Azuline Rattery

07/08/2024

Honestly reviews like this one from Katie make me squeal with happiness! Thank you so much for sharing!

29/07/2024

Ebonie at Bogglesandboops Small Pet Photography has done it again with a boat load of absolutely gorgeous photos of my book! Thank you so much Ebonie, and thank you for modelling again Phoebe!

So many that I love, but given the weather today, this one called my name! 🍓🐀🌳🌞🍴

22/07/2024

“How do I get my rats to cuddle with me?”*

*wrong answers only please 😁

11/07/2024

A card from one of my daughter’s toys…. Are you sure that’s what that is 😅

29/06/2024

I highly recommend this nail polish as well as everything else here! 😁 I stopped having time to paint my nails a few years ago and can’t for work now, but I used to wear Lyn’s gorgeous shades of sparkly blue all the time

12/06/2024

What should you do when you're left with 1 rat from a group?

Well, first of all, you should do everything to avoid ever being in the situation where you are left with just one rat from a group. I have a whole article about rolling rat groups on my website that covers this in detail, but today we're going to look at what your options are if you do end up with a single rat for whatever reason.

1. The most obvious solution is to get more rats. If you have a rat who is alone, your priority needs to be to get them company ASAP. Rats do not need time to grieve and the longer they are alone the more detrimental it is to their well-being. If you are in this situation, then by all means contact reputable breeders, but the chance of them having rats both at the right age to go to new homes and without a waiting list is extremely slim. Instead, you should focus on getting rescues that are ready immediately; check out rescue centres near you and Rat Rescue Network UK. You do not need to get rats the same age as your rat, and especially if your rat is an old rat, make sure you get a younger pair so that you don't end up in the same situation in the near future.

2. The second option, if you don't want to continue owning rats, is to rehome your rat to someone that can offer them company. Again, this needs to be done ASAP, so post on the rats wanted thread on the group linked above, or make a post in Rat Care UK. Make sure you vet the owner so that you know that their care is going to be up to your standards, and also that they are going to ensure your rat has company for the rest of their life (e.g., if your rat is 18 months and they have a lone 26 month old, unless they are getting other rats too your rat is going to be alone again pretty sure).

3. The final option that I see people talking about is loaning or fostering rats, particularly from breeders. I think this is so rarely an option that's it's not worth mentioning, but I am doing so purely because it is talk about so often. Essentially the idea behind this is that someone else lends you their rats for your rat to integrate in to. You look after their rats and yours until yours passes away and then you give the group back. While lovely in theory (you don't need to adopt more rats permanently and you get to be with your rat until the end), in reality, this is only really an option in rare circumstances where a breeder not only has a rat group that they don't need for breeding purposes, but also that they feel happy enough to lend to you for a period of time. I have only known this to be an option where the owner with a lone rat is one of their owners that they have known for a long time and have a good relationship with. I doubt any reputable breeder would loan out their much loved pets to someone they didn't know - I know I wouldn't!

Have you ever been down to 1 rat? What did you choose to do?

04/06/2024

You know how I like creating articles that answers questions people ask on rat groups. Well, I'm hoping this is another one that's going to come in handy a lot! :)

Most of my articles are initiated by me just musing or ranting, but this one was written after a special request came in! Yes, apparently I sometimes take requests 😅

Fairly regularly on rat groups on Facebook people crop up either wanting to or already taking their rats outside with them, maybe to play on the lawn or even go for a walk. But is this a safe and b…

03/06/2024

Apologies for the radio silence, it's been a hectic month leading up to then going away on holiday! we got back yesterday and straight into a full work week so barely had time to think!

Just to note I am hoping to pop by the North of England Rat Society Preston show on Saturday. I will have a few copies of my book with me that I can sell at the reduced rate of £14 (that's the cheapest you can possibly get it!).

Drop me a message if you are planning on attending and want one (or know someone attending and want me to send one back with them for you) :)

30/05/2024

My favourite animals at Chester Zoo

CLOUD RATS BORN 🎉

This fluffy duo are brothers and are proof that all rats rock 🤘

One of the world’s largest species of rodents, they live on the island of Luzon in the Philippines - the only place on Earth where they can be found in the wild.

They're so elusive that scientists don't yet know all that much about them, other than that they're nocturnal and spend most of their time high up in the treetops 🌴

22/05/2024

Ebonie and Phoebe at The Rat Chat Podcast come up with the best memes 😂😂

🖤 Meme Monday 🖤

I think this one resonates with most of us 😅

08/05/2024

Do you know that for a good while the name for my book was going to be “the comprehensive guide to rat care”. Not quite as snappy or succinct is it!

Thankfully this was just my initial name that everyone who read the first draft said absolutely needed to go! I can’t imagine it being called anything other than Pet Rat Care now!

04/05/2024

Honestly I get such a warm feeling when people I’ve never met leave lovely comments about my book 🥰🥰

03/05/2024

This is going to sound harsh and I apologise for that, but something really needs to be said about some lone rat situations and the expectations put on others.

If you have a lone rat, your priority should be finding suitable company as soon as possible. Rats are a social species, and studies have shown that they become depressed when kept on their own. This can manifest in a few ways, mainly “classic” depression symptoms such as becoming withdrawn, or becoming more clingy and eager to be with you as they’re desperate for company. They can also lose their social skills over time and struggle to reintegrate with other rats. I’m afraid you don’t have the luxury of time or choosiness, and you should expand your search radius as far as you are able for rescues and kittens.

For many breeders, their rats are their pets. Please do not contact a breeder expecting to be homed some of their adult rats, especially specific rats. Asking for any possible adult company is okay, but please do so sensitively. Personally, I would only consider homing adult rats to a friend/someone I’ve homed to before that I know and trust in the event of a freak accident type of situation.

Breeders will rarely have kittens available at short notice, let alone specific varieties, nor should they overly compromise their care or homing standards. If they are able to help they will, but it’s very off-putting if the home in question starts wanting the breeder to jump through hoops, such as delivering the rats, wanting different/specific kittens or wanting them underage.

The best thing to do, of course, is to avoid a lone rat situation altogether! If you add a pair/trio of kittens so you have age gaps of 8-14mos then you are much less likely to end up with a lone rat.

01/05/2024

Things that don't make someone a reputable breeder:

- Keeping their rats in lovely big cages with lots of cage furniture
- Really caring about their rats
- Going to rat shows
- Having foundation rats from other reputable breeders
- Being registered with the NFRS

All of these are definitely things that a reputable breeder should also being doing, but they don't on their own mean that someone is a reputable breeder!

Edited to add: of course there will be some exceptions to these (e.g., a breeder who can't get to shows regularly or an import of rats from abroad... but I'm talking broad generalisations here)

Another edit to add some clarification if people need it:

A reputable breeder should absolutely be doing these things, but these things ALONE don’t make someone a reputable breeder.

For example, lots of breeders on preloved really care about their rats and have great cages, but they aren’t reputable breeders because they don’t keep records and select for health and temperament over generations.

Similarly, some breeders that keep rats in appalling conditions and breed rats back to back have been registered with the NFRS and go to shows.

So my point is that just doing any of these things doesn’t in itself make someone a reputable breeder, there is a lot more to it than that!!

30/04/2024

🐀What's a pet will and why you should write one today! 🐀

🐀A pet will is a document or other method of conveying to the people around you what you want to happen to your pets in the event of your death or otherwise incapacitation. Of course, none of us want to think about that possibility and the risk is very low, but in the event that it did happen, it would ensure that the people that deal with your rats know what you would want to include.

🐀Remember, the people who might be dealing with your rats after you're gone
1. probably don't have anywhere close to your knowledge of rats, rat care and the rat world, and
2. possibly don't actually like rats or care that much about what happens to them.

🐀This person might think that giving your rats over to a rescue is the very ethical thing to do, not realising that breeder rats should never be placed into rescue and always returned to the breeder (or someone else they arrange to take them) as a first port or call. Most reputable breeders I know would be devastated to find out rats they bred ended up in a rescue!

🐀So what should your pet well include? Here's a few ideas:
- Basic care for your pets in layman's terms to get them through a few days.
- contact details for the vets incase something happens.
- contact details for the breeder they came from if applicable.
- contact details for a rat-savvy friend who can come in an emergency and look after them.
- what you want to happen to them (go to breeder, go to a friend with breeder's permission, group to stay together if possible, go to a rescue if they were rescues before etc).

🐀Remember that the more detail you add in the more often you'll need to update it. For example, if you put the names and DOBs of the rats, you're going to need to update it every time you add/lose a rat!

🐀Don't forget also that you need to place it somewhere accessible- have it near the cage or near where the rat food is kept.

Thanks to Mary Giles for inspiring this post :)

23/04/2024

Why are people so discouraging about people getting pet rats from feeder breeders? Is it just because they cull the rats to be snake food- don’t snakes need to eat too?

The issue isn’t with feeder breeders themselves- snakes have to eat too and I have no problem with a feeder breeder ethically breeding and culling rats for this purpose.

The problem is when they start selling the rats they breed as pets too. This is because when you cull (kill) the vast majority of the rats you breed as offspring, you lose all the data about what they are like as adults. So you have no idea if 80% of your rats are going to drop dead at 16 months from an inherited heart condition, or whether all the bucks turn into vicious monsters at 6 months old when they get hormonal.

Homing out rats you have bred without any consideration for what you’ve potentially created because you haven’t been selecting for health and temperament is really unethical and unfair to both the rats and the unsuspecting owners too.

(And this goes for BYBs too- they might not be culling but they also aren’t selecting for health and temperament/keeping accurate data to make those decisions!)

10/04/2024

Can’t believe that zoo that’s in the news because their zoo keepers have been letting their lions and antelope roam in the same pen for an hour a day! They’ve claimed it because they really get on and enjoy spending time together. Apparently they know their lions really well and they are very docile. So far nothing’s happened so they claim that it’s perfectly safe!

Sound stupid? Yeah, it is. So is letting your rats and cats interact. Don’t do it.

07/04/2024

AMA - let’s go! Drop your questions below and I’ll do my best to answer them all over the next half hour!

Ask me about rats, breeding, care issues, behaviour advice, questions about me/the book, my opinion on things…. Absolutely anything! 😁

Update: That half an hour went quickly! Keep posting your questions and I'll keep answering whenever I can!

07/04/2024

Shall we do an AMA (ask me anything) tonight 8-8.30pm?

I’ll make a post and you guys can ask anything and everything and I’ll do my best to answer as many as possible.

You can ask me absolutely anything on any topic. Can’t promise I’ll know anything but I’ll try my best 😂

If you can’t make that time then feel free to message me your question ahead of time and I’ll try to answer it tonight too.

07/04/2024

Recently I sent out a copy of my book with a special note inside to a young person who I’m reliably informed is an absolute superstar in caring their rats, searching out new information and helping others.

These photos make my heart sing! I hope you enjoy the book Amanda, and keep on doing what you’re doing 🤩

Thank you to Amanda and parents for allowing me to share the photo, and to Sarah Wayland for reaching out in the first place ❤️

01/04/2024

Nothing particularly important to share today except LOOK AT THIS TEENY RATTY!

Confiscated from my Encanto-loving toddler’s character set as a choking hazard 😅

30/03/2024

Just a little PSA that for anyone wishing to stock my book in their small business shop or at a rat show:

If you direct to me I can get bulk (10+) copies at a reduced rate sent out to you so you can sell them on and make a small profit :)

Give me a shout if you that’s something you’re interested in 😁

24/03/2024

17/18 and funnily enough the one I’m missing in doing a rat burrito. I never needed to use it because me and my partner have a good system where he holds them and I’m able to syringe meds in when required!

A bit of Sunday fun for you all 🤣

Ebonie scored 17 and I scored 16. Drop your scores in the comments section below 👀

22/03/2024

Quick question- would you be interested in me doing an AMA session? I'd set aside a certain amount of time one evening and anyone can ask me anything and I'll do my best to answer everything I can (within reason!)

You could ask for advice on cage set ups, rat behaviour, food, questions about the book, questions about breeding rats, about giving rats up etc etc. Even ask questions about me if you are for some reason interested in that 😅

Thoughts? Please give me a like/comment if you would be interested.

22/03/2024

IMPROVE YOUR RAT CAGE SETUP

🐀CAGE 5🐀

🫶Best aspects: It’s a little tricky to see everything in this cage so there may be aspects I’ve missed, but I can see a few good items that rats will love here- the cargo net and rattan tubes will be much enjoyed, the hammock at the top right, and the play toys placed at the top of the cage.

👍Ways to improve: There’s lots of ways that we can make this cage more rat-friendly. The first steps is going to remove the plastic shelves that cages get sold with- they prevent us from creating an active layout and tend to just make the cage smell more because urine sits on top of the shelf and then gets walked through. Once those shelves have gone, there’s lots of space to create an active layout with lots of ropes, branches and other toys.

Next, let’s ditch that bowl- rats don’t need constant access to food and when we do feed them it is best to encourage their natural feeding instincts and scatter feed in the substrate. While we’re at it, this isn’t to do with the cage, but I’d ditch the nuggets too and get them on to a more suitable mix.

Finally, the last big change is to change out the substrate. I can’t see too well, but it looks like Carefresh in the bottom. This is pretty terrible in terms of enrichment and odour control, and can be too dusty for rats, so switching to a suitable substrate such as kiln dried shavings will really help.

💸Recommended additions:

Raid Rat Rations for items to fill the cage with- you can’t really go wrong so just pick what you fancy!
Choose to make your own mix or purchase one of the pre-made mixes from Rat Rations. If you’re overwhelmed with the choice, I have a cheat sheet to help you pick.
Substrate such as Littlemax if you have space to store a larger bale, or Econest if you need something smaller.

Thanks to Jasmine Jones for this photo

You can find the article with links to the items to buy here: https://azulinerattery.wordpress.com/how-to-improve-your-rat-cage-set-up/

21/03/2024

IMPROVE YOUR RAT CAGE SETUP

🐀Cage 4 🐀

🫶Best aspects: This cage is looking pretty good already so there’s not going to be a huge amount to change here. I can see a great sized cage with a deep layer of appropriate substrate. There are lots to do in this cage- things to chew and lots of little perches to climb up sides plus a good range of textures.

👍Ways to improve: The main thing that I notice when I look at this cage is that there are a lot of hammocks- about 6 or 7 from my count. In addition to those, there are at least 2 other sleeping spaces (a bowl and box), so these rats have a huge number of places to choose to sleep, which is great, but we would probably be much better off repurposing that space to give them opportunities to do other ratty behaviours, like climb, jump, balance, and chew. The large flat hammocks in the middle are clearly acting as fall breakers, I would switch those one out first for other items that can act as fall breakers such as cargo nets or wooden structures. Then I’d take out a couple of the others and add other items that encourage climbing such as branches (also great for chewing).

💸Recommended additions:

Big cargo nets
Larger wooden climbing frames
Large java branches
Large hanging basket to explore

Thanks to Merryn MoonDrop Van Halter for sending this photo

You can find the article with links to the items to buy here: https://azulinerattery.wordpress.com/how-to-improve-your-rat-cage-set-up/

20/03/2024

IMPROVE YOUR RAT CAGE SETUP

🐀Cage 3 🐀

🫶Best aspects: These new owners have got off to a good start with their cage. From this photo I can see multiple sleeping options, some good rope accessories across the cage, and a number of things to chew like coconuts, pumice stone and wood.

👍Ways to improve: It’s worth noting that this cage is a little more challenging to set up because it is taller rather than wider. As rats are naturally ground-dwelling animals we want to give them the option to run full pelt across a base, so a wider base would make a better option.

To improve this cage however, we first need to think about how we can make it busier. More ropes and wooden items across the cage would help immensely, as would baskets and other cage accessories. I’d probably actually ditch one or two of the sleeping options in favour of more space to fill up! Next, I’d remove the Back2Nature from the bottom of the cage and invest in a litter tray for it instead. At the bottom of the cage, I’d select a more appropriate substrate such as cardboard shavings or kiln dried pine shavings.

Finally, I’d probably think about investing in a good quality wheel. As this cage doesn’t have a large footprint, this is a great way to give your rats the opportunity to run really fast!

With small doors, this cage is going to be physically more challenging to furnish, so definitely take the top off and build up from the bottom after clean outs!

💸Recommended additions:

Rope Bridges
Bolted logs to aid climbing
Wooden swing toys
A wheel like any of the metal wheels from TicTac– go as big as you can afford, minimum 12″ but more likely to be used if it’s bigger.
Litter tray - either corner or square in shape.

You can find the article with links to the items to buy here: https://azulinerattery.wordpress.com/how-to-improve-your-rat-cage-set-up/

19/03/2024

IMPROVE YOUR CAGE LAYOUT

🐀Cage 2🐀

🫶Best aspects: There are a lot of excellent aspects of this cage- the multiple textures, fully active set up, good use of fall breakers, high range of different items, deep bases with lots of space for burrowing.

👍Ways to improve: There is nothing glaringly lacking in this cage, but if Dyana wanted to change a few things for her boys then I’d recommend adding in a few different types of ropes. Ropes of different tautness and width are a great way to challenge your rats and to get them using those core muscles to balance. Zig zag these in between the current furniture set up across the cage for the best set up.

💸Suggested additions: Either rope sold by the length or some pre-made rope accessories such as:

Sturdy ropes that go across a corner of a cage.
Softer and slightly thicker ropes.
Boredom breakers ropes. I like to unravel them and then you have two thin ropes. I found that you could stretch each one from one side of an SRS95 to the other side, attach it on with a pear clip and stretch it back.
Spiral ropes that you can stretch across the cage from one side to the other.

Thanks to Dyana Tetreau for sharing this photo.

You can find the article with links to the items to buy here: https://azulinerattery.wordpress.com/how-to-improve-your-rat-cage-set-up/