Whiskers are such an amazing tool for the rat. They are at times, better than our hands and fingers, telling them what is before them. I have seen a rat move their whiskers from laying back against their head to forward to feel an object in question. When we touch something, our fingers connected to our brain through nerves telling us what is before us and whether it is hot, cold, soft, or coarse. The whiskers do the exact same thing for the rat but in more detail. As they are wandering through a dark crawl space (with terrible eyesight as it is) they need their whiskers to survive. Moving close to a wall, they can feel the tiniest speck of food, their whiskers constantly sweeping around on the surface, will kind of bump over the speck, triggering their brain to realize there is something more there. Something we would have most likely just ‘squashed’ if we rubbed our fingertips gently over the surface.
 
Further studies have shown that whiskers also contribute to the hearing of their environment. The vibrations from sound are transmitted to their brain through their whiskers. 
 
I always wondered what happens with the curly whiskers from rex and drex or even the hairless. I am guessing their exploring of the world is a bit more cautious as they navigate with a limited reach.  
 
Below are some great links to further read about the rat’s whiskers:
 

Some further reading:

• Rat Whiskers
• Whiskers help in mapping the brain
• Whiskers helping them hear

Part of our weekly health check includes a quick look at our rats' teeth.  This is such an important part of their health that is often overlooked. Granted to have teeth that grow so quickly they can't get cavities is great but what happens when they have malocclusion?  Considering their teeth can grow over an inch in one month it is so important to make sure they are not misaligned and growing at different rates.  There are some terrifying images on the internet of poor rats that have their teeth growing through the roof of their mouth or their jaw. This can cause terrible abscesses and pain for the rat. Here is a great example on Ratguide.com a tooth causing abscess. The younger rat starts to grow it's beautiful pearly white teeth at about day 9, after about 21 days, they start to show the yellowing from the iron rich pigment on their outer enamel. **If your older rat loses this pigment and start to look pale/white, they could have a vitamin A or E deficiency. It should be a healthy yellow-orange color in adult rats like Artemis above (with her yawning, you can see her three back molars as well.)  
We have one of our old men, Joey of OCRA (27 months old) needing a little TLC in the tooth department. For about a month I have been trimming a sharp point he keeps missing in his natural bruxing and gnawing.  The tooth appears to be growing even faster now that we have had to trim it weekly. Such a sharp point. Since this jutting point was in the back of his tooth, if I was not looking CLOSELY in his mouth, it could have been too late, causing some terrible pain/damage. I am very thankful he will let me mess in his mouth. Often the vet will need to sedate the rat to trim it. (The tooth can also shatter if you are not careful so please do not take on tooth trimming without learning from an experienced person.)

 I have included some great links for further reading on the tooth.

• RatBehavior.org  
• RatFanClub.com
• JoinRats.com

I was very hesitant to use Wish - heard it was addicting. The rumors are true!   I have purchased so many great things for the ratties off of it. My newest one was purchased to give me an alternative to having to wear a fleece neck pouch or hoodie for snuggles during the warmer summer months. I LOVE IT!  It is called the Hedgehog Hamster Breathable Pet Carrier Bags Handbags Puppy Travel Prevent Urine Bag - what a crazy title. I ordered the LARGE.  It comfortably fits my 800+ gram boy with a hammock laid on the bottom of it for more snuggle comfort for him. Right now with Shipping it is $5 total.  What a deal. The strap is easy to attach and adjust. The mesh on the Large, that was sent to me, is a hard plastic so no quick nibbles. Again, as with any fabric carrier I would NEVER leave a rattie in it unattended.