just got male rat UPDATE poor Jack died *cry*

[lilangel]

well as you know i was looking to house some male rats well i got my wish and wondered he rubs himself all over the cage is this normal? he does it like a cat does kind of its weird.

also looks like he really cleaned himself as where he did its wet now.

p.s. it was not from that bad breeder(she never emailed me back anyways)

 

[mamarat]

Your little rattie is marking his cage. The wet is what he's marking with, can't remember what it's called.

 

[rat.charmer]

Do females do that too?

 

[lilangel]

Your little rattie is marking his cage. The wet is what he's marking with, can't remember what it's called.

ah thank god i thought he could have had mites or something hehe as he was cleaning and rubbing and scratching lol i did check him before i got him but you can never be sure untill you have the rat here.

btw he is a black hooded 3 1/2 months old. was friendly when i picked him up at the home where he came from now im just letting him be in his new area and let him get use to the sounds and smells.

also i will be looking to add one more little guy in there if i do i would need the little one to be pretty young am i right? or should say it would be easier for me and him?

also in my first posting i put one of them there is only him in there (i still have to find him a friend) is why i ask that its better for me to find a baby? also whats the youngest and oldest to go for? the problem is now i do not have another cage (i do have a temp cage thats like three hamster cages put together is used to house them when i clean out their main cages) in case the new one or him will not take together.

 

[jorats]

You're little man is being dominant and this could turn to aggression. Make sure he's far away as possible from the girls like in another room, they can make him even more stressed out. I would hold off a little bit before adding him a buddy. Wait to see if he settles down first.

 

[lilangel]

You're little man is being dominant and this could turn to aggression. Make sure he's far away as possible from the girls like in another room, they can make him even more stressed out. I would hold off a little bit before adding him a buddy. Wait to see if he settles down first.

oh ok yeah i have read about that also and did get pulled back for a bit. yeah he also is in the far side of the house in my room, where the girls are in the living room and i do not really bring them into my room (a while back they use to be in the cage i gave him but i did clean it out good with dish soap and bleach(also rinsed out too) . should i watch for anything towards me? will he harm me? oh yes also for the friend i was going to wait anyways let him settle here for a while before doing so.


thanks for the info guys, i :heart: this forum!

 

[jorats]

He might just be doing this because he's new to the place. Many rats will just settle down and it doesn't progress to anything more. But be extra careful just in case, don't grab him from the back, always scoop him up, allow him to come out onto you from the cage. He must be at least 4 months old if he's showing those territorial signs already. But don't worry just yet. It might be just him making his home his. If you see more signs like tensing around you, or if he tries to "dig" on you. Some rats will kind of do the rubbing of the front paws on things, don't let him do that on you and don't let him rub himself on you. If he does, move him gently away. Don't allow him to "claim" you. I would also do extra socializing with him. Lots of one on one.

 

[Dahlas]

A neuter would take the wind out of that little mans sails....hehehe

 

[lilspaz68]

I cannot find the link, but rats have a gland there that they rub against things to mark their territory. Their hips often seem wet or damp...I have seen this on my girls too, s its not just males. Do not let him mount your hand at this stage...the hormones can send them into a weird frenzy where they end up biting you and digging at your hand, but if you stop him as soon as he starts, it should be fine. Watch the rump, watch for sidling, when he's acting too territorial try not to touch him just in case.
They often will groom that hip as well, you'll see them huff and puff and then curl around quick to groom themselves...all part of it.

 

[SQ]

Since you have a boy and girls please consider either spaying your girls or neutering your boy asap. Boys are fertile for up to 3 or 4 weeks after a neuter.

Rats are very very smart, very very motivated, and people are not perfect.
Accidents happen ..... having two intact sexes of rats in the same house is much too dangerous for pet owners.

 

[lilangel]

oh i might be fixing the male. i have to gather the money for it first. im not too sure how much rat fixing is(will be calling my vet to know) all i know to get check ups for my rats its 35$(called to know when i first started owning rats so i know my vet takes rats in)

 

[skinnyhippiechick]

I cannot find the link, but rats have a gland there that they rub against things to mark their territory. Their hips often seem wet or damp...I have seen this on my girls too, s its not just males. Do not let him mount your hand at this stage...the hormones can send them into a weird frenzy where they end up biting you and digging at your hand, but if you stop him as soon as he starts, it should be fine. Watch the rump, watch for sidling, when he's acting too territorial try not to touch him just in case.
They often will groom that hip as well, you'll see them huff and puff and then curl around quick to groom themselves...all part of it.

Thanks for sharing this info Shelagh. I've been meaning to post as one of my Clark's boys has been acting out. I've been bitten numerous times now, enough to draw blood but not that deep, twice where he just suddenly mounted my hand and nipped before I could stop him. I can sense when he starts to get agitated and know to be extra careful around him then. I've been thinking of neutering but don't want to if I can help it. Is this behaviour likely to subside with time?

dl

 

[lilangel]

yes right now he seems scared/territorial, as we doing the come to the cage door thing for food and he does come but he will not take any food yummy or not and then when the door is open long enough he starts puffing up,looking mad at us, and all we do is pet him a tiny bit too. he does not come out of the cage and does not want to i did have a chance to grab him and put him on my bed for a bit oh my was he so scared and nervous.

for the rubbing thing i explained first time he really does not do that much anymore, im guessing new cage needed his smells is all (hoping that) when we are around the cage he comes to look but the way he looks at us is like he wants to kill/eat us lol

the thing im thinking with him he was not properly socialized, so now im off to read some good info on how to socialize him. once i get him friendly and not scared i will get him a friend i think he needs one at his age he must be so bored.


(im so scared to be bitten always have been with any animal, but i love animals to death and can not live without them)

also now i told my daughter not to go near nor touch him as when she was a bit younger we did have a rat when i did not know much about them and she got bitten and really bad her hole shirt was full of blood and part of her bed.

 

[jorats]

I cannot find the link, but rats have a gland there that they rub against things to mark their territory. Their hips often seem wet or damp...I have seen this on my girls too, s its not just males. Do not let him mount your hand at this stage...the hormones can send them into a weird frenzy where they end up biting you and digging at your hand, but if you stop him as soon as he starts, it should be fine. Watch the rump, watch for sidling, when he's acting too territorial try not to touch him just in case.
They often will groom that hip as well, you'll see them huff and puff and then curl around quick to groom themselves...all part of it.

Thanks for sharing this info Shelagh. I've been meaning to post as one of my Clark's boys has been acting out. I've been bitten numerous times now, enough to draw blood but not that deep, twice where he just suddenly mounted my hand and nipped before I could stop him. I can sense when he starts to get agitated and know to be extra careful around him then. I've been thinking of neutering but don't want to if I can help it. Is this behaviour likely to subside with time?

dl

In all the rats that i've had that became aggressive, all needed to be neutered. How old is he?

 

[jorats]

yes right now he seems scared/territorial, as we doing the come to the cage door thing for food and he does come but he will not take any food yummy or not and then when the door is open long enough he starts puffing up,looking mad at us, and all we do is pet him a tiny bit too. he does not come out of the cage and does not want to i did have a chance to grab him and put him on my bed for a bit oh my was he so scared and nervous.

for the rubbing thing i explained first time he really does not do that much anymore, im guessing new cage needed his smells is all (hoping that) when we are around the cage he comes to look but the way he looks at us is like he wants to kill/eat us lol

the thing im thinking with him he was not properly socialized, so now im off to read some good info on how to socialize him. once i get him friendly and not scared i will get him a friend i think he needs one at his age he must be so bored.


(im so scared to be bitten always have been with any animal, but i love animals to death and can not live without them)

also now i told my daughter not to go near nor touch him as when she was a bit younger we did have a rat when i did not know much about them and she got bitten and really bad her hole shirt was full of blood and part of her bed.

I know that look they give us when they want to bite us. lol Good thing to tell your daughter not to touch him for now. Good socializing might do the trick.

 

[RatsForever]

A neuter would take the wind out of that little mans sails....hehehe

LOL Yup, it worked wonders for my boys! :giggle:

I remember when I adopted my first boy, I also wondered what the heck was going on with all his rubbing, marking territory, buck grease, etc. Now, I get everyone neutered or spayed but not everyone would agree with me.

 

[lilspaz68]

Its preferable to get them all "fixed" :giggle: but sometimes you cannot. I liken a hormonal boy to a teenager with all those hormones making them all insane little maniacs!! But most teenagers settle down eventually. If they start to "hunt" you to bite you, or are becoming more and more stressed and more vicious, then off with the gonads! Sometimes you can learn their body language and not set them off, and hopefully they will settle in their hormones.

 

[jorats]

The thing you have to remember is that whey they do become aggressive, they are having a hard time dealing with their hormones. It's not that they want to hurt you, they are just completely stressed out and don't know how to react other than biting. It's bad breeding if you ask me.

 

[RatsForever]

You're so right Jorats. And Lilspaz68 describe them perfectly - teenagers with raging hormones. This is actually a good topic as their is not too much information out there on rat behaviour and I could certainly continue learning from the more experienced rat people here, especially about boys.

 

[skinnyhippiechick]

My aggressive guy's probably about 7 mos now, his 3 brothers are sooooo sweet and very passive. I'm able to give Sprite (the hormonal) one on one and handle him safely for the most part. The aggression always seems to occur during out times on the couch, after they've all been out for about half an hour. If I notice his agitation and keep my hands away he will eventually settle without a problem, but I do need to keep a close eye as he will seek out my hands during the stage where he's agitated. Each time he's bitten I've returned him to the cage while I keep his brothers out for the rest of the hour. He's never gotten aggressive with my son and part of me wonders if it's something to do with my scent or my apprehension around him now. Most of the time he'll take food gently from my fingers and lets me stroke him without a problem. I'm hoping it's just like my son (also a teenager), one minute they love you and the next they want to bite off your head....lol. If the behaviour continues I'll have to go with the surgery, but with a move coming up next month it'll have to wait in any case.

dl