I think you're right, possibly this rat was somewhere inbetween a russian and a british - how gorgeous though!

Welsh - it wasn't so much your post as everyone else also commenting that they'd also been biten! lol. I'm a bit of a whimp to be honest! I cried when my guinea pig bite me! It didn't even draw blood (he only nipped me because I was stroking him and didn't realise at the time he had a fungal infection - this was shortly after I got them, suppose it was a good job he did because when I started to research why my piggie bite me when I couldn't understand why - it said a skin infection could be a reason, low and behold on closer inspection I found the infection secretly hidden under lots of hair!).

To be honest, I'd like to spend more time around rats before I got any, unfortunately I don't have any friends etc with rats. I know one person but she's a friend of a friend - maybe I should ask though if she'd mind me coming round to play with her rats (although they are petshop bought, and I'm not sure if she knows that much, she was saying to my boyf - oh my rat is making a weird noise and isn't playing so much, luckily my boyf had been listening to all the things I've been telling him, and said to her, respiratory illness is the most common illness in rats - it sounds like he needs a trip to the vets and you better act fast! ahhhhh good on him!) hehe.

xxxx

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Mummy to 4 piggies, Manny, Floyd, Izzy and Eve, 3 hammie's, Jean Claude van Ham (aka JC), Princess & Prince Philip, 3 Gerbils Itsy, Bitsy and Ditsy. Foster piggies China & Alfie.

Could you maybe phone a rescue or something near you? Ask if you can help with the ratties for a while to see ho you get on.

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Adopted by:

Ginge - Abby guinea piggy
Bubbles - English crested piggy
Mackenzie - English crested piggy
Skit - Standard (but cute) piggy
Max - Ragdoll x cat
The Rainbow Fish
Rest in peace my lovely furfamily that are no longer with us.

If you go to a proper rat breeder you will find just how lovely and silly tame there babies are. All my rats have never bitten me, only two though came from a registered breeder. But I have to say humpfrey my belyeav x Brunel rat baby (7months old now) is a super squish and such a mummy's boy. He's that placid you can hold him up under his arms and he'll just stay like that. He doesn't squirm or nothing. I'm taking him to a rat show on Saturday.

But that's the thing if you get rats from an unknown source you just don't know what has happened to them in the past.

Some of my other rats have been from a small local pet shop and I have to say they are lovely in actual fact one was from a well known pet shop and he loves to give me dental work, his whole head goes in my mouth while he cleans my teeth! But don't get me wrong not all pet shop rats are like this.

What I suggest is maybe go to a good rat breeder by emailing the nfrs and seeing what breeders are near you. Get to handle the rats and babies.

I wouldn't suggest a rescue as again you don't know what there temperament is like and for someone who has no experience of rats it's not the best place for you to go unless of course they have babies in and the rescue can guarantee that the rats in are hand tame.

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I'm Amy I have a
German shepherd-blade.
10 male rats.
2 male mice.
1 Syrian hamster.

I got my rats from the DEMONIC pets@home mwahahah!

I'm a first time owner and it took them a while to get used to me but now they're just as tame and cuddly (I imagine) as a breeders rats, it just took more time and effort, which I enjoyed anyway

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Binks and Smudge

R.I.P JETTY

Not all pets shop rats will come around that is the point, and for someone that is worried about being bitten (don't blame them tbh) a pet shop rat is the very last thing I would recommend, and that is without all the moral and health issues that come from buying from a mass breeder.

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I've been keeping rats for about six years, breeders rats and rescues, and I can honestly say I've only been seriously bitten once, and that was my fault because it was a rescue mother with very young babies and I wasn't careful enough.

Rats test with their teeth, which I'm sure a lot of new owners would class as a bite, but I certainly don't, as you will KNOW when they really mean it I had a rat who'd nip but never break the skin, never classed that as biting, he only wanted attention

Babies that have been born in rescue can be as good for beginners as Breeders rats - how they spend the first few weeks of their lives really makes a difference!

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http://kaedianmori.tumblr.com/ <--- NSFW





RIP - Marsh, Hugo, Mako, Rufus, Seamus, Lavender, BigBoy, Tetley and Fitch <3

I've always been nervous about getting bitten and to an extent I still am. I was unaware before joining PF that there were even rat breeders out there. Just saying that from my personal experience not all pet shop animals are as bad as they're made out to be.

Don't get me wrong I disagree with pets@home morals now I know more about it but then again I'm happy I have my rats safe and they're not going to somewhere neglectful.

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Binks and Smudge

R.I.P JETTY

I've only been bitten once by a ratty too, that was my own fault because I didn't move fast enough when I saw his body language meant business, oh and I smelt of a hormonal girl (just finished handling the girls before doing summit in the boys cage)

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Come round and play with mine! You'll see what silly little babies they are - and they're fully grown rats!

I won't lie- rat bites hurt. Like hell. They're designed to hurt. BUT, they very rarely bite. It's like a bee sting. They hurt, but they rarely sting. As has been said babies from breeders will more than likely never bite.

I have a girl who likes to rub her teeth on my finger :S It's quite strange but it doesn't hurt and I know she would never ever bite me. I think if you got to play with some you'd see that they are lovely animals- it's just stereotypes that put people off!

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Or visit my Etsy store http://www.etsy.com/shop/TheRelaxedRat

♥Molly♥ ♥Annie♥ ♥Harley♥ ♥Lilly♥ ♥Lola♥ ♥Mishka♥ ♥Oracle♥ ♥Merry♥ ♥Pippin♥
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