I had posted this on the Feeder Forum, but was directed over here.



For a feeder-rat breeding set-up what is an appropriate, humane, cage space allotment per rat? My small rat colony, now, must fit completely inside of the master bathroom, and not extend into any other part of the house.



At the time of my rat housing troubles 16 months ago, my largest cage which, not counting the small mortar tub base, is eight (8) cubic feet (17 in wide X 24 in long X 34 in tall); housed six (6) related male rats (who always had looked happy - not stressed - to me). According to the Humane Society that was much too crowded, at a mere 1.3 cubic feet per rat. The Humane Society Lady took away two rats from that cage with her. That left four (4) rats at two (2) cubic feet each, which was pushing the limit. I was also scolded for not having shelves or a wheel for the rats in that cage. I later added two (2) shelves to increase the square footage of space availiable to the rats, and a larger water bottle.



I have since built a hardware-cloth topper for a cat-litter pan, giving that cage about three (3) cubic feet of space, total. By the two (2) cubic foot rule, that cage should only hold a maximum of 1½ rats; or, since you can't have half a rat, one (1) rat. It currently houses two (2) rats a male, Remi, and a female, Ms. Goodie Hoodie; giving each one-and-a-half (1½) cubic feet of space. This cage is not tall enough for added shelves, but I do have hammocks hanging from the ceiling for them, which they enjoy. I am hoping for babies, but I fear that all ten (10) of my rats may be too old for breeding.



I need to build some new cages, because all of my remaining cages are too small. So, what cage sizes would be appropriate for the very small rat colony needed to feed two (2) snakes? And how many rats should supply my snakes' need, since I am probably going to have to start my colony over with some new breeder rats.



Buying feeder rodents, on a regular basis, from a petstore is not a viable option for me; since the nearest petstore is over one-hundred-thirty (130) miles away, each direction.



Snakey Lakey



1 Great Basin Gopher snake (W/C), unknown gender

1 Wandering Garter snake (W/C), unknown gender

10 rats 2 males 8 females

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