Rats are mad about toys, and certainly need them if their lives are going to be interesting and fun. Here is a list of toys I use, and ideas I have found on other ratty websites (see rattylinks.htm for more websites). Some of the toys involve food, but if your rats are fat (or "cutely plump"), you give them treats anyway, or you dont want them to get fat (if they're verging on it) or whatever reason you seem to feel justifies you not feeding them treats, there are suggestions for games you can play with your rats, cage accessories and other fun stuff for them to do.

    Food Toys

    Mail Box - Wrap some treats up in paper (maybe even sew it together [material envelopes don't tend to work - the rats can't chew through them]) and put them somewhere in the cage for the rats to find, give it straight to them, or even hang it somewhere on the roof/side of the cage for a challenge. I use this in my own cage, so it's recommended!

    Boxes - I put some dry rat food, mixed with sunflower seeds, dry cat biscuits, currents, nuts (walnuts mainly) shreddies (and other unsugared cereals) in some small round cardboard boxes I have, and put them in the bottom of the cage. The rats love them! It livens up their food, gives them treats (including healthy dry fruit) and gives them up to hours of fun eating their way through the extra food (and the boxes! [are they just being polite and finishing everything on their plates!]). Although mostly the boxes are spoilt, sometimes i can use them again. They arent expensive anyway!

    Toilet Rolls - Not only do these make great tunnels (see Toilet Roll Tunnels later), but if you put treats in the middle of them, and stuff the ends with tissue, the rats will go mad trying to remove whatever delicious eatables you hid for them, and then have fun randomly chucking the tissue everywhere. [Rats - who'd have 'em!]

    Nutty Necklaces - NO! Stop! Don't go feeding all your jewellery to your rats! So, ok, my titles aren't great (I can't be good at everything you know!) but the idea certainly is! Get a needle and some thread, and things like rasins (no, NOT rat poops - the currants!), sultanas, walnuts [really must be shelled!], more dried cereals (Cherrios really are great for this - shreddies just seem to snap - although they can be used [I do])...well, anything that won't rot, isn't poisonous to rats (see Rat Essentials), or would split as soon as the needle looks at it. Tie a knot in the end of the thread, thread the needle and put, at random, your collection of eatables onto the string. Cherrios can just be put over the needle, but things like walnuts tend to put up a little more resistance. Leave enough room be able to tie the thread easily when finished, and so that you can hang the 'necklace' onto the cage walls/roof. I put mine on the roof, just out of my rats' reach (aren't I mean!) and they were scrambling below it to reach the treats. It took about a week for them to finish it.

    Fruity Necklaces - These are really just the same as Nutty Necklaces, except that fruit substitutes the nuts etc. These should not be left out for more that 3 days max - fruit tends to spoil and start to rot by this time [how would you like a stinking rope with rotten food hanging from your ceiling for days!]. Also don't use soft fruit like banana. This tends to fall down naturally, leaving the rats with no challenge.

For both of the above ideas, please make sure always to remove the needle before giving to your rats!

   Pinata - Wrap some of the usual (rats stomachs aren't made off brass you know - there is a limit to what they can, and like to eat [although sometimes I'm not sure...]) dry treats in some tissue or paper, seal (with masking tape) and hang up on the cage walls/ceiling. Make sure you attach it firmly - rats' weight and strength sometimes surprise them...

And lastly...

    Pea Fishing - Rats overheat fairly easily, so let them cool down in style! Place some frozen peas in some cold water. Put this in your rats cage, or wherever you want it, and let the rats do the rest. My rats don't enjoy this (they really, really hate water!) but it is recommended by a lot of websites, and I can see how it would be a good idea, so there you go! You could also do this with other frozen fruit or vegetables.

    Cage Accessories

    Toilet Roll Tunnels - although not good for ever as they get spoilt by the rats, and most rats get to be too big, young rats will enjoy running through these cheap and easy playthings.

    Hammocks - There are a wide range of hammocks on the market. You can buy different types (so obviously prices and quality vary), or you can make your own. One way to do this is simply to cut off a leg from a pair of old jeans, thread two pieces of rope through it and tie up in the cage; another is to cut a large[ish] square of strong material, fold it over so that the top covers 3/4 of the bottom, sew up the sides and string/hook it up in the cage; or just use an old hat. Attatch it to the corner of the cage (with wire/paper clips/hooks) and put the rats into it.

    Lucky Dip - I thought of this one all myself, although I'm sure lots of sites do have it on [I didn't see it]. Its really easy. Get some dry treats (shreddies, nuts etc.), wrap them in tissue, and put them among some shredded/ripped up paper and tissue in an open box. My rats love it!

 Sponges - I put these, ripped up, into my rats cage to create obsticles for them. I put the boxes of treats under them, so that they have to search, and dig their ways through, and generally mess the whole cage up. [But at least they enjoyed it!]