Summer Heat
Posted by jorats on Tuesday Jun 16, 2009 Under HealthNormally rats adapt pretty well in varying degrees of temperatures, but there are some things we can do to help them cope better.
Fluctuating temperatures is hard on a rat. Unlike dogs, rats don’t pant but they do use their tails to help regulate body temperatures.
One thing to keep in mind, if you are uncomfortable in the current climate of your home, chances are so are your rats. When you see your rats spread out flat as a pancake and listless, this is a good indication that they are too hot. There are a few things you can do to help alleviate their discomfort. You can do like me and add central air or an air conditioning unit to your home but that’s not very economical.
You can move the cage to a darker part of the home, or even in the basement. You can have a fan nearby but not directly on the cage, drafts should always be avoided. You can freeze a bottle of water and then place it in the cage. You can also buy slate tiles and freeze them and place them in the cage. Have lots of water available to the rats. A bowl with ice so the rats can take a dip. Also giving your rats frozen peas and grapes would help as well.
Remember… if your too hot, so are the furry little guys. 
August 27th, 2009 at 11:06 PM
haha i tried that once this was when raisinette and mazie and pinky were younger. it was a hot day and i was sweating so i put a big bucket of iced water in their cage and when they got into it all at once it overflowed and i had to wipe up all the water on the floor! i dont think it was a very good idea filling it to the top. but i was only like 10 then xD