Rodentist
Well-Known Member
For Valentine's Day, Chaz and I rescued "Scabbers" from about two hours away. He was a lone male, scawny and covered in scabs He had next to no fur on his back. His owner couldn't keep him anymore. With a treatment of Revolution, and a diet of HT and veggies, the scabs are gone, and both his coat and body filled in. We also got him neutered.
Thing is, all of that hasn't changed is his behavior. He is GREAT with people. A little suck-up even. Unfortunately, he is not so kind to the other ratties. Hector has a shorter tail because of him, and he is just aggressive, aggresive, ESPECIALLY with other boys. Lesser so with the ladies. His nicknames around the house has become Rodo_ c _ _ bag. (For you hangman fans out there) and Eddie Haskel. After a day, the fighting lessened. The ladies actually seemed drawn to his jerky behavior (as so often we are) and were all flirting with him something aweful. Helicopter ears, ear tugging and running, hanging out with him if he was in a good mood. All of this just seemed to stress out the other boys immensely, there are five of them, slinking in fear around their own house, very skiddish where they weren't before.
We took him out, and after a few hours, when they realized that he was gone and not just waiting around a corner to beat them up, things were returned to normal. Except Hector's tail.
I figure, he was alone for so long, at least a year, that he thinks everything he sees is his. Combined with the fact that he is probably just an high strung dude.
I know techniques to get ratties to adapt to people....but other rats?
They only good news is that our most recent rescues: Laura and Nellie....those vicious biters from Craiglist? He is afraid of Nellie. So he might have to share a section of a FN with them. I really want to have everybody integrated, a big happy older rattie family...any advice?
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[center:2f8v1v1d]Ladies: Don't say you were warned what kind of guy he is![/center:2f8v1v1d]
Thing is, all of that hasn't changed is his behavior. He is GREAT with people. A little suck-up even. Unfortunately, he is not so kind to the other ratties. Hector has a shorter tail because of him, and he is just aggressive, aggresive, ESPECIALLY with other boys. Lesser so with the ladies. His nicknames around the house has become Rodo_ c _ _ bag. (For you hangman fans out there) and Eddie Haskel. After a day, the fighting lessened. The ladies actually seemed drawn to his jerky behavior (as so often we are) and were all flirting with him something aweful. Helicopter ears, ear tugging and running, hanging out with him if he was in a good mood. All of this just seemed to stress out the other boys immensely, there are five of them, slinking in fear around their own house, very skiddish where they weren't before.
We took him out, and after a few hours, when they realized that he was gone and not just waiting around a corner to beat them up, things were returned to normal. Except Hector's tail.
I figure, he was alone for so long, at least a year, that he thinks everything he sees is his. Combined with the fact that he is probably just an high strung dude.
I know techniques to get ratties to adapt to people....but other rats?
They only good news is that our most recent rescues: Laura and Nellie....those vicious biters from Craiglist? He is afraid of Nellie. So he might have to share a section of a FN with them. I really want to have everybody integrated, a big happy older rattie family...any advice?
[center:2f8v1v1d]
[center:2f8v1v1d]Ladies: Don't say you were warned what kind of guy he is![/center:2f8v1v1d]