Fuzzbuts!

Seth reporting again,

Sorry that a few days turned into a few weeks, exams do strange things to the flow of time.

Our pinkies have long since turned into fuzzbutts and are now fully fledge little ratlings.

Here are some pictures for you ~^_^~

This is our dark hooded boy. He's a deep chocolate brown colour now.

Ratling piles- like twister without the mat.

They were even more adorable when they started opening their eyes:


This is Winston (a girl) She was the first one to open her eyes. We nicknamed her that because I thought she looked like Churchill when she was a pinkie.



And this is what they looked like at the beginning of this week.

They were 4 weeks old today and mid-next week we'll be separating the boys (5) from the girls (8) to prevent any "accidents." And then before you know it they'll be off the their new homes :(

Pinkies!

Hi, Seth here.
(Trying to post again without the computer eating everything)

Florin dropped her litter on Friday, in the middle of the day. Typical Florin to go against everything we've read. ^_^
She had 14, but sadly one died in the night. She's doing just amazingly as a first time Mum with such a big litter. I don't think she's ever been happier or more proud of herself. She keeps coming over to me and bruxing like: "Look what I did!"

Here's a corner of the wriggly pile.

They're squeeking right now, probably fighting over poor Mum who doesn't have quite enough nipples. *peers* ... ^_^ I can just see some little legs trying to kick a brother out of the way ^_^

Most of them seem to be dumbo and taking after Mum in markings, although they're mostly variegated, there are a couple of lighter/darker ones that have me a bit confused. Their fur will come through in the next few days and then I can do some reverse genetics on Mum. I thought I'd got it all figured out from looking at her sisters, but that's the fun of genetics isn't it. (Geek alert)

Anyway! Here's a video of them all (it's a bit poor but there's a good shot of them all in there) and a picture of Mum helping herself to a snack ^_^.

I'll update again in a few days when the sausages have turned into fuzlets. ^_^

The Lost Boy

Hi! Nat here ^_^

Long time no see and all that, it's been really busy here at Furry Towers XD Our girls are doing just fine although Bella has a bit of a cold so we're taking her to the vet on Monday for a good thorough check up. The others are all gorwing up, mock humping each other all over the bathroom at playtime and digging in a sand filled box for treats.

Anyways, I don't suppose you're ready for a month old story? It involves me, Seth and a new little boy I picked up from the pet store.

So, it was a mild Saturday almost 4 weeks ago when Seth suggested we go and get some supplies for the girls (before we knew about The Range and it's excellent discounted stuff and before we'd ordered some things online. The girls have some really awesome toys now but I digress). We went to the pet store where Seth started patrolling through the aisles umming and erring about some of the toys and what we would need. Of course after about 5 minutes I was bored (being me) and wandered over to take a look at the ratties in the cages on the wall.

Well, the little boy that had been in there since we'd got the girls almost a month before was sitting up and looking at me. Dumbo eared, agouti hooded, he looked just like my Florin and as soon as he saw that someone was interested, he came straight over to say hello.

Eventually, Seth came to see just what was so interesting and the little boy faloomphed straight across his tiny cage to see so Seth put out his hand to the glass. The boy obviously found this interest really exciting and did a sort of cute mini back flip behind his little house thing, eyes a boggling.

It was heart breaking to see such a lovely rat in a cage so small with nothing to do, under all that hot lighting with only nuggets to feast on but we managed to get out of the shop without another furry bundle stashed on our lap.

Well, we got home after a run round to the other pet store and I watches as Seth cleaned out a new travel cage for the girls. The thought of this poor boy kept cropping into my head, how he'd been there for ages and was probably going to be sent back to the feeder breeder before long and it made me really quite miserable.

Now, I know you shouldn't really purchase pets from pet store chains like that to boycot them for better conditions and whatnot but it was the individual rat that persuaded me to go back and get him. I know it was a little crazy considering out space restraints and stuff but I don't regret doing it. We got him by himself with the intention of getting him a friend a little later (as he was housed by himself at the store) and I play with him everyday before work and when I come home. He really is a loving rat and so much happier now he's out in an interesting cage with people that love him and get him out at least twice a day for scritchings and treats.

This is Peter, our boy. Ain't he the cutest thing? Looks just like Florin and Pippin, in fact, they could be related (I did check just in case). He's loiving and caring but recently we found out he's actually really rat phobic. He seems to like people much more than rats and he never bites or scratches. When we got him home, he was straight out of the cage running around and climbing all over us, bold as brass, as though he had been handled for years. This rat is a natural pet and a great companion at 6a.m XD

So now the lost boy has found himself a loving home, how will he get on with trying to get used to his friend? We'll keep you posted!

Prison Bar Blues.

Hi! Seth here.

We just put the girls back into their cage after an extra long weekend playtime but no matter how tired we get them, they never want to go home! So here are a couple of pictures of them using their evil psychological methods to make me take them back out again...



Here we have Pippin employing the: "I'm so adorable don't you just want to take me out and play with me" look.



Here's Penny using the "I want outta here so bad I'm gonna chew the bars" Guilt-trip method.

Bella is opting for the more subtle but no less heart-breaking "mournful staring" regieme.



And finally we have the oh-so-obvious, Mistress of Glaring "You will pay for incarcarating me!" Miss Florin. (She's quite scary.) 

Needless to say, if you're thinking of owning a rattie, make sure you have a heart of steel, or they'll take over your life, then your house and then... it's only a matter of time before I find Florin using my credit card to shop for cheesey puffs online!

Laters!

And Then There were 4

Hi again!
Seth: (is busy hugging Florin who wanted to come out and play)
Nat: So where were we? Oh yeah. Our girls came home and shared many a fun rattie play times with us, peeing on our hands, digging up the litter bag, attacking our mouths in a ferocious yet loving attempt to see what was inside...

2 Weeks Later...

Seth tells me he needs various rattie things at the pet store and I started thinking about Penny and Florin's poor sister and if she had been given to a good home yet. I talked to Seth about it (who was completely unhelpful and said it was up to me) so I called the pet shop and she was STILL there! How could no one want this lovely baby dumbo rattie?

I said we should go down to see if the pet store would sell her to us as we already had her sisters but when we got down there, they wouldn't sell her without a friend (to keep the new ratties all in pairs).

Well...I was just going to call it quits but SETH said-
Seth: That's it, blame me you big crazy hormone bag.
Nat: (smiles innocently)

She really wanted that rat. We would have been there all day, also Penny and Florin did NOT get on. Not in a violent way, it's just that Penny and Florin have rather different personalities... and well Florin... she's annoying. I wouldn't want to be trapped in a cage with her for most of the day either. And so you see, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we needed those new rats.

Not only that; but the new rats the store had got in were farmed rats! *Shocked and horrified gasp* We had to rescue at least one of them! And we did, in the way of Bella a blonde hooded top-eared rat who, whilst shy and terrified of being picked up, so clearly wanted to be loved.

Breaking news!

Seth: I hear from my associate that THREE of the girls just bundled into the hamster igloo we got for them, and the top has popped right off the base. *sigh* 

So without further ado, it is my pleasure to introduce Pippin and Bella:

Pippin discovers what's inside socks.

This is Pippin, she looks much like Florin cept she's half the size and her hood reaches all the way to her bum. She fit right in when we got her home and was out of the cage as soon as we opened the door for her, exploring, avoiding me, and trying to wiggle her way into Seth's underwear (I'm pretty convinced all 3 sisters got the tart gene). She's clever like Penny but playful like Florin and Penny was really happy to see her. In fights, she never takes anything without dishing something equal back and we call her sneezy because she sneezes all the time (though she's getting less sneezy as the days go on).

Bella looks out longingly at play-time .

And this is little Bella, she's a week younger than the sisters so she seems tiny by comparison. Especially next to Florin! She's so shy and she still hates being picked up, but she's quite alright with being handled now. I'd love to see her real personality when she's come out of her shell a bit. The way she teases Florin, I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't end up being a bit of pre-madonna.

The end. Beginning.

Welcome to Rat patooty

Let us introduce you to our 4 ratties -
Seth: And ourselves
Nat: Oh yeah...I'm Nat! (waves at screen)
Seth: And I'm very far away from the keyboard
Nat: But don't call him that @_@ He gets antsy
Seth: What?
Nat: O.O (<- is staring at him)
Seth: So our rats.
Nat: YES! Let us begin at the beginning, a very good place to start indeed.

For his birthday this year, I was going to buy Seth some pet ratties because he had pet ratties before and wanted some now that we were out of university housing. So while I was at work, Seth called the pet shop and asked if they sold rats, luckily, they said they did and that they were getting a litter of dumbo rats in that very day and his heart grew 3 sizes that day. So he walked all the way to the pet shop and it was miles and miles away through blistering heat and scorching high street.

Seth: It was really hot the day I went actually.
Nat: Quiet you, I'm telling the story!

So, coincedently, he got to the pet shop at exactly the same time as the breeder who was dropping off the bubbies, also known as kittens, which are baby rats. He fell in love with the little Downunder Berkshire who jumped straight out of the box, as soon as the breeder had put it down on the counter, and ran to see Seth. As rats are social animals, they're most always sold in pairs and there were 3 girls. Seth...

Nat: I got stuck.
Seth: Let's swap.
Nat: Yeah.

So, as I chatted with the breeder the little Berkshire, who we called Penny, crawled all over me desperately trying to get attention. Her two sisters were both hooded rats one of them was almost as adventurous as Penny and the other was very shy. The Breeder said that if I took only two would I please take the shy girl, so that she could be with her sister. She seemed really sweet (the rat, not the breeder - though she was a lovely lady too @_@) so, of course, I agreed and reserved them there and then, to be picked up in a week. I couldn't wait!

They've been home for a while now, so here's introducing Florin and Penny:

This is Florin, the fat rat. Despite only being 9.5 weeks old, she's almost full size! We can't quite decide if she likes her food or if she's just big boned but I guess we'll see as she gets older. When we got her home, she didn't exactly turn out to be as shy as she was in the shop, in fact she was a little monster. Her favourite game is biting Seth's arse and then running away, bouncing as she goes. She also likes to climb into people's sleeves and tug on their arm pit hair. She's a monster! While we love her for all her madness, poor Penny got really annoyed with her which is one of the reasons we decided to expand our rat family but that's a story for later.

This is the lovely Penny,  or miss Inquisitive. She barely stands still long enough to take a picture but we feel this one gives some scope of her personality (she's about to jump on the camera). She's like the complete opposite of her sister, kind, gently, a little OCD about cleanliness and she loves to start play fighting. Unlike Florin, who's taken to winding Seth up, Penny bestowed love upon him from the very moment their eyes met. She fiercly guards him from all other attention and will happily bat anyone off if they try too close to him. It's kinda sweet really. And despite all this possessiveness, as soon as she has him all to herself, she likes to ignore him, just so he knows who's boss.

So now you've met our 2 original girls, next time on Rat Patooty, find out how our family grew and meet our 2 new girls. Pippin and Bella.