How to get a pet rat certified as a therapy pet?

Sandra: How to get a pet rat certified as a therapy pet?
My son is mentally handicapped & responds positively to the pet rat. He is now 39 years old & has had a pet rat most of his life. He has moved into a supervised apartment complex & they don’t allow pets. His doctor said that if we can get the rat certified as a therapy pet then they may have to let him have it.

Answers and Views:

Answer by Brenda
I’m a vet, and have dealt with this situation a couple of times, though with dog/cat.

Ask the head administration at his facility what THEIR requirements are for certification, and be sure to find out if there is any involvement with city or county agencies (e.g. health dept?).

I know that for dogs and cats, there are temperament testings that must be done by certified individuals and/or facilities in question. It would be pretty difficult to find a standardization for rat temperament testing, I’d think. If you were my client and your facility gave the ok of my authorization, I’d use my best professional judgment and go from there.

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I think it’s a great idea, what you want to do. I hope it works out for you and your son.