Roof Rat Housing & Cages

What kind of cage does a roof rat need?

A tall, solid-metal rat cage with closely-spaced bars (no gaps over about half an inch) and plenty of vertical climbing space. Avoid the wide-door fancy-rat style for young or un-trusted rats, an agile climber will be out the door before you react.

Why does the cage need to be tall?

Roof rats are arboreal, they evolved to live in trees, so they want height. Fill a tall, multi-level cage with ropes, ladders, branches, and hammocks; vertical space matters far more to them than floor space.

Are wooden houses and toys safe?

They’ll chew anything wooden, so a wooden house is also a snack as far as they’re concerned. That’s fine as long as it’s safe and you don’t mind replacing it; never leave out chewables you can’t afford to lose.

What bedding or litter should I use?

Paper-based litter (like compressed paper pellets). Avoid wood shavings, pine and cedar oils irritate their airways, and shavings don’t control odor well.

See also on the Health & medical care FAQ: why rats can smell and why they pee to mark.

Are bare wire cage floors safe for Roof Rats?

Yes, bare wire cage floors are safe for Roof Rats.  It’s OK if you don’t cover them.  Your rats will not suffer any discomfort or develop and foot problems.

You can cover you floors if you wish.  However, be aware that Roof Rats chew on everything, and will attempt to shred any material that is soft enough to use for their own nests.  They may also attempt to hide underneath the floor covers, which is unsafe as it will put additional pressure on their feet and bodies, may make it harder for them to breath, and prevent them from interacting with you or their cage mates.

For these reasons, we do not recommend that you cover your floors.  If you do, we recommend that you use a metal plate which is completely welded on all sides so that they cannot go underneath it and there are no sharp edges that they can reach with their paws or nose.  Any other material, such as cardboard, felt or plastic, may potentially cause more harm than good.

Many people believe that Norway rats will develop foot problems if they live in a cage with wire floors.  For this reason, if you post any photos or videos of Roof Rats in a cage with visible wire floors, you will attract negative comments and helpful advice about what you are doing wrong.

Many well intentioned and experienced owners of Norway rats are simply unaware of the differences between Roof Rats and Norway Rats.  They reason that because metal wire is hard and applies pressure to a relatively small area, it must be equally hard on the feet of all species.  But, not all feet are made the same.  Roof Rat feet are adapted for climbing hard, rough surfaces, and hard tough, thick pads that Norway rat feet lack.  Their feet and legs are much larger and more muscular for the rat’s size, and more nimble and flexible.  They can climb around upside down on a wire cage almost as easily as walking horizontally.  In fact, they do it for enjoyment.  The wire doesn’t appear to bother them.

While they are resting, they will normally be in their hammocks.  If they do chose to rest on a wire floor, they naturally distribute their weight such that there are no uncomfortable pressure points, just as they would if they were in a nest made of twigs in a treetop.

Finally, because they evolved for a life climbing and jumping nimbly in trees, Roof Rats are longer and more muscular and slender for their size than Norway rats.  They walk lightly and silently on their feet, as you would expect for a rat that is able to quitely navigate twigs and leaves a hundred feet above the ground while avoiding the attention of predatory birds.  Therefore, they do not put the same pressures on their feet that Norway rats do.

None of this will probably be enough to convince experts you encounter online that what they know is true about wire floors for rats isn’t true for your Roof Rats.  That’s just the nature of the Internet.  If you do post any videos on Reddit with visible wire floors, especially, be prepared to be downvoted and lectured by some people.  My advice is to ignore it: your concern is making your pets happy, not some anonymous strangers!

But, if you can, try to take photos and videos where the cage floors are not visible!

Can rats be litter trained like cats?

Surprisingly, yet, many rats can use a litter box as their toilet.

Of course, rats don’t have the same instinctive urge to bury their waste like cats.

But rats will often choose a specific area in their cage to poo and, sometimes, pee.  And, if you put a “litter box” at that spot, the rat will then use the litter box.  After a while, the rat may become conditioned to use the litter box wherever it happens to be.

Some of our rats are even more clever, in that they have figured out all on their own that they need to poo inside of a litter box filled with cat litter.  My wife suggested that they would, and insisted that we keep a litter box on the sofa when we play with them.  I admit I was skeptical at first, but here is a video which proves she was right: Butter making poo in a litter box all on her own

I want to point out that I didn’t try to “train” Butter in any way: I just provided the option, and she did it on her own.  Several of my other rats will use the litter box and, when the other rats see them do it (or smell the results), they will, too.  So, the litter box method works for us, and it might work for you, too.

Give it a try and let me know what happens!

How do I assemble a Martin’s Cage?

Here is a step by step video demonstrating how to build a Martin’s Cage Model R-660 for rats and other small animals.

What is “Free Ranging?” How can I let my rat Free Range?

Free Ranging is where you let your rat explore on it’s own outside of it’s cage.  Free Ranging can be a lot of fun for both you and your rats, as long as your rat is well behaved and the Free Ranging area is “rat safe.”

What kind of cage should we get? Bar Spacing, etc.?

We recommend that you avoid cages with plastic tub bottoms, because most of them have edges that rats will chew on, and eventually make holes and escape.

You need no larger than 1/2″ bar spacing for younger rats, or they can escape.

We currently buy our cages from KW Cages and Pointer Hill Cages. We like them because they are sturdy, well made, escape- and chew-proof, and easy to clean. (We used Martin’s Cages for years and loved them too, but they have since gone out of business.) For a gestating or nursing mother, the powder-coated KW Cages Deluxe Rodent cage is especially practical: it has exactly the right footprint for a wooden nest hut like the Kaytee Woodland Get-A-Way. Wire cages assemble much the same way across brands; we made a video demonstrating how to quickly and easily assemble a wire rat cage.

Good cage setup and decor is essential for your rat’s health and happiness.  Rats like places to hide, and places to climb, perch and watch the world go by.  We can help you design a good cage setup for your rats, please ask!

What kind of litter do you recommend we use?

We recommend that you use a litter which is made from recycled paper, such as Carefresh White Small Pet Bedding, or So Phresh.  Avoid wood shavings, as they do not absorb odor and urine as well, and some (pine) might be harmful.  Avoid any liter with baking soda or other additives, as your rat may ingest it.

Should I give my roof rat an exercise wheel?

We do not. Roof rats are active and will run on a wheel, even adult males, but they also have very long tails that can rub on the wheel while they run and get injured. For that reason we leave wheels out and give them ropes, ladders, branches and climbing space instead.

Why is a drop-in litter tray better than a fixed one?

Cages with a drop-in bottom make it easy to change litter without disturbing your rats. During the day they are usually asleep in their hammocks, so you unlatch the litter pan, lift the cage out with the rats still in it, set it down, clean and refill the pan, then replace the cage. A deep pan also means less litter kicked out and less sweeping.

My rat keeps flipping its water dish over. What can I do?

If the dish just sits inside a wire loop on the cage, roof rats will get underneath it and flip it upside down, every night. Use a dish that locks or attaches securely to the cage. The Living World Lock and Crock dish is our current favorite: it is the right size and they cannot flip it over.