This section is still under development, but will include a little bit about who we are and what our aims are. For the moment, the points below explain a little about how we keep rats and give a clue to where we are coming from but this section will be developed as we have time to work on it.

We have been keeping rats since January 2001, although have kept other small pets such as hamsters, gerbils, rabbits and guinea pigs for over 20 years.

We keep and breed rats as a hobby, and although we enjoy showing and breeding, they are all pets first. The “rat room” is a spare room in our house, and this is supposed to be where we keep all our rats and their things – or at least that’s the idea - we often seem to have a cage or two in other places too! We enjoy having people come and see our rats, and encourage anyone interested in buying kittens from us to visit in advance. Please remember that a request to see our rats is a request to visit our home, so you’ll need to fit in with everything else going on – for example, cage cleaning night is never a good time. We do not breed rats for profit, and the small price we charge is to help cover the cost of bringing up the litter. We will not supply pet shops.

We currently have around 30 adult rats. We will probably allow numbers to fall slightly over time, to allow us more time with each of our rats as they enjoy a lot of attention. Most of our rats live in groups of four or more. Most rats do not enjoy living alone, and are much happier if they can have at least one friend and it doesn't cost much more to keep two rats rather than one. I know of more than one lone rat which has gone from being ill and neurotic to normal and healthy after being introduced to new cagemates.

Rats are generally very active, and each rat requires at least 2 square feet of floorspace. We prefer to use wire cages as rats enjoy climbing. Most of our cages are large ferret cages although we do have some other types such as home-made cages and a few tanks for ill rats or does with kittens. Each cage contains a variety of toys, such as large tubes, cardboard boxes, ropes and baskets, plus at least one draught-proof nestbox or small animal "igloo".

Female rats (does) are generally smaller and more active than males (bucks). They can be more playful, and in our experience are easier to train to do simple tricks or come to their names. Bucks are lazier and more likely to sit on your lap for a cuddle. I think bucks may be more suitable pets for children as they are slower and more solid, but many families I know have started with does - it is really down to personal preference. Bucks and does have different smells, but as long as their cage is kept clean, neither is unpleasant or strong.

We use a rabbit mix, such as Herbal Alpha or Burgess Supa Natural as the basis of our rats' diet. This is supplemented with dry cat food, dog biscuits, pasta, rice, vegetables, some fruit and other healthy snacks. Commercial rat mixes are normally OK, but it isn't a good idea to feed mixes meant for hamsters as they are too high in protein. Young rats under about 3 months require higher levels of protein to help them grow. We provide this by feeding foods such as EMP, porridge, extra catfood and chicken. Does feeding kittens also have these extra elements in their diet to help them to provide for their babies.

We use a shredded cardboard horse litter in the base of our rat cages. This comes under many names, such as AndyB bedding, SafeTBed, Ideal Bedding, EcoBed and others. It is clean, dust free and limits the mess our rats can make by throwing their litter around (it doesn't easily fit through the cage bars). An additional bonus is that it is very cheap, at around £6-7 for a 20kg bale, which lasts 30 rats about a three weeks. We normally buy ours at a farm shop or from a friend, but it is possible to order a pallet of approx 20-30 bales online. In the past we have used Biocatolet as litter, but it is fairly expensive to use for a large number of cages. Biocatolet is a safe 100% recycled paper cat litter, available from Sainsbury's and some other supermarkets and pet shops. Bob Martins and Yesterday's News are similar products safe for use with rats. Any cat litters described as "clumping", containing clay or perfumes are not safe. Many rat keepers avoid wood shavings/sawdust as there are concerns that the phenols (essential oils) that they contain may cause lung irritation and liver damage. Personally, we both find that woodshavings irritate our own noses, and are also very messy around the house, so we would never use them.

We breed a few litters a year, concentrating on roan (husky) in various colours, such as agouti, black and chocolate We tend to wait until we have several reservations before breeding a litter, as we prefer to have good homes lined up for as many of the kittens as possible before they are born. This means that there can be a wait involved, but it is worth it - the kittens are handled several times a day from the day after they are born so are well socialised and tame. We only choose healthy parents with good temperaments. We have never culled, and have no plans to do so.