Never Do's With Rats Never pick a rat up by his/her tail. Never neglect your rats. Never let small children handle your rats unattended. Never let your rats get obese by feeding them to much sugary, fat filled treats. Stick to fruits and veggies. (Although some rats still become fat even on a good diet, so keep that in mind. Genetics is a huge factor. If this happens there is nothing much you can do.) Never abuse your rats. Never leave your rats unattended with other pets no matter how much you trust them. Never tease people with your rats who are scared of them. Never force people to hold your rats if they don't want to. Never handle other rats and then come home and handle your own, without changing clothes and washing up first. This prevents the spread of sickness. Never let your rats have contact with other rats, without strict quarantining first. (See "Introducing New Rats to Your Colony" within this Guidebook for more information) Never keep your rats in harsh temperatures without doing something to help them through it. (See "Temperature" within this Guidebook for more information) Never use clay kitty litter, pine or cedar shavings as rat litter. Never force a rat to live alone, except for a few exceptions. (See "Introducing New Rats to Your Colony" within this Guidebook for more information.) Never make your rats walk on wire floors. Use something to cover them like linoleum or Plexiglas. Never use galvanized wire to build a home made rat cage. They can get zinc poisoning from it. Try to get a powder coated or pvc coated wire instead.