Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I live in FL and just built a new house with deed restricts, and cannot build a shed or barn structure to breed rats in, so I was going to build an enclosure in the garage however it is currently 101 degrees in there with outdoor temps of 81. What I'm thinking is building a room or buying a shed and insolating it and then puting an ac unit in it, however I'm a bit confused as to how to control the temps with a thermostate. Will a standard home stat work to keep it cool enough and acurate enough in such a small space? thanks for the help....

will the air conditioner unit pose a problem with this in a closed garage. Thanks for the help guys

You could just get an ac that hangs in a window..those work good and have a thermostat already on them..at least some do

I live in FL also. I keep my rats in the garage year round without a problem. I just use a couple of box fans to keep them cool. I use six foot horse troughs to grow them out, and the rack in the pic to breed them in.
If I can help in any other way, just ask.

Do you leave the garage open? It seems that the fans would just blow hot air? I live in Texas, we have similiar weather. I want to put my mice in the garage but I am scared they will fry.

Miller
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1.1 Florida King
1.1 Eastern Kings
1.0 Chow Chow
0.2 Cats

Also, what do you do in the winter?
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1.1 Florida King
1.1 Eastern Kings
1.0 Chow Chow
0.2 Cats

I have read all of the info out there on optimal temps and what not. I leave the door open enough during the day to allow some air exchange (not enough for a kid to wiggle under) and close it at night year round.
My neighbors all know what I'm doing, most just think I'm the bald guy with all of the tattoos that has all of the rattlesnakes. They call me now to remove snakes rather than killing them, so I'm happy.

Thanks for the quick response, I am moving the mice to the garage tonight! I leave mine cracked anyway for the cats to come and go.

Thanks again,
Miller
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1.1 Florida King
1.1 Eastern Kings
1.0 Chow Chow
0.2 Cats

My garage got up to 92 today, November 8th with the door 20% open, I'm in the tampa area, where are you located?

2nd ? what type tubs are you using for your rack, I built my out of sterile tubs and I'm concerned that they will eventually chew out of some of flat edges in the tubs. What I'm looking at are cement mixing tubs or large cat litter tubs, but I don't love either.... TY

Anything that they can't chew out of will work. Mine are five years old and no problems yet.

In Tallahassee. The fans keep the air moving so the rats are not that hot. I have never had a real problem. I rotate my breeders at the start of summer and the end of fall. that way they are fresh for the worst weather.

While it's great to have optimal conditions for raising feeders, remember that rats live in the wild everywhere! It's hard to justify the economics of buying or even running an AC for feeders. I run fans on the hottest days here in Los Angeles. I try to be conscious of hidden costs.
DeMak

I'm currently using around 200 - 250 rats amonth (depending on who is feeling like eating (ball pythons)) and with current room for expansion and the fact that I can now finaly afford to do it I'm looking at needing 400 - 500 rats a month. So spending an extra few hunded $$$ up front and an extra $30 or so a month for optimual conditions is well worth not having to buy the little guys.

This guy is a pig as well.......

I know one of the largest breeders in L.A. They don't find AC neccessary. They do run fans in the summer. While I enjoy raising rats and getting what I think is a premium product, I still think controlling costs is important. I only breed for a couple of snakes,but I would be curious if someone breeding on your scale keeps track of costs. I've often wondered what rats really cost us.....
DeMak

To be honest, I never keep track of the actual cost. I feed anywhere between #150 and #200 a week in FRM Rodent Pellets.
I pay $11.25 for #50.
The box fans cost around $8 ea. a month to run, and I usually only run one to exchange the air in my garage.
I usually mix it up with the bedding. Mostly it's pine shavings from either the feed store I buy my rat chow from or the pet store I buy my dog food from. From time to time I'll buy a bail of bedding hay and use that in the six foot horse troughs that I use for grow out- especially in the winter. One bail will last awhile, and it's only $3

its still cheaper than having to buy rats..at least for me...i feed out about 20 rats a week..
the food costs about 30 bucks a month
the shavings cost about 3 bucks a month..i use fir shavings from a landscape supply place
and i usually make about 30-40 bucks a month from selling the extras...it basically costs me nothing...just a little work for cleaning and feeding

It's far cheaper than buying live local rats, but is it cheaper than buying a large quantity of frozen rats from someone like G&G?

Probably it is cheaper to raise your own, as long as you don't let costs get out of hand.

DeMak