Remember that the are very intelligent animals and can get very bored. One fun game is to put corn, peas and diced carrots (no beans) into a bowl of water for your rats so they can splash in the water and 'bob' for their snacks. This game is especially nice on hot days. It is a good idea to use a heavier dish such as glass or ceramic so your rats do not accidentally spill the water onto the floor. Do not use a dish that the rats could get trapped in and always supervise them while they are playing this game! Fill a shoe box or any box that they can easily climb in and out of (i.e. 6 inches or less in height) with grass hay (do not use Timothy hay or alfalfa as you are using the hay for the game but do not want them to eat a lot of it - read up on rats and alfalfa). Sprinkle some dried oats, seeds (unsalted) or other small, non-sugary snacks onto the grass hay and mix it slightly so that bits of snack can be found throughout the hay. Your rats will love searching for their favourite dried snacks! These are hollow, cage-like balls that allow you to put fruits and veggies inside the ball and hang from the top of their cage so that your buddies have to work a bit harder for their snacks! Oftentimes, the birds have better toys than the small animal section! Rats are known for their ability to take logical approaches to solving mazes. This is a great way to exercise your rat’s mental ability. You can make mazes and obstacle courses out of cardboard boxes or toilet paper tubes taped together.  Rats are climbers so try to stack the boxes up. Make sure the climbing structures are sturdy enough to not to collapse under your rats' weight. If you are feeling ambitious, try creating obstacle features like hoops, see-saws, ramps, weaving poles and tunnels. Use treats or moving objects to lead it through the maze. Rats will instinctively chase something that moves quickly so pulling a string or rolling a small bouncy ball will also work. Try tearing some paper into strips and giving your rat one piece at a time. It will grab the paper, stash it away and return for more. This will build trust by teaching your rat that you have and want to share treasures it enjoys. If you hide behind something, your rat might come looking for you and get excited when it finds you. It’s best to do this after you’ve hand-tamed your rat so it knows your scent and can try to follow it. Make sure you’re not too far away or it might get lost. Rats like to play in the dirt and will dig in your house plants if they find them. Give them a digging box full of sterile soil that will allow them to dig and forage without ruining your plants or eating a poisonous fertilizer.  Put a large towel or outdoor tablecloth on a flat surface underneath the box. You can use a shoe box or anything of similar size. Add soil to the box and bury treats or toys into the dirt. If your rats tend to get sick often, it might be best to avoid this game.

Summary: Make food fun for your rats. Another game that is fun for your rat engages their natural foraging behaviour and does not require constant supervision. A hanging snack ball is also a great way to engage your rats during snack time. Check out the bird section of your local pet store or online for fun games. Build mazes. Tear up some paper. Play hide-and-seek. Let it play in the dirt.


Dimples can occur naturally on the outer corner of the lip or further up on the cheek. Figure out which look you want and estimate the best place to make your fake dimples.  Most natural dimples fall near the natural outer crease line of a smile. To figure out where dimples like these should go, smile in front of a mirror and pinpoint the accompanying creases. The dimple should go just outside of the creases on either side of your face. For dimples that fall just to the outside of your lips, smile in front of a mirror and look for the smaller, inner creases that form just to the lower outside of your mouth. A fake dimple could be positioned along the inside curve of the creases on either side of your mouth. If you have a hard time keeping an eye on the spot, you can make a small dot with your eyeshadow applicator or eye liner pencil to mark it. This dot should be as small as possible to prevent it from interfering with the final look. Take a matte eye shadow or eye liner pencil and draw a small comma on your desired location. Draw lightly at first; it will be easier to darken your dimple later than it will be to lighten it.  Use a dark brown color for best results. Make sure that the color is matte. A glossy or sparkly cosmetic would not be suitable since it will make your fake dimples stand out too much and look too fake. Likewise, color other than a dark brown might also look fake. The period or dot portion of the fake dimple should follow the natural curve of your lips when you smile. Imagine an invisible, diagonal line connecting the corner of your lips and the crease of your smile. The intersection of this line with your smile crease is the right point for your period to go. Draw the tail of the comma directly below the period portion. This tale should be 1/2 inch (1.25 cm) or so long, and the curve should be about as subtle as the curve of your fingertip. Blend the cosmetic into your skin to make it look more natural. Start with a small makeup brush, applying even, rounded strokes that follow the curve of the mark. Fade the edges after you finish with the small brush by using a larger brush. Apply similar strokes with your larger brush. If you cannot achieve the subtlety you want with your brushes, smooth the mark in further with your ring finger. Use the ring finger of your dominant hand since your other fingers may not be able to apply the right amount of pressure for adequate blending purposes. You should continue blending along the curve of the fake dimple, rather than blending against it. Create dimples on both cheeks for a more symmetrical look. If the marks are too light and the fake dimples do not stand out enough, you can apply more eye shadow or eye liner in the same spot and in the same manner.  The right level of darkness can vary depending on why you want your fake dimples. If you want to wear them out and about, you should make them fairly subtle. Fake dimples that are too dark tend to have an obviously fake look. On the other hand, if you only want fake dimples for a photograph, you might want to consider making them a little darker by using several applications of eye shadow or eye liner. This is especially worth considering if you are taking the photograph in poor lighting. These fake dimples will show up regardless of whether you smile or not, but a beautiful smile is the icing on the proverbial cake and can take your fake dimples from “okay” to “glamorous.” You should also smile immediately after application for the purpose of checking your fake dimples. Take a good look in the mirror and determine if you have achieved the appearance you were hoping for. If not, do not hesitate to wash the makeup off and try again.
Summary: Figure out the right placement. Draw a comma on your cheeks. Brush in the eye shadow. Repeat as needed. Smile.