Pet Costs

Since I've had years of experience on this front I thought it might be helpful to share some of the information and education I've gathered over the years. Not only will I outline the costs of pets as of 2022 but I will show you how much it costs to run the Rattery as well to help any prospective breeders out there. For the pet cost information read below:

Pet Costs

Supplies:

This section gonna be its own thing with an average total instead of just an Itemized list. Why? Because there's a lot that goes into this and you need all this stuff before you bring your new rats home. On top of that, some of these costs will be recurring so that will be considered a separate total at the end of this article.

Cage - 200 - 400$

Cages are expensive and you truly get what you pay for. You're also probably going to need more than one but ill put down a medical cage as a separate expense, and it can also be used as a carrier if you're so inclined but I prefer to have a medical cage and a carrier as separate. My first cage cost me 175$, “Kaytee My First Home 30 X 18 Multilevel Exotics” is a bare minimum cage for two rats. My boys lived in this happily till I got a critter nation for about a year. Even if you want to make a bin cage (something I've done 3 times now and know the trials and tribulations of the struggle) it's still going to cost over 100$ and so that is why I suggest you buy your first cage.

Carrier - 15 -30$

There are really two options, Living world clip top style plastic carriers, or the critter keeper style mini cage ones. Both have their positives and negatives. I like the little critter keeper style mini cage ones or just a really small cage-like a living things hamster cage because they are much easier to use as a medical or emergency cage. Our medical cage is 12 by 18 inches and we use that to bring rats to the vet and to keep them in when we need to keep a close eye on them. Our does give birth in a bigger “Katee my first rat home” with the level removed and the dish tossed out cause you really don't need those. We sometimes take rats on trips in that.

Staple Food - 1.5 - 3$ Per Pound

As a breeder but even before I started breeding I bought my food in bulk. 15$ a month for a 2 lb bag is a little ridiculous to me. I only feed “Mazuri F6 Roden breeder” (1.50$ a pound 50lb bag) because I'm a breeder, and my rex bucks do better on the higher protein diet when not breeding I would feed “Mazuri Rat and mouse Diet“ (1.08$ a pound 20 lb bag) or I fed “Oxbow Adult Rat Food”(2.50$ a pound 20 lb bag) and “Oxbow Young Rat and Mouse Food” (1.80$when they were less than six months. For me, I buy the Mazuri for the extra protein, ammonia management, and the fact that it comes in 50lb bags. I just put it into my 40-gallon feed bin and scoop out about two scoops a week per cage. They last me about 6 months meaning I'm paying about 6.70$ a month on rat food at most. The bulk was the best choice I ever made. I also buy one 20 lb bag of Oxbow adult rat food every year to give to my adults as part of their treat mix. I've taught rats how to do tricks using that stuff and we call them “cookies” in my house. Why? No idea the rats just go wild for it.

Treats- 0-100$

Treats are a real tank for pet rats honestly. People swear by some like yogis but I've found that rats will take about anything as a treat if it's new. Some of the best treats are actually snacks for babies or simple stuff from trader joes. I have a few treat staples that end up lasting me 1-6 months depending on the mix and use. I love those little Gerber star baby puffs, and so do my rats. They go wild for them and they are the right density to let little babies learn to chew. Cheerios (plane not honey nut) are also a huge hit in my house. I also like to buy whole mixed nuts as you have at Christmas time in lots of New-England households, as my rats love cracking them open, can't get walnuts tho so I have to start them myself. Chicken bones from a roast chicken are a favorite of the rats, even if hearing them chew on bone can be grating on the ears. Freeze Dried blueberries and strawberries are always a hit as are banana chips. I also give them coconut, the dried unsweetened kind. On top of that unsalted roast, nuts are fantastic treats full of protein and oils. On my last snack trip, I spent about 13$ and probably won't have to go for more big snacks for three months. The periodic oatmeal or baby food puts a 2-5$ dent in the budget. In college, I spent almost no money on treats. I saved bones, gave safe vegetable cuttings, gave them my leftover rice if there wasnt anything in it that was dangerous. My rats go wild for stale bread as they get to really gnaw on it. It all matters on how you treat them if I'm honest

Food and Water Containers -10$

Two words, Dollar Store, at least for food bins. I buy water bottles from chewy for like 7$ for a big solid one. All water bottles will leak at some point the main goal is to make sure they always have some. I would do two water bottles per cage if you can but one serves just fine if you keep a close eye on it. Food bins have two styles in my mind, the hanging bin, and the bowl. A ceramic dish or bowl (I like to use glass candy bowls) works wonders you just want to make sure it's heavy enough not to be tipped over by a pound and a half rat or two sitting on its edge. Otherwise, my favorite things to use are those little novelty buckets, the metal ones you get for the spring holidays. Fill one of those up with food and hang it up and it works like a charm! Sometimes you are lucky enough to find a fun tea light holder (Like my pumpkin one) and you can hang that up as a food bin too. What matters is easy washability. Gonna have to wash them once a month might as well have an easy time doing it.

Bedding - 30$

Tractor supply co fine pine bedding is kiln dried and ammonia reducing. They cost about 11$-15$ for a whole bale and my rats do great on it. The studies bout pine being dangerous are out of date and have been proven inaccurate so go ahead and use it. Always Kiln-dried wood bedding tho. I also use recycled paper bedding for nests. Yesterdays News is a great potty bedding if you want to potty train not just cage train.

Enrichment - 50$ to 300$

Like food, this will depend wildly. Do you want your whole cage decked out in matching fleece covers and hammocks and hides and such? Those can range from 50$ to 100$. My favorite enrichment items aren't exactly the cheapest either. My rats are super fond of bird resistance feeders like “JW Pet Company 31136 Tip and Treat for Pets” pain in the booty to refill so they don't get it all the time but when I get to it... hours and hours are lost to spinning that odd egg thing. Super Bird creations have my favorite resistance feeders: “Super Bird Creations SB632 Foraging Bottom’s Up Bird Toy with Clear Acrylic Cups, Medium /Large Bird” (13$), “ Super Bird Creations SB634 Foraging 4 Way Forager Bird Toy with Clear Acrylic Cups, Medium/Large Bird Size, 12"x7"x7" (22$), and the ever loved so much that I have two “Super Bird Creations SB751 PVC Forager Bird Toy, Medium/Large Bird Size, 3” x 5” x 8” (14$). I've also been able to engage rats with things like dirty tissues (Matt will fight me for a used tissue and I just can't understand why). Toilet paper and paper towel rolls with treats stuffed in. Tissue boxes. Literally, just a shoelace can be fun for them to chase. Using old boxes as well is something I do every week. They love destroying box forts and such. I would set aside some good money to buy them resistance feeders and food puzzles as well as chew toys like apple sticks and Whimsies, honestly, if it's food-based rats love it. I have a rarely used flying disk wheel for my girls. I have multiple hammocks and plastic hides (a plastic bowl with a few holes in the top and a hole for them to enter is wonderful but a sputnik or space pod is always a win) in every cage. But past that rats mainly are low maintenance and boys probably just want to eat snacks and watch tv with you and girls want to steal your hair and pens and shiny objects for their nests. My rat Chesh has an obsession with my partner's beard and probably spends half of her out time trying to get to it. The other half is spent on snacking or trying to steal my tiny pirate gold hoop earrings. Happy rats are busy rats that's why I recommend a wide budget for enrichment and entertainment.

Adoption Fee - 80 - 200$

Personally, I would rather spend 60-80 dollars on a pair of pet rats than have the tossup of a feeder breeder or a pet store. Now, are pedigree rats better than store-bought without any background? No, not at all. Matt came to me in a pile of other boys, no background, no health history, Just his sweet fluffy little dumbo bootie. One of my most dangerous rats came from a breeder (the boy bit me so hard I scarred, but the same breeder gave me my boy Geoffery who was Darling so some breeders are also a gamble, she breed for show tho, not for temperament). The problem is if you are not very experienced with rat behavior and temperament, you're not gonna be able to pick out the right pup from a feeder breeder or a pet store. Even with my experience, I sometimes fell victim to the “well, this is all they have available” problem and ended up picking a less-than-optimal rat because of it. Working with a reputable breeder whose main focus is temperament is the best bet of getting a good pet from the get-go and breeders cost a little more money. The article about “Rattery Costs and Finances” covers why they do, it's a snapshot of the costs I incurred over a few months.

First Vet Visit - 200$

This one is the one that is very necessary and varies the most. I think setting aside 200$ is best for the first visit, any extra than can be spent on fun stuff like toys and treats once the first vet visit is over. My vet costs 90$ for the visit exam. Meds cost between 20-50$ if they need them (tho if you get them from a breeder, unless it's something incredibly common like lice or mites, they shouldn't need meds right away). This visit is required by some breeders to get refunds if anything is wrong. I don't do refunds because so many people won't do this in the first place. I will always take back a rat without question but I put all my rattery funds back into the rattery. Closed income loup. Vets are very important because they can tell you if something is wrong before it becomes an emergency

Starting out rats can cost anywhere from 500$ to 1000$

Monthly costs pan out to be about 15-20$ per month.

This is the very basics of what you need and what you budget for . Keep in mind everybody needs different amounts.

Rattery Costs

Ah, the big questions now! Pet care and Breeder care are very different in their appearance but are definitely very similar. The main difference is that I have to focus on the whole of all my animals all at once and in varying numbers per year. I have around 100 rats in my care in a year if you include all pups and my adult breeders. Cost to start is expensive and cost per rat varies a lot on costs of bedding and food but overall this can be broken down and analyzed.

Some Quick notes about how I calculate:

I always round up with the money, this way any leftover in the budget covers price fluctuations and may leave a little extra at the end of the year I can reinvest in the rattery.
I will round to the nearest 10 when covering the overall budget for the year. This is for the same reason I always round up.
I round down to the nearest ten for all income when doing next month's budget, this way I never overspend.

Beginning Costs

Starting Stock - 200$

Starting with good stock will give you good stock. It's hard to breed out things like bad health and temperament tendencies. There will be a big difference in a large dual-purpose breeder and a small one-line show/pet breeder. Now is cost = to quality? Not always. The more information you can have the better. Clear records of the health and temperament of the rats and their ancestors are super useful. You need to be picky. I paid 90$ for Spade and Bunny, only one of whom is a grandmother in my rattery; Bunny has everything we needed, but Spade's litter just didn't pan out to be what we wanted temperament .wise, her niece from my sister's rattery has worked wonders in her place. I paid 15$ for my founding buck, Matt. Records are great but if the rat is shy and skittish there not gonna change that anytime soon by breeding it out. Go for the friendliest and nicest rats you can find temperament-wise and if you can verify the health backgrounds, the better but initial temperament will show you a lot about a rat.

Initial Vet Visits - 200$

If you are starting with a pair breeding, get the rats checked out by the vet. Get them a clean bill of health. If they are new rats to you this is necessary to make sure that you're new rats are healthy and safe.

All other pet Costs - 300$

You are always gonna need the same basic stuff for a rat. Check out our article on “Cost and Finances - Pet” to understand a more comprehensive list. Food, toys, bowls, bedding, and housing are all important.

Cage and Birthing Cage - 400$

Why so expensive? Well if you're gonna breed you're gonna need at least one double critter nation. It is 6 by 3 by 2 feet. 36 cubic feet. That will be 18 Cubic feet for your males and 18 Cubic feet for your females. If you want happy rats you're gonna want 3 girls and 2 boys at least so that nobody but mom is alone during the integral 3 - 5 week litter rearing period. For that period of time, a 2 by 3 feet space is best. We use the Katee my first rat home as our birthing cage. All the litter and mom can be in it for the first 3 weeks and then we move them to a bin cage that is 24 by 38 inches for weeks 4 and 5. At five weeks they go to the split boy and girl cages till 7 weeks of age to learn how to rat from our adults.

Initial costs: 900-1000$

Repeating Costs

Bedding - 250$ a year

I buy one bag of TSC Fine Pine bedding, and one bag of Care Fresh natural paper bedding every 2 months. The cost averages to 35$ rounded up, per every two months or 17.50$ per month. This covers 3 - 4 cages with about 8 inches of bedding but says it was just the Critter nation and a rearing cage. The cost breaks down to about 4.50 a week

Food - 220$ a year

I buy one 50lb bag of Mazuri F6 Rodent Breeder once every 3 months. Each bag costs around 70$ per order meaning I spend about 280$ per year on the staple food. I buy one 20lb bag of my treat food, Oxbow Essentials Adult rat food, a year, and that costs about 60$ to get shipped to my house.

Medical - 80$ per visit (3000$ yearly savings budget)

This is not a specific value but the total budget I try to have a year for veterinary care there are gonna be good days and bad days but overall this is a good amount to have to pay for medical bills. My vet costs 80$ approximately per average visit.

Repeating Costs: 500-600$ a year not including veterinary care.

Veterinary care Budget: 3000$

Now, how do these basic numbers help? They give you a ballpark figure to reach for before starting breeding and cover basic calculations.

I am currently 234.29$ in the black (positive) so to speak as of the 22nd 2022. Now that doesn't mean I have a profit at all. I know that next month I need to purchase a new bag of food costing around 70$, I know Matt will have another vet visit costing around 90$, and I know I'm gonna have to make about 20 Adoption packets for my adopters who are picking up babies at the start and end of March. I have 160$ of definite costs in march leaving a rounded down Income of 60$ from the last month after covering definite costs. This means to me that as of now I have a portion of that to spend on my adoption packets. Keeping a close eye on these amounts is very important to not end up in debt and overwhelmed.