Blog

02 Aug 2021

Before we leave the subject of the social rat, I would like to round off with an overview of how the social resilience of a rat develops, and facto

10 Mar 2021

In the previous article, I listed ways in which rats are known to be social – essentially social behaviours.

27 Apr 2021

This article is the fifth in the Social Rat Series.

17 Feb 2021

Having covered the general aspects of social behaviour in article one, and social learning in article two we are now going to begin to look in more

10 Feb 2021

So, what is social learning? The Encyclopedia of the Sciences of Learning offers the following definition:

30 Jan 2021

We all know that Rattus norvegicus – the Brown or Norway rat – is a social species; colony dwellers who live within either hierarchical or

10 Jan 2021

So, after all our discussion about enrichment and how it works from a rat’s perspective – we are ready to dig down into the nuts and bolts of how w

21 Nov 2020

This is the fifth in a series of six articles about enrichment for rats.

07 Nov 2020

This article (article 4 in a series of 6) explores the role of the rat’s brain and reward systems when providing enrichment.

24 Oct 2020

Safety - the context of enrichment  

10 Oct 2020

Last month, Rachie's Ratirement Home was named as a Finalist in the JetPets Companion Animal Rescue Awards

03 Oct 2020

TD;DR: There is a condition common to patchwork rats called entropion, where the eyelids curl or angle inwards so th

26 Sep 2020

This one was clearly written with passion and exceeded my low expectations, but is still pretty outdated and doesn’t read like a book wri

19 Sep 2020

This article is the second of a series of six, covering the topic of enrichment for rats.

12 Sep 2020

This isn’t a story about neglect, or an accidental litter, it’s one that is bitter-sweet, and out of all the rescue stories there are, in some ways

16 Jun 2020

RRH is opening back up to visitors and volunteers!

04 Mar 2020

“If two are better than one, then four is the definition of perfect.”
– A Squeak Proverb

12 Feb 2020

There are many, many myths and misconceptions about what rats can and can’t eat.

09 Mar 2020

A cool piece of modern children’s fiction!

23 Feb 2020

Hoo boy, strap yourselves in for a laugh and a cry because this book has not aged well.

06 Apr 2020

This book is a pretty neat collection of rat representations in media and (mostly western) culture.

28 Jan 2020

Gong hei fat choy and gong xi fa cai, to all our friends celebrating Chinese New Year!

14 Feb 2020

This is an old museum booklet I picked up from one of my favourite secondhand bookstores;

12 Jan 2020

This book is an immediate favourite for me.