Trying to teach these little cuties how to fetch a toy. Does anybody who reads this blog have any idea how the best way to do that is?

Have you ever had a pet start to choke on you? I was playing with my little ratties today, and while I was working on teaching them tricks, Sugar began to cough and wheeze on the little piece of pretzel I gave her. She looked like she was choking... Still has me in a bit of a panic. I gave her a miniature rat sized Heimlich maneuver and some water, and to my knowledge, she is ok. NOTE! Don't give your little rattys whom you love and care for pretzels unless your watching VERY CLOSELY! (This goes for all small animals) THEY CAN CHOKE! And its VERY SCARY!  

Rats are the greatest. You want something that's stubborn and aloof like a cat, yet eager and willing like a puppy dog, get a rat. They teach themselves tricks, they constantly beg to be allowed to come out of the cage and hang out with you, and every few days they go through a phase where they play for pretty much four or more hours straight. Or pretty dang close to it. Watch them in their cage. First one chases the other around the cage. Then the other one chases the first one. Then they wrestle a little bit, take a food break, get a drink, do a stare off, take a nap together, and then their right back to chasing each other around the cage. Make a couple sounds and they stop what their doing and rush to the side of the cage, as close as they can get to you, to perk their ears up and listen for more. After a few seconds, when they get bored, one of them will nose under the other one and flip her upside down, then continue to use her as a door mat. They do all this to each other, and yet they continue to be the best of friends. Grooming each other, taking naps together, helping build the nest, taking each others food away to make sure its safe for ratty consumption. Its adorable. I'd love to have more. Their so fun to watch, and so cute with their little ears. Its often said that rats are like potato chips, you can't just have one. Personally I disagree. Rats are more like tortilla chips and salsa. Neither is really good unless there is the other to make it better. Or injera and berbere. They make each other better and keep the other one company. You literally cannot have just one rat because they will die on their own, they have a psychological need for ratty companionship. But you figuratively cannot have just one either because two together often brings out the best in both of them. Not to mention gives you hours of entertainment watching them play and interact together. Can't have a dog or a cat because you don't have the space to let them roam? Get a pair of rats. They'll love you just as much, and provide the same amount, if not more, entertainment, as well as being cheaper all around.

Has someone ever told you just how specially smart rats are? And you snuffed your nose at them and walked away? Let me be the very first to tell you definitely, as someone who also used to be averse to the idea of owning a pet rat (mainly because their tails seem so horrifying at first, but quickly become their second most adorable part of their body because of how they use them like a monkey does to balance themselves and wrap it around an arm, cage bars, or face when they are climbing down something.) that rats definitely are as smart as you have been told. Not all of them can be the brightest bulbs of the bunch, mind you, but they still are quite intelligent. To make up for a lack of hammocks and accessories to hang around the cage to keep my little ones occupied, I like to give them boxes, usually as a nest box. However, the occasionally empty teabag box makes the perfect temporary solution to being both a food dish and a toy. The boxes must be cardboard, as plastic is bad for the little ratties tummies, and they cannot chew through metal, and it must have a lid that can seal itself in some light fashion, so as to pose as a challenge when closed. Putting treats or straight up food in the box and putting it inside the cage is quite entertaining, as opposed to simply handing them the empty box and saying "Here you go". Placing the open end right side up, but closed, with the food on the inside intrigues the little buggers and they will spend forever trying to figure out how to open the box. They push it around the cage, dropping it from the top level down to the floor, flipping it upside down and all around, pulling on crevices with their little teeth, and licking at the smells that seem like food. I have found that if they cannot open the box conventionally, they become quite impatient with it and turn the whole thing into nesting material simply to get at its contents. They do the same with tissue paper. If they can get their little paws on just a corner of a whole sheet of tissue paper, they will drag it through the bars of their cage, into their nest, and shred it finer than the finest confetti. They also do this with any sort of fabric, paper, cardboard, and anything else that has the faintest possibility of being torn to pieces. Its the most adorable behavior to watch, though when they've gotten their hands on one of your favorite hoodies, its not as thrilling as when its something like a gifted piece of tissue paper...

Do you recall a time when you had the best wake up call ever in your life? Perhaps your boyfriend or girlfriend woke you up with a kiss a stroked your head till you were awake. Or your children came bursting into your room on Christmas day, urging you to head down to the tree so they could open their presents. For several years when I was little, the best wake up call was for my mother to take my hamster, Timmy, out of his cage, and set him upon my bed, where he proceeded to snuggle either under the back of my neck, or in the crook under my jaw. When I went to boarding school, the best wake up calls there were the ones where either your room mate or a close friend shoved a chocolate in your face for if you got up, or flashed a box of bacon at you until you jumped up so you could get some when they cooked it. At this point in my life, because I no longer have Timmy, and my only room mate is my sister, the best wake up call for me is when my mother brings both my rats out and sets them on my bed. They are ecstatic to be free, so they begin to chase each other up and down the bed, they climb all over me, and push my blanket out of the way so they can have tunnels and pull it in on some places so they can have a nest. Baby likes to sniff my face all over, looking for something to clean up, and when I sit up, they both like to take turns sitting on my shoulder to have the best vantage point. I loved Timmy. My mother and I used to call the time in the mornings that he was allowed on my bed with me "Timmy time". I don't believe I ever imagined that I would be able to have two of the sweetest little critters at the same time, making my old Timmy time, twice the fun.

You know, there is one thing I absolutely adore about my little precious ones. No matter what, even if they are deep in a sound sleep, almost as soon as they hear my voice, their little noses are popping out of their little ramen noodle box and their looking for me. Doesn't matter what time of day it is. When I come home from the barn at night, they love to come sit on my bed with me and sniff the smells of the horses from the barn, and nibble on something they think smells like food. Without fail. Every time. I love my rats. Until they decide to climb up my coat and play a tightrope walker. That is irritating. Or when they pee on my phone. Or yet still when they walk off my bed onto the little carrying cage next to it so they can sniff around.  But in all honesty, my rats are better than any hamster I have ever had, I can guarantee.

Before you ask, YES. Timstersblog is mine. And Timmy crossed over several years ago. Since he has left, I have been to boarding school, and returned, my family has had three more hamsters while I was away, I have had one mouse that manged to escape my daddy's mousetrap  without an eye and with a broken nose, his name was Sherbert. He died October 29, 2015. I had him for several months, but he was never really that friendly. Just incredibly entertaining to watch as he would run so fast on his wheel that he would spin himself around several times before landing and doing it again. He was hilarious. But he is dead. Later the day he died, my mother took me to the pet store and I picked out a new pet. Now before I tell you what it is, keep in mind that I am an animal person. I love most all critters. I ride horses, I love dogs, and Ill tolerate most cats with love and affection. I had had my heart set on getting a corgi and naming him Shadrack, and was going to teach him how to herd cattle, but my parents didn't want to have a dog in the house, so they nixed that idea. Nothing bigger than a breadbox, for the most part, is allowed to take up residence in my house without parental permission. Now there is one rodent that has feline and canine qualities sprinkled into its personality. It has a tail (obviously), and it is small, though not quite small enough that one really has to worry for when it gets out, if it does, because few holes in the wall are big enough for them to fit through. They love their master, and will stick with them, even if the person has fallen asleep and isn't paying attention to where they are (unlike hamsters which will look for every opportunity to run away). They are very smart, will teach themselves tricks which need only a word associated with it and a few treats to help with incentive. They seldom bite, and I have heard they are the least likely to out of their entire genus There are very few things which they cannot eat. Most people loath these tiny creatures, saying they are the cause of one of the biggest plagues in history, but before I continue any farther with this, let me just remind you, twas not they, but the flea which caused and continued the plague. I can sense your disgust already. Yes, my new pet is a rat. Her name is Baby. She is the sweetest little thing you may ever meet. She is always ready for play time, and she loves to lay at my feet on my bed when I bring her out. She has a grand cage, one which any hamster would love to have, as it is about four times the size of any cage they get. To the best of my knowledge, she is a hooded, variegated champagne and white little fancy rat. For five days I kept her with me for up to six hours at a time, and she loved it. She bonded with me quickly. Far faster than any hamster I've ever seen, or had, bond with their master. In those five days I corresponded with a breeder in Colorado, who told me that if she did not have a playmate, her life with me would have been shorter than the one the mouse had, and I would not tolerate losing another cherished pet to a lonesome spirit. On November third, I went back to the very same pet store and picked out another hooded, variegated tri-color rat whom I promptly named Sugar. (So now I have a "Sugar baby") She was a little bit more of a challenge than Baby, as she didn't get the same amount of time playing with me to begin with as her sister did. I have had them both for almost two months now, and though they both love to stay with me upon my bed and play with each other and myself in between their naps, they both retain quite a bit of the original attitudes they had when I first got them. Baby remains MY rat, and loves to come to me when I call her for snuggles or a snack, and Sugar is more my fathers than mine, though I paid for her. She loves to hop up on his shoulders when he comes into my room to play with them, and sticks close to him whenever she gets the opportunity. They seldom leave the hood on my jacket when I carry them around on my shoulders, and they love to give kisses. They chew holes in everything, and rarely go an hour without pissing on my sheets, but sheets can be washed and holes are reminders of the dear ones I treasure for after they pass. They are the just about cutest little critters I have ever seen, and they both are some of the best little friends I have ever had.