I love my rats and have already written a bit about my rat Pippa on my blog so now I just have to write about her sister Poppy. Rats are best kept in pairs because they are intelligent and social creatures.
Poppy is a beautiful brown and white hooded rat. She is the dominat rat of the pair and also by far the most intelligent. She is also much more sociable and much less destructive than her sister Pippa.
The reason I decided to get these two rats from the pet shop was Poppy. Pippa was hiding at the time but Poppy was trying to climb out of a hole that had been chewed in their wooden vivarium. At the time I thought Poppy was the one that had chewed the hole, although I now suspect it was Pippa because she chews everything.
So Poppy was there with her head out the hole and her legs dangling down inside the vivarium. She was holding herself up there with her front paws, an impressive sight. She seemed really friendly and that made me decide to take her home. She has a very charming face.
It later turned out that Pippa was the brave one and Poppy was much more nervous. Poppy is always waiting in the morning and as soon as I go in the room she comes and begs for her breakfast. She is also pretty accurate at knowing what time I have my lunch, mostly because she has learned that I will give her a small piece of brown bread as a treat.
Poppy hates strange noises and when she gets frightened she runs to the corner of the sofa and sits there all hunched up. She is also far less keen to try new things. It took 2 days to get her to go in a rat ball and she only went in after watching her sister do so several times.
The thing I love most about Poppy is her affectionate nature. You can guarantee she will lick your fingers and sit on your hand while you stroke her lovely fluffy fur. Poppy and Pippa are so different from eachother but thats why they get on so well and are both so special to me. I would urge people that don't like rats to get to know a friendly pet rat and see if they change their mind.
Saturday 23 October 2010
Thursday 14 October 2010
An awesome animal encounter
I just wanted to share the amazing encounter I had today in my own back garden. I put out food for lots of different animals and often get to see them from my back door on feeders.
Today I went to the bottom of the garden to see if I could spot any birds in the tree waiting to come to the feeder. I thought if I stood next to the feeder and stayed really still they might come and get some food and give me a really nice view.
I admit I was being a little optomistic but there are some birds that are more tame than others. So here I was standing in the cold as it gently spat with rain hoping to maybe see a Great tit or a cheeky Robin up close. What I saw instead was unexpected and hugely exciting.
I should explain at this point that I was standing right next to the bird feeder which is just above my eye level at the bottom of my garden attached to the fence at the back of my garden but slightly higher than the fence so the birds can see if the cats are about. I don't own cats but there are plenty in my local area and they keep coming into my garden trying to kill birds, which they sometimes manage to do.
So back to today and as I stood there I could hear a sort of grinding twitter sound coming from the tree. I didn't recognize this sound but figured it was some type of bird. Then out it came from the tree. A familiar face but not one I have ever been so close to. I have photographed her so many times from my back door. I have blown up the photos on the computer which led me to be sure when I say "she" because there was no doubt when I saw her today that it was the brown faced female that visits my garden. A female Grey Squirrel!
I wondered if she would come near me if I stood really still. I tried not to stare her straight in the eye because I know wild animals find that threatening. I could still hear the strange noise in the tree.
Gradually she climbed onto the fence and crept closer then retreated then crept closer again. All the time she was swirling her bushy tail at me. I don't know if this meant she was afraid of me or was trying her best to scare me off.
After what seemed like forever she climbed back into the tree and up on to a huge steel fence that keeps people off the railway line over the back of my house. She walked along the upright section of this fence until she was level with my head but about 6ft above me. All the time this familiar noise was coming from her. The noise I had thought was a bird was actually her and even more amazing another one was answering her. I couldn't see the other squirrel but I could hear that it was in the tree.
She came down from the fence back into the tree, apparently satisfied that she had checked me out from a safe distance. I thought at that point she would leave but she did not. She spent another 5 or 10 minutes crawling along my fence then hiding back in the tree, still swishing her tail around. Then she came within a foot of where I was standing, leaning on the fence, and she climbed up on to the bird feeder. I could see her so close to me as she put her head into one of the bowls and took out a Hazelnut. She hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to crack the nut up there or retreat to the safety of her tree. Ultimately she decided to go back to the tree but she did not run away she just left at her own speed.
I decided at this point to go inside and get dry. I had been standing there at that fence for 45 minutes getting cold and damp but it was an amazing experience I will never forget. It is so special to be trusted by a wild animal enough to be allowed to watch it in its environment doing what it does.
Not only that but also the fact that I never knew squirrels made noises. I still don't know what the noise meant but I will try to find out. I'm still just so excited to see an animal that close in my own back garden. What a special treat!
Today I went to the bottom of the garden to see if I could spot any birds in the tree waiting to come to the feeder. I thought if I stood next to the feeder and stayed really still they might come and get some food and give me a really nice view.
I admit I was being a little optomistic but there are some birds that are more tame than others. So here I was standing in the cold as it gently spat with rain hoping to maybe see a Great tit or a cheeky Robin up close. What I saw instead was unexpected and hugely exciting.
I should explain at this point that I was standing right next to the bird feeder which is just above my eye level at the bottom of my garden attached to the fence at the back of my garden but slightly higher than the fence so the birds can see if the cats are about. I don't own cats but there are plenty in my local area and they keep coming into my garden trying to kill birds, which they sometimes manage to do.
So back to today and as I stood there I could hear a sort of grinding twitter sound coming from the tree. I didn't recognize this sound but figured it was some type of bird. Then out it came from the tree. A familiar face but not one I have ever been so close to. I have photographed her so many times from my back door. I have blown up the photos on the computer which led me to be sure when I say "she" because there was no doubt when I saw her today that it was the brown faced female that visits my garden. A female Grey Squirrel!
I wondered if she would come near me if I stood really still. I tried not to stare her straight in the eye because I know wild animals find that threatening. I could still hear the strange noise in the tree.
Gradually she climbed onto the fence and crept closer then retreated then crept closer again. All the time she was swirling her bushy tail at me. I don't know if this meant she was afraid of me or was trying her best to scare me off.
After what seemed like forever she climbed back into the tree and up on to a huge steel fence that keeps people off the railway line over the back of my house. She walked along the upright section of this fence until she was level with my head but about 6ft above me. All the time this familiar noise was coming from her. The noise I had thought was a bird was actually her and even more amazing another one was answering her. I couldn't see the other squirrel but I could hear that it was in the tree.
She came down from the fence back into the tree, apparently satisfied that she had checked me out from a safe distance. I thought at that point she would leave but she did not. She spent another 5 or 10 minutes crawling along my fence then hiding back in the tree, still swishing her tail around. Then she came within a foot of where I was standing, leaning on the fence, and she climbed up on to the bird feeder. I could see her so close to me as she put her head into one of the bowls and took out a Hazelnut. She hesitated for a moment, unsure whether to crack the nut up there or retreat to the safety of her tree. Ultimately she decided to go back to the tree but she did not run away she just left at her own speed.
I decided at this point to go inside and get dry. I had been standing there at that fence for 45 minutes getting cold and damp but it was an amazing experience I will never forget. It is so special to be trusted by a wild animal enough to be allowed to watch it in its environment doing what it does.
Not only that but also the fact that I never knew squirrels made noises. I still don't know what the noise meant but I will try to find out. I'm still just so excited to see an animal that close in my own back garden. What a special treat!
Monday 11 October 2010
Pippa and her terrible teeth
I have two female rats right now called Poppy and Pippa. They have such different personalities, part of what makes them so special to me. I want to share a few of their funny little habits to show what rats are really like.
Pippa was the one in the pet shop that hid in the corner and looked nervous. I was expecting her to be the shrinking violet of the pair but I have been proved completely wrong.
It is true that Pippa is the subordinate rat and her sister will reinforce this by having a little wee on Pippa from time to time and sometimes rolling her over on her back and pinning her there until she starts squeaking. Luckily female rats rarely harm eachother when they have disputes and this is the case with Pippa and Poppy.
Pippa is not a scaredy rat at all. She is usually the one that clings to the cage wires and chews them to attract attention. She will do this anytime, but especially late at night and first thing in the morning when she is trying to let me know she wants her food.
Pippa is not the most intelligent rat I have ever had, far from it. She really loves to run around in her big blue plastic rat ball. Most of the other rats I have owned quickly get bored in their rat ball but not Pippa.
Pippa loves to jump on my shoulder. She launches herself from an armchair and lands on me. On one occasion she just aimed straight for my face. I have never had a rat do that before and I now have to be careful to make sure she doesn't do it again. I had scratches on my face for days and she wasn't far away from getting my eyes. She didn't mean to do it she just didn't understand that she can't land on my face.
Pippa has one major problem. She chews everything. I even took her to the vet to make sure there was no problem with her teeth. She chews the cage wires, the armchair and my t shirts. Everything that comes within reach goes straight in her mouth. My vet has assured me there is nothing wrong with her teeth so she is just a really naughty rat.
Pippa lives to eat but luckily she is so active that she does not get fat. There is no fat on her, she is just pure muscle. She never runs out of food so she doesn't chew everything out of hunger. Her favourite food is cucumber, one of the range of veg treats that she gets a small amount of.
Pippa is truly unique and I wouldn't change her for any other rat. I just have to come to terms with the fact that I am going to lose a t shirt or twenty during her time with me.
Pippa was the one in the pet shop that hid in the corner and looked nervous. I was expecting her to be the shrinking violet of the pair but I have been proved completely wrong.
It is true that Pippa is the subordinate rat and her sister will reinforce this by having a little wee on Pippa from time to time and sometimes rolling her over on her back and pinning her there until she starts squeaking. Luckily female rats rarely harm eachother when they have disputes and this is the case with Pippa and Poppy.
Pippa is not a scaredy rat at all. She is usually the one that clings to the cage wires and chews them to attract attention. She will do this anytime, but especially late at night and first thing in the morning when she is trying to let me know she wants her food.
Pippa is not the most intelligent rat I have ever had, far from it. She really loves to run around in her big blue plastic rat ball. Most of the other rats I have owned quickly get bored in their rat ball but not Pippa.
Pippa loves to jump on my shoulder. She launches herself from an armchair and lands on me. On one occasion she just aimed straight for my face. I have never had a rat do that before and I now have to be careful to make sure she doesn't do it again. I had scratches on my face for days and she wasn't far away from getting my eyes. She didn't mean to do it she just didn't understand that she can't land on my face.
Pippa has one major problem. She chews everything. I even took her to the vet to make sure there was no problem with her teeth. She chews the cage wires, the armchair and my t shirts. Everything that comes within reach goes straight in her mouth. My vet has assured me there is nothing wrong with her teeth so she is just a really naughty rat.
Pippa lives to eat but luckily she is so active that she does not get fat. There is no fat on her, she is just pure muscle. She never runs out of food so she doesn't chew everything out of hunger. Her favourite food is cucumber, one of the range of veg treats that she gets a small amount of.
Pippa is truly unique and I wouldn't change her for any other rat. I just have to come to terms with the fact that I am going to lose a t shirt or twenty during her time with me.
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