Today. August 10, 2025

Today I spent some time making a video about the topic of keeping lone rats, and working on integrating new rats into the male mischief.

I also spent some time with the baby rats, checking on them, and doing some brief interactions.

I don't handle the babies a lot as pups. I check them often, to ensure they're growing and developing well, but this doesn't necessarily require interaction or play.

There are some breeders who say that temperament can be masked by handling babies too much, and while I don't subscribe to this wholeheartedly, I keep it in mind and act accordingly. I want a clear picture of the temperament of my babies who may go to pet homes, because it's important to assuring those homes receive quality pets with good temperaments, and enjoy their experience. Some handling is acceptable, but prior to about the four-weeks-of-age mark, I keep it relatively minimal.

The video I made was a remake of one I made yesterday. I was contacted by a fellow breeder who gave me some really valuable feedback from themselves and a friend who is newer to rats and explained how my original video may seem stern to some, as I was upset about the topic I was discussing and the idea of misinformation being spread. They gave me some suggestions to change the tone of the video, and make it more informative to those wanting to learn, and I took it to heart and went to work after I got myself showered and appropriately presentable.

The topic of the video was a comment on a Facebook post, advocating for keeping a lone elderly rat who was male, stating it would be better because males tend to fight. I talked about this, and explained why it was incorrect. I talked about the fact that often, introductions can be very successful, when done correctly. Then I did a short demonstration of some methods, and talked about what to do at various stages and in a couple different situations.

I hope my new video will help people.

It is not my goal to promote a stern image of breeders, nor a disapproving or intimidating one. I am a passionate, emotional person, and driven to promote the best care I can for pet rats, because they are my passion. In all honesty, outside my immediate family, rats are my life. I adore them, and I want the best for them. In my perfect world, rats would be as common, accepted, and beloved as dogs and cats. I think they're amazing and fantastic creatures.

I want people to feel comfortable and safe learning from me, not worried about my anger or disapproval. Education is most effective when the learner feels safe and free of judgment or consequence for not knowing something. I want to improve care standards for pet rats. I want them to thrive in pet homes, not just survive.

I've also been doing introductions between two new boys and some of the main mischief. The new boys came from another rattery here in Ontario, and I'd like to eventually integrate them into the main mischief. Their names are Legolas and Smeagol. I have been using the carrier method, my bath tub, and my bed as neutral areas for introductions, and am taking my time because sometimes it takes patience and diligence to bond and integrate new rats into a new mischief, and it's best done properly.

While I do not do introductions between my own rats that I have bred, it is sometimes necessary with rats from outside the rattery.

With time and patience, I hope to be successful.

I also checked in on my two pairs who are together for breeding.

They're doing well, and I hope that in three or four weeks, I'll be welcoming two new litters. I'll be very excited to do so, as always. These will be first litters for both females, and I'm excited to see how many babies they bring, and how they perform as mothers, as well as how well the pups do. My biggest hope is for the health and wellbeing of all my rats.

I feel good about today, and I look forward to what tomorrow will bring, and continuing my work with the rats, and working at educational others about them, spreading my passion in a positive way.

This is a link to my video on YouTube, if you're interested in watching!

https://youtu.be/2cnR9rfizgc?si=sloXhBmA8HEcQJw2

Thank you for reading

~Jen