Sunday, May 13, 2012

Rat Girls

Meet my two dumbo-eared ratlings

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Annabel Lee


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Lenore!

As you may have gathered, both Annabel Lee and Lenore (aka Annasmell and Lesnore) are named for tragic figures in the spooky poetry of Mr. Edgar Allan Poe.

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For the moon never beams, without bringing me dreams/ Of the beautiful Annabel Lee "Annabel Lee" - Edgar Allan Poe, 1849
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And the stars never rise, but I feel the bright eyes/ Of the beautiful Annabel Lee "Annabel Lee" - Edgar Allan Poe, 1849 
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The sweet Lenore/ Hath “gone before”/ With young Hope at her side "Lenore" - Edgar Allan Poe, 1843
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And the only word there spoken was the whispered word, “Lenore!”/ This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word, “Lenore!”/ Merely this, and nothing more. "The Raven" - Edgar Allan Poe, 1844
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Pet rats, however, are hardly scary. Rats are super smart and, if socialized from a young age, can be really friendly and affectionate. They keep themselves pretty clean and aren't too stinky. Rats are also very food motivated so they're easy to make friends with.

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My girls are very sweet and funny. They love corn cobs, ear scritches and sitting on shoulders and climbing around in my hair. Annabel Lee will give you little smooches on your lips with her nose too! 

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When we first got them, they were just teeny little babies, about 2 weeks old and 2 inches long. Now they are proud chubby adult rat ladies, nearly a year old, with long tails and impressive rat back humps, the cutest part of a rat I think. 

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Lenore & Annabel Lee, 2 weeks old

Annabel Lee and Lenore are complete opposites. Annabel is very bossy and busy. Lenore is kind of lazy. Annabel is more adventurous and Lenore is a little shy. Annabel always makes it to the food first and will steal food right out of Lenore's mouth. Don't worry about her though, Lenore still manages to be fatter. Lenore likes to sleep a lot and Annabel likes to scramble all over her and stick her toes in Lenore's eye. Best friends forever, right?

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Despite their many differences, it is obvious how crazy they are about one another. They always snuggle while they sleep, Annabel Lee is always always on top of the heap of course, and they play games together everyday. They chase each other around their cage all of the time and have tickle fights. This is what that sounds like...



Rats make fantastic pets. I think they are the best type of animal you can have that lives in a cage. They are so much fun and not too difficult to care for. Although they do require attention and play every day. They are very smart and social so they will become bored and lonely without friends or enough stimulation. It's a good idea to keep rats in pairs or groups. A lonely rat is a very sad rat. The best part about having a rat is, unlike most other small rodents, they actually like you. 

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If you're interested in getting some rats of your own, be sure to learn all about them first! Please do find some healthy, hand-raised rats from a good breeder or a rescue too!

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     + Discover Pet Rats!


     + Rodents of Unusual Sweetness - I am so obsessed with this rattery right now. Bunnyip and Banjo are going 
        to have the cutest litter ever seen!

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Be seeing you.

-W

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