Rats Compared to the rodent family.

The rodent family is quit a big family. But to slim it down to the main animals, there’s mice, rats, squirrels, chipmunks, gophers, porcupines, beavers, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, and chinchillas. But in this blog I’m comparing rats to all the other rodents. Ill start with mice. Mice are most commonly used on experiments, as are rats. But rats are smarted and science can do so much more with rats because of there intelligent. "Rats have been used in experimental mazes since at least the early 20th century." -Anne http://www.ratbehavior.org/RatsAndMazes.htm Now squirrels I heard are fun and cute pets. I don’t have any experience with squirrels but they look like fun critters. Non the less there wild animals and they belong in trees and parks. Rats well much rather stay inside with you then be released into the wild. Its safer. Chipmunks are most famous for singing in high pitch voices. Enough said right there, leave them because rats are better. Gophers live under ground so I’m not to sure how they would hold up as a pet. But rats and gophers both like to burrow. Its how they stay warm when winter comes blowing by. So porcupines is something I no people take in as pets. In fact I wanted a porcupine before I ever wanted a rat. I cant tell you weather they make a good pet or not but I no they’ll hurt when there scared. Ok at first I couldn’t believe beavers were part of the rodent family but it makes since because they burry them selves like ever other rodent. Non the less there not made to be pets. There so wild, but so intelligent to! Hamsters. In my opinion are the worst of all rodents. They sleep all day and make a bunch of racket at night. There highly stupid and escape artist. And they wont come back! It least rats no where to get there food so they’ll always come back to there cage if they ever get out. Rats are loyal unlike hamster! Guinea pigs to me are just a bigger version of hamsters. No good. Gerbils are like the smaller version of hamster, still no good! Now chinchillas are cure as everyone knows. I have never had one as a pet but id love to experience owning one, one day. I don’t know much about them but I only want one because there so darn cute! (just like rats!) "Chinchilla fur is considered the softest in the world and is thirty times softer than human hair." -(unknown author) http://www.chinchillaplanet.com/chinchilla-facts/ 
Maybe I’m biases because I own a rat and I think there all better than the rest but Iv good reasoning. You can tell me what you think of owning anyone of these rodents.


That is a chinchilla.

And those two wonderful rats are mine! the brown pass away about a year ago. the white one is still alive today.

Emma's thoughts on rat owning.

In this seventh blog I interviewed a young lady by the name of Emma Medoews. She is a previous rat owner and I got her thoughts on owning a rat, and just seeing a rat in general.

Questions:

1.       When was the first time you saw a pet rat? What was your reaction?

2.       What made you want a pet rat for yourself?

3.       Do you find rats adorable? What’s your favorite feature of them?

4.       What’s the hardest part of taking care of rat?

5.       How many rats have you had? How long did you have them?

6.       What’s the best part of owning a rat?

7.       What are some of the silly things you did with your rat?

8.       How often did you have to clean the cage?

9.       How did your rat get its exercise?

10.   How do you think rats came to be as pets?

Answers:

1. wheni was 7 i saw my first pet rat. i thought it was gross but kinda cute.

2.there really loving and actuly not gross. it was the first pet i could have beacause it was small.

3. ya i guess so. my favorite feature on a rat is there colors.

4. cleaning its cage!

5.i only had one that was mine. and i had her for three years.

6. playing with my rat!

7. let my sister put it up her pants.

8. you should do it once a week.  but i only did it twice every two weeks.

9. i had a rat ball and she toures the hole house.

10. probly the same way dogs, cats, and hourses came to be pets. someone thought it was a good idea.

All in all you can tell miss emma really enjoyed her rat. There not as bad as everyone thinks. She got hers when she was seven so you can tell its a good pet to have to start learning responsablity.

And heres a video of a person we all have seen before, rapping about his rat. http://kiwi.kz/watch/uzoemjjaiqf7

tips and check up on Dasie.

In the beginning of this project I said I would also include my own rat as to tell you how she’s doing and give you a little bit of my life to having a rat. Well dasie is pretty well up in her age. And like this book I’m reading called  :your world of pets”, it says rats, and mice live for about 3 to 5 years. Dasie is on her 4^th year. There four she’s getting up there in age. To help you grasp how old that really is in rat years, its around an 80 year old women. She has back leg problems and I am starting to see how hard it is for her to get around her own cage, she is blind and deaf but still lives a happy rat life despite her troubles.

In this I read it mainly gave me interesting facts about rats, and some tips on owning a rat. First thing I learned was rats normally come from around Europe. Also something very cool I learned was all rats are descended from the brown rat even though you find different colored rats like black a sliver blue and white.

And when taking care of a rat for your first time its low for experience needed unlike hoarse and ponies. But before you even start taking care of the rat you need to pick out a healthy rat. Some signs of a healthy rat are clean ears, bright eyes, a clean tail area, a smooth glossy coat, a strong solid-feeling body, a nose that isn’t runny or stuffy, and an alert appearance. This book also gives tips as what to put in a rats housing. This is something I haven’t mention but no much about. You can put in milk carnets, have cut open soda bottles, toilet paper rolls, ect. Anything your rat can hide away in really. Like for my rat I normally use a shoe box. But that’s the basic for a rat that this book stated something’s I didn’t know and something’s I new much about.

RATS- and their unserstanding of cause and effect!

Did you know way back when people thought rats couldn’t grasp the concept of cause and effect. Not many animals can. But thanks to a researcher by the name of Aaron Blaisdell found out rats can very well, and easily learn to find the effect of there cause. Aaron said "But the gist is that rats can distinguish cause from coincidence," http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/02/0216_060216_rats_2.html

Blaisdell, the study leader, gives the rats even more credit.

See Aaron Blaisdell tested the rats in a unique way. First there was a lever and light. The rats had to press the lever and a light would flash. Each time that light flashed they were rewarded food. But if the lever was pushed and no light flashed there was no food for the rats. The rats had two levers to pick from, one with a flashing light and one with out. The rats had to find the lever with the flashing light in order to get there food.

So basically the rats realized if I press this lever and the light doesn’t flash then I am rewarded no food. But if I go over here and press this lever the light flashes and I am rewarded food! Trial and error in other words is what the rats did. Rats may not be smarted than humans but they grasp the concept like humans and learn quick likes humans. Its nothing but another reminder on how rats are truly like humans. In my own opinion id have to say a rat can beat a toddler maybe even a young kid in some lever pulling contest to test there smarts. Rats but yet again have impressed researchers with there wits, and smarts.