O_O

[soc_puppet]

OMG, Nita and Aerrow. OMG, Nita and Aerrow.

Level of sheer awesome in recent CFUD voting posts: nearing the roof. (It would be through the roof, see, but there haven't been any DC/MK characters yet. But it's still pretty close, IMHO.)


In other news, am pondering getting my boys neutered. It would cut down on their urine marking, what little smell they have, their mild aggression/need to be dominant rat, the need to separate them from unfixed female rats, and would reduce the chances of them getting various diseases, as well as possibly extending their lives. On the cons side, I don't know a lot about caring for recently neutered rats (which makes me nervous), the vet I'm thinking of going to is about half an hour away rather than twenty minutes away, and some of us find their torpedo testicles strangely cute, so. Neutral zone: no chances of rattie babies. I mean, on the one hand, they're both adorable and have great personalities. On the other hand, Ford did get pneumonia when he was young, and there's a pretty good chance the two of them are brothers; a weakness for respiratory diseases is not something any rat owner wants to promote.

So far the pros are outweighing the cons, especially in health areas, and double-especially because the vet in Hills only charges $45 USD instead of the $120 USD Bright Eyes and Bushy Tails would charge per rat, but it's still something to think about. Hmm....

Edit: I feel ill.

Comments

[dagronrat.livejournal.com]

When our dog was neutered, he was just very sleepy, as far as I know. Downside is he's gotten fatter, but he's still our cuddly teddy bear. ♥

Don't know how that translates to Rats though.

*& CFUD curiosity successfully pinged (has been out of the loop)*

[thesuzukimethod.livejournal.com]

The book on rats I have says that neutered dogs tend to be longer-lived and more energetic in general, but I'll definitely keep that in mind. If it means they'll slow down a little and I won't have to feed them as much, well, I won't complain ;)

Go to campfuckuvote and check the latest two rounds :O Nita is a friend of the walking tree, and Aerrow is from Storm Hawks, a really dorky American series I've gotten into lately ^^a memlu has more info on the latter on her journal.

...Oh wow, I just remembered I was still on Sonoko's account XD

[anatari.livejournal.com]

Caring for most neutered animals is the same: keep them from picking at the area/stitches, give them any medications they need to be taking, and clean the area gently with water if it gets dirty.... which shouldn't be an issue for rats. I had to clean my dog's stitches after we took her outside if it was raining, because her stomach would get muddy. Generally, incisions heal on their own, like in humans, overcleaning/fussing will irritate the area.

[thesuzukimethod.livejournal.com]

Gotcha. I know I've seen altered socks used as post-surgery smocks; I could probably get away with doing the same if I get worried.

[anatari.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the hardest part was to keep puppy from licking it, since I felt bad keeping the collar on her. So whenever she lay down I'd put a blanket over her to make it more difficult. I'd think it would be easier with a rat.

[thesuzukimethod.livejournal.com]

Rats are too small for lampshades, I'm pretty sure. They're flexible little critters, actually; apparently they even do regular ...maintenance with their equipment. I'm a teensy bit worried about that, but I may have to worry about it anyway when they start getting older, so.

[helendragon.livejournal.com]

.......and you do have to worry about the male rats when theirs a litter...torpedo testicles...you killed me....ps. ....you should go to anime detour this year...

[soc_puppet]

Yeah, they can breed almost as soon as they're weaned, if not before, so it's vital to separate out the males early for no surprise litters.

Rat #1: Oh noez! There is a spot on our human that has not yet been covered with pee!
Rat #2: Firing, torpedo one! Firing, torpedo two!
Rat #1: Excellent work, sir! Human skin now well covered.
Human: ....D:

I-I'll try? I'll need a way to get there and a place to stay, but if I can manage these, I should be golden.

[helendragon.livejournal.com]

....we'll and my animal behavior talks about how adult males will kill babies from litters that are not their own......(but testicles don't make urine....)...maybe you could stay with our club...(thier nice ...and well if you don't mind being in a room with alot of peoples....)..(you could like drive up and meet with us...hmmm...But Its such a nice con...(Its a little smaller but really sweet...)...(they had some high quality cosplayz...last time...)

[soc_puppet]

...Okay, I concede medical point there. Still. As far as rats go, all the info I've read recommends separating out the pregnant female before she gives birth, and then keeping her and the litter separate until the babies are weaned. There can be mild aggression problems when introducing new male rats to an entirely male colony, but those can be minimalised if you introduce the new rat with a buddy/littermate.

That would be cool :3 I don't mind crashing on floorspace if it means I don't have to pay for a whole hotel room on my own. I've heard great things about the con itself and am more than willing to take your word that it's a good one, but the getting there and the staying there remain problematic.

[helendragon.livejournal.com]

...oh well I don't mean to be a know it all (gomen...)......
....well their nice as long as we talk before hand and don't sring this at the last momment it should work fine....if you could just get to ames then you could come with us....(this may sound like an odd question but do you snore??)...oh and I've got so many cosplay ideas I'm working on....sakaki from azumanga dioh (with jason as a random biting cat...)...fox sanji and tiger zoro....professor Nei ...Luffy....Ginko from mushishi....and now thanks to my fiendish friends....Merman Sanji....eep...and well black swords man guts for jason...(but not putting a time limit on that....)....

[soc_puppet]

'Sokay, I'm not exactly innocent in that area either ^^a (See response up there, oops?)

I might be able to do that? It would be easier than going all the way, that's for sure. (Not to the best of my knowledge. I mean, I snort a little when my nose is stuffed up, and I might whimper (???), but I don't think I snore.)

XD Can't wait to see those.

[helendragon.livejournal.com]

...Its just one of my friends is sensitive to that....(but since you don't it should be help ...not that they should be reluctant or anything....ah but anyway I'll ask Lisa...(shes the president of our cosplay clube....she's really cool and were both in the same animal behavior class so it should be no problem to ask....)....oh and did you see my post about the silly thing I did today...