About a week ago, I was stopped by a girl on my street to ask me if I'd take her two rats.
I vaguely know her, because I've seen her when Im out on my walks with Dresden; she always wants to come see him, and she lives literally a stone's throw from me.
And recently, I went back to her garden with the dog, because she wanted to give him some treats. At that time, I noticed how untidy her garden was, dog poo everywhere, broken glass, general mess. The men she lived with began telling me how they want a 'dobe/rottie/GSD' puppy, the typical kind of 'want that breed to look tough' kind of guys.

Anyway, she knew from Jon that I took in rats, so she asked me if I'd have her two.

When I went to her house to pick them up, what I found was not good.
The house can only be compared to one of the houses of an animal hoarder show. The conditions were filthy, unlike anything I've ever seen.
There were two tiny kittens laying amongst the debris and various adult cats around. The kittens were riddled with parasites, and seemed lethargic. There was barely a patch of floor that was visible under the trash and clutter.
The litter tray in the corner was crusted with crap. Mould was growing on old food, the whole place was shocking.

The rats were kept in tiny hamster cages, with no huts, bedding or toys. One per cage, one boy and one girl. The girl has a mammary lump, and they're both your typical flabby, dry coated, mite-y rescue rats, but nothing awful.

As I was walking out with the rats, she said 'do you want a cat?'
I have two cats, so I said no. She said her cats didn't get on with this cat, so she was keeping him locked in her toilet. When she brought him out, I saw this gorgeous, purring, affectionate cat who was clearly so happy to be free from his prison. She said 'he still has his bits' in a way that suggested that would be a bonus to me, as if I'd breed from him or something.
When she put him back in that tiny room, it upset me. I went home, but couldn't forget about him.
Jon and I talked, and said we'd take him, even if only temporarily until we found him somewhere, anything to get him out of there.

We picked him up today.
The first thing I did was flea treat him. He also has ear mites, probably worms, and needs to be neutered, so yay vets bills :(
But he's wonderfully affectionate and cuddly. He gets on brilliantly with our cats, has lived with a dog before so should accept Dresden, and eats like a horse.

He has some staining on his coat from living in those conditions, and needs a brush, but he seems otherwise ok.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=a0fcfb829f

The girl told me today that she is also getting rid of her dog, that her previous dog died of parvo, that one of her past rats killed the other, and that her year old puppy still isn't housebroken, so she just 'rubs her nose in it' when she sees her do it :/
She has also had some children taken away from her.
I could say more but.....I don't need to. You get the idea.

Im hoping in a few weeks when he's back to good health, I can post some improved pics of him!

Suddenly, this afternoon.

Info on fuzzies:


Fuzzy rats have short, rough hair as youngsters, but by around 2 months of age, the coat is either very sparse or completely hairless. By 6 months, they are usually smooth-skinned and will stay that way through adulthood. If it can be said that one of the hairless mutations is worse than another, this one would be it, with the highest rate of physical abnormalities. The most prevalent and most deadly is kidney failure. Fuzzy rats suffer from chronic kidney disease, and ultimately, this is what causes the early death in these rats. Most only live to 16-20 months of age.

From:
http://blog.coverattery.com/2007/03.....-hairless.aspx


http://www.ratbehavior.org/CoatTypes.htm
(scroll down to weakened hair cannot penetrate thick skin)

I would dearly love to see this variety phased out.

Some may remember my hairless rat, Picard, who was saved from being snake food. When he came here, he weighed 51 grams, and was malnourished.
I nursed him back to a good weight, and although he was always tiny, he was otherwise fairly healthy.

In the last couple of days, Picard has dropped weight despite eating well, has skin problems, and is seeming a tiny bit disorientated, and is basically showing signs of Kidney failure, which I have recently found out is common in these 'fuzzy' hairless.
There are 3 strains of hairless, and the fuzzies are the most problematic.
The males are lucky to make it to 16 months, I've been told. Picard must be coming up to a year soon.

Kidney failure obviously isn't treatable. I imagine Picard will be either PTS or die naturally within a week or so.

His companion/litter mate, Q, is fine. Because he has fur.

Even when saved from being thrown live to a snake by some moron, these rats still suffer due to being bred by irresponsible, stupid, disgusting individual who should never be able to deliberately breed something that suffers such health problems.
But they don't care, its just 'food' to them.

Yes, Im pretty upset about this. This poor little rat suffered so much, and even now in a good home with those who love him, he is destined to suffer again and die young.
If I ever meet that snake owner, god help him.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=8f7ecf52d7

From http://www.tilly-mint.com/

Was about time he got a new one, he was still wearing his original puppy collar, because it had loads of room to expand, but was beginning to look too thin on him.
I think he looks very dashing.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=629b97797d

He's gettin' a big boy!

I've acquired two new lads recently.

First is Pierre. He was up for adoption in the local pet shop, and I usually try and avoid the adoption section as I know I can't resist a lone boy. But Jon came up to me, when I was being all good and avoiding that area, and said 'don't look in the adoption centre.....lone boy.'
I had no cash on me to give the adoption fee, so Jon handed me some and said 'get him'. Couldn't not!

He was originally a rat that was in the sale tank, but no-one wanted him. So he lost all his friends, and got bigger and older, and they decided to keep him alone 'behind the scenes' until room became available in their adoption centre :( They also said he was 'nippy'.

I don't know how long he's been alone, but Im guessing by his behaviour, quite a long time, and from quite a young age.

He is, my best guess, about 5-6 months old. His behaviour is very strange, and is what makes me think he has been alone too long at a critical stage of his development, as he doesn't know how to be a rat, and has no social etiquette.

First time I got him out for a run, he was very excited, not nervous at all, and clearly happy to have some company, even if it was just me at first.
As they stated, he was nippy, but not in an aggressive way, simply in that way that rats who have been taken from other rats are nippy; they haven't learned the boundaries.
It is normal for baby rats to test things with their mouths, and to nip to initiate play. You'll see them do it to each other. However, there is a limit to how hard these nips are allowed to be, and rats learn this from one another (if the other rat squeaks, that means you've been too rough!) and babies learn this very quickly.
As their owners, we can also continue this on by 'eeping' when our young rats nip us.

Pierre clearly never learnt this, so he thinks it is acceptable to nip hands a little too hard. He doesn't draw blood, it doesn't hurt, but I don't let them get away with this, because I've seen it escalate in some rats.
He also wags his tail madly whenever he is touched.

Tail wagging in rats happens sometimes, but no-one has ever conclusively diagnosed what it means.
Some rats do it when they're tense/angry, others do it when they're happy/excited.
Best theory is that it simply means a strong emotion, so it could be either.

Pierre does this a lot, another indicator that he is unused to stimulation and excitement.

But he's a lovely boy, looks like he'll be a very fun, curious, outgoing boy with a bit of work.

Today, he met some other rats. His behaviour with them wasn't much more polite than it was with me. He desperately wanted to play, but didn't know what was acceptable. So there was a lot of him chasing others, nipping them, humping them and trying to initiate play in quite a rude way.
Dakota, tolerant soul that he is, played back a little, and groomed him to comfort him and tell him to calm down, but Pierre then targeted Geordi.
Geordi was a little less tolerant, and pinned Pierre down to tell him off. Pierre got a bit freaked out, no-one has probably done that to him for a while, and he didn't understand what he'd done wrong.
Dakota then groomed Pierre like he was saying 'its alright mate, but you came on a bit strong!'

Currently, I put Gorgeous George in with Pierre until he can get properly into the group, because George is calm and tolerant, and can teach him gradually how to behave.

Here is Pierre on his first day here:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=e2612d48b2

Secondly is Diablo. I treated myself to him, he is a breeder rat.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=bacac6e015

Diablo is a Marten. This is a new variety of rat that was discovered around 2010. In parts of Europe, they are still called 'red eyed devils'. But here, the rat fancy did not like the name because it added another 'negative' to the image of the rat, which they don't need. I like the name, but I can see how people don't want rats linked to devils.

So they became Martens after the rabbit variety.

They are currently unstandardised, so cannot be shown, and as they're new, they seem to come in a lot of variations at the moment. I adore martens, and have the second I saw them, I think they'll become a favourite variety of mine.
As they're new, it is not yet know what the gene is or whether it comes with any negatives. These things can take time to show up, for example, it was only recently that BEW rats were 'banned' from being shown at NRFS shows due to health problems associated with the variety. And they've been around years.

So here is baby Diablo. He's very wee, but oh so cute. I've not had a little 'un for a while. He lives in Doodlebug's group, with the nice, gentle rats. He settled in fine. He looks to be a bit like he'll be a cocky little lad!

The ragged ear was like that when I got him from the breeder, looks to be something that occurred when he was very young as it is well healed. Perhaps mum got a bit overzealous when grooming her babies!

I have two to complete, but once they're done, I'll be open again.
Im in need of some spare cash to pay for getting my rat, Riker, castrated. As well as every day sanctuary costs! So Im open for work!

Im wondering if anyone would be interested in any of the following options:

1. A simple/plain background full colour/shaded commission of your character with any one of mine, for £20
Any one of your characters with any one of mine (any.....just go through my gallery, pick one, it doesn't matter if they're a character I use often or one I seldom draw, just whichever you think would work with yours!) interacting some how (no porn, Im crap at it).

2. 'Head shot' pics, just a head/shoulders shot of your character, fully coloured/shaded for £13 (thats a bag of rat food!)

3. Anything else really.....just give me a description and I'll give you a quote.

Paypal only.

Because someone asked me......and as Im on a kick of drawing those two little ratties lately, it would probably be prudent to explain the little universe they exist in, in my head. I never really did; I just expected people to be like 'oh, angel, of course'.

Hoffman killed Strahm. We all know that.
But dammit I still wanted to draw the two of them interacting, because they were always my two favourite SAW guys, particularly because they so blatantly despised one another from the start.
So it made sense, again, in my head, to bring Strahm back as, what else, an angel.

Well, it was that or a ghost.

But ghosts are just.....meh. Boring.
So I made him an angel. Coz angels are awesome.
And it then followed that OMG he HAS to be Hoffman's guardian angel, that would cause many lols.

So this is the thing.....he is, indeed, lumbered with the job of being Hoffman's guardian angel. And neither one of them are particularly happy about this, as you'd expect.
No point arguing it, though; 'god' doesn't make mistakes, if they're paired up then it is for a reason. So they both have to try and make the best of a bad situation.

Of course, it isn't that easy.
Strahm has the rather unenviable job of having to be constantly around someone who hates him, to have to constantly try and tailor Hoffman's life to being 'better' so he can ultimately save the guy's soul, to have to watch out for him so he doesn't end up dead, to have to try and keep the peace between them.

Strahm, as you'd expect, doesn't like to fail at anything, and he doesn't want to fail as an angel, no matter how difficult his position may be.
He is detirmined to make it work between him and Hoffman.
Hoffman, on the other hand, couldn't give a rat's ass what Strahm wants, and goes out of his way to make his job as painful and difficult as he can.
He will deliberately go out and do things that he knows will piss Strahm off, he'll deliberately antagonise him, he'll even put himself in life threatening situations just as a proverbial middle finger to Strahm.

Failing in your duty of care doesn't bode well for an angel, and Hoffman is well aware of this, which is why he wants to fuck it all up for Strahm.
Its all a big game.
Angels that do not 'bond' with their partners end up with black feathers.
Any hint of anger, negativity or hatred that an angel shows toward their partner will result in black feathers, as will failing in their duty in any way.
Angels with black feathers are ostricised by other angels, its like being a criminal; no-one wants to associate with you, and you'll get banned from a lot of places, like, y'know, all those snazzy clubs and bars up in heaven.

The more you fuck things up with your partner, the more black feathers you get.
You can get rid of them, however, by doing good things and getting it right (saving your partners life, for instance, will redeem you instantly).
But everyone knows that an angel walking about with black feathers is basically a loser and a failure, and probably not a good person to associate with.
So you don't want those.

So if I ever draw Strahm with a few black feathers, its because he's been a crap angel.

The more successful your relationship with your partner, the more you develop/evolve as an angel. You gain better abilities, higher social standing, and generally more priviledges.
So forging a loving, caring, understanding relationship with your partner is really important. You have to genuinely love them if you are ever to be successful.
Good luck there.....

Angels also have a bond with their partner in that they can feel things their partner feels (but not vice versa) albeit in a muted and weaker way. Angels will feel pain when their partner feels pain, for example. This is another way of 'building the bond' and making a connection.

As for whether others can see Strahm, yes, they can.
But he would appear to everyone except Hoffman, other angels, and children, as a normal rat. No wings, no halo.
He can choose to show his angel attributes to mortals if he wants to, but there is rarely any need.

So thats it in a nutshell.
Should explain most of their interactions in my art, and coming art.
I just thought it was a more interesting way of having them still be able to interact. More interesting for me, at least.

Dresden is now 6 months old! Its flown by! He's now big, looks like an actual Doberman, and even has little balls! (they took their time to appear....)

His behaviour has improved muchly in the last few months. We've curbed the puppy biting, we've almost solved the jumping up at people thing, he now knows very well what 'no' means, and listens when we say it, he's walking on a loose lead MOST of the time, and is becoming far nicer to have out in the house and will sit and chill with a bone or something rather than having to have constant one on one attention for hours and hours.
Raising him has been far harder than I expected (I knew puppies were hard work, but wasn't prepared for quite HOW hard, I don't think you really are until you do it).

He's chipped, vaccinated, insured and 100% healthy. Hopefully, I won't need to visit the vet again for a LONG time, except maybe for a booster (still in two minds about boosters).

Have noticed recently, though, people beginning to give us unfriendly looks on our walks, which never used to happen. I think its probably because he's past the 'cute' puppy stage now and is actually looking like a proper Doberman, and people are just letting their prejudice show. Doesn't really bother me, but people have in the past always been so nice about him, and so willing to come over and cuddle him, that its gonna be sad if people stop doing that, because he loves people :(

I know rats are usually my 'thing' but today, I'd like to open up for discussion on dog food. Specifically, commercial dog foods vs the raw diet.

I feed Dresden, my doberman pup, raw.
He was weaned onto this, but even if he weren't, it would have been what I'd have chosen for him.

For those who aren't aware of what the raw diet involves, I'll explain.
This diet is based on replicating what a canine would eat in its natural state, and feeding them what nature has shaped them to eat, which is prey consisting of bones, organs and meat.

There are different variations on the raw diet, but in general, the dogs get fed raw meat, bone, and organs, just as they'd eat in a wild setting.
A dog would not eat processed kibble bits in the wild, nor wheat, nor cereals.
Some people add raw veg to their meals too, on the theory that wild canines get a small amount of veg from the stomach of their prey. It doesn't harm them to add a small amount of veg, but I never do. Dresden doesn't recognise it as food, just as toys, and when he poops it out, it comes out as it went it!

The raw diet is based on a rough ratio of 80% meat, 10% bone, and 10% organ meat, 5% of which should be liver.

The raw diet is still controversial, and a lot of vets still aren't educated on it and so advise against it, but as I'll explain, there are reasons for this and they're not based on the welfare of the animals.

Raw is often called a 'fad' by its opponents, when in reality, it is kibble that is the 'fad'. Processed commercial dog foods have only been around for about 40-50 years. Prior to this, dogs ate real food, real meat, bones, and even the prey their human owners hunted.
Kibble is a convininece for our modern world. Its easier, its cleaner, its less 'gory'. Its for our convinience.

So....why raw? Whats actually wrong with commercial dog foods?

Take a bag of commercial dog food, and read the ingredients. The ingredient listed first is the ingredient that is most abundant in the food. Chances are, you'll find cereal, corn, beet pulp and/or wheat in your dog's food.

Below are the ingredients that go into some of the more well known and popular commerical pet foods:

Iams large breed chicken contains Maize, wheat, dried beet pulp, and barley to name a few.

Bakers complete puppy chicken contains as its FIRST ingredient, 25% cereals. Also present is only 4% chicken.

Hills science plan canine adult light large breed contains ground maize, cellulose (which dogs cannot digest), soybean meal, maize gluten meal, dried beet pulp and pea bran meal.

Eukanuba breed specific, rottweiler contains maize, wheat, barley, dried beet pulp and 'chicken digest' (which is, essentially a flavouring added to make the food appealing to the dog, otherwise they would have no interest in eating it)
Out of interest, I also clicked on the analysis for the breed specific 'westie' mix, and it was pretty much identical to the rottie mix....whats the point in that? Why bother marketing two different foods that are essentially the same?

These are just brands and foods I chose at random, but any dog food that lists wheat, barley, beet pulp, soya flakes and so on in its ingredients is NOT a good dog food.
All these ingredients were freely listed on these company's websites for anyone to see. Go have a look and see what your pet food brand contains.
This goes for cats too.
In fact, if anything, it is more important for cats to have a high meat content in their food, due to being obligate carnivores. Cats also thrive on a raw diet.

Your dog is not designed to eat wheat, or beet pulp, or barley, or cereal. It is a no brainer that these are cheap, filler materials to pad the food out.
Meat tends to be more costly than grains, cereals and the other fillers they use to bulk these foods out.
Dogs are designed to eat meat, their teeth are designed to rip flesh and crunch bone. They are designed to hunt, to kill, and to consume other animals, not graze on barley and wheat.
Its also worth knowing that a lot of skin allergies in dogs are linked to wheat and corn and cereal.

These kinds of foods are also bad for their teeth. What happens to kibble when you chew it up or mash it up with water? It goes sticky, the same as how crisps do when we eat them, and then it sticks to their teeth.
Its been proven that the worst food for humans to eat for tooth decay are crisps, for this reason.
Imagine the effect eating mushed up cereal and maize every day has on your dogs teeth over time, it would be the same as you eating crisps or biscuits for your entire life.

Its simply logic: think about what a dog is, what it evolved from, what it would eat in the wild, then look at what is in your dog's food. There is no logical reason for a dog to be eating cereals, wheat, barley and corn.

We fall into the trap of trusting these big brands, because if they're that well known, they have to be good, right?! And if your vet is reccomending them and has a waiting room full of bags of their product, they HAVE to be good right?

Why would vets reccomend a food that isn't good for dogs? Why would vets advise against a raw diet if it was the best thing?

There are several answers to these questions.
Firstly, vets get very little training on nutrition.
In fact, at some universities, representatives from the big dog food companies do presentations on dog food as part of the curriculum. It is simply an education issue, as well as a 'brain washing' issue from the big dog food companies who ensure they get involved in the training of new vets.

Also, many vets want to push you to buy commercial dog foods, because they sell them!
My local vet is stocked to the ceiling with bags of Hills science diet, and guess what food my vet tried to get me to feed my dog?

Consider this, too: raw fed dogs have far fewer tooth problems, skin problems, digestive problems and allergies, all of which your vet makes money from the treatment of.
It is no fluke that the occurances of the above issues have all increased since people began feeding commercial dog foods.
Its is telling that, in all the time I worked at a vet's, and the amount of skin problems and allergies I saw in some dogs, never once was a suggestion made to change off the processed commercial crap food.
Wheat is a common allergen in dogs, and commercial dog foods are full of it.
But your vet wants you to keep coming back for tests, skin scrapes, treatments etc because it makes them a bomb.

Dogs shouldn't eat bones! They're dangerous!

No, they are not. This is the thing I hear most often.
COOKED bones are dangerous, because they become brittle and they can splinter.
RAW bones are fine.
What do you think canines in the wild eat? If they kill a rabbit, its full of bones, which they eat. When a cat kills and eats a bird or a mouse, what is that bird or mouse made up of? Lots of bones.
Why people assume that these animals, these predators, shouldn't eat real meat, bones or organs is beyond me. Just look at your dog/cat's teeth!

Raw bones are softer, and bendier, than cooked bones. They do no shatter or turn into pointy shards when cracked, like cooked bones do.
Do NOT feed cooked bones, ever. Cooking is a human invention, animals in the wild eat their food, including bones, raw.

As I've typed this, Dresden has devoured an entire raw chicken thigh, every last bit, bones and all. There is not a trace left.

Dogs are designed for this.
The idea of bones being dangerous is VERY frustrating, because it simply isn't true. Even the leaflet on dog food in my vet's waiting room (put ou by Hills, of course) stated to 'never feed bones' with no distinction made between raw bones and cooked bones.

Dogs are carnivores, and occasional omnivores. They do not have flat herbivore teeth, they have teeth for ripping and tearing flesh.

Raw meat contains parasites! These are dangerous for you, and for your dog!

False.
Dogs have an immune system designed specifically to cpoe with all kinds of bacteria. They have no problems from any of the 'nasties' lurking on raw meat.
And yes, these nasties do exist on raw meat. BUT....they also exist on many things you come into contact with every single day. Your floor, your sink, your sponges, etc
Believe it or not, these nasties are also present in commercial dog foods. Dogs fed these foods have died of salmonella, they are not exclusive to raw.

Of course, one has to ensure cleanliness when handling raw meat, either for their pets or themselves. But this is just common sense. I wipe all surfaces and utensils that have come into contact with raw meat, with bleach or other disinfectant. We have no had any problems.

Most raw feeders also freeze their meat before feeding it, as we tend to stock up our freezers when the deals present themselves!

I've heard of a dog choking on a raw bone!

I've heard of a dog choking on kibble.
Dogs can, and do, choke on anything. Raw fed dogs are no more at risk than those fed kibble.
In fact, one could argue that as carcasses and bones take a lot longer for the dog to eat, they cannot just 'hoover' up their food, as many do with kibble, ensuring LESS choking.
It can take Dresden 10 minutes to completely crunch up and finish a chicken thigh. It would take him 30 seconds to suck up a bowl of kibble.

Kibble fed dogs often don't learn how to chew. They don't really need to.
Dogs don't work like us, they cannot chew like us. They are designed to simply crunch food until its small enough to fit down their throat, and swallow it in lumps.
Therefore, dogs fed little pellets don't need to chew them, they can go down whole.

A dog chewing for a while on a bone to pull the meat off it is not only giving its jaws and teeth a work out, but it is producing acid as a result of chewing, and this prepares the stomach for the arrival of food.
Raw fed dogs are at a lower risk of conditions like bloat, as they take in their food more slowly, not just bombard the stomach with a hole bowl of kibble in 30 seconds!

Raw is more expensive than commercial foods!

Absolutely false.
Raw is much cheaper.
A lot of butchers will actually give away their meaty bones and other bits and bobs for free, because these days most people don't buy necks, ribs and other random animal bits, so they go to waste.
With Dresden, I raid the reduced section of any local supermarket and get him anything cheap.
Meat is often marked down if it is near its sell by date, and most people don't take the risk on meat like that for themselves, meaning you can make a killing on cheap meat if you're in the right place at the right time.

The other day, we got 4 chunks of lambs neck for 44p, we got a huge lamb steak for 99p, we got some big beef ribs for 30p, and some kidneys for 70p. Then on the way home at another shop, we found a whole half of chicken breast, with wing still on, for 38p, which became Dresden's dinner.

Compare this to the £36 I saw someone pay in the vet's recently for a bag of Hills science diet kibble, which, on a dog of Dresden's size, would last about 10 days.

The great thing about raw is that you have SO MUCH variety. Anything made of meat we see marked down, we grab. And freeze.
Im not rolling in money, but I barely notice Dresden's food makes anything like a dent in my finanaces at the end of the week. I would if I were paying double digits for a bag of kibble.

Raw is hard to get right!

It really isn't. Honestly.
Im naturally aversive to anything that looks overly complicated, and I absolutely CANNOT do maths or ratios of any kind (dyscalculia), so if it were hard, I wouldn't be doing it!

The general guide to raw is 80% meat, 10% bone, 10% organs (5% of which should be liver).
BUT this is over a period of time. You don't have to sit and work out exact amounts, as long as it all balances out over the long term, it is fine.
For example, you don't sit and calculate the exact amounts of protein, copper, calcium, etc in your OWN diet, do you? No, you just eat a varied diet over time, and it all balances itself out.

As a raw feeder, you do become a bit obsessed with poo.
This is how you tell that you're getting it right.
Too hard and white, and you're feeding too much bone. Too soft, and you may be feeding too many organs, or just too much food in general.
Too dark? Probably too much liver.

As a side note, do you know why we don't see white dog poo any more?
Raw fed dogs have white dog poo. They also have smaller poo, go less often, and it has less smell.
The white residue you see on dog poo is digested bone.
The disappearance of white dog poo is due to the arrival of commercial diets.
Most of these contain 20-30% meat, and what is the rest? Cereal, filler, grains etc which dogs don't digest.
This is one reason why dogs, cats and ferrets fed on commercial foods do bigger poo, usually sloppy and wet, because this is all the filler that they cannot digest.
Thats where your expensive bag of kibble ends up.

The key to raw is to feed a varied diet. If one feeds nothing but chicken breast meat, no bones, no organs, no variety, for months, then yes, you probably would see issues. But this is common sense. You yourself would not eat one single food forever without expecting to get ill, so don't expect your dog to.
Offer a variety of meats from a variety of different species!

I could go on, but basically, raw really is worth looking into if you have a dog, or even cat or ferret.
It just makes sense, you know it.

Here are some tips for anyone thinking of trying raw:

1. Go slowly. If your dog has eaten kibble for the last 5 years, do not expect him to know what to do with a real piece of meat and bone! As I said earlier, most kibble fed dogs don't know how to chew, so there is a risk they may just try to gulp back some raw meat and bone in one go.
When Dresden had his first real bone, I fed him a chicken wing. I held the food for him, so he had to learn to use his back teeth to crunch on it in order to get bits off it. He picked this up quickly.
As with any diet change, go slow.

Find a meat your dog does well on, and stick to that for a while. Chicken is usually what most people start with. Let them get used to chicken, chicken wings, thighs, drumsticks, necks, backs, organs, even a whole raw chicken if your dog is big enough.

Then slowly introduce other meats.
Dresden was on chicken and beef for a while, now we happily give him lamb, fish and rabbit.
We do not, however, feed pork.
Thats not to say you can't, many raw feeders do, but Dresden just doesn't like it and it upsets his stomach.

2. These are some typical things that Dresden might eat:
Chicken wings (good for puppies, or small breed dogs, small bones which are easy to crunch up)
Chicken thighs
Chicken drumsticks
Chicken carcasses (whole).
Chicken liver
Any poultry (as above, but duck, turkey, etc)
Ribs (any, lamb, beef, whatever)
Mince (any)
Tripe (ensure you get GREEN tripe, not the bleached white tripe. The latter contains no nutrients for dogs; they need the green as the green funk on it is the stomach contents of the animals, which are really good for dogs.)
other miscellaneous bits (tails, ears, feet etc)
Hearts (please note, heart is classed as a muscle meat NOT an organ, so should be fed as a meat and not as part of your dog's organ quota)
Lungs
Fish (sardines in sunflower oil or tomato sauce, white fish, whole fish with head on etc)

Avoid large weight bearing bones, such as cow leg bones, as they can chip teeth.

The list could go on. As you can see, its pretty open! Once you find what your dog does well on, its actually fun to find lots of different things for him!
If you rush raw, by introducing too many different meats at once, you'll probably get tummy trouble. Start on one type of meat, then gradually add another.
Variety is the key in the long term.

I also give Dresden a raw egg occasionally, and sometimes a spoonful of natural yogurt.

Now, am I saying that people who feed their dog kibble are wrong? No, of course not.
People make the choice to feed what they feel their dog does best on. Most of my dog owning friends DON'T feed raw, and I don't think any less of them.
For some people, raw isn't viable. Perhaps they have lots of dogs and only a small freezer, perhaps they don't have cheap meat available near them.

I don't ask that people instantly change the way they feed their dogs; just that they are aware of what is in commercial dog foods. Because if you're anything like I used to be, you'll think 'they wouldn't sell this stuff if it weren't good!'

There are different qualities of kibble, and some are better than others. Look at the ingredients in yours and ask yourself....how much of this does a dog actually NEED to eat, and how much is filler?

The benefits of raw include:
fresher breath/better teeth
No 'doggy odour'
Shinier coat
Smaller/fewer poos that just crumble to dust after a few days
Less chance of allergies/skin problems
Less chance of behavioural problems caused by additives in commercial foods
Cheaper (generally)
More interesting for the dog (can you imagine eating a bowl of museli every day, forever? I always think this is what having a bowl of kibble must be like for dogs)

Con of the raw diet:
Need freezer space, particularly if you have lots of dogs
Messier
Have to put up with ignorant people/vets thinking you're killing your dog with bones

If anyone in the UK is following the voice tv show, I was so thrilled to see Leanne Mitchell get through to the final. I've worked with her for years, and she is a lovely person who really deserves this break, her voice is amazing.

Please vote for her in the final, I want her to win!

Are you sure?

http://www.shadowrat.com/destructivedog1.jpg

http://www.shadowrat.com/destructivedog2.jpg

'Th-the newspaper.....it just exploded!!!'

Got a new little girl today.

What the fuck is going on at the moment? Thats 13 I've rescued in a week.

Had a call from the vet, and someone had brought her in to be put to sleep because she had bitten their child.

On her way down the corridor to her death, the receptionist fortunately decided it wasn't fair for this to happen, and knew I took in rats.
She asked the owner if she would mind the rat being re-homed rather than killed. Owner said she didn't mind. So the vets called me and asked if I'd take her. Of course I said yes, I couldn't say no and let her die. Im so glad it was that receptionist and that vet practise who knew me and stepped in to do something, anywhere else and that girl would be dead now.

Picked her up from the vet a few hours ago. Owner said she bit her kids and drew blood, and she was originally from pets at home, but they wouldn't take her back.
Shes a little roan dumbo, very nervous, won't even eat.
I've picked her up, just to move her from carrier to cage, and she didn't bite. But she is 'freeze up' kind of scared, so I wouldn't put it past her if she were pushed. So, well, don't push her! Respect her fear.

Shes only 7 months old, and clearly not some raging beast that needs killing; just a very timid little girl who has lived her whole life alone being pulled about by kids.
She doesn't puff up, doesn't huff at anyone, her body language is all fear, not confrontation. She wants to hide away from you, not charge toward you.
They claimed she wasn't always like this, and when they first got her, she was fine. So we have a fear biter who used to be fine as a new baby, but developed the biting habit, and we have little kids in the picture. Doesn't take a genius to guess at what may have happened.
Dropped, squeezed, picked up badly, shouting/screaming, blah, blah.

Im pissed for a number of reasons here.
First, having a rat killed just because she bit your kids? Really? How about taking responsibility for the life YOU brought into your home and making a bigger effort to re-home her? Putting rat rescue norfolk or suffolk into google would have bought me up. Phoning the RSPCA would have given you my number, its not hard to find me.
I can't understand people just thinking 'screw it, just kill it'.
This isn't a dog or something thats big enough to actually kill you if its bad tempered; this is a rat. She's tiny. She's managable, she isn't going to hurt you if you leave her alone. So do that, and look for a rescue while you do so.
But no....no, its easier to just say 'fuck it, kill the bitch, she bit my precious child'.
This is precisely why I don't approve of rats as pets for most small kids. Unless they have a very rat savvy parent who will take control and ensure the child treats the rats right, a young kid shouldn't have a rat.

Secondly, good old pets at home. Churning out more poorly bred rats that they're happy to sell as loners to families with young kids and then take absolutely no responsibility for once the money has changed hands. They apparently told this woman 'we can't take her, we have 19 more rats already waiting for adoption'. Ok, first off, bullshit. I regularly go into the pets at home stores around here and their adoption centres are rat-free most of the time. Sounds like an excuse because they didn't want a biter. And if it were true.....isn't that a huge sign that you shouldn't be selling rats any more if you have 19 of your products back with you needing new homes?
lol, pet shops. Scum of the earth.

Just.......saddened by how stupid people are.

Fortunately, this little girl is safe now. She'll have a much better life from now on, with friends and good food and someone who loves her.

It never rains.....

Today I had a call to take in 4 girls, from someone just 10 minutes from me (makes a chance from half way across the country).
She had rescued these girls from her sister in law who had gotten them, put them in a little hamster cage, thrown them a handful of hamster food every so often and never bothered handling them.

This person took the girls from her, but couldn't keep them herself due to allergies and the fact that they kept escaping the cage and she was worried her dog would get them.
She said she'd repeatedly tried to rehome them online before finding me, and the only calls she had were from snake owners trying to get them as food >:( Luckily, she was savvy enough to tell this was their intention (as well as a few people 'outing' them for it) or else I dread to think where these girls would be now :(

So, they're all healthy, seem a tad underweight and have not stopped eating since arriving here, but are otherwise normal pingy, happy young girls.
2 are hairless, one is agouti hooded, and one is mink hooded. Its sad; hairless used to be so rare here but since snake owners got hold of them for food, they're churned out all over the place :( I've had 5 come in here in less than a week.

Here they be:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=4ed0cb8416

the new boys are all named, and new pics are available from today:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=7cce782bb1

Im a tad concerned about Riker, as he seems a little.....off. Hard to explain, as there is nothing specifically wrong with him and he's only 6-7 months old. But rat people will probably recognise that kind of 'a little weathered' look from some of his pics. He has good colour, eats, no respiratory, no internal masses, not dehydrated, he just seems a bit tired compared to the others who are always on the go.
I did find out that Dirty Harry and Riker have a bit of history of scuffles, although they seemed to be ok-ish with one another. Owner said she's tried to intro those two, but they've never gotten on. They were sleeping in a pile together here, so I assumed they were ok. But I've taken Harry out for now in case he was bullying Riker and making him feel bad, since Harry definitely does have some hormonal issues here and there.
We'll see. He seems a tad brighter today.

Took in these 8 today from someone moving abroad.
The 5 furred lads are staying with me, the 3 double rex are going to my friend, Marie, who runs a small sanctuary.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=bd0c434d07

Just got the news that Roach is coming back to the UK at the end of June hopefully!
She's been in Australia since last September and I've missed her like crazy. She's my closest, oldest and best friend and I've never been apart from her, unable to even text at least, since I was a kid.

She hasn't even met Dresden yet. I was watching this again today, to remind myself of how much I've missed her! Good times.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yo1U.....;feature=g-upl

Todays free range of Doodlebug's group.

Doodlebug, for those who don't know, is, for wont of a better word, deformed. No-one knows exactly what is wrong with him, my vet doesn't have a clue other than perhaps a birth defect. Another vet said he has downs syndrome.
Whatever it is, it causes him to have a short face, shortened bottom jaw, strange eyes which are uneven on his face, a shortened body, short tail and his tongue is too large for his mouth.

Much as I love Doodlebug, and he is an oddity in the world of rats, I hope I never see another like him. He has constantly weepy eyes due to his face shape (seems he can't blink enough as his eyes are too 'buggy', much like a pug or other flat faced dog) and I have to put eye drops in as often as possible to keep them dry and stop them ulcerating. When his eyes get sore, you can tell it hurts because he becomes lethargic and unhappy. He's currently recovering from another bad bout where his eye ulcerated, but he seems to be on the mend now and has perked up a lot.
He also has snuffling from his shortened face.
I often wonder if he is blind, as he goes about his life in a very odd way, and doesn't behave dissimilarly to a blind rat.

But here he is, on free range with his friends:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=ba45ad65a9

If you have had a rat get ill, chances are your vet has given him/her baytril at some point.
It is the main 'go to' medication for most rat ailments. It is a broad spectrum anti-biotic, and can be very useful and effective.
Its often given for respiratory problems and abscesses.

However, there are several things about baytril that a lot of vets don't seem to know.
This is based not only on my personal experience, but many reports from other rat owners.
Below are these things.

1. Baytril should not be given to baby/young rats.
An alarming number of vets don't seem to realise this.
But giving baytril to young rats can be damaging to their bone/cartilage growth, and it really isn't reccomended.
There is debate over what age is safe for a rat to have baytril. Some say 10 weeks, some say 12 weeks, some say 16 weeks, and some even say 8 months.
I personally do not feel comfortable using it in rats under 16 weeks.

If your rat is young, please try and get your vet to dispense an alternative antibiotic which is 'baby safe'.
Examples of these include:
Zithromax
clavamox
Amoxicillin

In some cases, there is little choice but to give baytril to youngsters, such as if alternative meds have failed and the health problem is continuing without signs of improvement.
In this kind of situation, baytril is the lesser of two evils.
I have given baytril to a rat under 16 weeks before, for a chronic respiratory problem. We tried every other med we could think of before hand, with no improvement in his condition, so in the end, felt we had little choice but to try baytril.
Fortunately, having had the med at this age doesn't seem to have affected him as an adult.
But as so many vets are unaware of the issues of baytril in little ones, it is important that we, as owners, do know so we can request a different medication.

2. Baytril should not be put in the water.

Some vets seem to dispense baytril with the instruction that it be put into the rats water and taken that way.
Don't.
There are many reasons why this is ill advised.
Firstly, rats live in groups, so if you were to dose the water, every rat in the group would also be getting a dose of baytril when they do not need it.
You may say 'so what?' but the problem is that rats can and do build up a resistance to baytril.
This is one of the reasons my vet tries to find alternatives to baytril, because he has seen first hand how rats are becoming resistant to it.
So, you don't want to give it to your rat unless they need it, because one day, they may become very ill and genuinely need baytril and you don't want to risk it not being effective when its really needed.

You may say 'well, just seperate the ill rat from its group while it is on baytril', but I would warn against this.
If at all possible, ill rats should remain with their group. The only time I seperate sick rats off is when they are so ill they are unable to compete for food/water, or cannot navigate the cage effectively.
Or, obviously, if they are contagious. Though to be honest, by the time one discovers heir rat is ill, chances are it has already spread what its got to the rest of its group!

Rats generally heal and get better a lot quicker if they are left with their group.
Being seperated stresses them, and obviously an ill rat does not need any more stress.
Imagine if you were ill, would you want to be isolated from your family and friends for days and days and taken out of your home, or be left with the people you know and love, in the comfort of your own territory?

So isolating the ill rat so baytril can be put into water is just one reason why baytril in water isn't a good idea.

The other is that you cannot possibly control what dose your rat is getting if the med is in the water.
Rats, like people, may drink more on one day, less on another. How can one be sure that the ill rat is getting the full dose of medication every day?

If your rat is put onto baytril, the best way to give this medication is either directly into the rat's mouth, or via some food.
This way, you know your rat is definitely taking the full dose each day.

Baytril tastes awful. Try it; its a horrible bitter taste, and rats don't like the taste of it any more than we do.
Therefore, squirting it directly into their mouth can be unpleasant for the rat.

So to try and avoid this, first attempt to give the med to your rat in some food. If you can trick your rat into eating something laced with baytril, it will make the experience less traumatic for him/her and you.
Baytril has a strong taste, and can be hard to mask. I have had success with baby food, chocolate pudding and whipped cream. Ensure there is more food than there is baytril, because you'll need a lot to stir it in and really mask the taste.
Put it on a spoon and let your rat lick it off.
If they do, happy days!
If they don't, you can try leaving the rat and the food in a carrier for a while. Often, the rat will get bored or hungry and go back to the food, even if it is laced with baytril, because it has nothing better to do.

If your rat seems insistant on not touching any food with baytril in, and some are more fussy than others, you may have to resort to squirting the med directly into their mouth.
Food is good if you can do it, but some rats just won't be fooled by the trick, and you end up wasting baytril by having to throw out the uneaten mixture.
In this situation, squirting it directly into their mouth is the only real option.
Don't expect your rat to like this. They don't.
Some tolerate it better than others, but baytril is a foul tasting med so I really don't blame them for hating it.
You'll find your own way of doing this and eventually get the hang of it.
I tend to sit with the rat on my lap facing away from me then hold him around the shoulders, and pull the skin back so his teeth are revealed. Then I quickly put the syringe behind the incisors, into the side of the mouth, and plunge!
They key is speed. You want to ideally do it in a second or two. The longer you mess around, the more stressed and resistant the rat will become.
You may find your rat is fine the first time you do this, but gets wise to it and becomes awkward with subsequent doses.
If you have a really difficult rat, or a serious biter, you can wrap them in a towel so their front legs are restrained (it is the front paws that rats will use to push the syringe away, so you want them to be restrained) and just their head is poking out, and try it this way.

There is an art to it, that you learn as you do more and more of them.
There isn't a rat now that I can't give baytril to orally.

If your vet wants to inject baytril, decline.
Another thing a lot of vets don't know is that baytril given by injection can cause something called 'baytril burn' at the injection site.
This is basically a big, raw, ulcerated area of skin where the needle went in.
Not all rats get it, and not all baytril injections cause it, but it is horrible and not something you want to have to deal with if you don't have to.
There is little need to inject baytril in most cases , so it is best to decline offers to inject this drug.

Scroll down to the bottom of this page to see an example of baytril burn:

http://www.sandyscrittercity.com/my.....smosispage.htm

3. Baytril should be given twice a day, not once.

Some vets will tell you to dose your rat only once a day.
Baytril is far more effective if given twice a day.
The reason is that rats have a very fast metabolism, and they process meds quickly. Therefore, splitting the dose into two doses a day rather than one big one is far better and more effective for rats.

4. Most vets under dose.

A lot of vets under dose rats with baytril, and they do not give a long enough course.
I've known vets to give a course of baytril lasting only 5 days.
This is no way near long enough.
I never give baytril for any less than 2 weeks. A rat really needs at least two weeks on this med for it to be effective, sometimes longer. Even if the symptoms seem to disappear after a few days, you still need to give the whole course.
If your vet only wants to give 4-5 days worth, challenge this.

The lowest recommended dosage of liquid Baytril is 0.2ml per lb twice a day but this dose can be increased up to 4 times, depending on the ailment. This means a typical 300g doe would get 0.15ml twice a day, and a 600g buck would get 0.3ml twice a day. But do weigh your rat first so you can work out the right dose for him/her.

Baytril is a fairly 'safe' drug, in that if you over-dose a little, your rat will probably be fine.
Baytril can cause diarrhoea, so you can give a little probiotic yogurt alongside it to rebalance the gut flora.

Hope this helps.
Im not anti-vet at all, but it is just a fact that finding one that really knows rats can be extremely hard!

Groups 2 + 3, and the girls, de-mited tonight.
Even managed to get close enough to do Spirit, the wild rat. She's probably the only wild rat in suffolk now who is parasite free!

I often get asked about parasites in rats.
The parasite rats most often get is mites. They pick these up from anywhere, but usually the bedding/litter that is used. If these bags/bales of litter sit in warehouses before being shipped to stores, they can harbour mites from passing wild mice or rats. Some people freeze their litter/bedding for a while before use to try and prevent this.
You can't see mites with the naked eye, but you will usually know if your rat has them because they will scratch excessively, and, soon, cause little scabs to appear on their bodies. These usually occur around the neck, muzzle, and shoulders.
If a rat comes in with small scabs around this area, the first thing I do is treat them for mites.

However, it gets complicated since some rats have mites, but don't show signs.
Others really suffer with sores and constant itching.
There doesn't seem to be any clear reason why some rats show signs and some don't, but perhaps it has a genetic basis? Data, Lore and Lyra are all prone to mites, and so is their mother and father.
So a lot of people wrongly assume 'my rats can't have mites, as only some of them are scratching, wouldn't it be all of them if it were mites?'
Nope. It might just be one, or two. But if one is showing signs of mites, then they all have them, whether they show it or not, so all would need treatment.

Sometimes signs of mites are apparent in the rat when he is stressed or his immune system is compromised so he can't keep symptoms at bay anymore.

I treat my rats for mites when I see the first signs. I do not treat regularly or routinely, as I don't like to put more chemicals on my rats than necessary, and a mite infestation is never guaranteed, so I prefer to wait until I see signs rather than dose them all up just in case.
I do treat all new rescues that come in, however.

I treat my rats with Ivermectin, which I get in bottles from a breeder friend of mine. This is a drop on the back of the neck/back, similar to how cat and dog flea treatments work.
I would avoid vets who wish to inject ivermectin. Rats can and have died from this, and it is considered risky and best avoided.
In the UK, the best treatment for mites is a product by a company called Beaphar. It is a rat/mouse/hamster/ferret spot on, and can be bought from pets at home in their small animal section (or ordered online if you don't want to support that place). It is around £5 for a pack of 5 treatments.
The only reason I stopped using this was the expense.
If you only have 2 rats, these 5 pipettes would last you a decent while, making the £5 cost pretty reasonable.
But when you have 40+, you're talking about needing to buy 8 boxes of this stuff, costing £40.
My bottle of ivermectin wasn't a fraction of this cost, and I've treated all my rats many times over with it and still have loads left.

Mites are the most common rat parasite, but they can get others.
Rats can also get lice. These are different to mites in that if you look extremely closely with a sharp eye, you can just about see them moving in the rat's fur.
I treat this the same way as mites.

Can domestic rats get fleas? Well, yes and no.
Yes as in they can have a flea jump onto them from your cat or dog, and feed on their blood. But the fleas would not be rat fleas and, from what I understand, could not live on rats permanently. They would simply be hitching a ride, much as cat and dog fleas do to humans, but they cannot live on us.
But it would be highly unlikely that domesticated rats would get actual rat fleas, unless they're in regular contact with wild rats.
Fleas don't just spring from no-where, they have to be obtained from another animal.
You can see fleas very clearly, particularly on animals as small as rats. You can't miss them.

I had one bout of fleas in my rats many years ago, caused by my cat. I treated them with Xenex, but you can use advantage for kittens. I would consult your vet or ask on rat forums though before throwing these chemicals onto your rats, as its been a looooong time since I had to treat fleas, and treatments may have changed/advanced.

Mites can also cause mange in rats. One sign of sarcoptic mange in rats is a tattered or bumpy, thickened edge to the ears, or a small, hard, 'rino horn' growth on the nose.

Can rats get worms?
I will say this.....yes. I'd imagine any mammal can.
However, I've never in my life had a worm infestation in my rats, so can only presume it is rare and probably not anything to think on for the average rat owner.
I treat worms with panacur, but I've only had to use it twice: once on a rescue girl that was found roaming about in the wild, and once on a little boy with severe stomach/bowel issues where panacur was used as a 'just in case' to eliminate the chances of worms while we tried to figure out what was wrong with him.
If you're taking rescues from situations where they've been in the wild, it may be worth worming. But we do not need to do it routinely, like we do with our cats and dogs.

My rat, Alfie, died last night.
I suspected it was either kidney failure, a pituitary tumour, or both.
Today, I performed a post mortem on him, and discovered it probably was, indeed, both.

I have pictures if anyone wishes to see them.
They are extremely graphic. If you have any issues with dead animals, gore, organs, blood etc please do not ask to see them.
They are for educational purposes only. I did this to teach myself what my boy died of, so I may be a better rat owner in the long run.

If you wish to see the pictures, note me.

Today, I let Worf out on the bed with Delta to have a run, and see how he responded to another rat.
Delta is a female with an imperforate vagina (basically, a deformation down there, which gives her no vaginal opening, and a swelling that looks like testicals, she was given to me as a true hermaphrodite, but I don't believe she is as she is female in all other ways except this swelling, she even comes into season).
Delta is a handy rat to have as, being female, she is good for hormonal males to meet as they are less likely to take exception to her, and she can live with either the boys or the girls.

The change in Worf on seeing another rat was remarkable. He went from a rat that would freeze then leap away into the air just to escape, to being almost a normal rat on free range. You can see the difference in him in the pics, and how much happier he seems.
Unfortunately, he did get a bit carried away with her shortly into the session and became a bit rough (didn't draw blood, but Delta obviously didn't appreciate it and took herself away to have some time out on my lap, she's a very chilled out rat; she'll just move away rather than argue).
Now that Worf seems more confident, Im starting to see the hormonal side of him come out and replace the terrified side. He is now showing typical overly hormonal rat signs, so I think he'll have to have his balls off in the next week or so.
But Im happy he has come out of his shell and is beginning to act like a normal rat:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/.....p;l=a44619a00b

So, I've had a couple of days to get to grips with my half wild boy, Worf.
He is unlike any rat I've ever had, which confirms to me he is half wild. I've owned hundreds of domestic rats over the years, from a variety of different situations, some abused, some neglected, some never handled, and they've always been mostly predictable in the way they act.
I know how a nervous rat is going to behave, I know what to expect.

Not with Worf.

For a start, he is EXTREMELY nervous. He isn't nervous in the way an abused/non handled/neglected domestic rat is nervous either. I let him onto the bed for a run, to see how he was out of his cage, and he instantly ran to hide under a pillow. Fair enough, not at all strange for a timid rat; exactly what I'd expect.
I moved the pillow to peek at him, and he launched himself off the bed like he was on fire. I've never had a rat leap off the bed; domestics tend to find a safe place, and return there for security, they don't launch themselves into the unknown like that.
I managed to grab him, and placed him back under his pillow so he could calm down, and again, he made a mad dash to escape, landing on the floor in panic.
I decided he needed more work than I'd anticipated, so I put him back in his cage to settle down.

He is extremely wary of anything new. All rats have this quality, its called neophobia. But domestics have a dulled down version of it, some don't seem to have much of it at all, and happily latch on to anything new with excitement.
Wild rats are EXTREMELY neophobic, its one of the qualities that makes them distinct from domestics. They avoid new foods, new places for a long time until they are sure it is safe.
Worf will not eat much. He eats Harrisons banana brunch, as his previous owner fed this as part of her mix and he is used to it. He won't eat much else, not yoggies, not treats, not anything a domestic, even a fearful one, would go for.
He is obsessed with meat; it is one of the few things he happily eats, even his previous owner said this. And indeed, he ate some duck last night quite happily, but has still yet to touch the rat cookies I gave him.

He freezes, a lot. He will sit, frozen, for up to 10 minutes at a time in fear after being out of his cage. His whiskers won't twitch, he won't move a muscle.

I am not stupid enough to put my hand in his hide out and pull him out. I wouldn't even do that with a timid domestic rat, or even some of the non-timid ones, its a great way to get nipped.
I take the lid off his cage, place it on the bed, and gently coax him out by tipping his bed up.

Last night, I held him, and he made no attempt to bite.
He does not seem the hormonally aggressive rat I was led to think he was. He just seems terrified.
Whereas a new rat here will usually be a little wary for a few hours, I think it will take him a lot longer to adjust to a new place.

I handle him by letting him sit on my arm, and keeping my hands away from him at this point so he doesn't feel closed in or trapped. I only have a couple of photos as he doesn't sit still long enough for any more, and I don't want to scare him with the flash.

He will be a challenge, but one Im looking forward to. If I can tame him, I can deal with any other rat!
He may or may not have his balls off at some point. Im not sure yet. Im wary of castrating very fearful rats and sometimes, that little boost of testosterone is all that keeps them going and keeps them brave enough to do anything.
Take that away, and that can make them far more fearful.

I feel sorry for him, more than anything. He is NOT a wild rat, I must make this clear. If he were, he would never tolerate being caged; it would kill him with the stress. He has no issues in his cage, and, in fact, this is his safe place. He is half wild, but born in captivity (we assume, he was a rescue before his previous owner had him, so I have no idea of his roots).
A wild rat should, in the vast majority of cases, not be made into a pet. But this boy, despite his issues, has no option; he is neither completely wild, nor completely domestic.
I hope to introduce him to Delta, my hermaphrodite girl who cannot get pregnant, and see how he takes to her. Perhaps having a more confident rat around will help him.

Here are the only good photos I got:

http://www.shadowrat.com/rats/worf1.jpg
http://www.shadowrat.com/rats/worf2.jpg

Had a little rat come in today that is half wild.
He was given to me because he needs work, and needs to be castrated so he will get on with other rats, but his previous owner had no-one to put him in with. He has ripped up another rat's leg in the past.
Hes an agouti, about a year old, and was originally a rescue by his former owner. He has darker soles of his feet, which is not uncommon in wild rats. Not all wild rats have dark foot soles, but no domestic rat would have.
He has a very long tail, and has the 'wild' look to him.
He also has several wild rat traits, as in he is picky about food and will refuse things he hasn't had before. His favourite is apparently chicken.
He is handlable, but he doesn't like it, and he will run up and take a bite when free ranging.

The plan is to monitor him for a while, see how he turns out, then probably castrate him and pop him in with girls.

I've called him Worf. Pics to follow later when I get to grips with him.

He's my first half-wildie, that I know of. Hoffman may have been, but never confirmed.
I do have a true wild girl who lives in my shed, but she isn't a pet. She's a wild animal who lives with me by choice, I feed her, give her water, and she sleeps in a box in my shed, she never leaves because she has no reason to; all she needs is provided for her. I can just about stroke her back if she is turned away, and she has already outlived her natural life span for a wildie, so she's a nice experience. Its cool that she chooses to be with me even though she doesn't have to be, and will sit and be quite happy with me being in the room.

But we'll see how this little half wild lad does :)