Post by Ratlet on Mar 23, 2009 15:13:57 GMT -5
I'm just copy-pasting this post from another forum as I feel it's an interesting read.
This Is Australia
First I want to apologise for losing my temper in previous posts. It's hard to watch friends receive rude comments and are denied for simply doing things the way we do here in Australia, or for being 14. [Name] prompted me to make this post and I hope it's helpful for you guys not in Australia to understand how our rattie culture works. I'll be adding to this post after I get feedback from some people here in Aus (I'm thinking about doing some polls and getting some feedback from Aussie rat forums and such).
Diet
Here in Australia we can't source Harlan Teklad at all. The closest country with it is New Zealand but we can't import it from there as it's destroyed on entry to the country. We emailed the company and they basically said the same thing, and told us they wouldn't send to us anyway unless we bought in bulk. Even if we could import it, it just wasn't financially possible for us to import it.
A lot of us use a variation of SueBee's or Robyn's Dapper diet. We make up our own mixes or use working horse feed (I'm going to get the ingredients and nutritional information for that, and talk to Lou Dux at BRR about her experiences with using it in her rescue). We advise against using prepackaged rat and mouse diets, so in that respect we're similar to the US/UK.
Inside/Outside
A vast majority of people in Australia keep their rats outside. This doesn't mean in the middle of the lawn at the mercy of the elements, but under a patio or verandah. If this is done, the cages are made snake-proof. The climate here is warm enough that we don't have to worry about them getting too cold, but in winter a lot of people bring their rats inside or put them in a more sheltered area (like the laundry).
We've all noticed fewer respiratory problems if rats are kept outside, and this is a big reason we do that.
Breeding with pet shop and/or feeder lines
Here in Australia we only have a small number of people breeding rats. For this reason our lines can become inbred very quickly (even when working with other breeders elsewhere in the country), and that's why sometimes healthy pet shop or feeder rats are used for outcrossing. The feeder lines here in Australia are particularly hardy and resistant to illness, so recently more feeder breeders are crossing over to become pet breeders and introducing their feeder lines with the pet/show lines. It's working really well so far.
I need to stress that pet/feeder rats are ONLY introduced to pedigreed lines if they've shown to be in -excellent- health, and have good temperaments.
We cannot import rats into Australia (we wish we could) and we can't even import straws for AI purposes. We have tried and were knocked back due to immigration and quarantine.
Quarantine
I think out of all the issues so far, this one will get the most hackles up. We do not quarantine rats in Australia. We have few (pretty much none) diseases that can be passed on from rat-to-rat or handler-to-rat. There is no SDA/Sendai. A while ago I went and did a lot of research about whether or not Australia truly was SDA/Sendai free, and it is to the best of my knowledge. We do not quarantine for Myco, either, as all rats already have it and there's no need to quarantine against it.
We are incredibly lucky here to be able to not worry about quarantine. We are eternally grateful it's not a problem for us, even if it means we have fewer varieties.
Edit: An Aussie rat owner wanted me to add that she quarantines because she buys a lot of rodents from pet shops and they often come with "hitchhikers" Mites and lice are the only things you really have to be careful of here, but they're easily treated.
Varieties
Speaking of varieties, here's a general idea of what we've got.
Colours
BEW - New!! Genetic problems unknown so far! Suspected high-white/lethal-white/megacolon risk!
PEW
REW
Blue - Bleeding problems
Argente
Silver Dove
Silvered Black
Agouti
Champagne
Dove
Silverfawn - Sometimes called "Amber"
Mink
Cinnamon
Topaz - Sometimes called "Fawn"
Buff - Sometimes called "Beige"
Blue Agouti
Platinum - I think?
Silver - I think?
Markings
Varieberk
Blazed
Irish
Hooded
Self
Bareback
Capped
Berkshire
Variegated
Downunder Hooded
Downunder Berkshire
Downunder Variegated
Coat Types/Sized/Misc
Standard
Carasilk
Silky
Silky Rex
Rex
Double Rex
Patchwork Rex
Manx
Dwarf
There's some talk about a siamese/himi litter from a BEW, but no one has seen photos and it's call secret squirrel, so I'm highly doubtful to be honest. It'd be nice if it were true, but this breeder has been incredibly secretive.
I've heard of one dumbo in Australia. A buck who went through the BRR and went to a non-breeding home. As far as I'm aware he was the only dumbo in the country and no photos exist of him (it was before my time)
This Is Australia
First I want to apologise for losing my temper in previous posts. It's hard to watch friends receive rude comments and are denied for simply doing things the way we do here in Australia, or for being 14. [Name] prompted me to make this post and I hope it's helpful for you guys not in Australia to understand how our rattie culture works. I'll be adding to this post after I get feedback from some people here in Aus (I'm thinking about doing some polls and getting some feedback from Aussie rat forums and such).
Diet
Here in Australia we can't source Harlan Teklad at all. The closest country with it is New Zealand but we can't import it from there as it's destroyed on entry to the country. We emailed the company and they basically said the same thing, and told us they wouldn't send to us anyway unless we bought in bulk. Even if we could import it, it just wasn't financially possible for us to import it.
A lot of us use a variation of SueBee's or Robyn's Dapper diet. We make up our own mixes or use working horse feed (I'm going to get the ingredients and nutritional information for that, and talk to Lou Dux at BRR about her experiences with using it in her rescue). We advise against using prepackaged rat and mouse diets, so in that respect we're similar to the US/UK.
Inside/Outside
A vast majority of people in Australia keep their rats outside. This doesn't mean in the middle of the lawn at the mercy of the elements, but under a patio or verandah. If this is done, the cages are made snake-proof. The climate here is warm enough that we don't have to worry about them getting too cold, but in winter a lot of people bring their rats inside or put them in a more sheltered area (like the laundry).
We've all noticed fewer respiratory problems if rats are kept outside, and this is a big reason we do that.
Breeding with pet shop and/or feeder lines
Here in Australia we only have a small number of people breeding rats. For this reason our lines can become inbred very quickly (even when working with other breeders elsewhere in the country), and that's why sometimes healthy pet shop or feeder rats are used for outcrossing. The feeder lines here in Australia are particularly hardy and resistant to illness, so recently more feeder breeders are crossing over to become pet breeders and introducing their feeder lines with the pet/show lines. It's working really well so far.
I need to stress that pet/feeder rats are ONLY introduced to pedigreed lines if they've shown to be in -excellent- health, and have good temperaments.
We cannot import rats into Australia (we wish we could) and we can't even import straws for AI purposes. We have tried and were knocked back due to immigration and quarantine.
Quarantine
I think out of all the issues so far, this one will get the most hackles up. We do not quarantine rats in Australia. We have few (pretty much none) diseases that can be passed on from rat-to-rat or handler-to-rat. There is no SDA/Sendai. A while ago I went and did a lot of research about whether or not Australia truly was SDA/Sendai free, and it is to the best of my knowledge. We do not quarantine for Myco, either, as all rats already have it and there's no need to quarantine against it.
We are incredibly lucky here to be able to not worry about quarantine. We are eternally grateful it's not a problem for us, even if it means we have fewer varieties.
Edit: An Aussie rat owner wanted me to add that she quarantines because she buys a lot of rodents from pet shops and they often come with "hitchhikers" Mites and lice are the only things you really have to be careful of here, but they're easily treated.
Varieties
Speaking of varieties, here's a general idea of what we've got.
Colours
BEW - New!! Genetic problems unknown so far! Suspected high-white/lethal-white/megacolon risk!
PEW
REW
Blue - Bleeding problems
Argente
Silver Dove
Silvered Black
Agouti
Champagne
Dove
Silverfawn - Sometimes called "Amber"
Mink
Cinnamon
Topaz - Sometimes called "Fawn"
Buff - Sometimes called "Beige"
Blue Agouti
Platinum - I think?
Silver - I think?
Markings
Varieberk
Blazed
Irish
Hooded
Self
Bareback
Capped
Berkshire
Variegated
Downunder Hooded
Downunder Berkshire
Downunder Variegated
Coat Types/Sized/Misc
Standard
Carasilk
Silky
Silky Rex
Rex
Double Rex
Patchwork Rex
Manx
Dwarf
There's some talk about a siamese/himi litter from a BEW, but no one has seen photos and it's call secret squirrel, so I'm highly doubtful to be honest. It'd be nice if it were true, but this breeder has been incredibly secretive.
I've heard of one dumbo in Australia. A buck who went through the BRR and went to a non-breeding home. As far as I'm aware he was the only dumbo in the country and no photos exist of him (it was before my time)