With A Little Help From Our Neighbors, We Care for Pet Rats, Wildlife, and Each Other. Thanks, Mr. Rogers! (7-5-18 #27)

Matt and Liz talk about the benefits of human friends to help care for pet rats when you travel, the benefits of our wildlife animal neighbors, and the benefits of Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood in our documentary review of “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” We also talk about the benefits of talking about mental health and getting treatment for depression and related mental health issues.
Ratty Topics – Plan ahead for how you will care for pet rats when you travel. It’s not safe to travel with a sick rat as the stress will make them worse and could be fatal, so make sure you have a reliable pet sitter who can administer medication if needed in case one of your rats falls ill before a planned vacation.
We have new foster babies! Welcome, Han and Lando!
Local Animal News – Liz is getting into native plant gardening and loved the book The Humane Gardener by Nancy Lawson which advocates letting your lawn go wild and native wildflower plants abound in order to restore wildlife habitat and save your garden veggies and prized flowers from being munched on by starving wildlife. We can all get along if we provide habitats and extra food for our wildlife friends and for an animal lover or anyone concerned for the environment, this is a great book with simple solutions for living in harmony with all living beings.
Nerdy News – Well, Mr. Rogers isn’t really a nerd, but we review the awesome documentary “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” We also talk about our own mental health issues and the importance of treating depression – and talking about it! If you are in crisis and a danger to yourself (or if someone you know is a threat to themselves), call 911 in the USA. 
Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-8255 / 1-800-SUICIDE
NAMI: National Alliance on Mental Illness. Helpline 800-950-6264 / 800-950-NAMI
The Trevor Project: Crisis Intervention and Suicide Prevention for LGBTQ+ or questioning youth.  The TrevorLifeline 1-866-488-7386
In other news, we are sad that Total Biscuit passed away from cancer (YouTuber and game reviewer).  
In happier news, Matt finally got an NES Mini (with an assist from Liz!)
If you enjoy our podcast, please consider supporting our two favorite charities.
Small Angels Rescue, Inc., is a Frederick County, MD based 501(c)(3) non-profit, no-kill, all-volunteer organization dedicated to rescuing and re-homing gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, and rats.
Extra Life unites thousands of players around the world in a 24 hour gaming marathon to support Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals.
Also, check out our Etsy shop if you would like to buy a rat bonding pouch handmade by Liz and visit us on Instagram (thenerdyratpodcast)
Email us questions and feedback at [email protected] !