Anybody have a Pet " Rat"? Cost monthly? Cons?

[toysrus]

Does anybody here have a pet "Rat"? Or had one? We were going to get our kids some hamsters, the Pet shop said go with a " Rat.

So we were wondering. What do Pet Rats cost per month? Average?

What are the cons?

Thanks!

[Bizarro Amy]

I don't know about costs, but rats can be very friendly if they're handled correctly. You might want to check into their life span. The daycare where I see a client has several classrooms with pet mice and rats. They seem very prone to tumors.

[Meule]

I had a friend who had a pet rat and I used to have a pet mouse. They cost virtually nothing

[bobbait]

there free in NY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvLDFtaL5HI

[Gorn Captain]

The ones in my basement are very low-maintenance....

[brent 1701]

cheep 6 or 7 bucks a month or less for food old news paper for beding its beter then wood chips just shred the paper mine loved mac&cheese

[Mikey]

I'd say go with hamsters

They're small, cheap, easy to take care of

Perfect indoor pet for a child.

I wouldn't want a rat for a child because i'd be afraid he might bite them.

Rats have big teeth

[Adam West]

I'm not a big fan of rodents personally but my kids have had hamsters and Guinea Pigs.

They are pretty low maintenance for the most part. The few things I remember on the downside which I think would apply to pet rat as well. Their cages need to be cleaned every week. They can really stink up the joint if you don't stay on top of it and I have found that our kids when they were below 12 would usually take care of them for a while and then lose interest leaving you the job of cleaning and feeding.

We also had issues with two different hamsters that escaped from the cage. One chewed a hole under my son's bedroom door and we spent days looking for him until he was found.

Even worse, we had one escape and was gone for a month. We noticed a really nasty smell coming up from under the washing machine and after looking underneath and all around; I figured that the hamster got up in between the tub and metal and died. Long story short, we had to hire a repair technician to pull the machine apart to find out he was actually alive and was living off dog food. The smell was coming from him urinating and defecating but we couldn't get to him without having the entire machine pulled apart. That was about a $300 fee.

[SUP-Ronin]

Con - It's a rat.

[toys2cool]

Rats??

[ScottA]

We have 2 guinea pigs (we did have 3 - one passed last Oct). They eat constantly. And yea, the cage needs to be cleaned out once a week. But they are sweet little ladies. My daughter loves them to death. Never had rats though.

[Hector]

there free in NY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvLDFtaL5HI

[jp1969]

I'd say go with hamsters

They're small, cheap, easy to take care of

Perfect indoor pet for a child.

I wouldn't want a rat for a child because i'd be afraid he might bite them.

Rats have big teeth

Hamsters got some fine choppers themselves you know.
Ever see one yawn?Scary stuff there.

[lepage]

hamsters, gerbils, and mice tend to bite and HARD too! I have had many pet rats. They are fantastic pets and do not bite. Give them a cuddle or scratch behind the ears and you will hear them chatter their teeth which means they are happy (like a cat purring). They are intelligent creatures and clean despite their reputation. They are very inexpensive to feed but the downfall is they only live for 2 years.