New to being an owner and to the forum. Hi! :)

Hi, I'm a new to the little rattie owner club of awesome!

My two babies are Jpeg (Champagne with Pink eyes) and Gif (White with light Champagne hood and pink eyes), they are 6 week old brothers that I picked up from a local owner who had a surprise pregnancy.


While Jpeg is brave and adventurous, Gif is shy and still nervous, I have Jpeg cuddling into my hair and shoulders while I'm trying to coax Gif out of the cage but to no avail. They love plain Cherrios so I've slowly inched him out of the cage but he is still jumpy, I'm scared I'm going to give him a heart attack every time I move towards him. I hang out with them for 3-4 hours every night so I'm hoping it will just take time for him to warm up to me.

• Is there an average time for this or is it purely dependant other personalities?
• Do you guys have any suggestions to try and calm him down?

(I only had them home for 6 days so I might be overreacting)

Also I have heard a little chatter from both of them Jpeg does it when he is nestling down to sleep or when moseying about in the cage sniffing at stuff. I only ever hear Gif do it in their little borrow after eating. I'm just scared is from them being stressed out, is there a way to tell?

Any advise would be awesome!

Omg they are sooooooooooo adorable, I have 2 males as well , the shyness is normal and as long as you treat them (obviously) with love and care it will reflect onto them and they will become more friendly and trusting each day. Some ratties may just take some time. 6 days is still pretty early. I do know that some ratties might just have anxiety but just give it some time. As for the chatter what kind of noises? If it's "bruxing" which is chattering of the teeth it can mean allot of things, you are correct that it can mean stress but if he's doing it in safe places like his home or before he goes to bed it's most likely a good chatter, like when cats pur. I do know they make rescue remedy for pets which is without the alcohol and is a herbal remedy to help calm animals down but I think for this guy it might just be good to let him do his thing for a couple of days open the door and let him climb out on his own with his buddy. Sometimes one might be the anchor the other needs, then when he's comfy with coming out try just placing your hand or something that smells like you around the cage so he gets used to it. But they're probably just young and away from mom and siblings. Hope that helped, they are super cute and I hope you enjoy the unconditional awesomeness these little guys will give! Welcome to the shack [emoji51]

One thing you can do is the 'down the shirt trick'.
Put on a tight shirt, and then a loose sweater on top. Then take your boys and put them between the layers. This accomplishes two things: it lets them feel safe in a dark, enclosed space and it gets them accustomed to your smells and sounds.
If they are still young, which they look, I would keep their out times shorter, perhaps 1/2 hour to an hour max. They need time to eat, drink, poop and pee often when they are young.
Welcome to the Shack! If you have a look through the threads, you will find all kinds of information.

Welcome! Your boys are adorable and you are getting great advice on socializing. The more they get to know you, the easier it will be.

Hello and welcome! I am new to the shack and just adopted two babies (one 4.5 weeks and the other 6 weeks). I also have two older ratties (that I adopted as adults) back home (my mom fell in love so they ended up staying lol).
All of mine were meant to be feeders and our two at home are friendly (one was an ex pet our other, who was always a feeder will come to us but doesn't want you to really pick her up. They were both full grown when I took them home). With the babies I kind of let them 'pick me' so I could find the little ones that wouldn't be too nervous coming home with me.
So I got lucky in that they both accept my company. I'm waiting for the real cage to come in so I've been keeping them in a rubbermaid tube and if they want to get out they have to get on my hand.

But its funny because my youngest (possibly because he doesn't know better) is fairly brave and seems to enjoy exploring even when a little cautious where as my oldest one gets jumpy but when scared he runs right to me.

I have been doing the sweater and shirt (mostly to keep them warm) and today was their first official full day with me and I ended up having them both asleep on my shoulder after playing for 40 minutes in my sleeves and running in and out onto my desk and back to me.

Of course I've been going to the best store for the past 1.5 weeks so they were kind of use to me before I brought them home. I believe that as long as you go slow you'll gain his trust it'll just take a few days while he's adjusting to his new home and you.

And I hope you don't mind me blah blahing about my own story, I hope it gives you some hope for your boy