You
need to consider the weather conditions during your travels. Extreme
temperatures expose your rats to stress and illness. For the most part,
it is just a matter of starting your car ahead of time and setting a
suitable temperature before loading up the rats. In cold weather, cover
cages with a towel or use containers that are not open to the elements.
There are some excellent ideas on the web for making transport cages out
of Rubbermaid containers by simply modifying the top with wire. One such site to check are
http://www.petratscanada.com/travel/travel.htm. If you would
just like to purchase a travel
cage at your local pet shop, the type you choose will also depend on the
length and purpose of your trip. Also, if you would like to be able to
use the cage for other things like quarantine or hospital housing, you
need to consider space and adaptability when choosing the right one. I
use the cage in the photo at left for traveling longer distances and it
also works ideally for temporary or semi-permanent housing for a small
number of rats. It is a Terenziani made for Super Pet. There are many
cat and small dog carriers that are suitable for travel too. Just be sure
to check the size of the bar openings to make sure that your rats can’t
slip through or get stuck. One I've found to work great is seen at the
top right corner of the page. It's made by Nylabone and is completely
collapsable for easy storage. For shorter trips, powder coated wire hamster
cages work well too. If you choose to
use these, you just need to keep in mind the number of rats that will
be in a cage. Obviously, the greater the number of rats, the more space
required. You should have room in any cage for a snuggly place to sleep,
like a hammock, sack or old T-shirt, and a place to put food. Water is
not always easy to provide when using ball bearing water bottles, but
offering fresh fruit and vegetables on the trip will give your rats their
necessary moisture on short
trips. For long trips, you will need to stop
periodically to offer water or purchase an Edstrom
Water Buddy
to attach
(they don’t leak, believe it or not). Under
no circumstances should a rat be transported in a poorly ventilated, small
plastic container or in a well ventilated, even smaller container like
those seen in the picture to the left and the one below. These rats were
actually forced into these conditions at a past event I attended in the
summer of 2004. There is no excuse for such types of transport! Also notice
that food and water are in the tiny cages where towels are used as bedding,
so the rats are also having to lay in the moist bedding. These are good
examples of what NOT to transport any rat in.
