Two New Rats

[Darren S]

Hi guys, as of about 12 hours ago I am officially a rat owner. Had Chinchillas and Hamsters before but never rats.

I have two males who are both 8 weeks old, called Freddie and Alfie. Alfie is literally the most confident, excitable character you could ever hope for, however, I do have to admit I have some concerns about Freddie, so was hoping if some more experienced Rat owners could help me out (sorry by the way if this is in the wrong part of the forum).

Basically when I first put him in his cage he seemed a little bit nervous and anxious, which is obviously fairly normal. Even so though he still explored a bit and seemed to enjoy pushing around one of the little cat balls. He then got into the hammock that is hanging in his cage, and seemed to feel safe there as he stayed there for a while. However, he's been in there now for about 10 hours, only very occasionally stepping out onto the ledge next to it before retreating back to the hammock. He hasn't drunk any water and wouldn't of eaten any food if I hadn't put a bit of it in the hammock a little while ago. He also seems to be making quite a lot of little squeeking noises, whether I'm next to the cage or not. I just wanted to know if this is normal? And whether I should do anything, like maybe move the hammock so it's right next to the water bottle?

I haven't made any attempt to handle either of them yet, or even stroke them or let them eat out of my hand, just because I only bought them 12 hours or so ago, so whilst I've been regularly sitting next to the cage, and talking to Alfie, who seems to want to come over and chat every opportunity he gets, I haven't properly interacted with them yet. I thought it best to let them get used to their cage before doing so. So yeah again, I just wanted to ask whether I should try and maybe interact with him a bit more or whether just to let him do his thing and give him some time. I'm obviously not worried about him being shy and a bit nervous seeing as he's just moved into a new home, it's just the not drinking or eating that worries me.

Thanks in advance for any replies

 

[SQ]

Welcome to the forum
any pictures of the cage setup and your boys?
Please add a water dish that can not be upset, rats need at east two sources of water ad it is good if at least one source is a water dish
Is there a house in the cage and tubes?
What are you feeding?
Giving him some time and talking t them as you have been doing sounds good.
Hopefully he will come out to explore and get something to drink tonight
Babies often are unable to get water out of a water bottle although they look like they are drinking so please add a water dish that can not be upset

btw you may find the reference thread to be useful https://www.ratshackforum.com/threads/reference-thread-read-only.35894/

 

[Lookup]

Hi Darren. Welcome to rattie parenthood and to the forum! I noticed you mentioned Freddie had been squeaking quite a bit. Is he squeaking with his voice, or is the noise coming from his nose? If the nose, does he have drainage, possibly red, from his nose or eyes? He may have a respiratory infection which needs immediate attention. I understand you're trying to give him space and get settled, but you should check where the noise is coming from, as he may need to get to the vet asap. It could be a URI, or if he's squeaking with his voice, a lot as you said, there may be some other issue causing that, as rats do not typically squeak when they're alone in a hammock. Please check and let us know, or just take him to the vet if you see runny eyes/nose or he's squeaking from discomfort.

 

[ViciousCurse]

Welcome to owning rats! After these two, you may never be without rats again. I started with three males nearly three years ago and now I'm up to eight males (three of which are new babies since my others are going to be two soon).

Definitely see where the squeaking is coming from, whether it be his voice or nose. I don't know if what you're hearing is a really drawn out squeak/low squealing noise, but I've heard rats make it when they're very, very stressed out. For now, figure out where the squeaking is coming from
When it comes time to start bonding, try talking to them in a low, even tone. This will get them used to listening to you. If that seems to be going well, try offering food. Let them sniff your hand. They may not take it, but they'll at least then first meet you. I use Puffs as a go-to trust builder. Mine are addicted. Once my babies figure out how good it is, they'll dash out of hiding to get some. Keep this treat limited though, as too much can and will cause diarrhea, especially in younger rats. I lure adults out of hiding with Puffs.
Good luck and I hope all is well!

 

[Darren S]

Welcome to the forum
any pictures of the cage setup and your boys?
Please add a water dish that can not be upset, rats need at east two sources of water ad it is good if at least one source is a water dish
Is there a house in the cage and tubes?
What are you feeding?
Giving him some time and talking t them as you have been doing sounds good.
Hopefully he will come out to explore and get something to drink tonight
Babies often are unable to get water out of a water bottle although they look like they are drinking so please add a water dish that can not be upset

btw you may find the reference thread to be useful https://www.ratshackforum.com/threads/reference-thread-read-only.35894/

Hi Darren. Welcome to rattie parenthood and to the forum! I noticed you mentioned Freddie had been squeaking quite a bit. Is he squeaking with his voice, or is the noise coming from his nose? If the nose, does he have drainage, possibly red, from his nose or eyes? He may have a respiratory infection which needs immediate attention. I understand you're trying to give him space and get settled, but you should check where the noise is coming from, as he may need to get to the vet asap. It could be a URI, or if he's squeaking with his voice, a lot as you said, there may be some other issue causing that, as rats do not typically squeak when they're alone in a hammock. Please check and let us know, or just take him to the vet if you see runny eyes/nose or he's squeaking from discomfort.

Welcome to owning rats! After these two, you may never be without rats again. I started with three males nearly three years ago and now I'm up to eight males (three of which are new babies since my others are going to be two soon).

Definitely see where the squeaking is coming from, whether it be his voice or nose. I don't know if what you're hearing is a really drawn out squeak/low squealing noise, but I've heard rats make it when they're very, very stressed out. For now, figure out where the squeaking is coming from
When it comes time to start bonding, try talking to them in a low, even tone. This will get them used to listening to you. If that seems to be going well, try offering food. Let them sniff your hand. They may not take it, but they'll at least then first meet you. I use Puffs as a go-to trust builder. Mine are addicted. Once my babies figure out how good it is, they'll dash out of hiding to get some. Keep this treat limited though, as too much can and will cause diarrhea, especially in younger rats. I lure adults out of hiding with Puffs.
Good luck and I hope all is well!

Thanks for the replies I've added a water dish now which to be fair Alfie seems to be using a lot more than his bottle.

I'll upload some pictures shortly, but yeah there is a house which Alfie is using to sleep in and yeah a couple of tubes too, including a pringles can which Alfie can't get enough of. At the moment I'm mainly just feeding them standard Rat pellets, but have given them some Shreddies and Cherios today which they seem to love.

Freddie has come out and explored a little bit now, though still rarely leaves the hammock. He doesn't seem to be scared of taking food off me when I offer him some, and has now drunk some water as I held the dish next to him. I'm just not really sure whether to keep handing him food and water, or whether's that's actually just encouraging him to not explore the rest of the cage.

As for the squeaking, it wasn't loud or drawn out, and it has actually now pretty much completely stopped. Freddie doesn't have any porphyrin or anything either. I did check him to make sure but he seems completely fine physically, just quite nervous still about leaving the hammock. I'll obviously keep an eye on that though.

And yeah I have been talking to them, particularly when giving them food. Freddie certainly seems to be getting more comfortable with me being there and handing him food. Alfie is just ridiculously confident and is there the second I put my hand in the cage, and at the bars every time I talk to him.

It was also really nice earlier when I woke up to see Alfie and Freddie both asleep in the hammock together. Alfie had been sleeping in the little house and Freddie obviously in the hammock so I was worried they weren't socialising with each other as much as they should, so yeah to seem sleeping together was really nice (and adorable )

Thanks again for the replies and I'll be sure to provide updates. Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[ViciousCurse]

I'm glad everything sounds like it's going well! As you said, just keep an eye out for anything. Freddie will become brave once he figures out he's safe and okay. He may just be a shy rat who prefers to keep his own company. I've raised a few shy babies and they will become more extroverted with age. My three newest hang out in hides a lot all day. They just need to see everything's okay and not out to get them. It'll be a few weeks before I see them confidently strutting around.
Personally, I'm not going to hound on someone for what they feed their rats, but mine very occasionally get yogurt or applesauce. A lot of sites suggest putting these on a spoon so that the rats have to be near you while they eat. I've never done that before and my rats have bonded to me just fine, but ultimately it's up to you. Carrots are a good thing to give. Mine go crazy for them. Pomegranate seeds are another one they (and my green cheek conure) adore. I do give seeds as well, just for variety sake, and they seem to do well. I mix cheerios into my rat food and they love it. It's a great whole grain food item to add some fiber to their diet and to harden up their poops.

I understand with the obnoxiously brave rats! One of my newest babies will strut straight up to my hand, give it a few sniffs, and then lick me or take food with zero problem. He's done that pretty much since the beginning.
One thing I've noticed with new/baby rats is there is generally a learning period in which they learn when taking food from you, they have to be mindful of fleshy fingers. My babies are currently going through this. I grow out my nails, so they're confused about those as well. If they bite hard, I'll squeak, but they really don't bite down too hard, especially if it feels squishy and fleshy. Don't feed through the bars, or they will try to bite anything that comes through. Personally, I say don't really say stick anything through the bars until you trust they won't bite you. Once that habit is started, it is very hard to curb. I have one rat who will be two in summer and still struggles with it.

I don't know if you know, but male unaltered rats tend to develop something called buck grease. Basically they secrete something on their skin that can smell foul and actually dye fur orange. I have unaltered males, and a number of them are hooded, so they have a bit of white on them. I fend off buck grease with weekly baths. A lot of people will say not to do that because it can dry out the rat's skin. I use scent-free baby shampoo. Used it for three years, no issues. If I ever do notice skin is getting dry, then I will add a very small amount of coconut oil (or oatmeal) and that'll moisturize their skin. This also allows me to check them over for wounds, see if their genitalia are in good condition, just see general body health, and I'll clean their tails off so that they can regulate more easily.
With age, male rats also slow down considerably and sleep more often. About the year old mark, they start to really relax. I've been watching TV with a rat fast asleep on me before. They're playful, but not as much from females, or so I've heard. Up until that age, they like to calmly explore and settle down somewhere else. Once they're a year old, I've noticed they generally seem more content to sleep on you.