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16-year-old’s pet rats score an invite to perform for ‘America’s Got Talent’

Oh, rats!

Abby Roeser rejected an “America’s Got Talent” invite to perform with her clever pets, citing their skittish behavior around new people and unfamiliar places. But that hasn’t stopped her or her rodents from scoring thousands of audience members online.

Roeser garnered more than 125,000 pageviews on her self-produced YouTube video of Nami (the white rat) and Pepper (the black rat) since uploading their special tricks in early March. The Philadelphia native’s wild success has prompted her to get two more rats. And she shows no signs of slowing her training down.

Check out The Post’s Q&A with the rat aficionado:

Q: What made you decide to buy rats as pets?

I wanted to buy a guinea pig, however, I needed a pet with a shorter life span because I’m leaving for college in just a few short years. I decided to try rats, since I’ve never had them before.

Q: Do you have any other pets? Or have you ever had any other kinds of pets?

I had many pets when I was in elementary school. I’ve owned fish, hermit crabs, hamsters, guinea pigs, lizards, Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches, and a giant African Millipede. Right now I have a dog, a fish, two frogs (who I’ve had for over 12 years!) and my rats.

Q: How many months has it taken you to train your rats?

I began training my rats about seven months before I filmed the video in late February.

Q: How many hours a week do you think you spend teaching them tricks?

I train my rats about 1-2 hours each week.

Q: How did you learn about how to train rats?

I’ve always trained my dog. Starting in fourth grade, I taught him tricks like paw and rollover. Eventually, his tricks progressed into more advanced things such as agility courses. When I bought my rats I knew that they were intelligent, so I wondered if they could learn tricks the same way my dog did. I was shocked, however, when they could learn things much faster than my dog ever did!

Abby Roeser's black rat, named Pepper, feasts on a cracker.

Abby Roeser’s black rat, named Pepper, feasts on a cracker. (Facebook, Abby Roeser)

Roeser’s black rat ,Pepper, hugs her white rat ,Nami. (Facebook, Abby Roeser)

Q: Do you plan on buying more rats?

I am fostering two baby rats for a rat rescue, and I’ll be receiving them in a few weeks. I am supposed to be taking them temporarily until they can find a home, but I have a feeling that at least one of them will become a permanent member of our house.

Q: How much time do you spend with your rats each day? Do they sleep with your rats at night? Do they roam around the house?

Each day my rats run around my room for at least an hour. Most of that time I’m doing homework or using my computer while they climb all over me. I spend about 15-20 minutes training my rats a day. When they’re not playing in my room, they live in a large cage.

Q: What else do you hope to teach your rats? Do you have any specific goals for your rats?

I was invited to go onto “America’s Got Talent”, but unfortunately, my rats would be way too skittish to ever perform anywhere except my home.

Right now, I’m teaching one of my rats, Nami, to retrieve specific objects on command. For example, when I say “Ball” she selects a ball and returns it to me. But when I say “Leaf” she skips over the ball and brings me a little plastic leaf, instead. They also recently learned how to sit in a little car and tug the car along using a rope.

Q: Do any of your peers have a passion for pet training as much as you? Are you, for example, a part of any clubs that relate to rat or pet training?

I have no friends that share interest in pet training. In fact, most people are disgusted by the idea of keeping pet rats. My parents also have little interest in them. My mom was terrified of them at first and would shriek her head off any time she was in the same room as them. She even cried out of fear the first time Nami climbed on her. She has made great progress with them, though. She can now be in the same room as them with no problem, and she even lets them sit on her shoulder.

Q: What made you decide to produce a video of your rat tricks?

I wanted to show people why I love rats so much. But since my rats have only been around me their whole lives, they get skittish performing with new people in the room. Most people were skeptical when I told them about all the tricks that my rats can do, so now I can just whip out my phone and prove it to them!

Q: Do you plan on making anymore videos of your Pepper and Nami?

I plan to produce a video each time they learn five new tricks.

Q: Is there anything you’d like to add that you’d like people to know?

Contrary to popular belief, rats are not only smart, they are clean and playful! I have owned many pets in my life, and these little girls are among my favorites!