Monkey and Steve Reflection

Personally, I am a sucker for a cute face and rats definitely supply that!!! I would love to change the negative perspective that so many people hold when it comes to rats.

My rats, Monkey and Steve, have brought me nothing but joy and I can say that I am a proud rat owner. I was a little unsure how successful a blog on rats would be and whether I would have something to write about each week. After looking back on nearly 14 weeks, I never had a problem coming up with something to share. I found so many others like me who want to change negative perspectives and are proud to have a rat or two to call their own.

I hope that my pictures and personal videos of Monkey & Steve have been helpful in possibly changing a negative perspective or two and maybe even have warmed your heart to the little furballs :)

It has been wonderful sharing my experiences and I hope to continue to post updates on the two little furry men in my life.

If you are considering a pet, but a little concerned about cost and upkeep of one, consider a rat. They are easily and inexpensively maintained and are perfect companions!

Rat Assistance and Teaching Society

A half a million households in the U.S. own pet rats or mice, yet because of the rvulsion many people have toward wild rats, pet rats are often misunderstood and mistreated. At many pet hops, beterinary hospitals and animal shelters, pet rats "get no respect" and therefore don't get the care they need or deserve.

The Rat Assistance & Teaching Society (R. A. T. S.) was formed to educate people about pet rats and to teach animal care professionals the proper care of rats.

Mission Statement: We believe rats should be respected as pets and treated as humanely as any other pet....I say here, here.

On the R. A. T. S. website you will find lots of info about the care of rats, lists of recue groups, vets, and breeders, and much more on the sister organization, The Rat Fan Club (something that I have already blogged about!!!)

Rat Bands and Songs

1. Boomtown Rats

2. RatDog

3. The Rat Pack

4. "Muskrat Love," by Captain & Tennille

5. "Hot Rats," by Frank Zappa

6. Ratt

7. The Swamp Rats

8. Rat Scabies (stage name of Christopher Miller, drummer for the Damned)

9. Rock radio station WRAT in New Jersey calls itself "the Rat"

10. "Rat Music for Rat People" (compilation album of punk music by Dead Kennedys, Black Flag, Bad Brains, etc)

11. "Rat On," by Swamp Dogg

12. "Ben," by Michael Jackson

13. "I Smell a Rat," by Clarence Carter

Article by the San Francisco Chronicle: http://www.sfgate.com/cgibinarticle.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/02/01/PK71UGer4.DTL

Steve on Film

I promised a bit of film of Steve. He was sleeping and refused to acknowledge the camera last time. This time around he is a camera ham! Enjoy.

Ghost Rat (Real Ghost Stories)

By NixDate: 2007-04-09

Country: United States

State: California

Paranormal Category: Pets / Animals

You've heard that if someone (or something) dies in your house, it can come back as a ghost? It turns out it is sometimes true. I have always had rats for a pet. I just moved recently and mine died. I was sleeping, and woke up in the middle of the night to get a drink. I came back in my room, and I saw the wheel moving in the cage. My eyes were already adjusted to the dark, and I saw nothing in the wheel. I put my hand in it, I felt nothing. It was the freakiest thing I ever saw.
Later, I saw a little foggy-like light in the wheel, moving. It was my rat! The ghost rat, of course. Then I started to see two... My parents woke up and saw it too. Then my little sister saw it and started screaming like the dickens. My parents came in AGAIN and didn't see the foggy-like substance, but they saw the wheel moving. You could imagine how creepy and weird it was. To this day, I am still seeing it. I wonder when it will stop... Sorry, no pictures, but I hope you believe me.

http://www.yourghoststories.com/real-ghost-story.php?story=642

I am a lover of the paranormal and this story was cute and creepy at the same time. As much as I love Monkey & Steve though, they do not have to come back after they die to keep me company. Thank you!

Rats On The Roof

Publisher Weekly states:

In seven illustrated stories of varying size and levels of sophistication, this Caldecott Honor artist introduces an array of lively anthropomorphized animals in amusing predicaments. Otis and Sophie Dog cannot sleep because of the cavorting rats that dance on the roof of their house. When the couple advertises for a cat to oust the intruders, a pompous, nattily dressed tomcat with some outrageous demands applies for the job. Other tales deal with a wolf who goes to great lengths to ensnare two unsuspecting sheep; a conniving cat tossed out on his ear after crashing a mouse wedding; and a vain frog who abruptly ceases to brag about his ``magnificent legs'' when he reads a recipe that calls for sauteed frogs' legs. As always, Marshall charges his text and pictures with a zany humor that will bewitch adults and children alike.

(Ages 6-10)

Even though the rats are portrayed in a negative light in this story, any rat owner can relate to the ruckus that rats make at night. It is not enough to keep you up, but they certainly love the time when the lights are out to come alive. Monkey & Steve are so silly at night and I chuckle every morning after seeing the path of destruction they leave from their wrestling and playing the night before. But they are the cutest things when they poke their noses out of the cage to wish me good morning. The mess disappears and my heart melts.

Pet Rat Information Sheet

After seeing how cute Monkey & Steve are maybe you are considering a pet rat. While getting rats for pets was not a huge transition for us there were still things that Tim and I would have liked to have known before we decided to bring Monkey and Steve home. This website is great for informing one on pet rats and giving care tips and explanation for rat behavior. If you are interested check out the following link: http://www.quite.co.uk/rats/ .

Live Action of Monkey and Steve

I wanted to give you a taste of the live action life of Monkey & Steve...actually a joke since they barely moved the whole time I filmed them. They were taking a nap when I invaded their slumber. Monkey honors the camera with his presence, but Steve is just being a bum, so hopefully next time I can get a bit of Steve running around (he is usually the hyper active one). Enjoy!

Here They Are!!! Monkey and Steve. Aren't they so cute, and no they are not doing what it looks like they are doing. They usually snuggle up like this before they sleep. They are good brothers and take care of one another. They are my babies.

Cute Story

It has been a while since I have actually written about Monkey and Steve. I have also wanted to post some pictures of the boys, since this blog is officially dedicated to them. It has been far too long.

So I would like to tell a story about this picture of Steve. I went to take some pictures of the boys and forgot to take the flash off. Steve is the curious one and once I opened the door of their cage he was instantly there. I took advantage of the opportunity to take an up-close and personal photo, but unfortunately forgot to take the flash off of my camera. What happened next was so heartbreaking and hilarious at the same time.

As you can see the camera was pretty close to the unsuspecting rat. Immediately after the picture Steve stiffened a fell over on one side. It looked almost as if he had fainted temporarily. What I probably did was temporarily blind him...the poor dear. Their eyes are already sensitive due to being pink and being that close to him while taking a picture probably shocked him near to death. I do not think that he suffered any long-term effects from this picture, but I feel so bad for the whole flash thing. I did get some great pictures after this. Look at following posts for them!

The American Fancy Rat and Mouse Association (AFRMA)

If you like a little more formal associations then AFRMA may be for you.

The American Fancy Rat and Mouse Association (AFRMA) was founded in 1983 and is a non-profit international club. Anyone that has an interest in rats or mice can be a member. The main purpose of AFRMA is to promote and encourage the breeding and exhibition of fancy rats and mice for show and pets. We also educate the public on their positive qualities as companion animals and provide information on their proper care. Competition shows are currently held 6 times a year throughout Southern California. These shows are very similar to cat, rabbit, or dog shows. Judges evaluate the animals based on official standards for each type of rat or mouse. We also have 1–2 shows each year dedicated to Pets only with fun classes for rats and mice regardless of their physical qualities. The club has information booths set up at several events around Southern California during each year, including the Orange County Fair, to educate the public on rats and mice as pets and show animals.

Monkey and Steve are not Fancy Rats and could not really kick it with the upper crust, but they are loved just the same!

The Rat Fan Club

I cannot believe that it took me this long to come across a rat fan club! Crazy...yeah I know, but I Love My Rats! This specific rat fan club can be found at http://ratfanclub.org/index.html .

It focuses on rats as companion animals and to promote them as such, instead of the common concept of disease-ridden vermin. The fan club hopes to spread information about the proper care of rats and does not cost a thing to join. If you love rats as much as I do this fan club is for you!

Aladdin-Do The Rat Thing (Part 3 of 3)

Here is the final installment. Hope that you enjoyed "Do The Rat Thing."

Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp9g8izsAFI&feature=related

Aladdin-Do The Rat Thing (Part 2 of 3)

I hope you liked the first installment. Enjoy the second!

Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_8sdZfh2wZw

Aladdin-Do The Rat Thing (Part 1 of 3)

Do you remember the Aladdin cartoon on Disney Toon? Well enjoy an episode where Jasmine gets inspiration from a rat running around the palace to better understand Aladdin's life as a "Street Rat." Look for the next installment sometime soon! Enjoy!

Here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s6EES9LcgR4

Rats Laugh When You Tickle Them!

I saw this video before and just happened upon it again. It is so cute and interesting!

Check it out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myuceywaOUs

My rats will not let me anywhere near their bellies to let me tickle them.

Jack Black (rat catcher)

Here is your history lesson for the day!

Jack Black was a rat-catcher and mole destroyer by appointment to Her Majesty Queen Victoria during the middle of the nineteenth century. Black cut a striking figure in his self-made "uniform" of scarlet topcoat, waistcoat, and breeches, with a huge leather belt inset with cast-iron rats.

He is known particularly through Henry Mayhew's account in London Labour and the London Poor, Vol. 3, where he tells Mayhew of his work and experiences, including a number of occasions when he nearly died from infection following rat bites.

When he caught any unusually coloured rats, he bred them, to establish new colour varieties. He would sell his home-bred domesticated coloured rats as pets, mainly, as Black observed, "to well-bred young ladies to keep in squirrel cages." Beatrix Potter is believed to have been one of his customers, and she dedicated the book Samuel Whiskers to her rat of the same name. The more sophisticated ladies of court kept their rats in dainty gilded cages, and even Queen Victoria herself kept a rat or two. It was in this way that domesticated—or fancy—rats were established. Black also supplied live rats for rat-baiting in pits, a popular mid-Victorian past-time.

Black had a number of sidelines beyond rats, including fishing (for food and supplying aquaria), bird catching and taxidermy. He was also an accomplished dog breeder. He told Mayhew: "I had a little rat dog—a black tan terrier by the name of Billy which was the greatest stock dog in London of that day. He was the father of the greatest portion of small black tan dogs in London now. I've been offered a sovereign per pound (in weight) for some of my little terriers, but I wouldn't take that price, for they weren't heavier than two or three pounds. I once sold one of the dogs to the Austrian Ambassador...My terrier dog was known to all the London fancy. As rat-killing dogs, there's no equal to that strain of black tan terriers."

And you thought Jack Black was an actor and singer in Tenacious D!

Sprague-Dawley Rats

While watching a Modern Marvels special on Rats I learned that my rats are officially named as Sprague-Dawleys. This type of rat is an inbred strain of albino rat commonly used in laboratory research. There are 12 strains of inbred rats listed under “Medical Subject Headings,” a supplement to Index Medicus. The Wistar rat is an equally popular inbred strain of albino rat used in laboratory research.

It is comforting to know that my little guys were saved from scientific experimentation and the belly of a snake.

Rat Trivia

Rats eat about one-tenth their body weight each day. if that held true for people the average adult would need to eat about 15 pounds of food a day.

Since the 1950s, Alberta, Canada has been rat free due to a strict rat control program. Even pet rats are not allowed in the Canadian province.

The oldest rat on record lived for seven years and four months. That is almost three times the lifspan of the average rat.

The rat genome revealed that rats have been evolving about three times faster than humas.

Rats memorize their environment by body and muscle movement alone. They become so engrained by body movements that when objects are removed from their territory rats will continue to move around them as if the objects were still there.

The phrase: "Rats are the first to desert a sinking ship" has some basis in fact. In the days of wooden sailing vessels, rats lived in the holds of the ships and would be the first to know if a leak had developed. Ironically, their incessant gnawing in the wood often caused the leaks.

Rats can swim as far as 1/2 mile in open water.

New Home!

One of our neighbors moved out and left what seemed to us to be a treasure trove of items. Tim and I are not dumpster divers by any means, but if you could have seen what this guy threw out I believe you would have been so moved to do what Tim and I did. One item in particular caught our attention--a bird cage on wheels. I am not talking about a little flimsy cage for canaries, I am talking about a cage big enough to house a large parrot. Now this interested us how you may ask, but keep reading.

After having our rats for two weeks, we witnessed a significant growth. What once seemed to be a perfectly sized cage began to look stifling to the guys. We read that a big cage with lots of space to run and lots of stuff to do is best for healthy rats. Tim and I were concerned because we entered the whole situation because owning rats was supposedly inexpensive, but then we saw the price of large rat cages. It would have been a big investment, but one we were considering for Monkey and Steve's happiness and health. Well then our neighbor moved out and left this huge bird cage behind.

It was a sign! Tim brought it in, scrubbed it down, and made it rat friendly. We looked up the value of the cage online and found that this guy discarded a $500.00 cage. Thanks to this guy, we saved a lot of money and were able to give the rats a better home. We are currently tricking the cage out to make it rat paradise, but this will come in small increments considering our finances.

The guys seem a lot happier and have more room to run and I cannot wait till their cage is complete! Hopefully by the end of the semester it will be and I can post a few pictures of their fully renovated abode!

The Roly-Poly Pudding Or, The Tale of Samuel Whiskers

I have always been of fan of Beatrix Potter and was raised on her stories. Many of you know Tom Twitchit the gray striped cat who seems to get in as much trouble as Peter Rabbit. Well I was thrilled to find a Beatrix Potter story (that I was not so familiar with) that featured rats. When curiosity gets the better of Tom, two rats, Anna Maria and Samual Whiskers, capture the kitten and decide to make a baked pudding out of him.

[Excerpt]: Tom Kitten bit and spat, and mewed and wriggled; and the rolling-pin went roly-poly, roly; roly, poly, roly. The rats each held an end.
"His tail is sticking out! You did not fetch enough dough, Anna Maria."

"I fetched as much as I could carry," replied Anna Maria."I do not think" -- said Samuel Whiskers, pausing to take a look at Tom Kitten -- "I do not think it will be a good pudding. It smells sooty."

To learn what happens, you must read for yourself! It is quite a cute little story and seeing that I am a rat lover, I would not put a story on here that does not end well.

Enjoy!

Iris the Broccoli-aholic

I hope to one day train my rats to be this exciting. She is such a good rat, so well trained, and looks like an exciting pet!

Check her out:http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LrnGwahvYwk&feature=related

Video of Parallax Motion

If you wonder what Parallax Motion looks like, check out this You Tube video. I am hoping to get a few pictures of the little guys on the blog soon.

Go here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9GyXStLl_2E&eurl=http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/myratswaysherhead.htm&feature=player_embedded

Here is another one (this one looks like he is dancing to the Beatles music in the background): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I55Cw5ber94&eurl=http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/myratswaysherhead.htm&feature=player_embedded


Enjoy!

Adventures with Parallax Motion!

Now this is a funny story.

One evening Tim and I looked in our little guys and found Monkey huddled in a corner acting a little strange. I can only discribe it as it appeared that Monkey was in a trance. Eyes locked on some far away place and swaying side to side as if he was dizzy. Our first impression was that Monkey was sick. So as we always do, we hop onto the Internet to try and find a clue as to what might be the case.

I found scores of people with the same concern and experience and questioning as to what the cause was of the mysterious behavior. I found one website that begged us not to be alarmed, that the behavior was perfectly normal, and actually bares a name. Monkey was exercising what is called Parallax Motion.

Parallax Motion is common in white rats with pink eyes. Rats with pink eyes have a harder time determining the depth and location of whatever they are looking. They also have a harder time seeing in general. To be able to determine how far away something is (if they are not sure or are just curious) they will stare intently and move back and forth to figure it out.

I have to say that we were so relieved and felt a little stupid afterwards. We have only seen Monkey do this once and never Steve. I wonder what Monkey was looking at that had him so drawn to it. I will never know, but at least if this happens again I can be rest assured that everything is alright!

An Adventure With Nervous Sniffles!

Every day is a learning experience with our little guys. As before mentioned it is all new and exciting as well as scary at times.

When we first brought them home we noticed that they were sneezing a lot. One thing that I did know about rats was the constant threat of respiratory problems. If their living conditions and surroundings are not kept sanitary rats can develop congestion which can weaken the lungs and be potentially fatal to their delicate system. I know that this seems a little absurd because a person often associates rats with filthy situations, sickness, and disease. However, it is the same for rats in sewers and garbage heaps. A rats life in these situations is rather limited. It is their ability to reproduce in such a short amount of time that keeps their population up. Just an interesting fact: A rat's gestation period is about 21-24 days and can birth up to 20 rats in a litter. You do the math!

But back to my cute little guys--the non-sewer dwelling, disease-free type.

So Monkey and Steve had the sniffles and for the first week or so Steve seemed to be getting worse. I was moments away from actually calling the vet, when I did some searching on the Internet. As I said, Tim and I keep it close.

We found that most rats suffer from Nervous Sneezing and Sniffles, when subjected to a new environment. It is brought on by the stress of relocation, separation anxiety, insecurity. We learned to leave them alone for a few days and to see if the sneezing subsided. It did! I think what helped was the fact that we did decide to get two rats instead of one. Imagine being pulled away from your pals and placed in a cage all alone. It almost makes me feel like a monster.
Monkey and Steve are the best of buds, and definitely helped one another adjust to a new environment.

We do experience the nervous sneezing and sniffles every now and then when handling the rats. Money and Steve were never handled by humans on a regular basis while they were young, and in every experience of human handling they have been traumatized in one manner or another--seperation from their mother, brothers and sisters, moved from cage to cage, and finally cage to box, a bumpy car ride, and then thrust into a new situation entirely (the Sams home). They are still uncomfortable with being held and usually sneeze their heads off and leave a trail of "Fear Poop" (gross I know but an actual reference). This is something that we will need to work on and is getting better every day.

They do love when we open the door to the cage and are perfectly fine with the human/rat interaction that happens when they are still within the confines of the cage. They are rather sweet in this type of exchange and hopefully soon will move beyond the bars!


They wrestle, which is always a fun thing to watch--especially when they both have one another's tail in their mouths and running around in circles...Hilarious!

Interesting Facts About Rats

Since Tim and I are new at this taking care of rats thing, we keep the internet close. We love reading rat owners blogs and pet rat care sites. One blogger posted some very interesting facts about rats that I would like to share. Here they are:

Rats and People
There has, actually been a long relationship between rats and people-several centuries.

• Ancient Egyptians worshipped rats.

• In Japan, rats are considered a symbol of wealth; the people even set out rice cakes on New Years, and if a rat gnaws on the cake, it foretells a good harvest.

• The Chinese, also, see the rat as a symbol of prosperity; Chinese folklore explains the rat's intelligence and cunning is the reason it's the first animal of the Chinese zodiac.

• Hindus revere rats because of Ganesha, god of prosperity, rides on the back of rats.

• India has a park donated for rats, and a temple dedicated to them.

• Historically, those in Bassora, Turkey, did not allow rats to be killed because they were a sign of luck.

• The first record of wild rats being kept as pets were in the 1800s in England. During this time, "ratting" was a popular sport, in which dogs were put inot pits to kill as many rats as they could. But, Jack Black, was thought to ahve been the first to start selling them as pets.

• In 1976, the first true rat club, the National Fancy Rat Society, was established.
  And, in the first half of the 20th century, they were considered as a suitable pet for children.

Naming the Rats

As before mentioned, Tim and I came home with two rats when only originally planning on bringing home one. We saw all of the rats snuggled up together in their cage and we instantly knew that we could not tear one rat away from the group and expect him to be happy in his solitude. We would learn later that we made a good decision in getting more than one.

We really did not have any choice in the matter of which two we would take. A very pregnant PETCO lass merely folded up two paper carrying cases, reached in and carefully grabbed which ever two tails she could get a hold off first, and handed our new pets over to us. Opening them when we got home was much like Christmas all over again. The rats were a mystery because it was only a matter of seconds between cage and box and we were unable to get a good look at them.

In the car on the way home, Tim and I tried to think of names for our little guys. It was only fair that he got to name one and I got to name one. Tim has an obsession with monkeys and it did not take long for one to assume the name of his favorite animal. It's silly I know, but Monkey would certainly live up to his name. Mine took a little longer to obtain a name. I did not have much experience naming anything more than my beta fish that I had in my younger years. They would always bear names like Bob, Larry, and Ronald, because I have this thing for typical male names. I felt the need to remain with this trend. For some reason Blue's Clues popped into my head and my rat was soon named Steve. He is definitely a Steve.

Thus begin our lives with Monkey and Steve. The two little white-haired, pink-eyed and pink-tailed creatures whose lives and ways are foreign to us, but we are so willing to learn and discover. Tune in next time for more adventures of Monkey and Steve!

New Pets For Newlyweds

My husband and I are recently married, so of course money is tight. We are both animal lovers and our apartment seems so empty without a dog or a cat, but our means does not allow us to splurge on one. There are expenses to consider--food, pet care items, vet bills--things that we could not afford. So on January 2nd I talked to Tim (my hubby) and asked if we could afford something smaller like a guinea pig, hamster, gerbil or rat. I entered the conversation believing that he would tell me that it was out of the question, but thought it was worth a shot. To my surprise Tim said that it would be possible, seemed equally interested, and thus we ventured off to PETCO that afternoon.

After a car ride conversation we agreed that a rat would probably be best for us and walked into PETCO with a plan. Our original plan only involved one rat, but we walked out with two and a My First Super Pet starter kit for rats. We felt like to little kids and their first pet. As a matter of fact this was the first time for the both of us in having such a pet.

So everything is new for us and I thought that it would be fun to document our experiences and times with our new pets. It might be a little funny that a newlywed couples' first pets are rats, but I think it is good to start small and work up. We love having them and find ourselves drawn to them curiously like little kids.

More to come!