bored, destructive rats

[LittleBird]

hey all
I have some very bored rats who now take out there frustration by (purposely) spilling their water bowl and making their mommy clean their newspaper almost every day... and i know this is my fault. you see, we cant find ANY toys for these little critters (excluding bedding, they sleep like kings!) where we are. so, like all good parents, we have concluded to DIYing them some play items. if you know any good websites that have DIY toys for rats or you have made some of your own that have turned into a rodent successes, please share! thanks a lot guys!
LittleBird

 

[Porter]

Toilet paper rolls... Cardboard popsicle sticks....

 

[Zoepr143]

I don’t have any rats myself , but i have friends who do. I’ve seen fluffy tubes and soft hammocks. Maybe you can find something you like on these sites;
Rat Toy Ideas
How to Make Toys for Pet Rats

 

[tka]

Get them foraging and working for their food! I had rats and used to put their food in folded up toilet rolls, egg cartons, small boxes, paper bags etc and they had to chew their way in. I used shredded cardboard as bedding and scatterfed - basically scattered their food into the substrate and let them be rats and sniff it out. They're smart little creatures and just giving them food in a bowl is boring when in the wild they'd spend a huge amount of physical and mental energy trying to find food.

Mine had lots of hammocks, plastic tubes, rope and so on to play with. A number of parrot toys translate quite well to rats especially things like cargo nets, ladders, swinging things they can climb on.

 

[Harleyandme]

I want to see pictures! I like (tame) rats.

 

[SquawksNibbles]

Toilet paper rolls, homemade hammocks, pvc pipe (for tunnels), etc.

Like Tka said, rats enjoy foraging. You could take a toilet paper roll and stuff it with foraging material and treats. Make sure anything you use to make toys is safe for them, though.

Also, if you have any extra bird toys, those might be good, depending on what they are! For example, I have a bird toy that is a ball with a bell inside. I think this would be a good rat toy. Giving them more out-of-cage time might help with their boredom, too!! Tamed rats enjoy snuggling up to their humans. If yours enjoy this, just spend a lot of time with them.

 

[LittleBird]

thanks so much for for the advice guys!

 

[Peachfaced]

I believe you can also have a set up for sprout foraging. Sprouts are very easy to start and they would love to dig them up!

Sprouting fun!

"Sand box"

 

[cassiesdad]

How freaking cute!

 

[Bokkapooh]

Bird toys work for them too.

Online stores such as petco or even Amazon sell rat and bird toys

 

[Mizzely]

My rats loved hunting crickets too! And I'd give them a shallow water bowl with frozen peas for them to fish for. Even tossing them in the bathtub with some things to find was a blast for them!

 

[cassiesdad]

I never knew rats enjoyed water so much.

Mt guinea pigs and hamsters never cared for water...

 

[HolliDaze]

I haven't had rats, but I had mice. Every time I used up something that came in a box/roll, I tossed the cardboard in their cage. They loved it.

 

[Laurie]

I make toys for small pets in addition to birds.

Fuzzy's Toy Shop - lots of things to shred.

 

[LittleBird]

wow, thanks so much for all the replies!
my ratties seem to have a passionate hatred for water play unless its via squirt bottle . I'll definitely pop some birdy toys in their cage now ( I cant believe it never occurred to me ). time to get the hot glue-gun out!

 

[Laurul Feather Cat]

My BFF has ratties and I gave them one of those peanut butter flavored pumice beak shaper treats. Loved it, and also helped file down their sharp toe nails. They like wood toys to chew on; the harder the better. Lyre and Hassenfeffer love to run under the bed covers and look for toys with small food treats inside.