will my rats kill African Soft Fur rats?

The Rat Shack Forum

Help Support The Rat Shack Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Simple answer.. Most likely. The 'African Soft Fur Rat' isn't a rat at all, it's The Natal multimammate mouse... You should NEVER house two different species together as it stresses them out and often ends with severe wounds and even death to an animal... The Natal multimammate mouse is well... The size of a mouse.! Much smaller than a rat but they aren't actually mouse or rat, they're an entirely different species. Now they can be housed with fancy MICE sometimes but never rats... Please do some deep research on any animal you plan to get... It makes a world of difference to you and the animal...
 
Yes, your rats will kill them if they can reach them.

Rats can not be mixed with any other species.
Rats can also not be added with unfamiliar rats if any are above the age of 12 weeks old, unless you do careful gradual intros to ensure no one is injured or killed Please see the Reference Thread https://www.ratshackforum.com/threads/reference-thread-read-only.35894/ for information as well as joinrats.com
 
No I already knew all that about when it's different species/intros, I should've made my research question more specific, I just needed to know if it's the same species (like dumbo/rex/hairless can live in your house at the same time safely). One more question, are "dwarf rats" the same species as "rats" (or, killable by non-dwarf rats)?
 
There is only one species of pet rat ….. just variation in colour, markings, eyes, hair, size, and ear placement
Often a litter can have babies with all those different characteristics.

To my knowledge "dwarf" rats are rats that were created in the lab. To my knowledge they are the same species as other rats but have some different health issues because of genetics.
One breeder states that "the dwarf-gene is a recessive mutation that occurred in a standard sized rat. The mutation causes a decrease in the production of growth hormone resulting in a smaller size-hence dwarfism."

One breeder of an original line of dwarf rats in the USA, states that other pet rats will kill dwarf rats unless they realise they are rats.

So the answer to your question is yes, normal sized rats will kill both ASFs and dwarf rats.
 
Last edited:
What distance of cable-tie spacing for an adult with a tiny head (& babies) to be in a Martins? Is every other space enough? If so, is it more ties than is needed?
 
Honestly, I'm not sure about the ethics behind the genetics of dwarf rats, but I do know there are dwarf rats that get along well with normal rats. I'd be very afraid and cautious about it though, personally
 
Back
Top