November 2011
Volume 5 Number 5 $5.50
It’s a Rat’s...we’re World... just living in it
PapaRATzi
Book Review
Hide n’ Seek
Just Desserts www.itsaratsworld.com
1
Plus ...
TTR Rat Chatter Morty & Max Announcements
Hello from Nathan & Brandi
It’s A Rat’s World!
It’s the time of year when all the big holidays start coming in one after another. For those of you that celebrate Thanksgiving you know it as the holiday when we stop and reflect on what we are most thankful for. What immediately comes to mind for us is you, our dear readers and all those that contribute to IARW. You are all a part of our extended family and we couldn’t do this without you and your support! We are humbled by your kind words and appreciate having other rattie fanatics with which to share a passion.
Nathan & Brandi Saxton Publishers & Editors
Contributors M.C. Abajian, Jessica Hymas, Natasha Matherly, Donna Borok Moss, Diane Newburg, Brandi Saxton, Holly M. Sherrah and Dan Wedeking Contributing Editors
Diane Newburg
It’s a Rat’s World is published monthly by Borealis Arts, LLC. © 2011 by IARW. All rights reserved. Reproduction of any material from this issue in whole or in part is strictly prohibited. Subscription rate is $39.95 for 12 monthly print issues or $14.95 for 12 monthly issues emailed as a pdf file. Please allow 6 to 8 weeks for new subscriptions to begin.
This month’s contributions to the magazine are wonderful as always, and we hope you will enjoy the very tasty recipes on pages 6-7 by Natasha Matherly. They are the perfect way to include your ratties in the Thanksgiving festivities or for our non-American readers, a way just spoil them.
Unsolicited manuscripts and photographs are encouraged, although must be on an exclusive basis. No materials can be acknowledged or returned unless accompanied by a self-addressed, stamped envelope. We cannot accept responsibility for lost or damaged materials.
If you like reading about what to be reading, than we suggest you read page 9. Diane Newburg reviews The Lab Rat Chronicles, an uncharacteristically gentle and humane study of rat behaviors.
Send submissions, subscription orders, and change of address to: itsaratsworld@cox.net
Also this month I’m updating everyone on the rattie goings-on in our household. We have added a new little bundle of cuteness to our mischief! I want to extend a huge thanks to Michelle Lindsey and her family for bringing Dakota into my life and for caring about a creature they knew nothing about. Michelle had no prior knowledge of rats, especially the difference between wild and domestic ones. So upon noticing Dakota running around in their backyard she took the time to research rats and learned that her black and white hooded markings meant she was a pet and not a wild rat out to cause destruction. Not wanting to see any harm come to Dakota, Michelle contacted Any Rat Rescue looking for help, and the rest, as they say, is...on page 10!
Printed with love and care by Zenith Instant Printing in Novato, CA Cover Photo: “Fall Festivities” By Brandi Saxton Cover Model: Piper
New Rat Children’s Book! Gus And The Lullabye is a true story of Gus, a very musical rat. Written and illustrated by Holly Gold and Gus The Rat, it is a perfect gift for rat lovers of all ages, children or adult. This "Tale Of Tails" is sure to make you smile from the heart.
www.itsaratsworld.com
$12 Includes personalized
inscription, and autograph. GUS AND THE LULLABYE
by Holly Gold and Gus The Rat
For inquiries & purchases, contact:
Holly7Gold@cox.net
2
ANNOUNCEMENTS & FAREWELLS Newbie Welcome home to our new little fuzzy boy. Wilbur joined our family this past weekend. I cannot tell you how happy it makes me to have a hairless back in the house! He likes to snuggle up in my neck and brux..... Lucky me! ~Wendy Bunten, Marshfield MA
Birthdays
Happy First Birthday to Lilac & Feather who celebrated in style with their own party cake which they shared with their friends Midnight & Cocoa ~Squirrel Manning, UK
Goodbye
Jailene (4-4-2009 to 10-14-2011)
Russian blue of color Dumbo ears defined Independent of soul Little Jailene of mine. Sweet was her heart and brighter were her eyes Little JJ, sweet girl, you will forever be mine. Be healthy once again at Rainbow's Bridge little one! ~Karen Grant, Simi Valley, CA
By Dan Wedeking
www.itsaratsworld.com
3
We’ re n ow o n
Rat Chatter
Fa c e
Letters To The Editor
bo ok
!
August Issue I want to thank you again for recommending The Exultant Ark. I really loved it and it made me think of all my interactions with wild animals here.~Laura Tukey, Auburn MI October Issue This seriously has to be one of the CUTEST issues EVER!!!! Those ratties in costumes are just so adorable, I want to kiss the paper!!!! ~Donna Borok Moss, San Rafel, CA Have a comment about something you’ve seen in IARW? Please share it with our readers and contributors, feedback is definitely appreciated! Send email to itsaratworld@cox.net Include your first and last name, and city and state or country.
www.facebook.com/martinscages
The Travelin’ Rat’s Monthly Status: October’s Rescue of the Month was: Small Angels Rescue, Inc of Frederick, MD smallangelsrescue.org. October’s Seller of the Month was: Sewing 4 a Cause www.sewing4acause.com They donated four rat houses to Small Angels Rescue’s raffle. Amount raised: $51.50 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ November's Rescue of the Month: LittleFurries Rescue in Browns Mills, NJ: www.littlefurries.petfinder.org http://www.facebook.com/littlefurriesrescue November's Seller of the Month: Animal communicator Gena Wilson is donating 10% of all November earnings to Little Furries Rescue. Readings provided for all your furry little creatures at a 10% discount to you as well. She can connect with your beloveds that are here now or in spirit. To learn more about Gena go to www.inspiredbyangels.com or call 301-441-4526 to set up your appointment. The Travelin’ Rat is a group that does “freelance fundraising” by going to different events, holding online promotions, and selling merchandise to raise money for animal rescues, especially ones that take in rats. TTR started the Seller and Rescue of the Month programs in February 2011 and hope to have a webpage and online store in the near future (currently TTR items are for sale on their Facebook page, Zazzle, and Etsy). They are always open to new ideas for raising money for animal rescues. To learn more about them, you can find them on Facebook: http://on.fb.me/q20mju
www.itsaratsworld.com
4
Bulletin Board
Contest!
IARW 2012 Calendar
! ! w Ne
ng a Cover T, IARW is havi E G R O F ’T N get those DO ember issue! So ec D e th r fo st es to start Conte e Yogies, it’s tim th ab gr d an t oking cameras ou R rats! We’re lo U O Y of es ur ct end in high snapping pi Winter theme. S or as tm is hr C a ur name, for ry photos. List yo ur bl nno , on try. ti resolu city, state or coun ur yo d an e m na t your rat’s tsworld@cox.ne Email to: itsara
Orders yours today on Zazzle: www.zazzle.com/itsaratsworld* Celebrate each month with the cutest animal in the world! And check out our other holiday items, they make perfect Christmas or Hanukkah gifts!
DEADLINE IS NOV. 28TH
er First place winn a will receive ted framed and mat r copy of thei winning cover. Second place ive winner will rece cal de one of our logo stickers.
www.itsaratsworld.com
ober Last year’s Oct ner. in W t Cover Contes
5
Or if you prefer one of our calendars from the past, they’ve been updated to work for 2012
the s In t a R E Kitchen A Rattie Good Thanksgiving By Natasha Matherly
o
Cranberry Apples
o
As children in school, we are taught that the pilgrims came over on the Mayflower, and after hard times had a bountiful harvest with the help of the Native Americans. After that harvest, they all sat down and had the first Thanksgiving. What history does not tell us is how rats also celebrated the first Thanksgiving! Human pilgrims were not the only ones who came over on the Mayflower; rats who also desired to exist as they pleased accompanied them. Tired of being forced to live in the filthy alleyways, as well as being accused of carrying the plague, they also decided to head to the new world. With the help of native rats, they were introduced to the pleasures of corn. Okay, I can't prove any of this, but that is no reason why your rat can't join in the Thanksgiving festivities. After all, this holiday has their favorite thing – food! They'll be giving thanks the whole time they're chowing down on turkey, corn, pumpkin – a few of their favorite things! If planned right, your rat can enjoy many of the dishes that you are already making. It is important to remember to go easy on the salt and sugar. I normally leave out the salt and let people salt their food to taste, so this is something to consider this Thanksgiving. If you are like me and like to use a lot of sugar and butter in your corn, consider fixing a small amount of plain corn just for your ratties. A classic Thanksgiving dinner consists of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetables such as green beans, deviled eggs, cranberry sauce, rolls, and pumpkin pie. Thanksgiving meals are usually heavy and that's something to remember when serving food to
1 can jellied cranberry sauce 4 medium to large apples 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger 1/2 teaspoon ground cloves 1 tablespoon honey 1. Peel and core your apples. Cut apples into slices and then into smaller pieces, if desired. 2. Place cranberry sauce, spices, and honey in a medium saucepan and cook on medium. 3. Once your jellied cranberry sauce is more sauce like than jelly, add apples and stir so that all apples are covered in sauce. If you want, you can add additional apples. 4. Allow mixture to simmer for 10 minutes. 5. Remove from heat and allow to cool before serving to rats. Can be served warm or chilled. This recipe feeds many rats! If you only have a few rats, you may want to freeze some of this for later, or help them eat it!
All photos by Natasha Matherly
Note: If you'd like to try this for yourself but find it not sweet enough, use 1/2 cup of sugar instead of the honey. This recipe is also good with pears.
your rats. Give just a little of each item. Some foods are best left off their plate. Mashed potatoes are high in starch, but if you must give them some, give only get a tiny amount and skip the gravy. Cooked green beans by themselves are fine, but a green bean casserole might just be a bit much for your rats. If you are having a casserole, think about fixing them some peas. They'll probably enjoy
Maddi samples the Cranberries Apple www.itsaratsworld.com
6
o
o
Mini Pumpkin Pies
1 cup pumpkin puree 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger Pinch of ground cloves 1/2 teaspoon sugar 1 tablespoon honey 1 egg 1/2 cup milk 1 package of Keebler Ready Crust* (6 Mini Graham Cracker Pie Crusts)
Mini Pumpkin Pie
them more than the beans anyway! When fixing deviled eggs, save a hard boiled egg for your rat! 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. They'll love it. I lean on the side of no when it 2. In a medium bowl, combine pumpkin, spices, sugar, comes to rats and mayonnaise. It's not that great honey, egg, and milk. Mix until will blended. for us, so I tend to stay away from it when it 3. Spoon mixture into each pie crust. Fill to about the top of comes to my rats. each crust. If you want to share some dressing with 4. Place in oven. It's easiest to handle these if they are your rats, think about picking one that has a bit placed on a cookie sheet. more to offer than your standard Stove Top with 5. Bake for 30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into middle white bread. Try a cornbread dressing or one that comes out clean. has rice. Oyster dressing is popular and oysters are extra good for your ratties. I do not fancy 6. Allow to cool before serving. oysters, and as I look back at Thanksgivings spent at my uncle's as a kid, I wish I’d had rats *The pie crusts can be found with the other graham cracker crusts, then to help me eat the stuff. Making your own usually in the pudding/baking aisle. dressing is always healthier, as this way you can control how much salt is used. When it comes to the cranberry sauce, you can just give them that or you can show them pie! Yes, you can have your pie and eat it, too, and so can that they are extra special by fixing them some cranberry your rats. apples. I made the human version of this several years ago Full of tasty food, it's now time for you to pass out and it was enjoyed, so when thinking about something just on the couch in a turkey coma and for your rats to fall for the rats I thought of this. They love apples and it's asleep with their feet stuck up in the air while dreaming of always stressed to us how good cranberries are for the more food once they awake. kidneys. The rats don't care how healthy it may or may not be; all they care about is that it tastes good! Come to think Natasha Matherly is an unhinged rat lover who lives in the wilds of Indiana of it, most people are this way. Luckily for our rats, we're with her many rats including the three amigos Gracie, Kali, and Maisey. She has there to watch their weight for them and keep them from an unhealthy love for hairless rats, and has been owned by them and their furred going back for that extra piece of pie. (Rats everywhere are counter parts for two years. She spends her days playing with her rats and complaining about how unfair this is! That extra piece of pie designing clothes for Mischief Boutique. When not being a slave to the rats she enjoys reading and being a geek. was theirs!) Apples already contain sugar, as does the cranberry sauce, so for this recipe I eliminated most of the sugar. Rats go crazy for the spiced cranberry sauce that covers the apples! I had more licking the sauce off the apples than I did grabbing up the apples to eat that way! Now, what would Thanksgiving be without pumpkin pie? Boring – so very boring! Sure it's Turkey Day, but that turkey can't hold his own without his wingman pumpkin pie to back him up and finish what he started. Last month, I covered how much rats love pumpkin and here I am going to throw some more at you. Well, I'm not actually throwing it. That would be messy and I hate cleaning up messes. So not throwing them, I bring you mini pumpkin pies. Once again, I have cut down on the sugar. I kept a tiny amount, but this pie relies on honey and the natural tastiness of pumpkin to bring out the awesome. These mini pies are so cute and just the perfect size for rats, while being low in sugar and keeping them away from your
www.itsaratsworld.com
7
By Jessica Hymas
Finn ~MC Abajian, Rescue, CA
Panda ~Donna Borok Moss, San Rafael, CA
The Extraordinary Timothy McGee
Gracie ~Natasha Matherly, Terre Haute, IN www.itsaratsworld.com
Sammi ~Donna Borok Moss, San Rafael, CA
8
~Holly M. Sherrah. Chatham, Ontario, Canada
Book Review:
The Lab Rat Chronicles By Kelly Lambert, Ph.D.
Review by Diane Newburg It was with some trepidation that I approached reading this book, having heard and read first-hand stories about the treatment of lab animals. I am happy to report that I thoroughly enjoyed The Lab Rat Chronicles, and found it to be a real page turner!
well-being and life span. When you face your next dilemma, you might well ask yourself: What would a rat do?
Behavioral neuroscientist Kelly Lambert, Chair of the Psychology Department at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia, presents her experiments with intriguing and often humorous detail. Dr. Lambert’s behavioral studies do not duplicate early ones where rats were kept inhumanely, such as being housed individually in wire cages with no stimulation.
Can this small animal teach us more about being human? Discover what we can learn about emotional resilience, good parenting, improving our health, courtship, and addiction. This fascinating book just may help you discover your inner rodent!
It surprised psychologists that lab rats taken home and introduced to an interesting and challenging environment performed better in tasks such as mazes than their confined counterparts in labs. When exercise toys were introduced, brain functions increased dramatically. In investigating why these intriguing animals (who possess about 90% of the same genes as we do), have the ability to adapt and survive a myriad of obstacles, she shares many of her experiments with us. According to Dr. Lambert, rats are blue-collar creatures who owe a good deal of their happiness to a clear-cut work ethic. Deprived of this, the rats soon start exhibiting the same signs of anxiety, dissatisfaction, and depression now afflicting many in our undemanding Western style of life. To beat these blues, rats are more likely to jump on an exercise wheel than take a pill. Imagine! The “whisker wisdom” the rats exhibit in their quest for continued existence is hard to dismiss. One study comparing “shy” rats to “bold” rats (as defined by their willingness to engage in new encounters) found that the bold rats lived about 20 percent longer than the shy rats. An important lesson here is that our day-to-day stress responses, in other words, how we respond to a new co-worker, computer program, or snarled traffic, have a noteworthy impact on our www.itsaratsworld.com
9
What will happen when Hooded and PEW rats are put outside (having lived their lives in a brightly lit lab room) on a half acre, including hay bales and a stream of water? Will they know how to forage for food and drink water that isn’t in a water bottle? Will the wild rat instincts return? What will happen if a predator (a cat) is introduced? What is the anxiety level of rats required to work for water, food, and light versus rats given all they need? (No rats were harmed in these experiments!)
Finding Dakota
My Boos:
By Brandi Saxton
Have you ever received a call out of the blue from someone asking you to help catch a domestic rat living in someone’s back yard? Well, neither have I, that is, until August 27, when the assistant director of Any Rat Rescue called and explained that a Tucson family had found a young domestic female rat living under their shed. As the only Tucson volunteer for a rat rescue based out of Scottsdale, Arizona, a good hour and a half away, it’s often my job to help when rat related issues pop up in my town. This was going to be a new challenge for me, and one I was hoping I’d be up for.
friend and not foe? Would she take this as a sign that I understood rats, prompting her to jump into my hands without question? Well, no, of course not, but she was most definitely intrigued!
In the past, I’ve dealt with some fairly stubborn rats who have hidden in difficult places, such as under my bed in the dead center where my arms weren’t long enough to reach, or behind a kitchen cabinet so far back that it would involve moving the stove and possibly tearing out a cabinet wall to reach them. Then there were the rats who were so quick that, no matter how fast I was, they always managed to dodge me and go running for cover even though free range time was supposed to be over.
When I arrived at the Lindsey’s house to feel out the situation, they showed me the shed where she had been living. There was a small hole underneath one corner, and when I got down on my hands and knees, I could see shiny black eyes, the cutest twitching nose, and long beautiful whiskers. Michelle, the mother, explained that the rattie was very sweet and that if you put your fingers near her face she’d chew on your nails or take food from your fingers. Without even seeing her completely, I could tell right away from her curiosity about people that she was clearly a domestic rat that had somehow found herself far from home. It seemed she knew that humans equaled food and possibly comfort, but she was in survival mode and truly too scared to come sauntering out like nothing was wrong. This was going to take some patience! Unfortunately, that first day, I only had an hour and half before my son needed to be picked up from
As difficult as some of those situations have been over the years, it always involved my own rats in my own home, so eventually, after much patience, they all were caught safe and sound. How was I going to catch a rat who was scared to death of everyone and everything and living outside under a shed at someone else’s house? As much as I’d like to be a rat whisperer, gifted so strongly with the ability to calm the most nervous rat that they’d follow me to the ends of the Earth like the Pied Piper, I’m not! I am like any other rat owner and it takes me time and patience to win over a skittish rat who isn’t so sure about trusting people. In this situation, there wasn’t much time since the little rattie girl in question had already been living at least three weeks out on her own in weather that fluctuated from 100 plus degrees to flooding, and her diet consisted of leaves and some crackers the Lindsey family had been trying to coax her out with and water from a sprinkler. I have to hand it to her, though, she was resourceful! This poor girl needed to be caught and given a proper home quickly. So, I gathered some fresh food, a bag of Yogies (of course), and what I hoped would be my secret weapon: a perfectly marinated hammock from my rats’ cage that was in definite need of a wash. Could the smell of all my rats convince this girl that I was
A
A
10
B
DC
B
DC
A
www.itsaratsworld.com
B
DC
A
DC
B
Nicole Lindsey and I trying to coax Dakota out from under the shed. Photo by Nathan Saxton
school, so if she wasn’t caught right away I’d have to come back.
couldn’t go back into hiding. She screamed at my sudden movement and darted back and forth trying to figure out what to do. At one point, she even tried climbing over my arm, which was lying on the ground next to her hole, but on the other side of my arm was a large rock blocking her path. Too scared to go anywhere else, she made the decision to start digging under the hammock in hopes of getting back to “safety.” That was just the distraction I needed because with her back to me she didn’t see my hands as they came in and scooped her up! It was crazy; it all seemed to go in slow motion, but in actuality it all happened in a matter of seconds. The poor little girl started screaming again, but she never tried to bite and I was not about to let go of her now that I finally had her. Michelle grabbed the hamster cage and I put her in. Our scared little rattie girl had been caught! Michelle and I threw our arms up in the air in triumph and gave each other a big hug. It was a very rewarding moment.
The dirty hammock was definitely helpful and our rattie friend came out farther and farther to get a good whiff. You could tell her curiosity was taking over. Her eyes bugged out as she stretched far to sniff the material that smelled like her kind. You could almost tell that she was thinking, “Rats! Where are these other rats I smell?” At one point, she even came completely out of her hole and I could see just how tiny she really was. My guess was that she wasn’t more than three months old. Just a baby! How had she figured out how to survive all by herself? How did she even get here? Did someone abandon her or did she escape from her owners? Were there other rats loose somewhere? I knew none of these answers, but what I did know was that I wanted to keep her. One look at that face and I was in love. I needed to take her home with me.
Michelle and her kids and I gathered around the tiny cage so we could all get a good look at this adorable troublemaker. I couldn’t get over how such a wee thing had survived for so long on her own. My rats wouldn’t have a clue how to deal with such a situation if they had the misfortune of finding themselves in it. Their lazy ways just prove how little effort they’d like to make in life. I’m curious if their laziness will rub off on my new little darling.
Although we got her to come out of the hole several times, she was just too quick to catch and none of us was quite sure whether she’d try biting if pushed too far. So far, she hadn’t acted as though she would bite, but it was hard not to wonder. Unfortunately, with my limited time, we didn’t catch her that first day. I left the hammock and food I brought for her so the Lindseys could continue trying to catch her until I could come back. Michelle also set up a live trap with food in it and a small hamster cage that she had borrowed from a friend in case the little rattie decided it looked like a home. After I left, I couldn’t stop thinking about her and even though she wasn’t mine yet, I couldn’t stop worrying about her. The next day Michelle called and told me that her daughter, Nicole, had managed to get our rattie girl out of the hole and into her hands. But when she tried to close her fingers around her, our girl screamed, startling Nicole, and so our little screamer got away and ran back to her hole and “safety.” Despite that, Michelle felt confident that when I came back we would be able to catch her. I had put a blanket in with my rats to sleep on so that I could take something new with their smell on it. Also, before I walked out the door to the Lindseys, I rubbed my newly neutered boy Brockton (I was hoping that since it was a brand new neuter that he might still smell like he was intact) all over my clothes, arms, and hands for good measure. I thought it might be helpful if I, too, smelled like a rat!
B
A
DC
A 11
B
A
B
DC
www.itsaratsworld.com
A
DC
B
DC
Michelle and I sat on the ground together in front of the hole with food in our hands. We tried to sit very still, thinking she might come all the way out for us. I laid the new rattie-scented blanket close by us, which grabbed her interest right away. It’s like she wanted to stay hidden, but felt compelled to find out where all the other rats she could smell were hiding. She’d peek out, go back inside, peek out again, go back inside and on and on until she finally got the nerve to come completely out. Knowing that she moved fast, I decided to shove the hammock I had left the day before into her hole so she
Moments after the big capture! She was clearly less than thrilled to be behind bars. Photo by Brandi Saxton Michelle agreed to start quarantine for me and I was excited about the new addition to my group. Now, I just had to come up with a good name! After much debate, I settled on Dakota after Dr. Dakota Block, a character from the ridiculously absurd movie Planet Terror. My other girls, Jules and Alabama, are named after characters in Quentin Tarantino movies and it felt only right to give her one as well. While Quentin Tarantino only produced Planet Terror, Dr. Dakota proves to be one brave chica, who manages to survive a zombie apocalypse. I figure if this little girl can survive a brave new world all on her own then the name Dakota is well deserved. I couldn’t wait to bring this spitfire home so she could start her next big adventure...meeting the other rats she had only been able to smell!
www.itsaratsworld.com
12