This girl has the most sweet and gentle personality

Theia he has been nibbling my hands and stepping onto me for a moment to use as a bridge. This was already more than any of the other rats. But, today, this morning. she decided to come on an adventure with me.. and stick her nose in my ear a few times.

she let me kiss her and she cuddled up against my neck and was pushing up under my ear for safety when she was ready to go back. This was a huge jump in interest from her. I am so happy :)

Also sorry im not trying to monopolize the reddit <3

I just finished uploading my newest video with updates on the rattery. There are clips of the roof rats in the first portion of my video if you just want to see that :D
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eh52o1ojAN8

Running on the wheel family style xD

This is Grimwald, my Agouti boy. Him and his brother had a fight yesterday and he is still a bit shook up. So i used that opportunity to bond with him a little yesterday.

This was the second time i picked him up like this, explicitly for the video. And yes he does look a little afraid in the video, i think he is.

Just putting this out there. I am new to making YouTube videos but I felt like it would be a good time to start documenting my adventures with rats. This channel will be about both my roof rats and my norway rats.

So far I have been using it a little bit like a journal but I want to start posting information about Norway rats and Roof Rats that I find through online research, books, and observations.

If you are interested in that kind of stuff, feel free to follow me on YouTube :) I will try to keep my posting in here about it to a minimum unless it's something people want to see more of.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qO3ny9lVX2k

Swiss animal-welfare law treats roof rats, along with guinea pigs, mice, and other "social species", as animals that suffer when kept alone, so you are required to keep at least two. The same rules that protect the fancy rat cover the roof rat. It is, in effect, illegal to let a social animal be lonely.

Which means that if someone had a territorial male roof rat, Switzerland would legally require the owner to place another roof rat in the same cage with him, even if that resulted in injury or death of their pets. Possibly, this rule was created by the same folks who also legally require you to shake hands with everyone when you walk into a room? LOL!

So, while you can legally keep Roof Rats in Switzerland as pets, make sure you get bonded males or females, and hope they never start fighting, later.

I've put together a collection of what I consider to be some interesting open scientific questions involving roof rats. Please have a look: there's a form at the bottom where you can enter suggestions and corrections (anonymously, if you prefer.) Open Research Questions: Why Our Roof Rats Matter to Science

I hear a rumor that some people are getting banned from certain subreddits because they have posted on this subreddit, r/rattusrattus.

Just to let you know, r/rat is a very friendly rat centric community, and I highly recommend you check it out. I think you will love it!

I got home finally at about 8pm after an all day trip across the state to get these roof rats <3

Still a bit scared and shook up from the long drive(s).

Also what the heck, i apparently have chosen a side? Lol I got banned from r/RATS just for posting in here. kinda crazy, kinda cringe.

In case the breeders see this, the names we called those two were B8.1G (mama) and A8.3G (baby)

Be fruitful and multiply, little ones!

Be fruitful and multiply, little ones!

So I took little dude to the vet down the hill and the vet said he’s stumped he said he looks like a hybrid between the 2 species of rats but if he had to choose one he would say Norway! He also prescribed some mite medicine and some general antibiotics since I’m going to keep him! Also he has opened up big time! He’s the first rat I’ve ever had that was a cuddler he comes up to me when I’m laying down and puts himself between my hand and doesn’t give me an option but to give him pets! He then proceeds to fall asleep! This is a pic of him sleeping after pets! My whole family fell in love with him! He has a big critter nation cage but he only sleeps in it! The rest of the day he hangs out with me and my wife in our bedroom( we rat proofed the room) I found these wire covers on Amazon that rats can’t chew through I’ll post a pic of it too cause I didn’t even know it existed!
Edit: it wouldn’t let me post a photo in the title so I added a few in the comments

So my neighbor caught a wild rat in a humane trap and brought him to me because he knows I’ve rehabbed wild animals! The thing is we only have wild roof rats here in the desert, and this little guy looks like a roof rat. but also like he may have been a pet Norway that got out! Can you guys tell me what you think? Also he is super tame which is why I’m thinking Norway, the wild roofies around here tend to be aggressive when caught unless their babies! TIA.

https://blonderoofrat.com/what-to-feed-roof-rats/

I have done a TON of research, and created a resource for roof rat owners that can also be used for Norway rat owners, too (the nutritional requirements are very similar.)

My goal was to add back what you pet is missing if it just eats ultra-processed pellets instead of foraging for whole, natural food foods like they were meant to do. I am not selling anything: it's all public domain, with links to the actual science and research that you can verify yourself! There's even a worksheet where you can select from a list of different ingredients, and it create a personalized menu and shopping list with prices that you can print, bookmark and share with others.

Please feel free to share this page with all of your pet owning friends!

Do roof rats see better or differently than Norway rats? I was curious if anyone knew if color vision and depth perception were different between the two species. I know that Norway rats are described as having poor vision and are unable to see the color red (but it is thought that they can see into the ultraviolet and see shades that we cannot).

It would make sense for there to be some differences since roof rats occupy different parts of the environment than Norway rats (arboreal vs ground dwelling)

Please share this information, because people are at risk of losing their pets if they don't act now!

As of December 14, 2025, Korea switched to a "white list" system, and the roof rat (곰쥐, Rattus rattus) isn't on it. If you already had one before that date you can keep it, but only if you file a possession registration on the government's WIMS portal by June 13, 2026. Miss the date and an unregistered rat is treated as illegal. The step by step is on our Korea page below. Please share this before the 13th.

Second, I built a free resource that answers "is it legal to keep, breed, sell, or transport a roof rat where I live?" for over 100 countries and every US state, with links to the official sources. And where the rules are unfair, there's a "Roof Rat Freedoms" toolkit on the page: it tells you who to contact (the agency or the legislature), and gives you a short letter you can personalize, in the local language. Let's work together to push for the freedom to keep our pets without the government telling us "No!"

Check the rules where you live: https://blonderoofrat.com/roof-rat-laws/

Korea (urgent, June 13): https://blonderoofrat.com/roof-rat-laws/south-korea/

If your state or country looks wrong or is missing, tell us and we'll verify and fix it. And if you're in Korea, please don't miss the 13th.