Ethic's and how we respect them!
Veterinary Treatment:
Any rat in my care that happens to become ill receives the veterinary treatment they needs. I will always try all options available to me to treat/stabilize a sick rat before considering euthanasia (PTS). Any euthanasia is done humanely by a vet, if and when needed. Many Common health problems can be treated at home, the most problematic one is Mycoplasma. As a breeder I always keep a supply of amoxi, Doxy and Baytil at home. A home emergency kit it also ready on hand if needed. For my vet needs I mainly go to Dr. Munn at Greedwood, Dr. Munn is an amazing vet who works closely with rats and other small animals.
http://www.drmunn.ca/Greenwood_Park_Animal_Hospital/HOME.html
Culling:
Jazzed Up Rattery does not condone unnecessary culling, there are 2 main forms of culling. Soft culling is removing or rehoming rats from a breeding line, hard culling is killing off rats. While there can be many reason's why culling is needed I think that all options need to be considered before hard culling is done, soft culling is a form I do condone with all my heart. Soft culling, if done ethically meaning the rat is of sound health and temperament can mean they live a long and happy life. Hard culling should only be done ethically and humanely!
Aside from this, I consider all of my rats to be pets first, regardless of their breeding potential. I could not possibly consider killing any of my rats for unnecessary reasons, be them young or old. All babies brought into the world at Jazzed Up Rattery are special and are members of the family.
"Rats have 12 teets, if the litter has greater than 12 babies, some babies will not be able to nurse. If some of those babies are runts, they may struggle to keep up with their larger, stronger siblings. This actually can have a permanent impact on the rat's life. In such cases, a breeder may pick off babies to help the mother and remaining babies. At this time in life, I'm ok with this. Part of being a breeder means not only caring about the babies, but also the mother - she should be well cared for and able to handle the litter. Only the breeder can determine what that rat is able to handle, because the breeder is the one who cares for her and sees her every day. No one else should be allowed to make that judgement."
-BWR (Black Wolf Rattery)
http://rat-breeder-confessions.blogspot.ca/2015/02/red-flags-updated-version.html
As Spock said "The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few”
Habitats:
Cages must be large enough for each rat with no over population, all rats should be given at least 2 cubic feet per rat. All currant rats in the rattery are in double critter nation cages, separated by sex. All cages must be free from mold, insects, extreme filth (Urine/scat), harmful clutter/items, etc. All cages must have access to clean food, water, nesting and litter box. All cages have a feeder bin to stop food food hoarding/wasting, this bin is metal and washed down weekly. Water bottles are kept out of the sunlight, refilled daily and washed weekly. Nests, which is anything from hammocks to baskets or houses are washed weekly or replaced weekly. Cages should be cleaned weekly, keeping them free from excess filth, food, soiled bedding etc. Cages should have hammocks, levels or other "up" space to allow roaming off floor level. Cages should be free from brakes, broken bars or other sharp or harmful objects.
Diet:
All of our rats are fed a diet based on the basic requirements for their needs. Currently all rats are fed Harlan Teklad, also known as Native Earth. It has been found to be the best way of supporting life and growth in rats is to provide the adequate food for optimal growth and defilement. Pregnant rats are fed on their usual diet but in unlimited amounts to support the growth of kittens. Once born, both mother and kittens are fed on an unlimited heavily supplemented diet of both dry mix with fresh veggies plus high protein foods such as egg, chicken, and other meats.
Handling/Playtime:
All of our rats are handled daily and get daily 'out time' to play out of their cage.
All kittens are handled daily from birth to ensure they grow up to be well rounded, friendly rats before they leave for their new homes. Daily handling is key to insure no health, temperament or other issues are relevent in all currant residents. We often use a Home-made Built 8x4x4 wood cage to allow the rats to safely play while being watched, how ever due to the cage being located in the basement we currently use our hall way until the weather warms up some.
Health Tracking:
In order to improve the health of our lines, we will ensure that follow ups on all kittens homed from us are carried out. This will enable us to ascertain the health of the kittens throughout their lives and allow us to breed towards better health for future litters. All our records can also be found on the NARR website (North American Rat Registry), we also offer this information upon adoption. On top of NARR, I also use the Full membership/program by Kintraks. Kintraks is similar to Breeders Assistant, both work wonderfully. However for records before 2014, they are either in paper copy or Exel work sheets. Sadly, as I can not judge rats myself who have been re-homed I do have to take the word of the owners. If I should get a report from one of my rats/clients I would ask for vet records to add to my information on the line, however this has not happen yet!
General Ethics in points:
a) To provide for each animal in my care an environment that meets physical, emotional, and psychological needs. Including but not limited to adequate living conditions, correct nutrition, proper bedding, socializing and needed health care.
b) To promote and encourage responsible pet rat ownership.
c) To personally begin and further my study in which increases my knowledge on the science behind breeding of Fancy Rats.
d) To maintain an interest in all rats, which are sold/re-homed from me regardless on the circumstances.
Breeding Ethics in points:
a) To be familiar with and knowledgeable of the standard for the varieties which I choose to breed and work with, including but not limited to proper coat, colour and temperament, and to use that standard as a goal in striving to improve the overall genetics with every breeding.
b) To breed only rats which are sexually mature, in good health, and are free from hereditary defects, parasitic infestation, poor temperaments, and communicable disease.
c) To be knowledgeable about the effects and consequences of mycoplasma as a disease, and strive to breed with the goal of producing an animal which is mycoplasma resistant.
d) To be knowledgeable about the causes of tumor growth in rats and to breed with the aim of producing a rat which is not genetically predisposed to cancer.
e) To discontinue the breeding of rats who consistently produce offspring who have a defect or disorder which is detrimental to the rats’ well-being, or temperaments which make them unsuitable as companion pets.
f) To provide a pregnant doe and the resulting kittens with the housing, nutrition, and care necessary to meet physical, emotional, and psychological needs.
g) To assure that every rat produced has the necessary temperament to make it a suitable companion animal.
Selling Ethics in points:
a) To not sell or otherwise place rat kittens less than 5 weeks of age.
b) To consciously seek the best possible homes for rats prior to placing any in new homes.
c) To sell only healthy rats who are sound in temperament and free from parasites.
d) To stand behind the condition and quality of all rats as represented at the time of sale.
e) To be sure the buyer is fully informed when selling an animal which has a known defect, health, or other physical condition or serious deviation from the standard.
f) To never knowingly sell a pregnant doe without fully disclosing the fact to the buyer.
g) To take responsibility for any offspring produced by a doe which was unknowingly pregnant when sold.
h) To take back or find a home for any animal whose placement is not successful.
i) To provide to a purchaser full instructions on feeding, housing, and general care.
j) To provide the new owner with ongoing support and assistance with problems that may arise.
k) When selling an animal to a novice breeder or fancier as breeding or show-quality stock, to provide support, advice, education, and guidance to assist them in achieving their goals.
Any rat in my care that happens to become ill receives the veterinary treatment they needs. I will always try all options available to me to treat/stabilize a sick rat before considering euthanasia (PTS). Any euthanasia is done humanely by a vet, if and when needed. Many Common health problems can be treated at home, the most problematic one is Mycoplasma. As a breeder I always keep a supply of amoxi, Doxy and Baytil at home. A home emergency kit it also ready on hand if needed. For my vet needs I mainly go to Dr. Munn at Greedwood, Dr. Munn is an amazing vet who works closely with rats and other small animals.
http://www.drmunn.ca/Greenwood_Park_Animal_Hospital/HOME.html
Culling:
Jazzed Up Rattery does not condone unnecessary culling, there are 2 main forms of culling. Soft culling is removing or rehoming rats from a breeding line, hard culling is killing off rats. While there can be many reason's why culling is needed I think that all options need to be considered before hard culling is done, soft culling is a form I do condone with all my heart. Soft culling, if done ethically meaning the rat is of sound health and temperament can mean they live a long and happy life. Hard culling should only be done ethically and humanely!
Aside from this, I consider all of my rats to be pets first, regardless of their breeding potential. I could not possibly consider killing any of my rats for unnecessary reasons, be them young or old. All babies brought into the world at Jazzed Up Rattery are special and are members of the family.
"Rats have 12 teets, if the litter has greater than 12 babies, some babies will not be able to nurse. If some of those babies are runts, they may struggle to keep up with their larger, stronger siblings. This actually can have a permanent impact on the rat's life. In such cases, a breeder may pick off babies to help the mother and remaining babies. At this time in life, I'm ok with this. Part of being a breeder means not only caring about the babies, but also the mother - she should be well cared for and able to handle the litter. Only the breeder can determine what that rat is able to handle, because the breeder is the one who cares for her and sees her every day. No one else should be allowed to make that judgement."
-BWR (Black Wolf Rattery)
http://rat-breeder-confessions.blogspot.ca/2015/02/red-flags-updated-version.html
As Spock said "The Needs of the Many Outweigh the Needs of the Few”
Habitats:
Cages must be large enough for each rat with no over population, all rats should be given at least 2 cubic feet per rat. All currant rats in the rattery are in double critter nation cages, separated by sex. All cages must be free from mold, insects, extreme filth (Urine/scat), harmful clutter/items, etc. All cages must have access to clean food, water, nesting and litter box. All cages have a feeder bin to stop food food hoarding/wasting, this bin is metal and washed down weekly. Water bottles are kept out of the sunlight, refilled daily and washed weekly. Nests, which is anything from hammocks to baskets or houses are washed weekly or replaced weekly. Cages should be cleaned weekly, keeping them free from excess filth, food, soiled bedding etc. Cages should have hammocks, levels or other "up" space to allow roaming off floor level. Cages should be free from brakes, broken bars or other sharp or harmful objects.
Diet:
All of our rats are fed a diet based on the basic requirements for their needs. Currently all rats are fed Harlan Teklad, also known as Native Earth. It has been found to be the best way of supporting life and growth in rats is to provide the adequate food for optimal growth and defilement. Pregnant rats are fed on their usual diet but in unlimited amounts to support the growth of kittens. Once born, both mother and kittens are fed on an unlimited heavily supplemented diet of both dry mix with fresh veggies plus high protein foods such as egg, chicken, and other meats.
Handling/Playtime:
All of our rats are handled daily and get daily 'out time' to play out of their cage.
All kittens are handled daily from birth to ensure they grow up to be well rounded, friendly rats before they leave for their new homes. Daily handling is key to insure no health, temperament or other issues are relevent in all currant residents. We often use a Home-made Built 8x4x4 wood cage to allow the rats to safely play while being watched, how ever due to the cage being located in the basement we currently use our hall way until the weather warms up some.
Health Tracking:
In order to improve the health of our lines, we will ensure that follow ups on all kittens homed from us are carried out. This will enable us to ascertain the health of the kittens throughout their lives and allow us to breed towards better health for future litters. All our records can also be found on the NARR website (North American Rat Registry), we also offer this information upon adoption. On top of NARR, I also use the Full membership/program by Kintraks. Kintraks is similar to Breeders Assistant, both work wonderfully. However for records before 2014, they are either in paper copy or Exel work sheets. Sadly, as I can not judge rats myself who have been re-homed I do have to take the word of the owners. If I should get a report from one of my rats/clients I would ask for vet records to add to my information on the line, however this has not happen yet!
General Ethics in points:
a) To provide for each animal in my care an environment that meets physical, emotional, and psychological needs. Including but not limited to adequate living conditions, correct nutrition, proper bedding, socializing and needed health care.
b) To promote and encourage responsible pet rat ownership.
c) To personally begin and further my study in which increases my knowledge on the science behind breeding of Fancy Rats.
d) To maintain an interest in all rats, which are sold/re-homed from me regardless on the circumstances.
Breeding Ethics in points:
a) To be familiar with and knowledgeable of the standard for the varieties which I choose to breed and work with, including but not limited to proper coat, colour and temperament, and to use that standard as a goal in striving to improve the overall genetics with every breeding.
b) To breed only rats which are sexually mature, in good health, and are free from hereditary defects, parasitic infestation, poor temperaments, and communicable disease.
c) To be knowledgeable about the effects and consequences of mycoplasma as a disease, and strive to breed with the goal of producing an animal which is mycoplasma resistant.
d) To be knowledgeable about the causes of tumor growth in rats and to breed with the aim of producing a rat which is not genetically predisposed to cancer.
e) To discontinue the breeding of rats who consistently produce offspring who have a defect or disorder which is detrimental to the rats’ well-being, or temperaments which make them unsuitable as companion pets.
f) To provide a pregnant doe and the resulting kittens with the housing, nutrition, and care necessary to meet physical, emotional, and psychological needs.
g) To assure that every rat produced has the necessary temperament to make it a suitable companion animal.
Selling Ethics in points:
a) To not sell or otherwise place rat kittens less than 5 weeks of age.
b) To consciously seek the best possible homes for rats prior to placing any in new homes.
c) To sell only healthy rats who are sound in temperament and free from parasites.
d) To stand behind the condition and quality of all rats as represented at the time of sale.
e) To be sure the buyer is fully informed when selling an animal which has a known defect, health, or other physical condition or serious deviation from the standard.
f) To never knowingly sell a pregnant doe without fully disclosing the fact to the buyer.
g) To take responsibility for any offspring produced by a doe which was unknowingly pregnant when sold.
h) To take back or find a home for any animal whose placement is not successful.
i) To provide to a purchaser full instructions on feeding, housing, and general care.
j) To provide the new owner with ongoing support and assistance with problems that may arise.
k) When selling an animal to a novice breeder or fancier as breeding or show-quality stock, to provide support, advice, education, and guidance to assist them in achieving their goals.
© Copyright 2014-2016
Jazzed Up Rattery
All rights reserved
Jazzed Up Rattery
All rights reserved