keeping a single rat happy? - Paw Talk

halfwaynowhere · #1 01-07-2008, 02:04 PM

Judy is single since her sister passed. Getting a second rat is out of the question, my mom says no more rodents. My bond with Judy has grown in the past few weeks, but I just started working longer hours last week, and I'm worried that Judy isn't getting as much loving as she needs. I try to spend as much time as possible with her, and have been trying to give her more toys and stuff in her cage to keep her busy. is there anything else i should be doing? She doesn't seem lonely, but she really wants to get out of the cage whenever i see her... i wish i could just get her a friend, but thats just not happening unless i could convince my mom otherwise...

mtmaughan · #2 01-07-2008, 09:24 PM

If you absolutely cannot get another rat for her, and you do not feel like she is happy alone, you might want to think about rehoming her. How old is she? If she has any significant time ahead of her, you must think about her best interests. I know it would be hard, but it sounds like you know that you cannot give her enough attention by yourself.

She might be ok as a lone rat with a lot of human attention. If she starts to seem unhappy/depressed, it's not fair to let her stay all alone. This is just my opinion. If she's pretty old, I'd say to just let her finish out her days with you.

Maybe bring it up to mom a few more times. Good luck in whatever you do.

halfwaynowhere · #3 01-08-2008, 12:21 PM

Judy is a bit over a year old, so she's still fairly young...
Ronnie used to be my rat, but now lives with my sister-in-law because Ruby and Judy picked on her a lot, and my SILs rats didn't pick on her... Now that Judy is by herself, we are thinking of doing some play-dates to see if the two will get along better now. Ronnie is older, and her health is declining, so we don't think she'll be around for too much longer... Still, if I can convince my mom to let me bring her back, it would be better for Judy, assuming they get along, right? or would it be traumatic for her to give her a friend that is probably going to die soon, and then have to replace her, anyways?

laydeerodentzz · #4 01-08-2008, 12:25 PM

look, I know you probably really don't want to get rid of your rat, so If I were you I'd make your room rat proof and once every like 2 days leave her to do her own thing in your room while your at work.. but it is a little risky.

mtmaughan · #5 01-08-2008, 08:16 PM

I think that if the other rat is old she would probably be better off just on her own. It would be traumatic to lose another friend, plus the compromised health of the older one might put Judy at more risk of getting sick. Just keep trying to spend as much time with her as possible. Playdates are a great idea too. If you are willing to, you might even try to find a friend or petsitter to come and play with her sometimes when you are at work.

halfwaynowhere · #6 01-08-2008, 08:50 PM

Well, Ronnie has what appears to be a tumor forming, not sure if its a mammary tumor, or a uterine tumor, its right near her "potty area" for lack of better words... right now it doesn't bother her, but the plan is to have her euthanized when it starts to affect her elimination. She's still a sweet rat, and I wouldn't mind having her back with me, but I definitely can't have two seperate cages, and having two single rats would be totally unfair. so i guess i'll just leave her with my sister-in-law, where she's got four other cagemates.
As for Judy, I guess I'll just keep giving her as much attention as possible when I can, and work on convincing my mom to let me get another rattie... my mom hates rats, but she loves Judy, she'll even save bits of her breakfast and bring it in to give to her, its so funny... She started doing that when Ruby died, because Judy was alone, and because she was sick with whatever Ruby had, and was getting skinny, too... She's totally healthy now, but everytime I bring Judy out to say hi, my mom goes off in search of a snack for her... she still says no more rats, but maybe i can convince her yet...

CaliforniaGirl · #7 01-08-2008, 09:33 PM

If your worried about your rat being lonely, why not leave the cage in an area where a lot of people will be, like the living room or something. Sometimes I'll leave my radio on for mine when Im at work.

Vanilla_Rat · #8 01-09-2008, 10:08 AM

You say your mom really likes Judy.Then whynot see if your mom is willing to play with her and give her attention while you work???

I currently have a lone rat and have been trying to introduce him to my others,but one of them just will not accept him.He seems content tho and I make sure he gets extra cuddles (he is super cuddly).I have had a few other lone rats before as well and they do well,as long as they get lots of attention.

I would not let the rat free range while nobody is there to keep an eye on her tho.That is way too risky.