Are Roof Rats Legal in Alberta? Keeping, Breeding & Selling

• Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation (its Assistant Rat and Pest Specialist) confirmed in writing on 15 June 2026 that a non-resident may transit a securely caged pet rat continuously through Alberta under a permit, by vehicle or air, provided there is no overnight stay in the province. Vehicle travel needs supporting documentation of the travel dates and times; air travel needs a flight itinerary. Permits will not be issued for travel involving an overnight stay in Alberta.
• Keeping, importing to stay, breeding, and selling a pet rat remain prohibited in Alberta (the entire genus Rattus is a declared pest); the transit permit is a narrow pass-through allowance only.

Keeping / owning   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-06

The Agricultural Pests Act declares the whole genus Rattus a pest, and possession of a live rat by a private citizen is unlawful, Alberta enforces a zero-tolerance ‘rat-free’ policy. There is explicitly no exemption for fancy, tame, or domesticated rats; a single caged pet is treated as an unacceptable escape risk. Wild sightings are reported to the 310-FARM (3276) hotline (403-742-7901 from outside Alberta) and eradicated.

Sources: Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta

Breeding   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-06

Breeding requires possession, which is prohibited, and the statute separately forbids the purchase, sale, or distribution of a declared pest. There is no legal hobby or commercial breeding of rats in Alberta.

Sources: Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta

Selling or giving away   Prohibited

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-06

Selling, giving, or otherwise distributing a live rat is expressly prohibited as dealing in a declared pest. No pet-trade layer exists for rats in Alberta.

Sources: Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta

Transport & import   Legal with a permit

Confidence: High · Last verified 2026-06-15

Importing a rat into Alberta to keep it remains prohibited (the genus Rattus is a declared pest). But Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation confirmed in writing (2026-06-15) that a non-resident may TRANSIT a securely caged pet roof rat continuously through the province under a permit, provided there is no overnight stay in Alberta. For vehicle travel, supporting documentation must confirm the travel dates and times and that no overnight stays will occur in Alberta; for air travel, a flight itinerary confirming no overnight stays. Permits will not be issued for travel involving an overnight stay. Arrange the permit in advance with the Rat Control Program (RATS@gov.ab.ca). Never release a rat.

Sources: Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta

• Pet keeping is not permitted, there is no pet-owner permit

Where: Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation (Ministerial permit)

Source: Government of Alberta, Government of Alberta

Source: Government of Alberta

Forms: AR 184/2001 Form 6, Ministerial permit to keep rats (research/zoo/inspector only) · Where: Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation, Inspection and Investigation Section

• Contact the Rat Control Program (RATS@gov.ab.ca; 310-FARM in Alberta / 403-742-7901 outside) before travel to arrange the transit permit
• Provide supporting documentation: for a vehicle, the travel dates and times confirming no overnight stay; for a flight, the itinerary confirming no overnight stay
• Keep the rat securely caged and never release it; do not stay overnight in Alberta

Where: Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation – Rat Control Program (RATS@gov.ab.ca)

Source: Government of Alberta

Alberta is one of the only places with a total ban on keeping any pet rat. Under the Agricultural Pests Act (RSA 2000, c. A-8) and the Pest and Nuisance Control Regulation (AR 184/2001), the entire genus Rattus, every rat species including the tame fancy pet rat (Rattus norvegicus) and the roof rat (Rattus rattus), is a declared agricultural pest. The Government of Alberta states that it is illegal to own pet rats in Alberta. Possession, import, purchase, sale, transport, and breeding of any live rat are all prohibited. The only permit (a Ministerial permit under AR 184/2001) is reserved for accredited research institutions, zoos, and government labs; there is no private or hobby pathway, not even for a single captive-bred, tame rat kept indoors in a cage. Penalties can reach $5,000 per animal, and a pet rat found in the province can be seized and destroyed. The ban is the backbone of Alberta’s 75-year rat-free status, and it makes no distinction between a wild invasive rat and a domesticated companion animal that has never lived outdoors.

The ask: Ask the Legislative Assembly (your MLA) to amend the Agricultural Pests Act and Pest and Nuisance Control Regulation to create a narrow, well-defined exemption for domesticated, captive-bred pet rats kept indoors under reasonable conditions (for example: spayed or neutered or single-sex housing, secure escape-proof caging, microchipping or registration, and a ban on outdoor release), distinct from Alberta’s wild-rat eradication program, which would continue unchanged. Do not ask the rat-control program or Alberta Agriculture to make an exception, because that office is correctly applying a law it cannot rewrite. The change has to come from the Legislature.

Where the lever really is: Branch (b): the problem is the law as written, not a bureaucracy misreading it. The Agricultural Pests Act and AR 184/2001 declare the whole genus Rattus a pest at the statutory and regulatory level, and the rat-control agency is correctly applying that prohibition; the Government of Alberta’s website confirms that it is illegal to own pet rats in Alberta. There is no exemption list a tame or captive-bred rat could be added to, and the sole permit category is statutorily confined to research, zoo, and lab operators. Appealing to the agency (rats@gov.ab.ca / 310-FARM) will not change anything: that line exists to report and eradicate rats, and the staff have no authority to legalize pet keeping. The only lever that can change this is the Legislature, by amending the Act or the Regulation to carve out a domesticated-pet-rat exemption, which means writing to your MLA and, where relevant, the Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation in their legislative and policy capacity. The single narrow thing the agency can properly answer is a factual clarification (for example, whether a non-resident may transit a securely caged pet rat through the province), included only as a secondary, agency-appropriate touchpoint, not as the reform lever. On the species-not-domestication point, the fancy rat (Rattus norvegicus) is itself the wild brown rat, domesticated only in the 19th century, so a captive-bred Rattus rattus is the same case one species over: https://blonderoofrat.com/how-the-sewer-rat-became-the-fancy-rat/ .

Where to send it (more than one channel helps):

• Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Members of the Legislative Assembly directory (Find Your MLA / Member Contact list) (legislature), official contact page
  The total ban is set in statute (Agricultural Pests Act) and regulation (AR 184/2001). Only the Legislature can amend it, so your own MLA is the correct first touchpoint. This official directory lists all 87 MLAs by name and constituency with individual contact pages and a downloadable contact list, letting you reach the representative who can raise or sponsor a change.
• Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Find Your MLA by riding (Elections Alberta MLA search) (legislature), official contact page
  Use this official Elections Alberta tool to identify exactly which MLA represents your address/riding before you write, so your letter reaches your own representative (constituent letters carry the most weight).
• Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation, Rat Control Program inbox (factual clarification ONLY, not policy change) (executive / agency), rats@gov.ab.ca
  Included only for a narrow factual question this office can legitimately answer, e.g., whether a non-resident may transit a securely caged pet Rattus through Alberta. Do NOT use this channel to request legalization: the rat-control program is correctly enforcing the statute and cannot amend it. (Phone: 310-FARM in Alberta / 403-742-7901 outside.)

A starting-point message, please put it in your own words; a short personal note carries far more weight than an identical form letter:

Subject: Please amend the Agricultural Pests Act to allow domesticated pet rats

Dear [MLA name / Member for [constituency]],

I am a constituent writing about Alberta's total ban on keeping pet rats. Under the Agricultural Pests Act and the Pest and Nuisance Control Regulation (AR 184/2001), the entire genus Rattus is a declared pest, so even a tame, captive-bred pet rat kept indoors is illegal.

I fully support Alberta's program against wild, invasive rats. But the current law makes no distinction between a wild rat and a domesticated companion animal that is captive-bred, hand-tame, housed in a secure escape-proof cage, kept entirely indoors, and never released. I am not claiming such a pet poses zero risk. I am asking the Legislature to weigh whether the limited, controllable risk of a securely caged, altered, indoor-only animal that cannot establish a wild population is outweighed by allowing Albertans the kind of companionship that cats and dogs, themselves non-native, are already permitted to provide. That balance is yours to strike, and Alberta's wild-rat eradication program would continue unchanged.

The fancy rat (Rattus norvegicus) is itself the wild brown rat, domesticated only in the 19th century, so a captive-bred pet rat is the same case as the cats and dogs Alberta already permits.

Because this is set in statute and regulation, only the Legislature can fix it; the rat-control office is simply applying the law. I respectfully ask you to support amending the Act and Regulation to create a narrow exemption for domesticated pet rats kept under reasonable conditions (secure caging, no outdoor release, single-sex or altered housing), while Alberta's wild-rat eradication continues unchanged.

Thank you for considering this. I would welcome your reply.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address / constituency]
[Your email]

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