How to Potty Train Pet Rats

If you have a pet rat, you know that these intelligent animals are easy to train. Pet rats can be litter box trained fairly easily. While younger rats tend to catch on more quickly, you can usually potty train a rat of any age which will make their living spaces much healthier and easier to keep clean.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Things You’ll Need:

• Litter box
• Ferret litter or kitty litter
• Clean bedding material such as paper, cloth or pellet bedding
• Rat treats

1. Remove all old bedding and thoroughly clean the rat's living space. Notice that rats living in enclosed environments typically defecate in a corner even if you do not potty train them. However, they do tend to urinate indiscriminately in their bedding.
2. Find the spots in the cage where your rat is eliminating. Set aside some of the droppings and wet litter.
3. Replace all the old bedding with fresh.
4. Fill the litter box with fresh litter and place it in the part of the cage where you noticed the most droppings. Add the saved droppings and wet litter. The location of the litter box and the familiar scent of his urine and droppings help cue your rat to "go" in the litter box.
5. Move your rat into the litter box whenever you see her starting to "go" outside the box. Get her to finish the job there.
6. Tell your rat "No" if you see her "go" outside the litter box but you can't move her into the litter box in time.
7. Move any droppings and wet litter you find in the cage into the litter box.
8. Praise and pet your rat whenever he uses the littler box Reward him with his favorite treats every time he uses the litter box.

Tips & Warnings

• Using different materials for bedding and for the litter box will help your rat learn the difference between his "living room" and the "potty."
• Some rats, especially males, will use the litter box for droppings but continue to urinate in their bedding. However, even a partially potty-trained rat means a cleaner cage.
• Some litters and bedding are more effective than others. See the "Resources" section of this article to learn more.