rattypes

DUMBO- A type of rat with larger ears, a domes head and a gentle disposition. Many people claim they are more docile than standard rats. They first appeared in California in the 1990's.

REX- A type of rat with curly or wavy hair. VERY cute!

DOUBLE REX/MOCK FURLESS- Sometimes the result of breeding two rexes together they are essentially furless with only patches of thin short hair. These rats are "undesirable" for showing purposes but make perfectly fine pets otherwise.

SPHYNX- Like the Sphinx cat these rats are totally furless, with not a hair on them except for their curly little whiskers which are OK for showing purposes. Very cute. They have a few extra care needs but are perfectly healthy and acceptable otherwise.

NUDE- to call a Sphynx rat "nude" would be an incorrect term, as nude rats are furless labratory rats who were bred to have little or no emmune system. Some leak into the pet trade but they are often VERY short lived due to their condition. Perhaps 6 months on average outside the labratory scene.

ODD-EYE- a rat with two different colored eyes. The more the contrast the more desirable for show.

MANX- Genetically tailess rats. There is some controversy over these little rats since some seem to display spinal problems and totally tailess females can not give birth with out c-section due to their spine. Also rats need their tails for balance and temprature control (rats can not sweat) so some people consider it cruel to beed these rats. So the debate goes on...