Breeding rats that are "pet only"

Did you tell them you would not breed the rats?
Did you sign a contract that the rats would just be pets?

If you can say "no" to both of those, feel free to breed the rats. The person simply told you he's against breeding and doesn't like people breeding his rats(other than him). That does not obligate you to behave according to his opinions.

If you say you won't breed the rats, while fully intending to breed the rats, then you're starting off lying. If you sign a contract to buy pet rats you won't breed, intending to breed them, you're lying and breaking a legal contract.

Legally there's probably nothing the guy can do even if you say you want pets and then breed the rats(depending on how it's phrased, some states recognize verbal contracts) and legally there's probably nothing he can do even if you sign a contract, mainly because of the amount of fuss and expense to actually hold you to it.

Morally, it's wrong to lie to someone. Would you like someone buying one of your snakes under false pretenses too? Or buying one of your snakes as a pet, then using it for a feeder to something else?

It's up to you, and what you say and how you feel about it. I've walked away from deals before when I wanted some cool rat to add to my breeding colony. I didn't buy some very awesome betta fish from a certain breeder who was really obsessively against anyone breeding out her stock(she wanted to be the only one offering her lines for sale, basically, about her making money), simply because I wanted breeding stock and was unwilling to start out with a lie.

No, I never said anything except that they weren't feeders. I never signed any contract.

I breed gerbils and mice. I used to care about who breeds my gerbils but now I find it great when someone wants some of my critters for their breeding. I once cared if people used my little ones as feeders, but after having a snake, cats and ferrets, I realize that going as food is just as important.

I once had someone ask me for two female gerbils and one male for breeding feeders. Though... I turned them down because they clearly didn't know the hierarchy of gerbils.

With rats, I plan on breeding for health and using the culls as feeders, like I do with my mice. The rats will be pets just like my mice.

I feel like if you bought them, and the breeder had the condition that you don't breed them, it's disrespectful to the breeder if you had a verbal agreement not to breed them. Ans possibly a legal problem since you would have to lie to buy them, and possibly had a verbal contract. I mean, the person wouldn't have sold them to you, maybe, if they thought you would breed them. -shrug-

But on the other hand, they do belong to you.

So it's really your own moral decision, that has no clear black and white necessarily.


Edit: I agree with wolfy. If you can say no to both of those things, then breed away. If you told him you wouldn't breed them, then don't. If you told him you wouldn't breed for feeders, then don't.

It seems odd to me that a "breeder" that is breeding for pets and feeders wouldn't agree to someone else breeding them. Did he/she say why? I'm thinking it may be just to protect their bottom line. Especially true if they got the colors / ears wrong... That means that breeding for color / type isn't as important to them or they just don't know their stuff.

All that said, if you didn't say you wouldn't breed, then you aren't obligated not to.

The closest / only breeder near me (2 hours away) has a strict no breeding contract she makes "adopters" sign, so I won't be buying from her.

I'd also say too, that if you are only breeding these guys for personal use (as your pets and as food) and not planning on selling them, then it shouldn't be a big deal either.

This is something I hear a lot from the rodent community, is "don't breed your rats under any circumstances don't do it". Part of it is probably competition, and some of it may have to do with the probability that new rat owners could go through a lot of grief with litters, temperaments, etc.

Then again, I'm not actively in the rodent community, so any input I have is mostly what I hear from friends.

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I'll be breeding only for myself until I get my rats to the point where I am happy with their health.

Idk, I breed for both pets and feeders. In all honesty more of my litters have been sold as pets than I have fed off.

And I personally could care less if someone starts a colony of their own with my rats. It's not like rats are hard to breed or there is a mass shortage of them anywhere.

The whole competition thing makes no sense to me unless you have some really spectacular line you are breeding and nobody else has them.

Let's face it, rats alone are not a "quit your job and retire on it" business. Too many people doing it and it's way to easy to do, for it to be a huge money maker by itself.


I like my Dubstep to go Wop Wop Wop Wop

Go ahead and breed them. You were sold dumbos, so if you are producing standard the seller can't claim you're breeding the same rats. He's liable for false advertising if he ever takes legal action. LOL