Ok, so you might be thinking why should i buy a rat from a breeder instead of a pet shop, or someone who just had a random litter of rats??? WELL i hope you find these reasons convincing:

1. Breeders usually have 10x more knowledge on rats in general, they feed there rats the correct diet, have proper housing, keep records of all there rats, there pedigrees, births, deaths, and any health or temperment issues of any kind.

2. Pet store rats are most of the time bred by "Feeder Breeders", they are large scale rat breeders who only breed rats for REPTILE food, there is nothing wrong with breeding the rats for this purpose IF (and this is a big if) they are all housed humanely, they are fed properly, and treated humanely at all times in there short lives, and also killed in a humane manner, after all, snakes have to eat. But what this means is that the rats are typically not very friendly and will bite, they have not been raised in the right environment, as they have been bred to live very short lives, they can be prone to illness, and may even have deformities.

3.People who just have a "litter" of rats, from 2 pet store rats they have purchased, most of the time they are too young when bred, they are USUALLY not fed the correct diet, not handled quite enough, and they do not know anything of the grandparents, great grandparents history, and usually do not know anything about colours, patterns and coat types.

4. A GOOD breeder should offer ongoing support for the LIFETIME of the rat, and will help with any questions and queries the buyer has, a pet store usually wants you to just buy the rats and go away.

5. At a pet store, you cannot see the condition of the parents and where they are kept, or even if they have died, and most pet stores do not care for the rats very well, they have little knowledge on rats in general and are only in it for the money!