Clever and playful, rats are the most charming pets. In some ways they are like people: they are capable of learning, are very smart, their forelegs resemble the hands of people. Cute pets have firmly established themselves in the status of pet darlings.
Features of the view
One of the most popular types of rats during the last ten years is a new type of dambo, introduced in 1991. In Russia, she came only after 10 years, but has already won the love of not only children, but adults. The reason for the special attractiveness of the decorative rat dam is hidden in its large and low-lying ears, which gives it a peculiar resemblance to an elephant Dambo, a famous Disney hero with disproportionately large ears.
Despite its popularity, a rat with large ears can not be found as simply as one would like. The thing is that not every dambo rat, even if both of his parents had a pronounced sign of the breed, can boast of luxurious ears. In this case, the rat still belongs to this variety, since it has a gene of "big ears", and the next generation of rats can manifest itself.
However, breeders do not stop one success, and they bring out more and more types of rats. There are rat sphinx dams, that is, hairless rats with large low ears. These rats, thanks to a smooth, hairless skin, have one remarkable quality: their presence does not cause allergic reactions even in very sensitive to animals allergies. At the same time, the skin feels very pleasant to the touch, warm and silky. Color in rats of the dam of the sphinx can be white, blue, chocolate, black, etc.
Another variation is the rat damback rex. These rats have curly hair (wavy). Color also suggests a variety: from white to very black. Once upon a time, a funny nickname "curly-haired" was attached to the dyke rex - it describes its features in a very capacious way. The wool of Rex rats has its own peculiarities: the outer hair is slightly smaller than the other "relatives", and they are slightly curled, because of this it seems that the hair of the Rex is less shiny.
Caring for a rat dam
Care for these pets is no different from caring for an ordinary rat:
- House. Best if the cage is metal. The plastic cage is easy to gnaw, the same applies to the wooden version. Glass aquarium is uncomfortable (difficult to clean), in addition, it is easy to jump out of the aquarium (rats jump up to 50 cm in height). Preferably a large cell, for example, 60 * 40 * 30 cm (standard cells). If you buy a small rat a small cage, it will very soon overgrow it, and you will have to buy a new one.
- Climate. No drafts! A rat can easily catch a cold. The cage should not stand in the sun, the rat has no regular sunbathing. Ideal parameters for the content of rats are 18-21ºС, humidity is not more than 60% and not less than 45% (dry air is very harmful for these animals).
- Feeding. Decorative rats are able to eat almost everything, but this does not mean that it will all benefit them. Never give rats the following foods: chocolate, raw artichokes, liquorice, raw beans, green bananas, rhubarb, cheese with mold (!), Raw potatoes, raw Brussels and red cabbage, spinach, bean curd.
With care, rats are fed with the following products (and it is better not to feed them at all): beets, cucumber, radish, almonds, turnips.
Important! Rats like some foods that they can not often pamper. Such products include:
- sausage;
- pumpkin and sunflower seeds - contain fats, which can lead to diseases. Give no more than 15 pieces per week;
- cheese. More often than once every three days, it is not necessary to feed a rat with a cheese;
- sour cream. Due to the content of the same fat, the rat should be available no more than once a week;
- eggs. Similarly to sour cream, for a rat are a delicacy. Give no more than once a week.
The rat gnaws everything that comes to her "under the paw," especially plants. It is important that she does not have access to the poisonous plants for her: agave, colanchoe, azalea, mistletoe, feces, nightshade, horse chestnut, diffenbachia, lupine, lily of the valley, poinsettia, rhododendron, amaryllis, crocus, clove, sunflower, geranium, myrtle, tomato (leaves), hydrangea, ivy, begonia, daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, olenades, cyclamen, ferns, aloe.