Why rats are misunderstood.

I have a pet rat called Scruffs (would have called her Scabers but shes female and not evil) who is the cutest, smartest and most affectionate pet in the world. Everyone thinks rats are horrid but Scruffs is perfect. Plus rat are proven to be smarter then cats, dogs, rabbits or hamsters. I got her 2 years ago and used to have two but one (called Shadow, also a girl) died last year and Scruffs was so sad after Shadow died. :upset:
Who else has, wants or loves rats.:tu:

I don't doubt you love your rat..but having lived in a home that became invaded by rats I can't share your sentiments :whistle: but my coworker just the other day told us about his rat that he actually bought to feed to his snake but couldn't go through with killing her for some reason he loves her very much :)

My mom would never let me have a rat, but my friend has two, and theyre sooooo cute!!!! I love rats and mice (though putting one on your face is kinda....er....weird, the claws felt weird :lol:). I understand that some rats like sewer rats are bad because they carry diseases, but some of the ones you may find in your house if not diseased probably make great pets (my other friend's brother caught like 3 little mice, theyre so cute!) and store bought ones are just great. Apparently, I'm the only one who's willing to play with them, touch them or kiss them (yes, I've kissed a rat :lol:). Really....some people

Awww Scruffs is such a cute name!
I always wanted a rat but my mum wouldn't let me because she thought that it would bite you and give you rabies and stuff! :lol:
I tryed telling her she was soo wrong but in the end I got two hamsters. I'm not complaining though, I love them to bits.
I do think rats are potrayed rather badly, but really they make great pets. :)

We absolutely loved our pet rat. Our story of finding her is cute, too!:lol: My boyfriend found a cage on the sidewalk by our house and decided to keep it. The next day he was taking an old computer out to the curb for garbage and he found a rat inside! :err: That was our Suzy! We had her for about 6 months but she developed breast cancer and we eventually had to put her to sleep. It was horribly sad. We still really miss her. She was friendly and smart and adorable. We plan on going to a rat breeder and getting a pair of female rats really soon. Suzy was an albino so we would like to get a different breed this time around for variety. I would recommend rats to anyone that likes hamsters! They are much friendlier and more cuddly! They're bigger, so they are easier to handle and she never once bit us even when we first got her.

mom always let me have rats when i was a kid. she knew the pet variety are super clean and friendly little critters. They dont have rabies, don't stink, have fleas or anything like that and they certainly don't bite unless they're not handled as babies. You CAN take a baby norway rat (common sewer rat) and make a pet out of it; one of my friends had found a pup and raised it up as a pet.
Hams bite unless hand raised, I never cared for those. Mice smell bad, I bred those for a snake years ago. Man they reek bad.

I've always been bit by hamsters, too. I like mice but they're so little and hyper that they're not really much fun. I didn't realize they stunk! :lol:

Random thought, I never understood why people were afraid of them. Once, a rat was found in the school, and all the girls were on one side of the hallway cowering in fear and the boys and some other girls were trying to catch it :rotfl:. Rats are soooo cute, and I just don't get why people hate them.

I guess it's because they have a nasty reputation of spreading disease. I have to admit that Suzie's red eyes definitely freaked me out at first but she was just the sweetest most even tempered pet I ever kept. I really hope my next rat is anywhere near as great as she was!

Random thought, I never understood why people were afraid of them. Once, a rat was found in the school, and all the girls were on one side of the hallway cowering in fear and the boys and some other girls were trying to catch it :rotfl:. Rats are soooo cute, and I just don't get why people hate them.

I can't see why anyone would be scared either.
My little scruffs had this great game, see my 2 little sisters where slightly scared of her so when she went near them my sisters would scream and run to the other side of the room. Scruffs was confused by this at first but then decided it was very funny so now she chases them around my room, it's so funny. :lol:
But now they stay still and she walks over there feet a couple of times then gets bored.

I disagree that they are proven smarter than all thouse animals.:lol: But you do have a nice point there I agree. :agree: The only ressons I don't like them is 'cause of Peter Petagrew, and 'cause they bite. :whistle: But other than thouse two ressons the would infact make a good pet. :)

I want a rat, but my parents wont let me. My mom is scared of them, why I dont know why. And my dad says I cant get one because of my younger brother who is two. That I dont understand either. Ah well, I guess I shall be rat-less till I move out.

I disagree that they are proven smarter than all thouse animals.:lol: But you do have a nice point there I agree. :agree: The only ressons I don't like them is 'cause of Peter Petagrew, and 'cause they bite. :whistle: But other than thouse two ressons the would infact make a good pet. :)

I heard that mice are supposed to bite more than rats, but mice do look cuter.

I used to have a friend who had a couple of rats. They were nice creatures, but I'd rather have cats myself :)

I had a few rats yrs ago, and they make really good pets, but they don't live that long two or three yrs tops. My last rat Phantom cause she was all white with one black spot over her face, she live for over three yrs. but i didn't get to hold her much im highly allergic to rats, make me break out in hives, so i had my kids hold her. so LilyLunaPotter you can tell your parents that rats are good around kids. :lol:

My friend had rats a while ago, and they were pretty cool. I can't really have rats, because my cat would go crazy (well, crazier) at the sight of them. I don't really understand why people are afraid of them, but I get why they might not like them. I like them, because they are so cute :p.

I really want a rat, but my mom's terrified of them. My friend has rats and they're really sweet.

I have two wonderful rats, and I agree with you, they're highly misunderstood. A lot of people give me grossed out looks when I talk about them. But, it's their loss that they're missing out on so much fun. =D

Awww...rats are the best pets! I had them as a child and now that I have my own kids, we have rats. They are clever, clean and can learn all sorts of tricks. I've had hamsters and mice, but have never enjoyed them as much. Right now we have a little grey rat named Tiny Dancer (the children named her!) and she is darling and never bites.

I think rats are misunderstood because humans expect everything to behave as irrationally as them. If you have food in your house, it will, eventually, attract pests. Rats aren't going to worry about laws against burglary. If a rat shows up in the house, it's just because it wants to eat the most it can with the bare minimum amount of work. It's just weird and cruel, killing these kinds of pests.

Why rats are misunderstood.


Because they're dirty, they eat our food and clothes and carry illnesses that can pass to people and make them be sick seriously and even go to the hospital. They're the dirtiest animals in the world who usually before they come to our homes they live under the roads at big cities. (Also Peter Petigrew was a rat Animagus. :lol:)

Do I need to go on with this? :lol:

Mice are cute but rats are downright weird. I don't like rats. They're so ugly.

Because they're dirty, they eat our food and clothes and carry illnesses that can pass to people and make them be sick seriously and even go to the hospital. They're the dirtiest animals in the world who usually before they come to our homes they live under the roads at big cities. (Also Peter Petigrew was a rat Animagus. :lol:)

Do I need to go on with this? :lol:

Congratulations, you have just shown exactly why rats are misunderstood.

Pet rats do not do what you describe.

Pet rats =/= wild rats. They do not carry disease, they are actually clean because they spend 1/3 of their lives grooming themselves. The only reason a pet rat would be dirty is if you kept it in filthy conditions. They are intelligent, affectionate pets who enjoy a cuddle. They are nothing like their wild counterparts because they do not live in filth and are hand reared from a very young age. People are just so ignorant because they think about the plague and sewers, but we are talking about domesticated rats here... they make much better pets than hamsters IMO because they don't have the tenancy to bite and are social animals.

Or are you letting the scare mongering of C-grade horror movies cloud your judgement?

And the dirtiest animal in the world is man, surely you would know this?

Mice are cute but rats are downright weird. I don't like rats. They're so ugly.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_jWNhyMUpjSE/SZ15SuIWL1I/AAAAAAAACyo/Q-br_c18DQ0/s400/rat.jpg

http://blogs.phillyburbs.com/news/bcct/wp-content/blogs.dir/2/files/2008/August/thursday2/rats.jpg

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk22/hilary1958/Rats009-1.jpg

http://www.likecool.com/Gear/Pic/Cutest%20Rats/Cutest-Rats-1.jpg

Yes... so very ugly, aren't they?

Congratulations, you have just shown exactly why rats are misunderstood.

Pet rats do not do what you describe.

Pet rats =/= wild rats. They do not carry disease, they are actually clean because they spend 1/3 of their lives grooming themselves. The only reason a pet rat would be dirty is if you kept it in filthy conditions. They are intelligent, affectionate pets who enjoy a cuddle. They are nothing like their wild counterparts because they do not live in filth and are hand reared from a very young age. People are just so ignorant because they think about the plague and sewers, but we are talking about domesticated rats here... they make much better pets than hamsters IMO because they don't have the tenancy to bite and are social animals.

Or are you letting the scare mongering of C-grade horror movies cloud your judgement?

And the dirtiest animal in the world is man, surely you would know this?




http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_jWNhyMUpjSE/SZ15SuIWL1I/AAAAAAAACyo/Q-br_c18DQ0/s400/rat.jpg

http://blogs.phillyburbs.com/news/bcct/wp-content/blogs.dir/2/files/2008/August/thursday2/rats.jpg

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/kk22/hilary1958/Rats009-1.jpg

http://www.likecool.com/Gear/Pic/Cutest%20Rats/Cutest-Rats-1.jpg



Yes... so very ugly, aren't they?

Excuse-moi, but I don't judge animals by watching movies. I'd rather search informations for them in internet. Also, you didn't verify what you were talking about. If you were talking about rats, as the thread's title say, well, I already answered to the thread's question. If you were talking about hamsters, well, you should have ensure that the other would have understand what you wanted to said.

And oh yeah rats are ugly.

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/44307000/jpg/_44307921_rat_416.jpg

Excuse-moi, but I don't judge animals by watching movies. I'd rather search informations for them in internet. Also, you didn't verify what you were talking about. If you were talking about rats, as the thread's title say, well, I already answered to the thread's question. If you were talking about hamsters, well, you should have ensure that the other would have understand what you wanted to said.

You know exactly what I was talking about.

This is the pets forum, after all.

As for the ugliness issue, just a matter of opinion really. But I find it confusing that someone would find mice "cute", when they look similar in body shape and the design of the face to a rat anyway.

Very selective photo there. It wouldn't be hard to make a puppy look ugly if it were fat, swimming in filth with an odd face... and it being dead. Hell, with some creative photography, I could make a harmless golden retriever look vicious by taking a photo during mid yawn. Sharp teeth tend to do that.

I just find it that people who tend to judge rats based on their reputation don't know too much about them. Like, for example, relating pet ones to wild ones. Heck, not all wild ones are bad anyway; the Australian bush rat for one, is native to Australia. The Brown rat is the one you want to point fingers at - then again, you can't blame them for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. After all, it was humans who gave them the ecological niche. I think it's silly to blame animals on problems we created in the first place (eg. introduced non-native species).

PS. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ikm3o5hDk ;)

You know exactly what I was talking about.

This is the pets forum, after all.

How can you say: You know exactly what I was talking about and yet be so sure?
Rats or hamsters, it's very different. I've heard about hamster pest, but for rats pets, sorry no.

Very selective photo there. It wouldn't be hard to make a puppy look ugly if it were fat, swimming in filth with an odd face... and it being dead. Hell, with some creative photography, I could make a harmless golden retriever look vicious by taking a photo during mid yawn. Sharp teeth tend to do that.

It's not fat and swimming in filth, does it have muds or whatever?, although I knew you would say that. It's just a species of rat which is big by nature. Odd face? I wouldn't be so sure about it, it's just a usual rat face. And sorry, but no it's not dead. :D

As for the dog photo, I don't think you can find a dog species which is so ugly.

You might be talking about rats who live in human homes and are cleaned and brushed every day. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about wild rats who are not cleaned and decorated with beautiful papillons.

You two are harshing my mellow. So knock it off. Now.

If you have a problem with a post or poster, report it to the staff using the nifty little "report post" button http://www.cosforums.com/images/dhus/buttons/report.gif found at the top-right of every post. Want to argue with someone? Fine. Just don't do it in the thread.
Take a moment to read How to have a pleasant conversation on any topic (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=106994) and put what you learn there to use.

This is neither the place to post the ugliest pets for what purpose ever nor is it to discuss in-threads with staff - that can be done via owl. If you were told your tone is too harsh, better check why this impression developed at all.

Some posts have been deleted.

How can you say: You know exactly what I was talking about and yet be so sure?
Rats or hamsters, it's very different. I've heard about hamster pest, but for rats pets, sorry no.

Don't get what you're saying here.

Hamster pest? What?

If you've never heard of pet rats, then look at the thread. Or do some research.

As for the dog photo, I don't think you can find a dog species which is so ugly.

Chinese crested dogs.

You might be talking about rats who live in human homes and are cleaned and brushed every day. I'm not talking about them. I'm talking about wild rats who are not cleaned and decorated with beautiful papillons.

It's a topic on pet rats and how they're misunderstood, so it's irrelevant. BTW, rats are not dogs with excessive amounts of fur. They clean themselves just fine... like a cat would.

For my part, I rather like rats. When I was in grade school a teacher of mine got one for us as a class pet. She was around a foot long with another foot of tail, and we kept her and her cage clean. She was extremely affectionate and intelligent. I enjoyed having to clean her cage because it meant I was able to hold her for extended periods of time.

That said, I do think it is sad that wild rats have precluded so many people from being able to see the potential they have as pets. After all, there are wild and rabid dogs and cats that are as disease-ridden as any other wild animal. I think the negative reaction comes from the fact that a rat can get into any space it can fit its head through and as such are more likely to find their way into a home than other wild animals, making them rather more like pests than pets.

Still, I think they are kind of cute. I think mice and hamsters are cuter, but I wouldn't mind having a rat for a pet. They like to cuddle.



Please feel free to share your opinions on rats as well, but do it in a manner respectful to other posters and their opinions.

My boyfriend has rats a few years ago, and he absolutely loved them. He was devasted when they died. So for our 3 year anniversary I bought him 2 new rats and they are so adorable. They are still young so they still bite a little, but nothing hard. Soooo cute. But smelly :yuhup:

I like Rats I would love to have one or two now but I currently still live with the folks and well Mom …. :whistle: Anyways whenever I get my own place one day I would defiantly get 1 or 2. The shelter I volunteer at we sometimes have some rats for adoption. I can still remember over a year ago a cute brown and white Rat named Snickers. My dog passed away last December and I got this Pet support book and the lady that wrote it has had dozens of rats through the years. Before I read the book I always wanted one but after it really gave me even more fondness for the little creature. The gal had a story in her book of a rat that actually jumped on an intruder in the home and was scratching the intruders face.

I even saw on tv a very large species of rat that they use to detect land mines it was on Animal planet I think it was one of those Most Extreme shows where they count down to 1 it was just very cool.

People do misunderstand them people are talking about pet rats that they get from a breeder or adopt somewhere not some street rat they pull out of the sewer. That said I don’t even have a problem with them they way I see it all creatures have a purpose.

I don't have any at the moment but I adore rats, they make wonderful pets- clean, smart, friendly. We've kept rats, hamsters, mice, gerbils, degus, jirds, chipmunks, a chinchilla, rabbits, guinnea pigs, sugar gliders, cats, dogs, horses, ferrets, chickens and ducks so I am quite experienced with pets of all kinds and rats are the absolute best in the small pet category. I've had around 10 of them and they all had their own personalities and behavioural traits and I really miss having them, but it just isn't a good time for me to be having small pets.

The one thing that I don't like about pet rats is that because they were originally bred for lab research they tend to get cancer or become paralysed (from a trapped nerve I think, it has happened to a few of my rats) and I always hate that time when you have to make a choice about their future, it just makes me so sad- it never gets any easier.

I even like wild rats, we actually have wild rats living outside under the chicken shed and they don't do any harm- I certainly haven't caught any diseases from them! They're just there to steal the chicken's corn, they have never come indoors or made a mess. We only know they're there because one of the dogs is obsessed with them and is always trying to dig under the chicken shed and we have ocassionally found a dead one.

Rats aren't naturally dirty creatures but just like pigeons, foxes, mice and cockroaches they have adapted to live alongside humans and make the most of our waste. Yes, OUR waste. You might think a rat is filthy for living amongst rubbish but it is our rubbish to begin with. All those animals I mentioned are considered vermin because they had the audacity to follow us into our cities- even though in most cases those cities were built over their natural habitat.

Go ratties :clap:

Our class pet in 3rd grade was a white red-eyed rat named Sammy. I swear, that rat had such a personality, and it was loving too, as weird as that is to say. :D

Psychologically speaking, people are disgusted with things that they feel (perhaps subconsciously) will harm them. At it's most basic level it helps keep us out of harms way.

That is why I understand why people are grossed out by rats, but I personally find them rather cute. Sure wild rats are dirty and such, but they are just doing what it takes to survive in an essentially man-made environment.

I honestly don't understand the whole "argument" above. This thread is asking the question: why are rats misunderstood. People don't like rats because in the past, rats have been carriers for diseases. They've also eaten humans' food, destroyed crops and in general, been pests. I honestly don't understand what answers the OP was expecting. Obviously pet rats have none of these qualities, but the prejudice towards rats did not originate with pet rats as people have only recently been keeping rats as pets on a widespread level (at least in the Western World). This may be a pets forum, but the answer to this question does not apply to the "pet version" of this animal. People are adverse to pet rats because of wild rats.

This may be a pets forum, but the answer to this question does not apply to the "pet version" of this animal. People are adverse to pet rats because of wild rats. I disagree that the question doesn't apply to the pet "version" of the rat; in fact, I quite like your answer - people are prejudiced against domesticated rats because of wild ones. Though I do think that their looks also plays a part; people don't generally have the same aversion to mice, yet wild mice are just as much of a menace.

It is such a shame that rats are so missunderstood. I've had a few pet hampsters but after one had to be put down last may I had two rats. It took a bit of persuasion to convince my mum (especcially considering that we had just had some wild ones in our house). In the pet shop she shouted at the top of her voice 'Oh my god we can't have thouse look at their Balls'.

and now I've had my little Harry and Ron for over a year now and I can't believe I used to own hampsters thy've never bitten me (I can stick my fingers in thier cage and they just lick them) They are intelligent.... Although Ron seems to have been last inline for the 'brain deleveries' and Harry wasn't far behind xD.

I just don't get why people dislike them so much? I love my two to bits!

I used have 4 pet rats over the space of 4-5 years and they were wonderful, their names were brownie (my first adorable-natured rat, she had to be put down at 2 1/2 years old because of a big tumor),Tiny (She was in a badly kept pet shop and was the smallest of the Group, turns out the owner under fed them and sold them at 3 weeks old! We got her with my sisters rat Rufus and reported the shop to the RSPCA.), Cookie (A boy rat and very cheeky!) and Gizmo.

Hello, I'm new to the forums but was drawn to this one cause I've kept ratties on and off for a few years. Only got 2 just now cause one of my girls passed away last week :(

Was just wanting to point out if anyone wants to get a pet rats (they are super pets), please don't get just one. Rats are very social animals and need interaction with their own kind. I think a group of 3 rats is ideal for anyone starting out. Always do your research before getting a new pet :)
They are very rewarding pets, I've got my 2 out at the moment scuttling about under the couch.. although normally they like to 'help' me type.. so they must be up to something!

Because they're dirty, they eat our food and clothes and carry illnesses that can pass to people and make them be sick seriously and even go to the hospital. They're the dirtiest animals in the world who usually before they come to our homes they live under the roads at big cities. (Also Peter Petigrew was a rat Animagus. :lol:)

Do I need to go on with this? :lol:

Wild rats are dirty, pet rats aren't. Why don't people get the difference? :C
Been keeping rats for a while now and the only time they actually smell is if I dont clean them out (once a week, every sunday), and even then it's only noticable if I stick my face in the cage...


<3 rats :3

Actually I wouldn't even say wild rats are so much more dirty than pet rats either. They just live where dirtiness is to get themselves some food. Back when humans didn't clean themselves regularly, rats had a chance to transfer illnesses, but we're for the most cases over this long since. Even then if hadn't mainly been the rats who were overly dirty, but rather us humans.

I think a lot of people don't know just how closely related rats are to squirrels and rabbits. They're all rodents.
As an old TV commercial once said, does that fluffy tail really make all the difference? Apparently. I think it's something about that worm-like tail that skeeves some people out, but personally, I find mice, and sometimes rats, to be cute, on the whole, just like squirrels and rabbits.

Now, cockroaches, those things skeeve me out - they strike me as filthy, disease ridden/carrying nasty things.

I think I might have already posted on this thread like a year ago... xD But rats really are grossly misunderstood. Whenever I tell my peers about them most cringe in disgust. Until they see a picture. xD

I love rats! Well, pet rats anyway :) Not the sewer, disease infested rats. We had some a few years ago and they are so gorgeous, and so clean! I would love to have another one, but I can't afford the cage at the moment :(

I'm reviving this thread with more rat love! I don't have one at the moment, but I've had a couple in the past and they were just angels. They're just so smart and loving!

Ive had rats since I was about..11 or 12 I believe.
It took me quite a while to convince my mum, she thought they were groose.
When I finally convinced her and I got my first 2 rats, she loved them! <3

Right now I only have 1 rat, he doesnt seem to get along with other rats so well and I dont want multiple cages. But he is adorable! <3
His name is Balou, like the bear in Jungle Book, mainly because he's big and fat and.. yeah.. thats why :p

http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r142/Quexy/Picture10.jpg

Part of the reason rats are misunderstood is the whole Bubonic Plague kerfuffle. I understand, intellectually, that rats that are kept clean do make for good pets. The problem is that I haven't met a rat that was clean, so I'm biased towards my survival instinct.

Rats are clean - if they live in sewers and rubbish dumps and down dirty, stinking alley ways just whose dirt is that? Certainly not the rats'. I recently got a couple more rats after a few rat-free years and they are adorable and extremely clean. They are litter trained so they go to their box to deposit their droppings. They spend a lot of their time grooming themselves and each other. I have a coop cup of water in their cage and they dip their hands in and run their wet hands over themselves. They don't smell at all and I barely have to clean them out since I can just spot clean their litter tray each day. They are far cleaner than dogs who roll in filth, eat other animals' poo and often sick up and fart. I love dogs, but there is no denying they are messy, and certainly messier than rats! :)