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Have you lost your pet rat?
02/24/2012 10:42 AM by John M
Have you lost a pet rat? We found a domesticated female rat on Thursday, February 23 in the alley between the 700 block of North 22nd and North 23rd/Jessamine Streets. Call Lora at 804-497-0753 to identify and claim her.
no, but I am looking for my Emu. He answers to the name Theodore Roosevelt.
How the hell do you know a domesticated pet rat? Get a rat trap.
Lora, unless there are two Lora’s living in that area, then I know you – and I wish you the best of luck, with (I think) two cats and two dogs, and I think a snake, and now sheltering a pet rat must be interesting at best. Hope someone claims it soon! Best of luck with finding the owner!
What’s next?
‘Have you lost this mosquito? It was in my backyard yesterday and appears quite friendly.’
gee Alex I suppose you would have preferred we left it in the alley to become a meal for one of these feral cats roaming the alleys??
Nice guy……
” hey look…it’s Alex laying face down in his own vomit….aww leave him be …he’s just sleepin’…”
Ya gotta help them what can’t help themselves my friend.
That was a helpless animal and Karma dictates we help helpless ones.
The point i was making was this:
1. How can you tell a domesticated rat
2. Who would want to keep such a nasty animal as a pet
I’d save a wounded pet. Rats are not pets. Animals eat each other. That is nature.
Alex…..you are an idiot
I hope I never have to rely on your sense of humanity
Ralph… I hope I never have to rely on your sense of logic.
I assume you’re a vegetarian Ralph?
wow…RATWARS right here on CHPN!
All I have to say is, that rat is lucky that Lora found it and not my family. We have a stray cat that lives outside our house and would have had a feast if we had.
It’s pretty easy to tell a domesticated rat from a wild one, but even more so if it’s an albino, which this one is. Typically wild rats run away when humans get close. This one sat calmly eating while my neighbors and I talked about what to do with it. Also, domesticated rats will let you pick them up. Finally, albino rats are pretty rare in the wild because they’re very easy targets for predators. Having kept pet rats in the past, I’m familiar enough with them.
I took this one home because domesticated animals that are lost or abandoned don’t deserve to become prey just because they weren’t raised to live as wild or feral animals.
Evidence suggests that this one was dumped by someone. A neighbor found what appears to have been its cage in the alley over the weekend.
Rats can be pets, and they can be a lot of fun.
I’m really sorry this post caused such controversy. I posted because if I’d lost a pet rat, which is what I assumed happened, I’d be very concerned about its welfare and would want to know if someone found it.
Don’t mind Alex. He needs to lighten up a little. He is very “my way or the highway” and then his wifey jumps in to defend him.
@14,
Was worried you’d moved away after waking up and realizing that all those people hanging out around your house really were thugs, like those of us with some sense had been trying to tell you for a while. Last I heard from you, I think you were whining about all the gunshots in your neighborhood and I thought you were going to sell.
I seem inflexible it’s only because you’re always so stubbornly wrong. 😉
In all seriousness, glad you’re back. Hadn’t seen you in a while…
Did you really just say I was the one who needs to lighten up a bit though? Coming from the person who gets offended about everything, that’s rich.
Lora, so I take it you are going to take care of it. I agree, animals that have been raised as pets don’t deserve to become prey. Your comments didn’t aggravate me at all. I was just finding the Rat Wars entertaining, figured I’d check out how they (The Rat Wars) were going at this point.
Alex, to each his own. I know a lot of people that think stray cats (with their colonies of tapeworms and hookworms, ringworm, fleas, rabies, leaking open wounds, kittens popping out everywhere, feces, toxoplasmosis, spraying, yowling etc) are nasty, filthy, wretched animals.
Also, its not really great to release animals that are pets out into the ecosystem, another mark against both this rat and your stray cat.
Good for Lora for getting it off the street, before it breeds and produces freakishly smart rats, like in the Secret of NIMH.
@#18 All Bark – let’s not forget the reason why there are so many “nasty, filthy, wretched animals” roaming the streets (cats and dogs): HUMANS, and irresponsible ones at that. The stray issue is a result of irresponsible pet owners. For those who detest these helpless creaturss, can they actually believe that cats and dogs actually desire being homeless and desperate? To roam the streets in search of food, water, shelter? To be riddled with parasites and disease and produce litter after litter of unwanted offspring? Domesticated animals don’t choose this life for themselves, rather it is forced upon them by the ignorance, stupidity, neglect or abuse of their owners. Let’s just be clear, the stray epidemic is, for the most part, a human-created problem.
Alex – why don’t you back up what you are saying and get rid of that stray cat living outside of your house. Don’t know what block you are on, but our foundation is constantly infested with them and it is way more of a problem than a single pet rat on the loose.
#20 Bret – that’s not a particularly enlightened viewpoint. Why don’t you back up what you’re saying and offer some practical advice on how to deal with stray animals rather than “get rid of” them. You could start by discussing the problem with your veterinarian or the good people at Church Hill Animal Hospital. You could also speak to a representative of a local animal rescue group, e.g. Cat’s Cradle or C.A.R.E., or go online to visit one of the numerous resources there are for helping strays.
what, did I read something about stray animals with guns? That has to be a major problem.
Know where I can find a cat trap? The biggest sizes I could find were for rats.
Alex – I got my trap from True Value, it was about $75, it was the size they recommend for ground hogs so you may have to go outside of the city to find one for sale. I’ve seen them at Southern States too and I imagine Tractor Supply has them too. You can also contact local animal shelters or animal groups who have traps you can borrow for free. Although last week I read the House of Delegates voted against making Trap Neuter Release programs legal in VA which I can only assume makes it illegal to do now, so can’t advise what to do with them once you catch them. Maybe check with animal groups to find out if I understood that legislation properly, I may not have.
#21 sorry for sounding ignorant, but I’ve been dealing with my house reeking of cat piss and feces through no fault of my own for over a year now and my dogs have gotten cut up by run ins with strays in the backyard a few times. I’ve tried every animal friendly remedy on the internet to make my foundation smell bad to them but they don’t care, I’ve fenced off all entrances with chicken wire and they always find a new way in and it hasn’t helped one bit, I’ve gotten some neighbors to stop feeding them because I thought that was attracting them, but none of this has made a difference at all, so I’m a bit frustrated of having my home continually damaged due to some irresponsible pet owners of the past.
I agree with #19. It’s unfortunate that we as responsible citizens need to pick up the slack where irresponsible owners are concerned that ditch their pets, but that’s the way it is.
Church Hill animal hospital lends out cat traps, as does the Richmond SPCA for a deposit. Richmond SPCA will fix feral cats and give them a rabies shot for free (with appointment), Church Hill animal hospital has done it for fairly cheap on short notice for me in the past.
I’ve gotten 9 cats fixed thru the Richmond SPCA’s trap-neuter-release program. All but 2 became friendly after being fixed, and are now in loving homes. Let’s not forget that it’s not the animals fault their owner ditched them, and show some compassion for those who can’t speak for themselves – that goes for rats too 😉
I agree completely with Rachel. Good work there!
My point is, Lora stepped up and did something while Alex lets a cat just wander about, potentially sick or not spayed/neutered.
Trap it, get it treatment and if its friendly, find it a home.
If you really do need advice about all this, there is a reputable local vet to go to. The people who work there are all informed and would be able to help.
I know they have even set up the dang traps themselves in the neighborhood to help out disabled folks. (Hang out in that lobby sometime and REALLY listen to what they deal with, whew!) Anyway, I like cats but other people don’t, they are pets and don’t belong outside, period.
Even if you didn’t create the problem, you should hopefully be civic minded enough to do something, anything, within your means to fix it.
Richmond Animal Care and Control: 646-5573
http://www.richmondgov.com/AnimalControl/index.aspx
Richmond SPCA-804-521-1310.
http://www.richmondspca.org/page.aspx?pid=265#feral
It’s FREE!
Church Hill Animal Hospital-644-8200, not sure about pricing, since they are a vet and not a non-profit, I’m sure they can only go but so low.
@#24 Bret-I haven’t heard of such legislation. That seems completely ridiculous and extremely counterproductive. I will inquiry about it with a friend who is a shelter director in another part of the state.
@#26 All Bark-thanks for the helpful follow-up information. Yes, cat traps can be borrowed from veterinary hospitals and animal rescue groups. They are also sold at Southern States, but, I believe, for less than $75. A trapped feral should first be tested for the diseases FIV/FELV. If negative, they can be neutered and vaccinated and returned to the neighborhood (if there is a regular source of food) or possibly adopted if they are, in fact, not feral. Cats tested positive for either of these diseases are usually humanely euthanized so they do not continue to spread disease.
And FYI I was in fact wrong on the bill I mentioned. I spoke to a lobbyist who said the wording of the bill was very misleading and confused a lot of people, but they put me in touch with someone who informed me that TNR programs are in fact legal and permitted regardless of the bill that recently failed to be passed which would have sought to further de-regulate those programs.
Rats can be good pets.
A recent study published in the journal Science showed that rats show empathy towards fellow rats.
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/13/science/observatory-rats-have-empathy-study-finds.html
A characteristic often missing in people. Still not worth saving a domesticated animal that doesn’t have a chance in the wild? Just sayin’.
Does the rat come when it is called, do tricks, or even know its name? It is not a pet then.
Well, many dogs and cats cant do those things so….Are they not pets then?
There seems to be a lot of talk about rats but no one actually knows or has ever even owned a domesticated rat before. I have 2 rats and in only 2 mnths they come when called, are littered trained, do tricks and are very affectionate animals. I’ve never owned anything but cats and dogs prior to getting the rats and I can honestly say they make great pets.
My vet told me that rats make great pets and I agree. I suggest before you start yapping Mr. Alex you should do a little research on the subject. 🙂
I have done some research on the subject. I’ve concluded that they are nasty looking animals who share much of their DNA with their filthy cousins who live in the wild. I don’t give a rats ass (pun intentional) what kind of tricks they can do. They could shit gold coins and I still wouldn’t want something like that in my house.
@Human Honey Badger
Yes, they come when they’re called (assuming they have a loving and caring owner like Lora), they can spin/fetch balls/and clap on command (like dogs), and it’s hard for them to not learn their name.
Alex, why are your panties in such a wad? How does one person committing an act out of charity and empathy for someone’s abandoned pet lead to you ranting and raving? Yes, we all know you would never have a rat as a pet but calm down bruh.