight rats.
As well as dry mixture rats can eat vegetables, fruit and many other foods which us humans eat. Examples of these are: Pasta, cooked potato, breakfast cereals (low in sugar), dandelion leaves, egss, cheese and most fruit and vegetables but avoid raw sweet potato, brussel sprouts, red cabbage and artichokes, green bananas green potato skin, rhubarb, raw dried beans and raw peanuts as they contain either anti-nutrients, oxalates or even toxins such as cyanide.

Here is an average feeding timetable:
Brekfast - 15 grams of dry food, small piece of toast and fresh water.
Dinner- 15 grams of dry food and one fresh food treat from the lists above.

Treats.
Rats like treats as well as humans and just likeus they cannot have too many. Treats such as chocolate drops, cheese wedgies and cereal squares can be given now and again for good behaviour but things such as Mineral blocks and popcorn stick can be put in the cage for rats to nibble on as they please. Mineral Blocks, Dog biscuits and apple twigs are could for the rats teeth and claws aswel.

Toys and Playing with your rat.
Rats are happy with any toys you give them. You can by rat toys, such as plastic tunnels from pet stores, but some may be costly and you can even give rats bird toys such as ropes and ladders (Fact! Rats are very good climbers).
If you cannot afford to buy you rat lots of toys you can give them household items such as cardboard tubes for tunnels or even LARGE marbles for balls for them to push around with their noses.

Rats will have loads of fun playing with their toys, however they can also spend time playing with you. Whether its climbing the stairs or sitting on your shoulder you and your rat can have lots of fun.

Health and Vet Trips.
Make sure you check your rat regularly, that way you can notice any changes. Such as lumps and bumps on their body.
Check their teeth,ears, fur and skin,eyes and claws. Also check if they are eating well, whether they are leaving or hidding their food.

You can take your rat to the vet for check ups or if you find any problems, such as;

Lumps which could be Tumours. Tumours are more common in older, female rats. I speak from experience when I say that if you find a lump on your rat take to the vet as soon as you can. That way, the lump can be examined and if nessecary removed. There is no need to worry right away if you find a lump as it could just be fatty tissue. My rat had a tumour but after a simple operation to have it removed you was back to herself in no time.

If you see Mites on your rat take them to the vet where they will give your rat simple medication which will get rid of the mites. Syptoms are constant scraching or sores.

To prevent dehydration make sure you rat has access to fresh, clean water 24 hours a day.

If your rat seems obese, cut down on the treats and makesure you only give your rat two regular meals a day. If youwant to give your rat treats, fruit and vege would be best. You can also give your rat excercise by letting them run around your floor.

There are plenty more other illnesses and infections to look out for, as there are with humans, so just keep an eye on your rat for any changes.

Colours.
Most comman rat colours are :-
Albino Rats - Pur White fur and red eyes.
Agouti - Plain brown fur.
Fawn - Pale brown fur.
Chocolate - Dark brown.
Black - Black shiny fur.
Hooded - Coloured head and stripe down back and white body.

Rarer rat colours are :-
Champagne - Pale fawn hair and pink eyes.
Himalayan - White fur on its body and white fur on its face, ears and feet and has red eyes.
Rex - Curly fur and whiskers

All rats fur should be kept in good condition and should be glossy. Girls fur is smoother and boys is rougher.

Baby Rats.
If you can afford and have the time to look after pregnant and baby rats you may wish to breed.
The average rats litter consists of seven to ten babies. Rats are born with no fur and their eyes shut so they cannot see, they cannot hear either. Do not touch the babies until they are at least two weeks old and when you do rub your hands with the rats bedding so you do not leave the smell of "humans" on their skin.
Their mother will feed them her milk for four weeks and you can start given them dry mix at three weeks. At four weeks you can begin to start handling them.
When they are five weeks old take them to the vet to have their genders checked. At six weeks old you can give them to knew homes.

Having Pet Rats.
Having any pet is a big responsability. They have to be well cared for, cleaned, fed etc.
Younger children need to have adult supervision when handling a rat and they may need to be taught that rats are not toys and have to be handled very carefully. Parents may also have to pay for vet costs so if your child is getting a rat and you do not want to pay for any part,your child needs to have some money saved or you may have to play a part when it comes to vet bills.

Average Costs.
These costs are from what I buy.

DRY MIX FOOD: £3 for 2.3kg
CAGE:: £49.99 (large indoor rabbit cage. All cages vary in price and size. I got mine in a deal with the rats. If I brought the cage I got free food, food bowl, book, ladder and cleaning spray. Also, the cage should last for future pets.)
TOYS: Ladders and Ropes are normally about £1.99.
DISINFECTANT: £1.59 per spray bottle.
FOOD BOWL: Vary in size, about £1.99
DRINK BOTTLE: Vary in size, about 99p - £1.99
FLOORING MATERIAL: Large Woodflakes £4.99, Cat Littler £3.99
BEDDING MATERIAL: 99p - £1.99

My Rats and Experience.
I have had a excellent experience with rats. I have never been bitten in the 4+ years of owning them.

Toffee- Dark Brown Chocolate Hooded.
Fudge- Light Brown Chocolate Hooded.

Toffee and Fudge were sisters and brought from a pet store. They were my first rats, but not my first pets. I had previously had hamsters. They were always happy and excited to see me. I used to let them run on my landing and they learnt how to race each other up and down the stairs. Toffee always seemed to win, despite being slighter larger than her sister.
Toffee, like I said, was larger than Fudge. Looking at them it seemed Toffee ate more than Fudge but from what I could see they ate the same amount. I gathered later it was because Toffee was alot lazier and Fudge burnt of her food by running around more.
I said previously in my review that I had experienced illnesses. Poor Toffee grew a marble sized tumour around the area of her armpit. I took her to the vet who removed it the next day in an operation, which cost £70. I did have the option to put her down but the vet said it was standard procedure and wouldnt cause her any discomfort. Fortunately she came out successfully and dispite having to wear a head collar to stop her pulling out her stitches and having to live separately from Fudge, Toffee recovered. And I am proud to say Toffee was the only rat to have never bit the vet whilst having medical tape peeling off her and having a head collar put on. A while later I had Fudge put down as she was ill for a long time. She could move, eat or drink. I had to hand feed her baby food and 3 lots of medcine for a while, hoping she would pull through it but sadly she didnt and a few months later Toffeee past due to old age.

I currently have three female rats,
Ruby and Scarlet - Albino.
Ellie - Dark Brown Chocolate Hooded.

They are alot less energetic than Toffee and Fudge, but still play and are still happy. They are coming up to their first birthday soon. My experiences with Toffee and Fudge have helped me alot with Ruby, Scarlet and Ellie.

Recommendation.
I think that rats make superb pets.The are gentle creatures who have a bad reputation which isnt there fault. Because as with most animals there are wild breeds out there, such as dogs and cats.
Rats are reat listeners and make good play mates.

Rats would make great pets for anybody of any age, however you have to make sure that it is not to much of a commitment looking after a pet and that you have time and money to give your rats the best care.

Wow, I have just realised how much I have writen. Good luck for the future and to any rats you may be fortunate to get.

All the best
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