"Rats are as much fun as dogs and cats and very social," says Judy Gregerson, the author of Bad Girls Club. "They can also help with writing because they're good listeners and you can bounce things off of them when you need to. Dogs and cats get so much attention. But rats? Who cares?"

I dunno; I think Ratty's kinda cute. (Or was kinda cute, I should say; domestic rats have short life spans, and Gregerson reports that Ratty's no longer around to offer constructive silence during writing sessions...)