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Why Rats?

~If a gorilla can love a kitten, why can't I like a rat?~

So, "Why Rats?", you ask?

Well...let me tell you then!

Rats are:

1. Adorable! I really shouldn't have to state the obvious...but rats are just so dang cute! Have you seen their little hands??? They actually have little hands with fingers that can pick up things and grab things and hold things up to their faces to nibble. I think rat hands are just the cutest thing about rats. But rats also have those sniffy whiskers, shiny, round, intelligent eyes, soft fur, and adorable expressions. Most people might not know this, but rats know how to use cute facial expressions to their advantage...maybe this is a trait from their social nature, but rats can just look at their owners through the bars of the cage and it causes the owners to feel that tug at the heartstrings in such a way that treats are immediately fetched and the cage door opens. It kind of makes you wonder, who owns who?
2. Gentle! Rats are more social than hamsters and therefore don't tend to bite like the hammies sometimes do. (Of course, you should know that hamsters don't bite because they are mean. They have territorial instincts and poor eyesight. Many hammie bites are just a misunderstanding, really!) Because of the rat's innate sociability, they do need daily attention from their beloved owner. Have you kissed your rat today?
3. Small and relatively easy to keep! Rats can be held in your hands and cradled gently on the lap. Playtime can involve cute toys that they climb in and on, like toy cars and little houses made of cardboard. Rats are relatively easy to keep. Their food is fairly inexpensive, and they are happy nesting in an old cracker box with plain white paper towels. (please note that the cage should be spacious and well constructed, so it is a major expense when starting out with rats as pets. research and choose wisely. also, vet bills can accumulate if your rats have health problems, and any ethical pet owner will gladly pay them.) The only hard part is making it a daily habit to check their food and water and play with them. And that's not hard at all, right?
4. Trainable and easy to handle! Rats are slower moving than mice, and that makes them easier to handle. They are also easier to train to do neat tricks like come when you call their name. I won't say they are smarter because that may be construed as an insult to mice.
5. Clean! Pet rats are clean. In fact, they will amaze you with their full body wash which they diligently apply multiple times a day. Let's not forget, they are also called "fancy rats", and they are totally different than wild rats. The few diseases that pet rats may catch will only make them ill because their illnesses are not transmittable to people. So all you people who mention the plague, I will have to start asking you, "You survived the plague! Wow, how many people in your village died?"
6. Friendly! Did I mention that rats are social? That means that like dogs, they become very attached to their owners and will show all sorts of signs of affection such as licking and running to the side of the cage closest to that favorite person.
7. Entertaining! But rats also need the society of their own kind...for hilarious antics and touching displays of affection amongst their own rattie kind.
8. Well bred! I just think it is amazing that there are so many varieties of rats. Hairless...Rex...Dumbo...Split cap...Mask...Groovy!!! And no matter how you look at it, every rat is a rat, a wondrous creature with so many virtues.