Kittens and rats!

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Kay O.

New Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2019
Messages
1
Location
London, KY
Hi! I searched all over and couldn't rightly find a thread for what I needed...sorry in advance if there has been something I looked over!

I have 10 month old female rats (5 of them, one of them being mom) and they grew up in the house with my older dog. My dog has dealt with me having rats for a few years now, so she just ignores them entirely.

I came upon a kitten on the highway and brought her home a few days ago. I have never owned a cat before so this is all new.

The rats have their own room and I keep her out of there most of the time. She has already learned she isn't supposed to be in there, so when I catch her sneaking in she runs out. BUT!! 2-3 of my rats have become eerily skittish, even with me. I've gotten them out for playtime and it takes them almost the full hour to come around and stop hiding in a box or under a blanket. I have noticed a reduction in the food they eat (I normally feed them almost a cup of food every day and I didn't have to fill their bowl yesterday)

I've had the kitten for a week as of today. The first 3 days, only the momma rat would come out (she is absolutely fearless so this makes sense.) On day 4, two of them seem to come out of their hammock to see me when I come in the room. But now we are on day 7 and I'm worried about the ones who don't come out and see me. They poke their heads out but absolutely refuse to come out of the cage on their own. =( They do take treats and let me give them pets at least. I knew there would be some stress with the smell of a new animal in the house, but I assumed it wouldn't be so severe since they've had a dog here this whole time. Not to mention I visit with my sister constantly and she has a cat that I am around all the time.

Any advice? Will this subside over time? I'm notorious for panicking....but I am trying to decide if I need to start looking for a home for this kitten, or if I should allow some time to pass for them to adjust to her scent being inside.

Disclaimer: I have absolutely no intention of allowing them to play together, and always keeping the ratties in their own space where the other animals in the house aren't allowed. It's always worked best this way and I think the rats appreciate the privacy. =)

thank you for your help!!
 
Hello Kay,
I was looking for advice on this topic too, scouring the internet.

We have 2 females rats (sisters), beautiful white and the other blue/grey 15 months old, and now a Kitten 4 months old.
One of the rats clearly got depressed for a good 3 weeks after the arrival of the kitten and no longer enjoys time outside the cage or being handled, even started to smell and look disheveled.
Both rats stay hidden or fall asleep in corners when I let them out to run around; they seem less tame than before. They use to climb all over us before the cat arrived...not anymore, even if the cat is locked in another room.

More worryingly, the dominant rat has become very aggressive with grooming and pulls hair, so harshly it creates gashes on the skin and it bleeds. The injuries seem to get worse...
the local pet store told me rats hate changes and it is just a matter of time until things get better. Meanwhile, I am worried about the level of aggression. They have a huge cage and wheel and various baskets to play with. And the kitten is here to stay too (and not even really interested in the rats, she seems mildly scared of them). So I am not sure what else is there to be done, separating the rat in different cages?
Anyway, the advice I was given is: patience and keep handling the rats!
 
Cats are a very natural predator for rats,even more than dogs and although some rats do fine in a household with a cat others will revert to natural instinct and be very wary and worried all the time. If this situation doesn't improve within a month you might start to think about rehoming someone.
The aggressive behavior is probably because you have a more dominant rat they feels she is the protector of the colony and is making sure everyone realized it. As for scabs, are these mainly on neck and shoulders? If so, you could be looking at mites instead.
 
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