Adoption Policies

Adopting a PET rat

We are located in Grand Rapids, Michigan and will only drive ONE HOUR in any direction to help deliver rats. If you are further away than that, or unwilling to drive to us, please do not apply.

We breed Black Satin, Russian Blue, Dove, Russian Cinnamon and Pearl rats, and we focus heavily on those varieties. Please only apply to us if you are interested in those varieties.

We adopt babies in same-sex pairs, and prefer to adopt in same-sex trios. Rats are $20 each, regardless of type, color, or show quality.

All our rats are quality pet animals who are well socialized, loving and friendly. Show quality animals are often available as well.

We do not keep a per-litter waiting list. Instead we ask that you apply to our general waiting list. If you do not get an email in response that says the words "you're approved" then there was something in your application that needs further discussion. Until you get an approval response, you are not on the waiting list.

When you fill out your application, you should receive a response within 3 days time. If we respond to you with questions or comments about your application, those must be answered before you are approved.

Once you are an approved adopter, it is your responsibility to keep abreast of available litters on our website. Please do not request individual babies be reserved for you before the reservation date!

In general, we only adopt to persons 18 years of age and older. If you are under 18, your parent(s) must read and agree to our policies & adoption contract and abide by all requirements described in them. Households with children under 10 years of age should expect to be questioned, as rats can be fragile and may not be the best pets for small children.

Once you are approved, reservations are on a first-come, first-served basis.

3-5 weeks after a litter is born we will post a "Now Accepting Reservations" notice on the litter page. You may send in your choices and we will reserve them for you based on when you joined our waiting list. If someone who has been there longer has chosen the same pup(s), you will be required to pick a different pup(s), so it is best to send up to 5 choices, in the order you prefer them to be awarded in.

We reserve the right to offer you specific pups based on who we think will be the best match for you and/or your family. Please do not request specific pups be reserved for you ahead of reservation.

If an instance occurs in which your pup or the entire litter is no longer available (i.e. an accident, need for quarantine, etc) we will honor your reservation for the next litter that we have available.

Our litters have set themes and are usually appointed registered names before reservations begin. If you prefer a different name than is appointed but it is still within the theme we may be willing to change it.

Once you have been accepted to reserve a particular rat, you will see "Voice: Your Name" listed on that rat's listing on the litter page. At that time, you have 7 days in which to send me your desposit, which is $10 (half the purchase price of the rat.) We can recieve your deposit through Paypal to our contact email address. If in 7 days I do not receive your deposit, unless we have made prior arrangments, that rat will become available to other adopters. Once I receive your deposit, "Reservation: Your Name" will appear on that rat's listing.

If you back out of the adoption, your deposit is not refundable. If circumstances change and due to a fault of the BVR you cannot adopt the rat, your deposit will be returned to you in full.

We retain all ownership rights of any pup until a contract has been signed by both the breeder and adopter. By reserving a rat you are expressing interest in adopting said rat but you do not own that rat until a contract has been signed by both myself and the adopter. Last minute changes as to the availability of said rat are extremely rare but possible, and no guarantee is made until contracts are signed and rat is sent home with you.

All my rats are sold on NON BREEDING CONTRACTS unless arrangements are made beforehand.

If you need a referral to a veterinarian or have questions on rat care we will be happy to assist you for the life of your rat.

Picking up your rats

Rats are available for pickup the weekend after they turn 7 weeks of age. I will hold the rats for up to 10 weeks, provided we have made arrangements for this. I will not send rats home earlier than 6 weeks or later than 18 weeks. The earliest date of pickup will be posted on the Litters page.

Because I run a closed rattery out of concern for the safety and health of my rats, visitors may not enter the rattery. Pickup will take place in a public place away from the rattery.

I may arrange to come half-way to meet you, if you live more than 1 hour away from me. However, I will not drive more than one hour unless very specific arrangements have been made.

At the time of sale, a legal Adoption Contract (Breedable or Pet-Only) must be signed. No one will be sold a rat who has not signed a contract! If at any time you are found to break the terms of the contract for this or any other BVR rat you own, we reserve the right to reclaim all BVR rats in your possession.

We reserve the right to deny any person for any reason, even at time of pick-up, should we believe the placement is inappropriate.

Once your rats are home

We request that you quarantine your new arrivals from your household rats for up to three weeks.

We request weekly updates of your new family members for the first month. After the first month we request updates once every three months at minimum and more often if there are any problems. We NEED updates on our rats once they are in their new homes! Without your updates we cannot fully track the health and longevity of our lines!

If you move, change phone numbers, email addresses, etc., you must let us know so we have a means of contacting you for updates in the future.

If you must give up your rats in the future, or can no longer care for them, they must be returned to us. We must approve of any other home before the rats are placed with any other person.

We highly encourage you to contact us over the life of your rat if you ever have any questions, concerns, or just want to share something cute they've done! We love receiving photos and anecdotes as our babies thrive in their new homes!

Adopting on a BREEDING CONTRACT

Breeders need to fill out an adoption application just like pet adopters, so that I have that information on record. Again, you need to receive a response from me that says you are approved, otherwise you are not on my approved list.

We will only consider placement of rats on breeding contracts to those individuals we have actively known and conversed with for a minimum of one year. No exceptions. If we do not know you, then we cannot trust you with our bloodlines. Please understand that if you are new to me, then your initial contact will not gain you a breeding adoption, however it will open up discussion and getting-to-know you so that someday when I know you better we can discuss adoption!

I am willing to pet-place rats with breeders I do not know, if they have a good reputation and references from another respected breeder.

If you have broken another breeder's contract, have a bad reputation, recently broken quarantine and gotten SDA, had multiple accidental litters, breed multiple litters at once, or have over 100 rats, I will not adopt to you. I only adopt to people I feel I can trust - I have gotten very burned in the past.

You MUST be up-front about your plans from the get-go. Waiting until reservation time or pick-up time to say you plan to breed will guarantee a failed adoption. ALL my rats that are not previously approved for breeding will be sold on a pet-only contract.

All possible mates for a rat you have adopted from us must be approved before a pairing takes place.

All co-breedings with other ratteries must be approved before a pairing takes place. We will not approve co-breedings with ratteries we do not know or support.

We reserve the right to revoke breeding rights at any time at our discretion. Revoking breeding rights will include but is not limited to changing the rat's status in NARR from breeder to pet status.

Breeding contracts are non-transferable.

I expect to be offered second pick out of any litter bred from one of my rats. When I breed rats from other breeders, they will be offered the same.