The Live vs F/T debate

[Daigga]

I feel like the people with the strongest stance against feeding live are probably also either vegetarian, or at least concerned with the welfare of the animals they eat and search out more ethical sources. Or I'd hope so at least. So your point of "you think this is bad? well here are some other things that are bad!" is not a very effective one.

It does, however, highlight the point I brought up earlier, which is that the way the animals are kept and treated while they are alive is a thousand times more relevant than how they are dispatched, since that part is very quick either way. I have seen some rodent breeding operations where half a dozen or more adult rats are kept together in a poorly ventilated ten gallon tank or tub and fed nothing but those corn by-product "rat pellets." That should be far more concerning than people feeding live. From browsing that area of the forum, I get the impression that most rodent breeders on here have more ethical set-ups, but I have to wonder if that's the majority.

The good news is setups like what you described don't last long at all. One of the first things you are warned about housing multiple rats together is that if adequate space and food are not provided, they are not above eating their cage mates. Rodent breeding can be tricky if for no other reason than any issue at all will result in cannibalization in a heart beat. I once lost an entire litter of pups because I didn't realize a water nipple had failed, and that was only for a few days. Lesson learned and I check all my plumbing daily now, but it goes to show you that the minimums absolutely have to be met for any measure of success to be achieved. Throwing half a dozen or more fully grown rats in a 10 gallon tank with less than ideal food is a quick way to end up with 2 or 3 very questionably fed rats.