Fancy rats:
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are affectionate, playful, intelligent and clean
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are as jolly and matey as a dog and as mature and independent as a cat
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don't make much noise
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don't smell strongly or unpleasantly: even the bucks just have a faint smell like digestive biscuits (apart from a few individuals who have BO as an abnormality), and a Finnish lady called Dr Birgitta Edelman used to have a champagne-hooded doe named Luah who had such a pleasant, floral scent that she used to be passed round to be sniffed like a pot-pourri
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are very strong and hardy and are rarely ill
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nearly always land on their feet (making them much safer for a child to handle than a guinea pig or hamster which is quite likely to suffer a broken back if dropped - but one still shouldn't take needless risks, as I do know of one case of a rat breaking its back in the same way)
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very rarely bite
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usually have bold, steady, cheerful natures
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are gregarious animals who live in groups with complex social interactions, which makes them more interesting to watch than solitary species
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generally make excellent mothers, competent and sensible, and do not eat their young even if disturbed (though they may have a go at eating you)
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are cheap to buy and cheap to feed
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come in a variety of attractive colours, markings and coat-types |
