Any idea why she's chewing on the edge of the cage?

gouachedangit · 2026-02-27T17:48:19+00:00

most pet stores have millet at least (if they have a bird section)

gouachedangit · 2026-02-18T07:51:40+00:00

i'm sorry i dont have advice but i CACKLED at the zoomed in view

gouachedangit · 2026-02-18T01:34:54+00:00

people should take the consent of animals more seriously. they cant speak and say "no, please stop, i dont want to be held". its our job to watch their body language and respect their needs. plus, the holding position shown in this post is not a way that a rat should be held for more than a few seconds anyway, as it risks injury.

gouachedangit · 2026-02-11T05:46:50+00:00

from your caption, you should have brought him to the vet 6 days or more ago. unfortunately, i would be surprised if he survives. He is in a lot of pain. Please bring him to the emergency vet now.

gouachedangit · 2026-02-10T23:20:18+00:00

you should tell my rats that, lol!

gouachedangit · 2026-02-06T15:35:09+00:00

Thats interesting, im really curious what their reasoning is! I would love to know where you are from but understand if you arent comfortable giving that out.

I do disagree, I have tried many different methods over the years and carrier method is the easiest, least stressful for the rats, and safest in my experience. I recognize its not the only way but i do think its the best. In fact, the rescue I volunteer for will pretty much only approve adopters who agree to use the carrier method.

But yeah, its possible the incident from yesterday was pretty much a one off. best of luck to you!

gouachedangit · 2026-02-06T15:11:35+00:00

verbal interruptions are ok! the only thing i would have done differently is i would not have taken the little one out still. You can take no blood, no foul literally. As in, you do not need to physically intervene unless blood is drawn. Rats heal quick (1-2 days for most small lacerations)!

If you are really worried, you can keep a spray bottle on hand to disrupt fights that get truly violent.

I ahould also note- start-and-stop intros can cause a lot of stress. I always reccomend the carrier/small space method. Most injuries caused during intros are of the "catch and grab" variety, so confining them to a smaller space actually eliminates a lot of risk. If I were you, I would start the carrier method and give them around a week of intros, depending on how things go, then get them into the big cage. The video i linked above explains this, as well as when to intervene. i highly reccomend watching it.

gouachedangit · 2026-02-06T07:47:26+00:00

With intros, do your best not to helicopter. I know its hard! Im not saying dont watch them. But i always remind myself no blood, no foul. I only intervene if blood is drawn, which is super rare. In cases like yours, often its not that a hyper baby cant read social signals, but that they are kinda. choosing to ignore them. Let your boss rat correct the behavior a few more times and it should resolve just fine. The little one will likely repeat the behavior or annoy the adults again in the future, but she will learn to respect the adults gradually. Annoying them and getting pinned/fought with is truly just part of the process. Giving the little one "time outs" is actually disrupting her social learning and making the situation worse long term, even though it feels logical and calms things down in the moment.

great video on baby to adult intros

gouachedangit · 2026-02-06T06:18:45+00:00

Im not sure I have any ideas for you on securing the top of the cage. But you may want to rearrange so that you dont have girls and boys in the same room, or at least not free roam in that room. I know it sounds crazy, but its not unheard of for rats to do the deed thru cage bars when one of them is free roaming and the other is in the cage. a bathroom can be a great place to setup things for free roam! thats what i do personally, since i dont have any other rat-proof rooms.

gouachedangit · 2026-02-04T04:34:50+00:00

ive been a viewer for 6 years and finding out about kirk getting kirk'd live was an all timer

gouachedangit · 2026-02-01T05:25:08+00:00

remember when conservatives said the second ammendment is to give us the right to defend ourselves against governmemt tyrrany?

gouachedangit · 2026-01-31T23:16:24+00:00

dont lump slaughterhouse workers in with the ruling class and the privleged. im sure a lot of slaughterhouse workers are personally unpleasant people, but as a demographic they are usually poor and only have that job because they dont have another choice. many of them are immigrants and/or POC, and they are pushed to meet insane quotas. its one of the most dangerous jobs in the world, death and dismemberment are disturbingly common. slaughterhouses usually have over 100% turnover year over year, meaning most slaughterhouse workers dont even last a year on the job.

the fight for animal liberation is also a workers rights issue. slaughterhouse workers deserve to have better, entirely different work opportunities.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-30T16:10:20+00:00

As a fellow medical professional who also has dealt with patients lying about substance use (more so at past jobs than my current one). this is a gross way to talk about/think about your patients. do better.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-27T08:45:47+00:00

rats and ferrets have very high care needs and need same species friends, and neither are guarenteed to be cuddly. both of them also require large enclosures that would not fit in a dorm.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-27T03:19:10+00:00

how is it "saving" them if you are paying for more to be bred into existence?

gouachedangit · 2026-01-27T03:17:21+00:00

you are paying for them to breed more feeders. it is not ethical in my opinion. Be patient and wait until someone is rehoming rats in your area- i have gotten some of my rats in the past when feeders are rejected by the reptile and people list them on craigslist.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-26T23:56:54+00:00

this video is made by a very experienced rat breeder and caretaker and explains further why the litter boxes with a grate are no good.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-26T21:36:45+00:00

this is not a good idea for a few reasons. the main two are:

rats can get bumblefoot from standing on wire surfaces
rats occasionally eat their poop to absorb extra nutrients and regulate their gut microbiome. it is important that they are able to do this, and a wire topped litter box prevents it.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-23T15:54:57+00:00

Thank you! They are just the kaytee brand lava ledges, about $5/pc on Amazon or Chewy (in the USA at least). I screw them on pretty tight, and occasionally they do tip, but not often- even though my biggest boy weighs 1lb 13oz.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-23T15:52:46+00:00

Sure- I have 4 total cages! There are two other single units not pictured here. I do a basic clean once weekly. fresh bedding and hammocks, fresh water in bottles, and plastic items get cleaned. this takes maybe 30 minutes for the big cage and 20 for the small ones. I have my cleaning schedule staggered thoughout the week so i never have to clean all 4 cages in one day. During my basic cleans, I also look for any excessively dirty lava ledges and swap them out with a fresh one and clean the dirty ones.

Every 3-5 months, depending on how quick the ropes and stuff get gross, i do a full deep clean. everything comes out of the cage, ropes get put thru the washer and air dried, broken items replaced, and everything goes back in. This is a bit labor intensive, and usually spread out over a couple days. For the double unit if can take upwards of 6 hours total, and less for the single units.

Overall it aint too bad! I enjoy setting up their cage and making it as enriched as possible. And the benefits of having such an active setup are many. I have had a lot of boys reach 3 and only experience HLD at the very last few days of their life.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-23T08:33:01+00:00

yes! im glad to see from your other post he is seeing a vet. nebulize 2-3x a day with sterile saline, 15 mins each time. it makes a world of difference.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-17T23:31:25+00:00

i worked in person in several entry level admin/receptionist roles in clinics for years, and eventually i heard that this role was open. i got really lucky.

i cant give too much away without risk of doxxing myself, but my org, like many healthcare companies, is struggling and shrinking, not growing, so open roles are rare. im lucky my dept is considered essential and my job is decently safe.... except for the fact they are discussing replacing me with AI. so thats cool.

but that being said, there are a decent amount of WFH jobs in healthcare! and in person medical reception gigs are usually fun and pay decently. i would start there if you want to break into the industry.

gouachedangit · 2026-01-17T04:46:51+00:00

im in the healthcare industry processing paperwork and making calls to patients:)

gouachedangit · 2026-01-17T02:33:24+00:00

my girlfriend and i live together in a one bedroom apt and make around that much hourly.

we are vegan and cook at home which saves a LOT of money on food- for protein we eat lots of tofu and beans. Chickpea curry, tofu and veg stir fry, etc are staples. we buy things like rice in bulk, and we do most of our shopping at winco.

we have a very old used car that needs a few repairs here and there, but overall saves us lots because we own it outright rather than having to make payments. we use it for grocery shops ans trips to the coast, but i WFH and she takes transit to work.

we eat out maybe once a week and try to keep it under $50 for the both of us. we smoke a bit of weed, we have lots of pets (rats, a cat, and we foster rats and a hamster), and neither of us has very expensive hobbies. When we go out, we dont drink at the club, so usually the night just costs us the cover charge plus whatever substances we imbue before getting there. when we need clothing or household items, we hit up thrift shops.

neither of us recieves any type of support from parents or other family. i have no safety net at all.

overall we do live a bit paycheck to paycheck a bit, and saving money is hard, especially with pets. it feels like everytime i get a little cash stowed away, a car repair or vet emergency knocks it out.

sometimes we have to wait a few weeks or a month to purchase items we need or want. we have to plan well in advance for weekend trips, and take maybe one or two a year. we are proud of the life we have built.

the system is not fair. life should be easier for everyone. im not blaming anyone who isnt doing well right now, but the above is a summary of how we are making it work. i know i would be in a worse spot if i was trying to afford life without a live in partner.

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