Playing with Rats
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Travel With Rats
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Travel With Rats
Tips For Car Travel With Rats
I've travelled 20,000 miles by car with rats, taking my guys cross-country
a total of eight times. I had two rats for most of those trips, and three
(in two cages) for the rest. I was five days on the road for each leg
of the trip. At my destination I stayed anywhere from three weeks to three
months. This was important to know because when travelling, I had to use
their travel cages, which were smaller than their home cages. That meant
that they had to live in the travel cages at the destination too. Therefore
their travel cages had to be of a reasonable size, and their living requirements
had to be acceptable to some degree to the people I was staying with.
Planning Ahead
Planning ahead is essential. First, determine how many days you will be
on the road, how long you will be at your destination and what the conditions
there will be like for ratties, and plan accordingly. This makes your
trip much easier and more pleasant for everyone.
The "Overnight Bags"
For the travel itself I had a plastic bag prepared for each night of the
trip filled with dry food and change of bedding. I cleaned cages every
night, putting in fresh newspaper as the underliner and flannel cloths
as the surface. All used items (dirty bedding, food scraps, and so forth),
except for the cloths, went into the plastic bag which I tied tightly
and put into the motel trash can. The used cloths I put into a plastic
bag in the trunk of the car to be washed when I arrived at my destination.
(If you are on the road quite a long time, laundromats are almost everywhere.)
You may use whatever bedding you want of course. My guys were accustomed
to newspaper and flannel, and also, newspaper and cloth don't leave a
mess during cage cleaning in the motel room.
Food and Water
For food I took their usual lab blocks and other dried foods, some of
which was already packed in the "overnight bags." That way I
didn't have to be fishing around for the dry food every night. I bought
fresh food along the way, such as banana, apple, bread, or anything else
easy to handle in a motel room or in the car.
My guys had always drunk either purified or distilled water instead of
tap water. So I had at least a gallon jug of water in the car, and I could
buy more along the way. I changed their water every night.
The motion of the car makes the water bottles drip so during driving time
I removed the water bottles and put grapes into the ratties' cages instead.
The grapes provided liquid in a non-drip form. Other watery fruit can
be used (melon, strawberry, etc.) but grapes are extremely clean and convenient.
Find out in advance if your rats like grapes. If I made a
stop during the day along the road, I put their water bottles on the cage
for the time while stopped.
Rats In The Car
My rats were nervous at first, but they were in familiar cages, and I
also covered the cages with a sheet or beach towel (something expendable),
to keep the world from flashing by so fast, and also to keep drafts and
direct sun off of them. Because the car seat dips toward the back, I used
either rolled up cloths or small box to put under the cage to make it
sit level on the seat. If your cages are big enough and if your rats like
hammocks, a hammock will make the ride very smooth for them. Whichever
side of the cage faced me, I would uncover that side once we were on the
road so that I could see the rats and they could see me. They always
travelled in the back seat, or when I was alone, on the passenger side,
depending on the number of cages.
Eating And Other Pit Stops
If you are travelling with other people everything will be much easier.
Half the time I was alone. I always ate at fast food places with drive-throughs.
The only time my guys were in the car alone was for the few minutes it
would take for me to go to the bathroom. I always looked for a shady place
to park, even for those few minutes. If none was available, I had a car
that I could leave running with the doors locked and the A/C on, but not
all cars can do that. Even for those few minutes, if you can't leave A/C
running, have the windows open a little. I cannot emphasize strongly enough
that heat can build up in a car much faster than you can imagine, and
it could kill your rats. It's better to wait to go to the bathroom until
you find a shady place to park. Even in a shady place, leave the windows
open a little.
Motels
For motels I always tried to get one with an outside entrance where I
could drive right up to the door. I did not try to get permission to bring
rats in for the night. I figured I would be driving all night to find
such a place. Instead I disguised the cages to look like coolers for food,
or boxes for whatever people need on trips. A towel covered cage looks
just a towel-covered box. Do not be tempted to leave your rats in
the car overnight.
In The Motel
I stopped reasonably early in the day to get a good choice of motel room,
and also to get the guys settled in for the night. I played with them
out of their cages, but *never* *ever* let them on the floor of the room.
They could play on the bed, with my own blanket covering it in case of
accidents. If your rats are skittish and likely to bolt, don't risk letting
them out of the cage. Warning, if the bed was pushed right up to the window,
the first thing my guys wanted to do was look outside. It's not a good
idea to let them peer out of the windows at passers-by. Once their cages
were in the room, I could then go out to eat without having to rush, but
I always kept their cages covered up completely when I was not in
the room with them. You never know when "management" might want
to go into a room for whatever reason.
Medical Matters
One possible problem on the road is what to do should you need a vet in
an emergency. First and foremost, take along Debbie Ducommun's book of
Rat Health Care. That will be essential for you, and for any vet who possibly
has had little experience with rats. Take along any prescriptions the
ratties may have. By that I mean the written prescription if you should
need to get it refilled. If they require something that must be kept cool,
take along a little cooler and fill it with ice as often as necessary.
It is a good idea to take a little cooler anyway, to store their fresh
food and your snacks.
Warnings About Weather
The biggest worry in the summer was of course the heat. But, even in winter
climate control can be a problem. We travelled in winter too, when there
is the danger of the ratties getting too cold. I hung a big thermometer
with big numbers on their cage so that I would know what exactly the temperature
was at all times. Do not ever be tempted to take in that interesting tourist
site "just for a quick look" unless you have a place for your
ratties that will be cool enough and safe enough for them. Remember, heat
can kill your rats in no time at all. Err on the side of being too cautious.
Ratties can take a certain amount of cold, but never forget that HEAT
KILLS!!!
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