Welcome to The Rattery
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We have been avid keepers and enthusiasts of fancy rats since mid-2011, keeping them on and off over the years.
In October of 2019 we acquired our first breeding rats from close friends and fellow breeders Silver's Rattery and Pipistrelle Stud.
Later, in 2020 and 2022 we decided to import from the Netherlands, Belgium, and Hungary to add some less common varieties to the rattery and later outcrossing into our own lines.
We decided to start our own rattery with the intention to show our stock, but due to some personal set backs we only started being active on the show scene from mid-2023.
We are members of the LSCMRC and NFRS, and though we are not a registered rattery yet, we do hold a family membership and attend shows whenever we can.
Our rats have shown with success in both variety classes and pet classes in the UK, and variety classes in the Netherlands.
Fancy rats come in a huge variety of amazing colours and coat types, all of which can be found on The Rat Variety Guide.
This is a public resource built and maintained by our good friend over at Igloo Rats and is powered by the worldwide rat community and their contributions.
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We work with a few varieties, both common and uncommon (relative to availability in the UK).
Our rats have been exported to continental Europe and can be found in Denmark, The Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, and Hungary.
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We will only ever breed rats that we like, as our breeding projects are for ourselves and exhibition first and foremost. We don’t and never will breed for public demands.
As we breed for exhibition, we aim to follow the standards set by the NFRS as closely as possible.
Standards and varieties recognised by the society can be found here.
Some of our varieties, such and Velveteen and Harley, aren't standardised and therefor, can't be shown.
Our Varieties.
We aim to see consistency in our litters where possible. This means we generally expect to see the same variety in all of our kits and in every litter.
However, this isn't always the case. Sometimes there are varieties that require one copy of a gene, sometimes giving multiple varieties in one litter.
Recessive genes don't like to appear when you need them, and love to appear when you don't need them.
We are generally not fans of "rainbow" litters and like to keep track of the genetics behind our lines in an attempt to predict litter outcomes.
Below is a list of the standardised varieties we work with. These are recognised by the NFRS and are able to be shown in variety classes.
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Black
Genotype: (aa)
"To be a deep solid black, devoid of dinginess and white hairs or patches. Base fur to be black. Foot colour to match top. Eyes black."
Originally started by the husband half of the rattery and continues to be his main project. Simply aiming to breed the blackest black self without silvering or rusting.
This line is exclusively top eared and they are directly related to our Black Hooded.
Foundations of this line are from Sarah Cudbill of Pipistrelle Stud.
Silken
Genotype: (Sm)
"The coat on this variety should be long, fine, silky and held flat all over the body including the belly, although the fur here and on the head will obviously be shorter. Each hair to be translucent for approximately 2/3rds of it's length with the bottom portion corresponding to the colour of the variety. The colour of the translucent portion to be dependent on the variety; silver for selfs and pale gold for agouti types, the exact shade will vary with the variety (eg agoutis will be darker than cinnamons). The undercolour, muzzle and around the eyes should correspond to the colour variety.
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Both in dumbo and top eared, predominantly we aim for Agouti based and Mink based Silken. Making it a bit of a complimentary project to our Cinnamons.
We do see other bases such as Black, Pearl, Russian Blue, Russian Dove, and Marten. This is due to high number of recessives carried in this line. We hope to use our Cinnamons and Blacks as outcrosses to limit the variability of this.
Foundations of this line are from Rattery Strikon Gonafluf Kru.
Cinnamon
Genotype: (A*-mm)
"To be a warm russet brown, evenly ticked with light chocolate guard hairs. Base fur mid-grey. Belly fur as Agouti but of a lighter shade. Ears and tail covered with light chocolate hairs. Foot colour light brownish grey. Eyes black."
Exclusively in top eared. A firm favourite since we started breeding.
I think (I hope) everyone loves a good Cinnamon. Occasionally we see Agouti and Mink in the from this line.
Russian Silver
Genotype: (aa-bb-rbrb)
"To be a pale blue-grey. Faint light speckling or a subtle ticked effect (heathering) is usual for this variety and is not a fault. Colour to be level throughout. Belly colour to match top. Under colour to be as pale as possible. Brown, yellow or pinky tinges to be faulted. Eyes Black."
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Genetically, Russian Silver is the result of two copies of Russian Blue and two copies of Blue (of any shade) on one rat, resulting in a striking "Silver" rat.
Foundations of this line are a combination of Silver's Rattery, Pipistrelle Stud, Double Trouble Rattery and Rattery Strikon Gonafluf Kru.
Silver Agouti
Genotype: (A*-c^m*)
"To be a mix of mid grey ticking over a pale ivory ground, with no suggestion of blue or brown tones. Ticking to be darkest along the back and to fade down the sides to the pale ivory belly. Fur on the face to be lighter on the whisker bed and around the eyes. Eyes pink or black."
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Foundations of this line are from Sarah Cudbill of Pipistrelle Stud.
Hooded
"The hood shall be unbroken, covering the head, throat, chest and shoulders, except in the case of light coloured hooded varieties where a pale coloured throat and chest is permissible. The hood shall be continuous with the saddle (spinal stripe) which should extend down the spine to the tail, with as much of the tail as possible being coloured. The saddle width shall be 1-3cm, dependent on the size of the rat - it must be as even as possible and unbroken. The edges of the hood and saddle shall be clear cut and devoid of brindling. The white area shall be pure and devoid of any yellowish tinge or staining."
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Currently working with a Black base and exclusively in top eared.
Foundations of this line are from Sarah Cudbill of Pipistrelle Stud.
Variegated
"The head and shoulders to be of a distinct colour with a white spot or blaze on the forehead. Where a spot is present this should be centrally placed on the forehead, round or oval in shape and no bigger than the rat's eye. Blazes are a wedge shaped symmetrical blaze of white starting at the nose and extending up the face to the forehead. The blaze to cover the whisker bed and taper to a fine point midway between the eyes and the ears. Markings not to extend onto the cheeks or the eyes. The rest of the upper portion (back, sides and tail) of the rat's body to be white, evenly marked with patches and flecks of distinct colour, the colour to conform to a recognised colour variety. Underside (including belly, chest and throat) to be white, devoid of creamy tinge or staining."
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Currently in Black and Russian Blue, working towards Black and Cinnamon only. Exclusively top eared.
Foundations of this line are from Sarah Cudbill of Pipistrelle Stud.
We also work with some varieties who currently do not have a standard and cannot be shown in the variety section.
We do, however, believe it's important to get the rats who belong to these projects out to shows to raise awareness about these lovely varieties.
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Some of these varieties can be prone to certain health issues when bred irresponsibly. They have been kept and bred for some time, yet only a few healthy lines exist. This is simply due to maximising profits without care for the animal's welfare.
We have taken the time to import rats from lines that are proven not to suffer from the health issues associated to them.
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Velveteen
Genotype: (Cucu)
We started working with Velveteen in 2020 with some different foundations, originating from Karni Mata in Germany. We discontinued this line in 2022 in favour of working with foundations from a different rattery.
Velveteen works in the same way as Rex. It requires one copy of the gene to express, it can be doubled (two copies) but instead of a threadbare, hairless-looking rat, it become more plush and dense.
It cannot be carried (is not a recessive) instead is a semi-dominant. Meaning you only need one parent to be Velveteen in order for their kits to also be velveteen.
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We are currently writing an article about this variety, check back soon!
There are no known health issues associated with Velveteen.
Foundations of this line are from Rattery Strikon Gonafluf Kru in Belgium.
Marble
Genotype: (Mama)
Marble is currently being worked with by a handful of breeders in the UK.
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Tooth issues are the most commonly seen issue in Marble rats, this can be from malocclusion to weakened enamel resulting in broken teeth, tooth abscesses, and decay.
Thankfully, due to some responsible breeders working with this variety, we are now seeing lines with no dental issues.
We imported our first Marble in April 2022 and have had no issues to report. We heavily monitor our Marbles in their pet homes for any late onset dental issues.
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We are currently writing an article about this variety, check back soon!
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Foundations of this line are from Rattery Strikon Gonafluf Kru.
Harley
Genotype: (ll)
Harley is somewhat of a controversial variety in the UK.
It is a simple recessive, but one that when bred unscrupulously, can result in complete catastrophe.
A Harley rat should exhibit longer than usual hair and a complete lack of undercoat.
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Health issues commonly seen in Harley rats is an inability to process animal derived protein which then leads to an autoimmune response causing lesions to the skin. This can lead to infection and an overall painful existence for the rat.
It can be combated, in some cases, by feeding a diet strictly void of animal products.
Another issue seen is an inability to lactate, which is somewhat reminiscent of the Angora gene in ferrets (also a longhair gene).
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We have carefully selected a line that has proven to be void of such complications and have been working with Harley and Harley carriers since April 2022.
With this particular project, we select for the overall physical health of the rats above all else and we generally hold back every visual Harley to monitor for any long term problems.
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We are currently writing an article about this variety, check back soon!
Foundations of this line are from Rattery Strikon Gonafluf Kru in Belgium.
