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Rats don't stink if you clean them regularly and use the right substrate.
Snakelove I'd still recommend it personally. It would just mean you need a smaller set up. Plus you won't only have two for long :)

That IS true that I won't have 2 for long, I'll definitely expand but I didn't realise it was still worth it if you breed rats only with 2 snakes. How much is the initial setup cost and the ongoing costs? For 2 snakes. What do you feed the rats? Coz I've been reading quite a few rat breeding threads and people kept mentioning cubes or something and I checked it out and it was only supplied in NSW or VIC and not in QLD. So what can I feed them?

Cheers,
Nick

p.s. sorry if I'm hijacking the thread.
 
So you guys think it's still worth it to breed your own rats even with just 2 snakes?

of course, i started breeding with only 2 snakes on mice and it was a huge saving since i was paying like $2 for fuzzy rats

its not worth breeding them

have you ever tried breeding mice/rats, have you ever kept a snake?
 
well ive got about 15 snakes and if you work out the cost of rat feed, bedding etc its to expensive.
 
Okay that just didn't make sense. Why is breeding rats cheaper when it's only 2 snakes?
 
well ive got about 15 snakes and if you work out the cost of rat feed, bedding etc its to expensive.

either your getting your rats for free or you have never really looked into it properly. I would pay no more then $1per week in food/bedding for a trio of breeders and their young

Okay that just didn't make sense. Why is breeding rats cheaper when it's only 2 snakes?

cost of buying rats far outweighs the cost of breeding
 
It would cost around $200 for a couple of breeding tubs and water bottles etc. You could get that cheaper depending if you want proper breeding tubs or just make your own out of storage boxes and some mesh. I don't live in Brissy but if you look for wholesale pet food suppliers they should be able to give you something. Cubes are the cheapest/easiest but if you can't get them seed/grain mix is fine too (just a bit more expensive).
For 15 snakes there is no way you could buy them for cheaper than you could breed them unless you know someone who can give you ridiculously cheap rats
 
i managed to pick up a professional tub for $10 with the water bottle which is currently what i use for my original trio and am using a homemade tub for my supermice colony
 
cost of buying rats far outweighs the cost of breeding

Ah okay. So since you're where I am, what do you feed your rats? Bedding? Would it better to pm you? haha I feel bad taking over the thread.

It would cost around $200 for a couple of breeding tubs and water bottles etc. You could get that cheaper depending if you want proper breeding tubs or just make your own out of storage boxes and some mesh. I don't live in Brissy but if you look for wholesale pet food suppliers they should be able to give you something. Cubes are the cheapest/easiest but if you can't get them seed/grain mix is fine too (just a bit more expensive).
For 15 snakes there is no way you could buy them for cheaper than you could breed them unless you know someone who can give you ridiculously cheap rats

I think I might just consider breeding rats more seriously. By the looks of it I think it's going to be worth it. I'm gonna give it a shot.

Cheers,
Nick
 
if you are going to breed rats and mice you have to do it properly i was breeding and supplying to a pet shop for a while. it was costing me at least $600 every couple of weeks for food. the tubs i had are wire tanners they are top of the line they cost me $20 per tub. Then you got the cost of your substrate if you clean them every couple of days or at least once a week its not cheap. For me its easier to make a trip out to liverpool to buy my frozen rats. $4.90 for a small rat you cant go wrong it works out heaps cheaper to buy they if you are shopping at the right pet shop
 
i started breeding rat when i had 2 snakes, and i now have 5, both needed to be fed large rats at the time. It costs alot less to breed/raise 200 rats a month than it does to feed 4 snakes. I sell my excess to my local pet store which covers my feed and bedding costs each month as well as feeding my snakes for free. To set up cost me around $180 for a 5 tub rack, bought 3 rats to start, bred them till my racks were full, just culling what i needed to feed my snakes. I now have around 70-90 breeders as well as what i am growing out and i still break even. The pet shop only gives me $5 for a jumbo rat, but sells it for $15 :S
It costs me around $120 a month to feed them and bedding is free as i use shredded newspaper from a local hotel
 
$600 a fortnight?? I pay $1.50 a kilo for my food so you must have had a ****load of rats.
Snakelove if you can start up for cheap (my estimate was obviously much higher than is possible) then there's no harm in giving it a go. The biggest issue is the temp. Too hot and they die, too cold and they don't breed.
 
$600 a fortnight?? I pay $1.50 a kilo for my food so you must have had a ****load of rats.
Snakelove if you can start up for cheap (my estimate was obviously much higher than is possible) then there's no harm in giving it a go. The biggest issue is the temp. Too hot and they die, too cold and they don't breed.

So what is the ideal temperature for them mate? It's going to be pretty hard for me to keep it under 30 degrees on really hot summer days. Should I still try?
 
If you use good food you will obviously pay more. i use top of the line food and worm the rats and everything its just to much work
breeding rats is a full time job
 
I live in the area of Sydney that got over 40 in the heat wave. I lost some but managed to save my breeders by making sure they had lots of water and putting frozen bottles in the cages with them.
Don't know the ideal temp (I'd guess low-mid 20s) but if you can keep it from going too far over 30 you'll be fine.
I check on them once a day to make sure they have food and water and change their substrate once a week. 2 hours work a week max for a small setup
 
I live in the area of Sydney that got over 40 in the heat wave. I lost some but managed to save my breeders by making sure they had lots of water and putting frozen bottles in the cages with them.
Don't know the ideal temp (I'd guess low-mid 20s) but if you can keep it from going too far over 30 you'll be fine.
I check on them once a day to make sure they have food and water and change their substrate once a week. 2 hours work a week max for a small setup

Awesome, that's what I also wanted to know. How much time needed to care for them as I have full time uni and part time work. It should be fine, we'll see how it goes.
 
Personally l don't believe it pays the average person to breed rats and mice as apart from the satisfaction l don't believe you can compete with some prices for example l sell adult mice for $1.50 each that are 9-10 weeks old thats just over 2 cents a day :jumbo rats [350+grams] for $7.00 each [in packs of five] that are 16 weeks old thats 7 cents per day for growing-up take into account your setup costs and ongoing feed plus the slowdown in breeding in summer because of the heat and l believe you will find it hard to justify unless you have a passion for it.....solar 17 [Baden]
 
Im about to start breeding rats and have bred mice in the past, simply because i cant find any cheaper options for buying them frozen. i will keep buying frozen chickens however.. i have found them to be much cheaper than equivalent sized mice in the local pet stores and my Bredli especially loves them.
 
Personally l don't believe it pays the average person to breed rats and mice as apart from the satisfaction l don't believe you can compete with some prices for example l sell adult mice for $1.50 each that are 9-10 weeks old thats just over 2 cents a day :jumbo rats [350+grams] for $7.00 each [in packs of five] that are 16 weeks old thats 7 cents per day for growing-up take into account your setup costs and ongoing feed plus the slowdown in breeding in summer because of the heat and l believe you will find it hard to justify unless you have a passion for it.....solar 17 [Baden]

might not be worth it for the average person to breed to sell in small numbers but for your own food needs its well worth it
 
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