Rats are clever and social animals that want loads of enrichment to be glad and wholesome. Naturally, we would like what’s greatest for our rats, and generally small modifications can considerably have an effect on their welfare and total well being.
Offering a great digging field is one in every of these modifications; digging bins are simple and low-cost to make however can present hours of enjoyable inside your rats’ cage or exterior throughout free roam time.
What’s a Rat Digging Field Anyway?
A digging field, also called a foraging field or a substrate field, is a container crammed with a diggable substrate that may be positioned inside a rat’s cage or exterior to be used in free roam time.
Dig bins are a wonderful means to supply extra enrichment for rats, because it permits them to have interaction of their pure digging and foraging behaviors in a spot they really feel snug in. Rats have a pure intuition to burrow for forage, shelter, and enjoyable, so a digging field gives them with the right space to take action.
Why Not Simply Add Extra Substrate?
Whereas substrate is essential for rats (and all small furries) to have of their cage, offering a dig field is a chance to supply a brand new, thrilling expertise for them. Including extra substrate right into a cage can solely present a lot stimulation. A brand new dig field crammed with one thing (rat-safe) that your rats haven’t skilled earlier than permits them to make use of all their senses to get pleasure from studying about it.
That’s to not say that substrate isn’t essential; actually, rats ought to all the time have a thick layer of substrate lining the underside of their cage always. Substrate provides rats a snug and secure floor to stroll and play on, helps to maintain their residing area clear and hygienic by absorbing pee, and encourages them to dig and forage.
We’ll talk about the perfect varieties of substrate to make use of to your rat’s digging field beneath.
Find out how to Set Up a Rat Digging Field
To make a rat digging field, you’ll want:
- a small container (ideally with a lid) equivalent to a plastic storage field,
- a drill or a knife to make holes within the lid,
- and the substrate of your alternative.
Step one is to drill or minimize a gap within the container’s lid that’s the right dimension for a rat. Subsequent, file down the perimeters of the opening, so that they’re good and clean. Sandpaper is sweet for this, or a lighter to soften and reshape sharp edges, simply ensure that your rats are nowhere close to!
Subsequent, get able to fill the container together with your chosen rat dig field materials. Be certain to go away a great hole between the highest of the substrate and the highest of the dig field except you need a number of mess to wash up!
Appropriate dig field materials consists of:
- Shredded paper (guarantee any ink is non-toxic and the items are sufficiently small to not danger tangling)
- Sterile coco soil that’s barely moist can be an excellent choice for holding burrow buildings in naturalistic cages
- Coconut husk bedding (ensure that it’s not too fibrous as this additionally dangers tangling)
- Shredded or squared cardboard (nice for digging)
- Compost combine, 60% compost, 40% sand is an efficient choice in line with Isamu Rats (don’t use something that’s been exterior already or that has pesticides or chemical compounds added), natural is greatest.
- Paper bedding (equivalent to Carefresh), ensuring it’s unscented and pure
- Hay
The entire above are additionally appropriate for basic cage substrate and might all be combined.
That’s your fundamental setup for a digging field, however the great thing about do-it-yourself enrichment is which you can make it your personal! For instance, a few of the greatest digging bins I’ve seen are soil-based and planted with completely different rat-safe flora, which is all the time an enormous hit!
A Plant-based Digging Field
If you wish to add vegetation to your rat’s digging field, guarantee they’re secure. They’ll be nibbled, chewed, and dug up, so making certain they’re rat-friendly retains your rats secure and permits them to have enjoyable.
Rat-safe vegetation nice for dig bins embody:
- Wheatgrass
- Basil
- Cilantro (Coriander)
- Cress
- Mint
- Oregano
- Parsley
- Rosemary
- Thyme
Beneath, I’ll element the best way to create a soil-based, plant-filed digging field for rats to get pleasure from. These are nice to make use of throughout free roam time, as they will get fairly messy (attributable to all of the glad digging!)
- Step #1: Create the essential digging field, as talked about above. A lid is non-compulsory.
- Step #2: As an alternative of filling with paper or card-based substrate, fill the field with a rat-safe compost. Eco Earth animal soil is totally secure for rats to make use of.
- Step #3: Start planting some seeds, vegetation, and even small greens into the soil. Vegetation are nice for rapid use, however seeds equivalent to Wheatgrass can provide your rats some new shoots to nibble on.
- Step #4: Add some treats to forage into the field for them. You possibly can bury a few of the treats however hold some on the floor layer, so that they draw your rats’ consideration. We’ve included a listing of forage meals beneath, however mealworms and seeds are nice additions.
- Step #5: Introduce your rats to the field, and watch them dig, forage, and play!
As soon as your digging field is made up, it’s time so as to add some foraging meals for them. There are such a lot of forage-friendly meals for rats to hunt for, and it’s superb to see them utilizing their senses to seek out tasty treats hidden within the substrate.
Some choices for wholesome, nutritious forage embody:
- Seeds, equivalent to Chia, Flax, Pumpkin, or Pine
- Complete (shell on) unsalted nuts, equivalent to Hazelnuts, Macadamia, and Walnuts
- Grains equivalent to Buckwheat, Millet, Oats, and plain Popcorn
- Dried herbs equivalent to Mint, Oregano, and Rosemary
It’s also possible to embody a small quantity of their on a regular basis meals if you want, however a number of treats to forage, particularly for the field, will make it extra enjoyable! You’ll find a listing of all of the meals secure to feed rats right here.
Upkeep
To keep up the digging field and guarantee it stays clear and hygienic, you need to take away any treats and spot clear to take away poops as soon as playtime is over, and the entire field needs to be cleaned out weekly (or as wanted if it turns into dirty).
It is usually essential to control the vegetation and make it possible for the rats haven’t gnawed them to the purpose of destroying them! The vegetation are there to your rats to eat, so simply exchange any which have misplaced their pizazz.
Clear-up Crew for a Self-cleaning Field
If you wish to create a bioactive digging field, you possibly can introduce your personal “clean-up crew” (CUC) that may hold the dig field clear, and forestall mildew from rising.
There are particular creatures that rats can fortunately and safely dwell with that may keep bioactive substrate for you, with minimal intervention. Isopods, Earthworms and Springtails are invertebrates that may maintain any mildew, outdated meals and even poops within the dig field. Homeowners will nonetheless must hold the soil moist to stop it drying out, hold it topped up, and switch the soil round at the very least as soon as per week.
This final level is essential; bioactive soil with a CUC will be safely saved in place and maintained for months, however ammonia can construct up in any tunnels your rats (definitely) will create. This presents a giant respiratory hazard for rats; to stop this, flip the soil at the very least weekly to stop ammonia construct up.
Last Ideas
Rats are all the time on the hunt for brand spanking new issues to play with and new adventures, and a digging field is the right addition to their toy rotation. It may be made cheaply and simply, is simple to take care of, and above all, will be customized to suit your rat’s preferences.
Dig bins provide a novelty expertise that may delight them; I’m certain you’ll get as a lot pleasure out of watching them dig out burrows, forage for meals, and customarily have a good time as they do once they’re utilizing it.