Add to Favorites - Goosemoose Pet Portal

Sometimes, the answers to our rattie questions are complex and a simple solution cannot be found in a book or a web search. Sometimes, we just need to talk to someone else who understands rats - someone with more experience and insight. Sometimes, we want to help others by sharing our own experiences. And sometimes, we just want to have a place to share our rat stories, our rat problems, and our rat pictures with people who have the same passions and interests.

My favorite online rat community is the Goosemoose Pet Portal (http://www.goosemoose.com/rfc/). Goosemoose covers more than just rats, but its most active forums belong to the rat community. The rat forums consist of the following:

• Rat Care Corner - for topics regarding health and proper care.
• Home Squeak Home - for topics relating to cages and cage accessories.
• Rat Tales and Mugshots  - for posting pictures of your rats, memorials, rat stories, and anything that doesn't fit anywhere else.
• Adoption Center - for listing and finding rats available for adoption (strict forum rules apply)
• Pack Rat Swap Meet - Marketplace - for vendors of hammocks and other rat-related products to advertise their wares.
• Pack Rat Swap Meet - Classifieds - for listing of one-time only items wanted or for sale/free.

Members are friendly and helpful and most posts receive an answer fairly quickly. There are a number of extremely knowledgeable regulars that are available to help out with the more complex questions. The forums are always active - there is always something new to look at or read about.

This is a pet owners' forum, not a breeders' forum, and a strong emphasis is put on rescues and adoption. Thus, people seeking help with planned breeding efforts might be better served on another venue - although there are a few experienced breeders that do help out on that forum, and there is always help for those who find themselves with an accidental litter.

The Home Squeak Home forum includes threads dedicated to Martin cage setups, Critter/Ferret Nation cage setups, and other cage setups, so members can share pictures of their rattie homes and others can get ideas from them.

The Adoption Center is a great place to find your next rat. Several rescues and foster homes regularly post their available rats and many help with setting up rat trains so that even those who live far away from any rescues can have an opportunity to adopt. Members who find themselves with an oops litter can also use this forum to find good homes for the babies.

If you want to deck your cage out with cleverly themed hammock sets but you aren't much with a sewing machine, the Pack Rat Swap Meet - Marketplace will help connect you will someone who can help you out. Many vendors will accept custom orders and there are also pre-mades that are ready to ship available as well. And if you are handy with a sewing machine, and have been a member for 3 months and 100+ posts, you can set up your own marketplace shop and sell your hammocks to members.

If you are downsizing and want to get rid of some of your extra cages or supplies, you can post them for sale in the Classifieds section. And if you want to expand your pack and need more cage space, you can find deals on used cages and supplies here as well.