Posted by JM on May 12, 2003 at 16:43:17:
I just moved all of the rats and mice out to the garage. Mice have been out there for over a month now, but I finally had enough of the whining about smell, so I moved the rats. (Yes, I do keep very clean cages, but try explaining to the guy who earns the mortgage payment that what he smells is Alph-Alpha, not rat piss~ Geeze, he claims he "Smells" them on cleaning day!)
I have a few questions though~ It is about 80F today,(and going to be hotter in mid-summer) and the rats already are all layed out on their backs looking like they are about to die of heat prostration.........they won't will they? They may not produce as well during the heat of the summer, but they will adapt and be okay out there right? (They are all housed in Rubbermaid tubs with the lids almost completely replaced by 1/4 inch hardward cloth, and I plan on purchasing a regular household fan to aim at the cages to keep air flow moving accross them)
Second~ I hadn't even finished moving them into the garage and I swear I was attacked by a swarm of flies! It was almost like the set of a horror movie had moved into my garage! And yes, the cages are clean.....Monday is cage cleaning day so I cleaned cages before/while I was moving them to the garage. So~ I know that some people raise rats in the garage or a barn....what can safely be done to discourage these nasty little buggers from harrassing my rats (Rats that already think I am trying to cook them, so I seriously doubt the flies are appreciated!)
Thanks for any help!
