Hormonal aggression in a rat

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Sashawebrr

New Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2021
Messages
2
Location
Ukraine, Kyiv
Hi guys, please help me. Yesterday I took two rats from a lady who refused to have them after one rat bit her daughter. They are both not neutered 5 month old boys. One rat is perfectly fine, very timid and sweet. The second one is the aggressive one (Siamese).It all looks like the hormonal aggression (he huffs, gets very stiff in muscles, when he smells the faintest smell of his former rat roommate, gets hella agitated) and I will be neutering him this Sunday, but he’s like really aggressive towards humans as well.I’ve had only rats that were aggressive towards other rats before, not humans. I managed to pet him a little while giving treats on the first day, but he tried to bite me several times already and sometimes puffs when I’m near his cage. As neutering is a slow process and it will take around 2-4 weeks for the hormones to die down, I really need some advice on handling him. I’m not even sure if I can lure him into the carrier and it’s a pain in the ass to replenish his food or clean his cage.(the previous owners didn’t clean his cage before giving him to me and it’s really smelly now). I try to spend now more time near them, talk to them near the cage, let them smell me, give treats, but I”m really afraid of the bite. Can you please advise me on how to handle the aggressive rat?
 

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A small towel should make it safe to pick him up without getting bitten. They are usually more scared and will struggle then try to bite when picked up this way.
I've dealt with both types of boys, human and rat aggressive. At 5 months though it's a newer behavior and since you are getting him neutered ASAP you won't have to worry about the aggression becoming a learned behavior :). It can take 3-4 weeks or even 8 weeks for these rats to calm down. I usually keep them in cages where it's easier to get them out with less chance of a bite attempt. Use a water bottle from outside and drop food in the cage (don't worry about bowls). I wouldn't worry about Out time these days as he will just get all angry and stressed so it's not fun for either of you
 
A small towel should make it safe to pick him up without getting bitten. They are usually more scared and will struggle then try to bite when picked up this way.
I've dealt with both types of boys, human and rat aggressive. At 5 months though it's a newer behavior and since you are getting him neutered ASAP you won't have to worry about the aggression becoming a learned behavior :). It can take 3-4 weeks or even 8 weeks for these rats to calm down. I usually keep them in cages where it's easier to get them out with less chance of a bite attempt. Use a water bottle from outside and drop food in the cage (don't worry about bowls). I wouldn't worry about Out time these days as he will just get all angry and stressed so it's not fun for either of you
Thank you so much for the response! 😭😭 I didn’t think about the towel, only tried luring and distracting with treats, but it didn’t really work. Hope neutering will help and this boy calms down a little, really sad to see him agitated and angry almost all the time. I’ll put myself together and will put him in the carrier and clean the cage at last. Have a great day 😊
 
I've used a cut glove (from a professional kitchen supply) when someone just was too bitey and needed moved. More protection than a towel and easier to see what you are doing and maneuver.
 
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