# Self Sufficiency/Living off the Land or Off the Grid > Livestock and Animal Husbandry >  Rats!!!!

## chiye tanka

Ok, here's something I've been thinking about for a while, but first a little backround.
I used to raise snakes and in doing so, I raised rats and mice as it was cheaper then having to buy them. The point is, I know how to properly raise them to reach max production.
Squirrels (remember my spelling sucks and I'm doing good to even be able to use a compooter) are just big rats. One could raise rats and sell them for snake food and in the event of hard times, use them for human food as well. Just a thought, Nell don't blow chunks. :Innocent: 

Thoughts????

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## Camp10

Are there that many snake owners down there?  They were a popular pet but I honestly dont know anyone who has a pet snake right now.  As far as a food source, why not?  I've eaten mice before, this would just be "supersizing" your mouse dinner.

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## chiye tanka

Yep, FL's full of reptile owners, and I've got some great friends in NH that are one of the top private reptile breeders in the world.
My thinking is you can make extra coin and have a ready source of protien.

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## Camp10

Nothing wrong with cash in your pocket and meat in the freezer!

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## crashdive123

I've always made pretty good money with rats. :Innocent:

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## SARKY

I've been a rat rancher for 15 years now. The key is boys vs. girls. Girl rats will for the most part live in harmony with each other, at least once the hierarcy has been established. The males tend to fight with each other. So keep the males seperate from each other and the girls until you want to breed them. Keep them well fed and watered and keep their bedding clean and you will have tons of healthy rats.

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## chiye tanka

:clap: 

Crash there's a guy in Archer, FL who has two barns 100 X 50. One's reptiles the other rodents. All of it paid for by the sale of rodents.
I could live with that. :Cool2:

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## chiye tanka

> I've been a rat rancher for 15 years now. The key is boys vs. girls. Girl rats will for the most part live in harmony with each other, at least once the hierarcy has been established. The males tend to fight with each other. So keep the males seperate from each other and the girls until you want to breed them. Keep them well fed and watered and keep their bedding clean and you will have tons of healthy rats.


Sarky, how do you set yours up? I kept 1.2 for rats and 1.6 for mice.

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## SARKY

Well since I was working in the plastics industry, I made my own cages out of 1/4 inch acrylic. old leaking fish tanks would also work.  My cages run 2 sizes, 18Hx18Wx24L (all of that in inches) and 24Wx18Hx30L. What do you mean by 1.2 and 1.6?
When you first start out, stagger your breeding so you have different sized rat pups. Some people will need pinkies, others popcorn(hoppers), and finally adult ratties. Once you get the feel for what your clientell needs are you can adjust your breeding schedule to fit their needs.

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## chiye tanka

1.2 is 1 male to 2 females. I used to use racks from a company in Cali.
I rarely had a problem with adults eating the young. If I did, I'd just feed them of to one of the snakes.
This is the method the man in Archer uses and most labs as well. It worked for me for over eight years.
What do you feed them? I used zoopreen or lab blocks. My males weighted around a pound, even had one monster that weighted over a pound and a half.

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## rwc1969

I'd think rats would probably taste better than squirrels and might even be more tender as long as they weren't eating D-con or something.

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## sthrnstrong

Rats...the other other white meat!

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## chiye tanka

Dang! I thought there would be a LITTLE more input then this.

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## gryffynklm

Rat KAbob, Why not? Its almost a fast food in some places in the world. If they are captive bread, I would eat rat. Eat a squirrel (tree rat) why not. My neighbor goes hunting at squirrel season and puts the up in the freezer.  Squirrel breading in captivity??? 

Others have done it. Just found this. 
http://animal-world.com/encyclo/crit...relProfile.htm 

If eating town rat I guess I would want to live trap and keep them around a while to make sure they are not recently poisoned or rabid? Never really thought about rat.

Crash any Comments on recognizing rabid or poisoned critters? Sorry if this takes the post on a tangent.

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## Rick

If I see a rat, I'm callin' Crash.

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## SARKY

I would think having 4 or 5 females and staggering their breeding so that you will have ratlings at different stages of development would cover all sizes of feeders. Oh by the way, mine are pets and the illtempered ones go to the pet store as feeders.

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