Rats vs. Water, Round 1

The first attempt at introducing Saké and Sushi to a lifetime of water playtimes went pretty well. Both ended up with wet feet and improved their climbing skills in an effort to get away from the water as quickly as possible.

We started with a new paint pan, with just a couple of inches of water.

New paint tray with a few toys to capture the rats' attention.

We initially set the rats down by the tray and neither showed any interest in their new toy. Saké immediately raced through it, ignored the water, and climbed up Dave's leg. Sushi spent a bit more time investigating.

They are unimpressed.

Sushi's curiosity overcomes her apprehension.

I think Sushi was more interested in her toys than the tray of water.

Two feet in...

Sushi went so far as to put both front feet on the tray. However, one of those feet landed in a tiny bit of water, causing her to race away from the tray and climb up Dave as quickly as possible.

Eventually, both rats were willing to investigate things a bit more. We're a long way from swimming rats, but overall the water introduction seemed to go well.

All feet in...

Malocclusion: the Gift that Keeps on Growing

Sushi's vet appointment yesterday was both good and bad. The good news is that she's gained 21 more grams, for a total of 181. The average weight for an adult female is 350-450 grams, so even though Sushi is only 4.5 months old, she's still pretty tiny. Saké is probably 30% bigger than Sushi at this point.

The bad news is that, however things have shifted in her skull, her bottom incisors are now pretty loose. So not only do they turn drastically and aim into her right cheek, they wiggle freely. This is likely to make eating pretty uncomfortable and difficult for her.

As a result, the vet mentioned doing surgery to pull the top and bottom incisors at six months, and this is something we are seriously considering. Sushi would be able to come home the same day she has surgery and would be on antibiotics and pain medicine for a bit afterward. Evidently rats do pretty well with this and usually are back to eating the night of the surgery.

We have some research to do and more questions to ask of the vet, but I think with both her teeth requiring such frequent trimming plus the looseness of her bottom teeth, surgery is the way we're headed.

In terms of getting her teeth trimmed this time, Sushi was a champ. I think the entire vet visit, from walking in the door to Sushi waking up enough to leave, took about fifteen minutes.

I didn't take the camera to the vet, so instead I'll end with this picture of Dave looking disapproving about the whole teeth situation.

Dave: the ultimate rat perch.

Sushi's Tooth

Sushi goes to the vet this afternoon. It has been just under four weeks since her last visit. She has made it a couple of days longer than in the past, and I think this is due in large part to the way her upper incisors have grown. Instead of pushing into her gums, they are growing outside of her lip.

Sushi's upper incisors are clearly visible.

I am not sure if this is because of how her teeth were trimmed at her last appointment or if it is just a result of how her teeth are growing in general. It does seem to have been a better situation for her though - she hasn't dropped any weight the last couple of days and seems to be eating normally, although slowly.

A closer look makes the incisors' issues more evident.

I am curious to hear the vet's thoughts on this change in growth pattern.

Rat Miscellany

No adorable new pictures today (although we did take some great ones this weekend) but multiple updates on the rat front:

1. Sushi returns to the vet tomorrow to get her teeth trimmed. Their growth rate is astounding.

2. We purchased a paint tray yesterday. Expect reports on Saké and Sushi versus water soon!

3. We have discovered that Saké has a new trick. We woke up a few nights ago to a peculiar sound. Saké was pushing food across the cage, up against the front bars. Interestingly, she was only moving the food they seem to dislike. Even better, there appeared to be a well choreographed routine in progress. Saké pushed a piece of food through the bars and then a yellow dog (who just happens to have pancreatitis and be on a very specific diet) would jump up, grab the offered bit of food, and eat it. This went on for quite some time. I noticed a pile of food in the front of the cage again this morning, so my guess is that this happened again last night while we were asleep.

I'm going to try to get pictures of Saké and Parker, although I feel conflicted about encouraging them so I can document it when it's a terrible habit for both of them to develop. Terrible but also so very funny.

Teeth Update

It has been three weeks since Sushi's last visit to the vet. She'll probably need to return early next week for another round of teeth trimming. Her top incisors are now clearly visible when you look at her from the side. They aren't touching her gums yet but I think that is only a few days away. She is still eating pretty good but is definitely drinking a bit more awkwardly.

Sushi and Saké are 4.5 months old now. I really hope the speed at which Sushi's teeth grow begins to slow as she gets more mature.

Bathing Beauties?

Within the last couple of days Dave and I talked about what our rats would do if we tried to give them a bath. Sushi is exceptionally clean but Saké appears a little less concerned about personal hygiene.

Then I randomly found this video:



The good thing is that now I know it can be done. I'm not sure Saké would handle a bath quite as well as this girl.

Showing Rats?

As some of you may know, I spent the majority of my life showing horses. Ironically, an old riding injury has left me hardly able to ride these days, much less compete. As a result, I have some time on my hands.

Randomly, I typed "rat shows" in a search engine today and lo and behold, people compete with rats! Furthermore, Michigan has an association that holds shows! Even better is the name of the association, Rat Fanciers of the Lakes.

I may have to check this out. Here's the best in show rat from their fall 2010 show:

BVR Small Monster

While Sushi is definitely not "show quality" with her teeth, and I don't know enough about what a show quality rat is like to know if Saké qualifies, there is also a pet class, with categories such as "Sweetest Face, "Most Relaxed," and "Friendliest." Those are categories to strive for!

BVR Peep, winner of "Sweetest Face"

I am not sure what Dave is going to say when I suggest we attend a Rat Fanciers of the Lakes meeting.