Scruffians Rattery

29/06/2025

Here's a little video of Sprite's crew getting their first round of dog and kid socialization in for the day. I've picked my keeper a bit earlier than usuall - she's not who I intended to keep because I already have 2 gootie girls but she's a bit of a stand out in an already very very nice litter. I've penciled in homes for all the others and will be emailing their future people tonight so keep an eye out if you put your hand up for them!

28/06/2025

Lem baby update! Both are boys, both black, both self, and both fluffy. They're 2 weeks old now, have opened their eyes, and I saw one out nibbling some food for the first time this morning. Djinn has done such a good job but is very much looking forward to her retirement. I think her and Sprite deserve a little party when these babies are weaned! I'll be keeping one of these boys but one will be avaliable to a pet home with one of Sprite's little variberks on the 9th of August. If you think they might be good additions to your family let me know :)

27/06/2025

Cage of the day!

This is my pairing cage. Quite boring, as you can see, because I want the boys to be able to find the younger speeder girls! I plan to do all my litters for this year in pairs - 2 girls at a time - so I can hopefully foster babies onto other mums if something goes wrong.

In these cages are old man Interstellar Rattery Frank and Winnie's Rattery Lemming, and Misty's Mischief Rattery Izaar and White Rose Rattery Yogurt (Briar) All going well, the girls will be due next month with rainbow litters and a range of markings :)

24/06/2025

One of the things I was most worried about when I started breeding again after having kids was little fingers getting chomped when they were poked into cages. Up until recently, I've always avoided putting my fingers through the bars because it seemed like a good way to get bitten, even by rats who were usually really nice.

I used to tell my adopters it was a dangerous thing to do because rats can think your finger is food and might bite without realizing it's a person but I don't think that's totally right anymore. My current rats are fed treats through the bars all the time (where as before they never were) but don't bite even the most sticky, tasty, nutella covered finger.

Now I think it's the novelty of fingers coming through the bars that makes rats bite. If fingers aren't really a novelty, and rats have got used to them being poked in when they're babies, they're not likely to be finger chompers. They'll be interested of course, mouth them, lick the nuttella off and maybe nibble a finger nail, but they shouldn't bite.

I'm pretty confident that all the little ones I rehome will be kind to any fingers poked in their cages. They're well tested while they're here at least and have had lots of practice being gentle.

24/06/2025

Cage of the day! These are my rat room boys and girls cages.

My babies are all raised in the house but my adult rats live in the rat room (which used to be a kind of pool house) I've tried all sorts of cage setups in there, as well as just letting the girls free roam with the whole space set up for them. At the moment I don't have that many rats so I have everyone in 2 strong rat cages. I really like srcs for a few reasons: they're quick and easy to clean, have nice deep bases for bedding, and they're a good size for 6 rats which is the group size rats prefer to be in in lab settings, so I hope isn't too far off for pet rats.

Photo 1: cage stack on bunnings shelves, the bases slot in perfectly!

Photo 2: old boys cage - just Tiberius and Cloud in here

Photo 3: girls cage - I have 6 girls (not counting babies), but atm just Laika and Kelt are in here.

Photo 4: I use plants a lot in my cages. This is Tiberius with some nasturtium, a great plant to add to rat cages because it stays fresh for ages, most rats think it's pretty tasty, and - if you get the weedy one - is super easy to grow.

Photo 5: a good rule of thumb is to provide the same number of sleeping spots as rats, + 1, which means when these cages are full I should have 7 hides in each. At the moment there are only 5 so I'll have to add a couple more! Ground nesting spots as well as up high ones are a good idea. These big igloos are pretty cheap and a good option for the ground nests. They're less likely to get chewed than rody igloos, I've had mine forever and they still look pretty much new.

Photo 6: I recently switched from glass water bottles - which are expensive and I was always breaking them - to these big 1 litre plastic ones. I love them.

Photo 7: all my cages have litter boxes and all my rats are at least partially litter trained. It makes cleaning so much easier, bedding lasts longer and plastics just need a quick rinse rather than a scrub.

23/06/2025

The do you want babies email has been sent! Keep your eyes out if you think you might like some of Djinn and Sprites final litters :)

Scruffians Rattery has babies ready to move out next month - Djinn and Sprite's babies are on the hunt for their new families! The first litter is Sprite's second (and final) lot of babies - born on 30/05/25. This is a fluffy to markings outcross litter, 12 agouti and black babies. This litter is re...

23/06/2025

Cage of the day! This is Djinn's maternity cage. It's pretty boring because mums of young babies spend most of their time in the nest and it's important that newly mobile babies (2-3 weeks old) don't have anything they can hurt themselves on.

I use deep based cages for mums and young bubs so there's no risk of babies falling through bars and fill them with about 4cm of shavings as often girls like to pile them up and half cover their igloo like Djinn has done. I use rody igloos because you can pull the top off to check babies without disturbing the nest. Apart from that there's not much in my maternity cages - just a litter box and food bowl - they get a more interesting set up when babies are around 3 weeks old and ready to explore.

23/06/2025

22/06/2025

In our last meeting the NZFRS breeders decided we'd share pics of our cages every 3 months to inspire each other, share ideas, and so everyone is held accountable to the high standards of care required for being a registered breeder. Some of us will be sharing our cages on social media and our websites too, so keep an eye on the other registered breeders pages if you'd like some ideas for cage setups (https://www.nzfrs.co.nz/rattery-directory)

I'll share one of my cages and a few of its 'features' each day until they've all had a turn :)

This is my current baby cage. It's similar to an avione (but much cheaper - I got it off trademe)

Photo 1: the whole cage. It's suitable for 4 or 5 adult rats, but currently has Sprite and the 15 babies in it - they'll be split into a girls cage and a boys cage in a week and a bit. I have it between my dining room and lounge so the babies are very well exposed to household noises and get lots of interaction with people. It's at toddler height so the baby rats get used to kids, fingers through the bars (no biting!), dog noses poking in, and general hubbub.

Photo 2: I got these containers from kmart and cut a hole in the lids. They make great nesting spots with a bonus platform on top. They're super popular with all my rats, really easy to clean, and fun to fill with different kinds of bedding.

Photo 3: I've covered the wire shelves that came with this cage with clear arcylic. I quite like to be able to see through the cage but it's not good for rats to be walking on bars so this was my solution. In the past I've used coreflute or fleece to cover selves but I much prefer the arcylic - It's really easy to clean and super hard wearing so it should last forever.

Photo 4: all my cages have a water bottle and a clip on water bowl so there are a couple of drinking options. Sprite likes to drink using her hand like a little cup and scoops water out!

19/06/2025

Lemming's sister Lark had her babies a couple of days ago! I'm really looking forward to seeing what markings they have when their colour comes in because their dad Cloud has a really cool thick wiggly hood - hopefully some of his babies will take after him.

One day old 🩷 sadly we are down to 12 babies, while this is sad it was somewhat expected, one of Larks 14 babies was still born and the runt looked very weak and unlikely to make it when I checked them yesterday.

The 12 surviving babies are looking great! So far there are 4 black babies, two are hooded and two are Berkshire 🐀 I’ll be able to tell what colour the other babies are around 8 days when their fur has come in a bit 🩷

19/06/2025

Lem's 2 little ones are doing well with a very attentive Djinn. I barely ever see her out of the nest but, unlike some of my previous super focused mums, she's not grumpy and hormonal at all and is always happy for me to have a peek at the babies.