Has anyone ever had a pet rat?

I know that many people like to keep rat as their pet. But I have no plan to keep a rat as my pet. I don't like this creature and I am afraid of it. Every night one rat come near my kitchen door in search of food. If I am not in kitchen it will enter inside and start to eat what it sees in front of its eyes. Beautiful pet animals are around us, then why do we want to keep these kinds of dangerous creatures as a pet. Rats are harmful because they spread diseases like plague.

Hmm...you can keep hamsters but not a rat. Rats, as we all know, carry diseases. Although they are intelligent and look adorable, I don't think it's worth getting sick, haha.

I have known of people who have had pet rats and really loved them. Here, they'd be cat food, I have some very energetic cats who would FIND a way to get to them, and that would be that. They have already killed 3 rats and a mouse that were stupid enough to get on a porch where it smells of cats. Darwin at work I say!

I don't personally have a rat, but I have a very good friend who has two rats. Both of these rats are very intelligent, friendly, and smart. They aren't hard to take care of, but since they are smart, you have to make sure they don't escape. And yes, they are highly trainable. They might bite, but generally they do not, though they also nibble just a little bit. They are very eager to explore and have no problems being held and handled.

I can not imagine having a rat for a pet. The closest I have come to this is having a pet gerbil. I am afraid if I would have had a rat for a pet a helping neighbor might have harmed it. Rats are not the first animal you would think to have as a pet.

I have a hamster right now and it belongs to the same family of rodents like the rat. My hamster is so smart and cuddly. I play with him and brush his long hair with a toothbrush. It's like having a puppy because when the hamster gets used to patting, they will stay put. The eat food buy grabbing them and they have this tiny fingers almost similar to human fingers. He also cleans himself so I don't have to bathe him. It's very convenient and easy to take care of a hamster.

My son used to keep hamsters as his pets. They multiply very fast. He was keeping them in his bedroom and once in a while he would release them and these little creatures roamed all over the places including going over his bed. When they become a colony their droppings become a problem. Before it become a health hazard, I forced my son to give them away.

my cousins had a pet rat before. actually many. they look cute with the mini clothes on, but many dont like rats. it didnt last though.

My first nanny job was in California for a family that owned a cat and a rat. They kept the rat caged and I took him out a couple of times while cleaning. He was very affectionate with me and the boys in the family really loved to play with him. One word of caution for any rodent owner, though. You DO need to keep their cage CLEAN!!! I have been around rabbits, mice, rats, hamsters, gerbils and guinea pigs and when their cages are not kept clean enough, the smell is nauseating!!!! So they are definitely NOT low upkeep animals. I would recommend cleaning the cages twice a week or more often to keep the smell down...and bathe the animal itself at least once a week!