Fat rat!

 
Yesterday I weighed Ronnie and Derek by getting them to stand on digital kitchen scales. It took a few attempts, plus ‘Diva’ Derek got spooked by a noise that the scales made when I moved them across the floor, so he zoomed up my body and shot down my top for ‘safety’!

Derek weighed about 330g when he visited the vet in April, but had increased to 450g when I weighed him yesterday. Ronnie, who’s always been slightly heavier than Derek, came in at 470g. This is at the upper limits of what male pet rats should weigh (apparently 270g to 450g).

When rats are in their infancy, it’s advised to feed them well. However, now Ronnie and Derek are six months old and have just about reached adulthood, it’s probably time for them to go on a mini-diet to ensure they don’t get too heavy. I’m always careful not to overfeed them, but it looks like fewer treats and smaller portions of their nuggets will be necessary!

World Rat Day

 
On World Rat Day, here are some photos of Ronnie and Derek from the last few days, including:

• Derek snoozing in the shell
• Ronnie using a sleeping Derek as a table to eat from
• Rat ‘bookends’ with them both in the shell

Click thumbnails to enlarge. More photos on the Photos page.

‘Sofa, so good’ for Derek

 
Derek enjoyed roaming around the sofa and ended up finding a nice hiding place between the cushions!

Click thumbnails to enlarge. More photos on the Photos page.

Derek the Defiant

 
Derek was in the shell eating some food and Ronnie thought he’d try to steal it, but Derek simply turned round to avoid him, resulting in the scene below. Ronnie tried to get in but failed, so Derek was triumphant and defiant!

Click thumbnail to enlarge. More photos on the Photos page.

Fighters

 
Ronnie and Derek often like to play fight, where they flip each other over and then aggressively groom each other. There’s more about this on the Care page. See some photos below of them in mid-fight.

Click thumbnails to enlarge. More photos on the Photos page.

Tube strike

 
Ronnie and Derek have again tried to both fit into one of their ‘cosy’ tubes – despite there being two! See below photos of them squishing into the tight space. This resulted in a tight squeeze and Ronnie eventually got kicked out by Derek!

Click thumbnails to enlarge. More photos on the Photos page.

Photo of the Day, 11/4/2020

 
Today’s Photo of The Day, selected randomly from the Photos page. There’ll be another tomorrow!

Ronnie and a tasty chicken bone, Apr 2019. (Click thumbnail to enlarge image.)