Water bottle eaters...

[Aja]

Well, my rats are the infamous eaters of water bottles. They have gone through three. Apparently, when more than one rat wants to drink at a time, the other will be happy to just chew a hole right through the plastic.

I don't know what to do about it. They have plenty of things to chew on, wood blocks, those crunchy corn things etc, hammocks, tubes, a wodent wheel and the random paper towel roll every now and again. The water bottles I buy are huge- and never run empty.

Right now I just have a bowl filled with water, but admittedly its a bit of a hassle to clean it every day. Does anyone know if they make water bottles with full metal protected "sheilds"?

Thanks,

Aja

[JR1030]

I have seen such a thing at Petsmart, I think.  Apparently, it's a fairly common problem.

[mandycoot]

Wait, is your water bottle on the inside of your cage? If not, how big is your bar spacing? You could always just put a small square of hardware cloth or sturdy plastic in between the cage and the bottle.

[deercreekrattery]

Instead of replacing your whole water bottle, you can use 20oz or 2 liter pop bottles.  Most 16 and 32oz bottles have the same size opening as a 20oz or 2 liter pop bottle.  Just unscrew it and replace the chewed bottle with that.  Pop bottles are alot cheaper to replace than buying a new bottle each time.  You can also make a hardware cloth tube that the bottle sits in so that they can't get to the bottle.  You can also cut the small end off a 2 liter bottle and slip it over the water bottle so that they can't chew on it.  If they start to chew, they'll get the pop bottle instead of the water bottle.  I keep all of my water bottles on the outside of the cages to prevent being chewed.  Even the most persistant chewers can't get to them. 

[ginger_fish]

glass bottles?

deercreekrattery, I love your idea that'd work great in a pinch

[KellyNZoo]

I agree on the glass bottle front. I bought one for my birds to use, and after realizing how AMAZING it is, I'm slowly switching all the rats to glass bottles as well. Easier to clean, much more sanitary, etc.

[Lmbswimmer]

Glass waterbottles - easy to clean, no plastic leeching into the water, etc....
You can actually buy glass water bottles through the amazon link on this site.  Shipping is fast, the brand is good, and they come in 2 sizes. 

[mandycoot]

Oh yeah, I forgot about that! I only use glass water bottles. I found them at Petsmart in the bird section; they're made by Lixit.

[trubandloki]

I always hung mine on the outside of the cage and never had a problem.

[reedross]

I always hung mine on the outside of the cage and never had a problem.

Ditto this!  They can't reach the bottle if it is on the outside!

- April

[moonsingingfreak]

I use the lixit glass bottles, and I love them... they go right in the dishwasher 
but yes, you CAN get water bottle protectors, althought if they are glavanized you can have the same stinky issues as a galvanized cage.