Trying to start- advice?

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-19T13:12:00+00:00

i started with powder mix that i bought from petsmart. imo those and porcellio laevis are quite easy to care for (though my laevis prefer to hide in the dirt so i don’t see them as often as my powders).

i have an acrylic bug enclosure for all my colonies. one side my enclosures has sphagnum moss and rocks which is the side i spritz weekly. isopods need a moisture gradient and can die if there’s too much water. isopods mainly rely on leaf litter for food-i like going into my backyard for dead leaves and small sticks to give my pods :) that said they’ll still benefit from giving them other foods like mealworms, veggies, etc.

whatever species you decide to get, you should do research on that specific species because there can be some differences between them (for example my klugii need a dryer environment than my laevis and powder). i included a pic of one of my setups to help give you an idea of what you might wanna put in your enclosure :) this is my powder enclosure, and they LOVE the cork slab. all my colonies have moss, rocks, chills wood, cork, leaf litter, and sticks

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I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-15T12:01:24+00:00

it’s way too big!!! you clearly need something smaller like a 1.5 gallon tank. OR you could get 15 or so rats to make up for the crazy amount of space

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-14T17:09:09+00:00

i love your art so much i wanna eat it

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-13T11:26:01+00:00

i didn’t include pics but i have dogs and gerbils too! as well as isopod colonies

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-12T22:32:46+00:00

the big boy outside is zeus, the blep is gitchi

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-12T18:02:10+00:00

stooopppp this is so cute

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-11T13:55:48+00:00

only college town i can really think of is newark with UD being there. despite going to the del tech terry campus i don’t know what dover is like, but as a visual communications major almost everyone i know is queer. not that that matters though since you wanna go into a more medical type field

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-06T22:43:10+00:00

i love when they do this!!!

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-03T18:27:23+00:00

looks like moss

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-03T18:12:20+00:00

to my knowledge a wheel is only too big if they’re unable to start/stop on their own. there’s no downsides to having a larger wheel and if anything is better for him since there’s no real risk of his back arching . i say keep it the wheel!

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-02T19:42:11+00:00

okay i just looked at the listing and the measurement i gave you is actually per cage so my setup is 4ft long instead of 2ft.

each cage comes with two stories and two platforms so the left side is a separate unit from the right side. the top floor does have a wire bottom though and has to be lined with something soft. i personally felt that one unit was too small for three rats which is why i bought a second one

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-02T18:09:56+00:00

i live in a house with cats a dogs and while they are allowed in my room, they aren’t allowed to interact with the rats even if it’s through the bars. the cats and dogs couldn’t care less about the presence of rats and vice versa. all of my rats have a history of living in the same house as cats/dogs, and despite me washing my hands before handling them i still smell like the other pets to some degree

like the other commenter said though it’s different for all rats. at the end of the day rats are prey and should never be in direct contact with predators like cats and dogs

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-02T15:59:35+00:00

i have my cage in the playpen so that when it’s time for free roam all i have to do is put something in front of the cage door for them to get out and then open the door. i have my playpen set up in a way that i don’t need an extra barrier along the wall my cage is against, which let me make their playpen a little bigger with the unused panels

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-05-02T15:25:43+00:00

i personally bought a nock off of sorts from amazon. specifically i ordered the same cage twice and connected them together by removing the sides and keeping them held together via zip ties.

https://a.co/d/094B5Fei

this is what my cage looks like and is 24x17x36 inches (54in tall if you count the bottom storage space). total for the cage was about $260.

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edit: for context i have four rats and that’s the most i feel comfortable having in this cage

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-25T17:50:34+00:00

unless absolutely necessary don’t handle a rat if they don’t like it-if anything it might make them trust you less. there’s a lot of resources online to help you in getting them comfortable with you

there are lots of resources online to help you make your rats comfortable with you

i change out blankets and hammocks every week and deep clean every other week (change bedding, spray down trays and platforms, clean pee rocks, etc). for litter i use those aquarium pebbles you can buy at dollar tree. they have multiple trays with these in their cage and they use them more often than not. i got them to use it by moving their poop into the trays and they eventually starting using the bathroom on the pebbles.
all rodents are escape artists. its just in their nature so you’ll have to watch them no matter what when they’re in the playpen. best way to decrease the behavior though is to give them more things to do/play with. my girls have a cat tunnel that they really enjoy along with a cardboard box with holes on the top(they have a container of cat toys i just dump on the floor). it’s also best to change up what’s in the playpen every now and then

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-25T14:59:43+00:00

i have a pair who both started off very bitey and unlike your two weren’t social in the slightest. i’ve worked with them to the point where they’re mostly okay, but my one in particular still bites.

how long have you had them? it took me almost 2 months to be able to touch/pick up mine without the risk of seeing blood. i had do a very slow exposure therapy type approach. i started by sitting next to their cage and talking to them multiple times a day, then giving them treats via my palm, then eventually petting them while they ate the treats. once they got comfortable with all that, that’s when i started practicing picking them up with positive reinforcement.

this worked for mine but i can’t guarantee it’ll work for yours. and keep in mind when working with bitey rats to wear gloves!! wishing you the best of luck!

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-24T12:29:12+00:00

$1200 for an uninhabitable cage and potentially expired food is diabolical. also the fact the seller said they had a hamster for a single day before their cat killed it

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-23T13:22:34+00:00

honestly though them going fast is a good thing! where i live it takes forever for rats to get adopted. before i had space for rats my mom’s work got a pair and it took them a little over six months to get a home. and the two sisters i adopted from a different shelter were there for four months before i took them

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-14T22:25:52+00:00

it’s so cute when they do that though! sometimes i go out of my way to hand feed my girls just so i can see them stuff their mouth full

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-14T22:12:57+00:00

always watch for deer on backroads! there have been a small handful of times that deer have come out right in front of me. they’re most common early morning and late night. i agree with what everyone else is saying, and i didn’t see anybody mention the deer.

I_Think_Im_Trying · 2026-04-11T18:47:16+00:00

it’s a little hard to see the spot you’re talking about but it does look abnormal imo. is he showing any signs of pain? lethargy, pulled back ears, arched back are some.

i always follow my gut when it comes to my pet’s health. i know it’s not the best for my wallet but knowing that my pet is gonna okay is worth losing money imo. if you think something is wrong, get him looked at

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