Are you getting a standard, as in 18-20 lbs? Or miniature like 12-14 lbs?There are also toys, up to10 lbs.

Posted By Erinj09 on 07/01/2008 1:07 AM
thank you all for all of your opinions, it really helps, but then on the other hand it makes my decision more difficult since they are all great lol but i guess i will just have to find which is better for me.

oh, those that have both genders, are males a lot more bigger than femalte? i know it depends on the parents and litters, but i mean fr,m the same litters for example. just wondering how big of a difference it is. i am getting a standard, so i know the sixes vary quite a bit.

thanks everyone

dumb question, but is there a big difference visually between the different sizes? or are they decently similar?

 

Posted By winnihoohoo on 07/01/2008 9:41 AM

 

Posted By Erinj09 on 07/01/2008 10:49 PM
im pretty sure my pup will turn out to be a small standard or a big miniature, around in the middle anyway, or so. its not a big deal to me when theres "lipstick" i just ignore it and laugh a little lol, as long as hes not sitting right ther on me lol i really cnt see any deciding factores that make me want eiter sex, i am thinking about going with a female though, unless i dont have a choice and i have to get a male. guess i will just have to keep an open mind till i know what it possible lol

Posted By tiggarat on 07/01/2008 2:26 AM
males in general tend to be a little bit bigger than females...not a huge difference, though. I only have girl ratties (Deckers), but they are very different in build and weight...and they're littermates. Molly is husky (but not overweight), and basically has a tougher build...I don't know how else to describe it. Lucy on the other hand, is skinny and has a slight build. They're both 16" tall at the shoulders. Molly is 31 lbs and Lucy is 26.6 lbs...they just got weighed last night. You can't always go by the parents...their mom is only 22 lbs, and their dad is 26 lbs. The girls only had one boy in their litter, and last I heard, he was 18" tall, and about 30 lbs, so, yeah, a little bigger than his sisters, height-wise anyways.

I adopted Liberty who I am pretty sure had a Decker daddy.  She is a whopping 22lbs and has the "Decker look".  She looks just like Tiggarat's avatar!  From the same litter my sister adopted Shiloh.  They were the same size and had the same look then.  Now Shiloh has grown to be a mini like my Belle at around 13lbs and they both look different in the face than my much bigger Libby.  The stud my breeder chose was not used because they wouldn't "take" to each other so another one was substituted in.  My breeder had no luck getting pictures or much info on the stud used.  He MUST have been a Decker.  I have also emailed the stud's breeder with no response.   Do you think Libs is a Decker? 

As far as dominance goes, you are all so right!  I was thinking of the shelter dogs I have dealt with and we get primarily males who are VERY bossy and that's more with people than other dogs.  My girl Belle can be quite bossy - she tells my brother's ROtt when he can eat during his vacations with us! 

Posted By susieq on 07/01/2008 11:30 PM

 

I'd love to see some pics of Libby.  The one in my avatar is Molly.

It's hard to tell without knowing the dad's background.  Decker refers mostly to a specific bloodline, and ratties need to have a certain amount (at least 50%) of that bloodline to be considered a Decker...my girls are 62% Decker, for instance.  Assuming that the mom is NOT a Decker, the pups probably wouldn't be Deckers even if the dad was...the percentage simply wouldn't be high enough.  She very well could have some Decker bloodline in her, but with her littermate being so small, it's doubtful.  I think Libby would be considered a Standard sized rattie. 

Posted By Erinj09 on 07/02/2008 12:03 AM
i disagree, ive seen the lipstick many times when there wasnt a female around. sometimes it just comes out to say hi, but no one likes to say hi back lol