What does this mean? Intro's

[Melissa's ZOO]

My two new babies Pumpkin and Mimzy have been doing slow intro's with the big girls. They are both so tiny I am not in a big hurry, my goal is by Christmas that they will all be together. But Mimzy does this belly crawl and she get under the big girls and just stays their super still and she looks petrified but she continues to do it? Is just trying to get them to accept her?

Intro's are going pretty well. Rose is very angry as usual, but I have not interfered with her when she gets on one of the babies and she has not drawn blood like she did with Willow and Sunflower.

Rose did bite the crap out of me last night, I went to pick her up and CHOMP right on the tip of my finger, she did not break the skin but it sure hurt. It's funny I shook my finger at her at told her "NO, bad girl" she just looked at my like "what the hell ever lady." I went to pick her up again and she did not bite this time. I held her and told her "it's okay I know you are all crazy right now, but Mommy loves you so don't bite it hurts." The BF heard me talking to her and busted up laughing he said Rose had this look on her face like "I don't know what the hell you just said, crazy lady, so just put me down NOW."

Since I brought the new girls home there has been a lot of commotion going on in the big girl cage. Rose and Sunflower are going at it a lot and last night you would have thought Ivy was killing Sunflower the awful shrieks she was letting out. No blood and no chunks of fur missing. I figured that Sunflower (4 months) is probably trying to be the boss and the older girls are just not having it.

Thank GOD for the FN. If things get too chaotic I can always put the old ladies on the bottom and youngsters on the top.

 

[jorats]

New rat smells seems to always send the current residents into a tiffy.
4 months old is awfully young for trying to take alpha from the older girls. My guess would be she's just playing.

As for the young one doing the belly crawl, that's pretty much fear, I would guess.

Keep plugging away at it though...
How old are the new ones?
Also, is Rose spayed?

 

[Melissa's ZOO]

Sunflower must play really ruff because she gets the big girls pissed off and they relentlessly go at her becasue she will not leave them alone. It is funny though. Sunflower also started doing what Rose does to the new babies, she gets all puffed out, huffing and she grabs them adn tries to drag them around.

The new babies are 4 weeks old. Tonight I am going to give everyone a bath. It is cage cleaning night so it is a good time to do it and they can get used to one another in the tub.

None of my girls are spayed.

 

[jorats]

Spaying might help Rose not get so crazy and bite you and also not get upset with the babies.
I know of three rats where spaying helped calm them down and stop biting. Just something to keep in mind. :wink:

Dragging the babies around is mainly a maternal instinct.

 

[Melissa's ZOO]

I have thought about spaying her but that would deplete my entire vet fund $300 to $400 to spay her. Plus the two exotic vets that I have to choose from were jerks and said spaying was pointless and did not stop tumors or agression. They both said it is just if you want to house boys and girls and that it would be smarter to just nueter.

That was the first time Rose has ever actually bit me, any other time she just puts her teeth on me and walks away. My Flower does the same thing instead of kisses she gives teeth :wink: not hard she just grabs my lip, nose or cheek and then lets go.

I thought it might be a maternal instinct. Sunflower is the only one that tries to drag them everywhere she would have made a good mommy. :lol:

 

[jorats]

I'm very surprised that these exotic vets don't support spaying. My exotic vet has told me that it is indeed documented in the exotic journals that spaying does reduce the chances of mammary tumours.

 

[Melissa's ZOO]

See and I told them both that I have myself read several studies that showed it did decrease the chances. And they both just said well whatever it is up to if you want to pay the money than fine I will do the surgery, knowing damn well that I have several girls and just did not have the money to do it.

I do think that I will speak a little more to my vet that removes the tumors for me and see if he will look into learning about spays even if he charged me $150 to do it I would do it.

 

[jennifervb]

I have thought about spaying her but that would deplete my entire vet fund $300 to $400 to spay her. Plus the two exotic vets that I have to choose from were jerks and said spaying was pointless and did not stop tumors or agression. They both said it is just if you want to house boys and girls and that it would be smarter to just nueter.

That was the first time Rose has ever actually bit me, any other time she just puts her teeth on me and walks away. My Flower does the same thing instead of kisses she gives teeth :wink: not hard she just grabs my lip, nose or cheek and then lets go.

I thought it might be a maternal instinct. Sunflower is the only one that tries to drag them everywhere she would have made a good mommy. :lol:

it sounds to me as if the "exotic" vet is a complete moron without a clue. He may be throwing his weight around to hide the fact that he has little or no experience with rats. Exotic is an umbrella term for vets who do animals other than dogs and cats. I take my boys to the Eastern Exotic Veterinary Center and my vet told me that the training they receive for exotic animals includes amphibians, birds, ferrets and rodents. Dr. Davis has some experience with rats but she said that she is still learning.

Any vet who tries to pass himself off as a specialist... and gives out highly FAULTY information to boot about the advantages of spaying needs to be neutered himself. (sorry :laugh4

 

[Melissa's ZOO]

[/quote]
Any vet who tries to pass himself off as a specialist... and gives out highly FAULTY information to boot about the advantages of spaying needs to be neutered himself. (sorry :laugh4[/quote]

I second that

 

[jorats]

LOL!