Here are reviews for toys/accessories I've used. Each product will recieve one of four awards: the golden rat (great), the silver rat (good), the bronze rat (average/unimpressive), and the wooden rat (bad). (Click here for other product reviews.)
    
 Pluses: Cheap, around $5 (watch out for pet stores jacking up prices...). Attractive. Small enough to fit in smaller cages. Rats love hammocks. Minuses: Most rats will chew on hammocks some, and they have limited lifespans. Tips: Rather than buying hammocks, make your own using scraps of cloth/old clothes with safety pins or paper clips to cannect them to the cage. Where to get it: Most pet stores. Online at The Ferret Store,
 Pluses: Fairly cheap. Very safe (even rats as young as 2 1/2 weeks have run in mine) and easily assembled/disassembles for cleaning. Silent, especially if oiled occasionally. The only wheel many rats will run in. Minuses: Droppings need to be removed rfrom the wheel because they don't fall out on their own and will rattle. Tips: Oil with baby oil or vegetable oil. Rats are more likely to use wheels if they are introduced at a young age. Where to get it: Transoniq
 Pluses: Fairly cheap and easy. Safe. Solid plastic makes it very easy to clean. Minuses: Most rats are afraid of this wheel for some reason and won't use it. Also, it rattles a lot and tends to get chewed on. Tips: Rats are more likely to use wheels if they are introduced at a young age. If the wheel noise keeps you up at night, remove it when you go to bed. Your rats will adjust their schedule to be awake and play when they have their wheel. Where to get it: Some pet stores. Online at The Ferret Store or
 Pluses: Attractive. Soft. Has a clip to connect to a cage, so it isn't flipped over or slid around. Obviously my fellows like it. :) Machine washable. Minuses: Some rats will chew it up in no time. (Only use for rats that aren't major chewers.) A little expensive, but cheaper than most similar beds. Tips: Where to get it: Some pet stores. Online at The Ferret Store or Pluses: Well, I've heard of people using this thing effectively and liking it... Minuses: All of my rats were terrified of this thing. Who can blame them? I'd be scared to be trapped in a plastic ball too! Actually, I never got a chance to "close" most in. They bolted when they were near it. The one rat who wasn't afraid of it (to begin with) did a little running in it but pooped and peed all over inside. The irony is, without the ball, my rats never poop outside their cages. (And as long as the door is closed, I don't have to worry about the cats.) After about two times in it, the rat that did use the ball became terrified of it suddenly. I tried to leave it open as a new hiding house in the rats' cage, but they all kept their distance from this apparently cursed thing... Rats are not hamsters; that's for sure. Tips: Don't waste your money on "big hamster things" for your rats outside their cage. Rats will all housetrain if held often and will come when called (especially if trained to a "treat" signal). Where to get it: Some pet stores. Online at The Ferret Store or
 Pluses: Not sure what rating to give this... It functioned fine as a litter pan, but I didn't like the whole litter pan thing, so I mostly used it as a shelf. It is easy to clean and usable as a sleeping place, food place, or litter pan. Cheap too. Minuses: None I can think of. A good product to have for a litter box or other things. Tips: Where to get it: Some pet stores. Online at The Ferret Store or
 Pluses: Long-lasting (have had mine for over 2 years). Easy to clean (solid plastic with no floor). The holes on top allow for adequate ventilation, yet it is still a cozy home. Big enough for any group of rats (I've had over 6 adult males snuggling in one). Nice colors. Rats like sleeping in it or on top of it. Inexpensive and fairly easy to find. Minuses: Won't fit in really small cages or through small cage doors. Tips: Don't buy the smaller igloo, only the big one. Put the igloo on the top shelf in the cage, because rats will use it more, and the top won't get peed on as much. Where to get it: Most pet stores. Online at Pluses: No, I didn't get it for dust baths, but as a sleeping place. It is cute. Also durable and long-lasting. Minuses: No ventillation, and HORRIBLE odor. It costs twice as much as the igloo, but is harder to clean and stinks. Definitely not meant to be a a rat sleeping place (but is probably a fine "bath house" for chinchillas...) Tips: Buy your rats an igloo or give them cardboard boxes to play in. Where to get it: Some pet stores. Online at |
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