If you have pet rats or you’re thinking about getting some, you often are stuck with a bunch of questions about the process, how they act, what to get, and so on, such as how big do pet rats get or questions on the topic of pet rats biting or how they bond with you. When we get on the topic of bonding with your pet rats or letting them out of their enclosure, sometimes people can wonder if pet rats can sleep with you.
Well, there are some things to know when you’re trying to determine the answer to can pet rats sleep with you.
You have to consider how big do pet rats get and that answer, as well as the topic of pet rats biting, their sleep habits, and much more. So here’s the rundown of the information you need to know to come to an answer to the question: can pet rats sleep with you?
How big do pet rats get?
Most sources generally have a varied answer to how big do pet rats get, because like with many other types of animals, it depends on the variety of the rat and their sex. Pet rats can get 9 to 11 inches long in their body when full-grown. Females will generally be on the smaller side of that scale, and males will usually be slightly larger and sometimes more chubby. But when you think about how big do pet rats get, you also have to think about their tail length.
Rats’ tails can get up to 7 to 9 inches long, which means most rats will be at least a foot in length from their nose to the end of their tail. While how big do pet rats get considered mostly length, pet rats are also pretty small creatures compared to cats or other common pet animals. This often means they can get into smaller spaces or crevices in your home if left unwatched, which can be something to consider if you let them free roam.
Training and bathroom habits
Another item to consider when you wonder if your pet rats can sleep with you is their training and bathroom habits. You can train rats to go to the bathroom in specific areas or to be litter trained, similar to larger animals like cats. It’s not always guaranteed, though, and sometimes this task is challenging. This means that rats could be allowed to do their business just about anywhere they are, which could be messy if you want them in your bed with you to sleep with them.
This is sometimes more important than how big pet rats get or pet rats biting for some owners because cleaning up rat pee can be annoying (thankfully, rat poop is usually solid and easy to clean up).
Sleeping for pet rats
Most people don’t realize this until they’ve owned a pet rat, and might not when they own one, but pet rats are more active during our nighttime usually. Rats prefer to sleep during the day and be active at night; this is a genetic thing and can’t often be trained out of them. This means that trying to sleep with your pet rat could be you trying to sleep while your pets roam and get into things which can be hectic because rats are little troublemakers quite often.
After you consider their bathroom habits, how big do pet rats get, and the fact that rats are more active at night time it can get a little more difficult to keep track of your pet rat if you let it free roam to sleep with you to ensure its safety and your sanity.
Pet rats biting
One more factor in asking can pet rats sleep with you after you know how big do pet rats get, as well as their habits or training, is pet rats biting. Pet rats can and do bite. Usually, nibbling is a playful habit of rats that doesn’t go away. This won’t necessarily hurt humans and usually won’t bother most people that get accustomed to it. Pet rats biting is only fear when they feel trapped, stressed, or otherwise upset.
However, pet rats also like to chew on objects and get into or bite things they shouldn’t, which is where pet rats biting can become a bigger factor. You trying to sleep with your pet rat means they’re being allowed to roam more freely and have little or no supervision, which could be dangerous to your rat plus hard to clean up after. They could get into or bite things they shouldn’t when left unwatched and make a mess at the least.
Other things to consider
Once you know how big pet rats get, their habits, sleeping patterns, and the information on pet rats biting; you can form your own opinion or answer if you want them to sleep with you fairly well. However, you can also consider these items to make a plan that could work for you and your pet rats to nap or sleep together at some point.
You also want to consider what bond you have with your rat and how well behaved they are, as well as where you would want to sleep with them and how you can perhaps do a trial run or try it little by little to ensure you and your rat’s wellbeing is intact. From this information, you can gather your answer depending on what you would like from sleeping with a pet rat. Having a pet rat is a great experience, but you also have to know how big pet rats get to know what you can or can’t safely do with them.
It can also worry many considering letting their pet rat sleep with them how common pet rat biting is. But, you also have to know their sleep and bathroom habits and other factors to conclude best.
With the combination of the fact that rats are usually active at night, worries of losing rats in the house, it is difficult to litter train rats fully, the possibility of pet rats biting, as well as the answer to how big do pet rats get; many owners or future owners of pet rats would most likely rather not try to sleep with their pet rats.