Young, Naive Rat, Help!

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Samii

Samii

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Oct 27, 2014
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Help!

Okay, so my boys Luffy and Simon get into scuffles every now and then and Luffy ends up pulling out some of Simon's hair. This last time, he drew some blood when he did it too but it wasn't very bad.

The thing is, it's Simon's fault. He nags Luffy and constantly tries to mount him, but he always loses. I'm not sure what to do about this or if I should be concerned. Luffy hasn't genuinely injured him, aside from ripping out some fur and the scuffles are really short.

Will he grow out of it? I mean, I have been assuming it's because he's young and has tons of hormones. Once he gets older will he grow out of it? Luffy just doesn't want to play the game anymore. :p
 
I'm not sure exactly. But Simon was young when I got him, I could tell. He's grown a bit, but he's still the smaller rat.

As for Luffy, I would guess he's a bit older than Simon. I'm not really sure how to judge their age. Here's a picture of them, maybe you'll be able to tell.

Simon
U2pivOl.jpg


Luffy
SCKADAS.jpg


Note: These pics are both closer to when i got them. I've only had them for a month now.
 
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Well, there are perhaps two different ways to think about this;
Simon may be much younger than Luffy, and full of piss and vinegar. So a possible solution would be to add another young rat for Simon so he has someone else with the same energy level to play with, hopefully reducing the amount of attention Luffy is getting.
OR, perhaps this is hormonally driven and the solution would be to neuter both of them.
 
Hmmm. I didn't think about introducing a new rat. I suppose the best way to find a new rat would be to rescue one right? I haven't owned rats in a long time and surely have never introduced rats so I'm at a complete loss on how to do that.

I don't really have the money to neuter them. Although I don't even know how much that would cost. I'll have to do some research.
 
Do you have a picture of the "injury" to show us? It may have been an honest mistake while playing...
You could always Google local exotic vets and ask them how much a neuter costs too, they should be able to give you a ballpark. The price seems to vary vastly!
 
It's hard to get a picture of. But when I broke them up, Luffy had the fur in his mouth. It's small and circular in shape, exactly like the fur ripped off the skin too. I had to move other fur out of the way to even see it.

I know where my vet is so yeah, I'll ask him. I have a feeling it'll be more on the expensive side. :S
 
Ah okay, a for sure bite is usually aggression, from what I understand. I'd look into getting the biter neutered first.
 
I'm afraid that getting them neutered with traumatize them. They're still skittish and sensitive. Same thing with getting a new rat. I don't want anyone to get too stressed out. :p

Will he grow out of it do you think?

Edit: I just went on Petfinder.com and there's tons of rats for adoption! It's funny cause where I work we recommend that to our customers and I didn't even think of going there. X3
 
Samii said:
I'm afraid that getting them neutered with traumatize them. They're still skittish and sensitive. Same thing with getting a new rat. I don't want anyone to get too stressed out. :p

Will he grow out of it do you think?

Edit: I just went on Petfinder.com and there's tons of rats for adoption! It's funny cause where I work we recommend that to our customers and I didn't even think of going there. X3
Click to expand...

I don't believe it would traumatize him... if anything it might make him less skittish. My skittish boy was neutered recently and he's actually been a lot nicer and not as darty anymore. I had him for about 4 months before his neuter. His behaviour had improved from when I had him but not as much as it did after his neuter.
 
Samii said:
I'm afraid that getting them neutered with traumatize them.
Click to expand...
Having the surgery won't traumatize them. It is the same as any other surgery. Neutering them will remove a significant source of hormones, letting them relax and enjoy life more rather than always thinking about mating and fighting.
 
That's a very interesting thought! I didn't even think about the fact that it might help them and make them more relaxed. Thanks for that bit of information. I'm definitely going to look into neutering them and I'm also looking into getting a couple new rats. I want someone for Simon to play with despite him being neutered or not. :)

I've been given the OK for more rats, so as soon as I get a larger cage I'm going to! Right now, I have them in a Chinchilla cage which isn't exactly ideal. The bars are pretty far spread and it's not very sturdy. I'm looking into getting one of the Critter nation cages, but they're just so pricey. Any suggestions for more cost effective, large, decent cages for 3 or more rats?
 
Sorry, but I love, love, love my Critter Nation! It is great for two main reasons:
-the bars are horizontal and spaced closely so it is appropriate for even very young rats, and my rats have always climbed the bars. (Good exercise).
-the doors open 100%, and even come off easily, giving you great access to the entire cage. I so hate having to contort myself into different positions so I can hang a hammock or retrieve a rat.
:)
Try Kijiji or Craig's List to see if you can get one second hand. Note the Ferret Nation has different bars and spacing and is not appropriate for small rats.
 
I know I reeaaaally want one. But they're so expensive. ;__;

I'll do what you said and look for one second hand. Cause there really is no better that I've seen than the Critter Nation cages. I completely agree with hating having to contort to do something simple in the cage. It's my biggest problem with the one I have. I have to remove the house to get them usually cause they're always behind it. :p
 
I too love love love my critter nation and I searched for months in my local classifieds trying to find one for cheap and had no luck so I ended up going to wayfair.com and getting my double for 208 which haha right now they have them on sale for 204 and the single is 126 and if you can get your dad to do email sign up they give you a 10% discount which my math is a little rusty but I think that would bring the double to 188 and the single to 111 :) and you get free shipping.So my girls have a whole double to themselves and I plan on buying a double for my boys soonish it will probably end up being their christmas present.Hopefully you can find one locally cheaper then that but if not that is the best place I found that didn't wanna charge me out the butt for shipping cause it is a 100lb cage.
 
Well, craigslist and Kijiji were a bust for my area. Poop. I'll just have to keep looking and hopefully find one cheaper. :c

I'm hooooooping, that I can get it for Christmas, I've been hinting to my family and my boyfriend about it so If I'm lucky I'll get it. Haha, if not. I may just upgrade to the Petco rat manor because it'll be going on sale around black friday and then I'll just wait until I find a cheap critter nation. But man, I really want a critter nation. I could have an army of rats in that thing and it would be so easy to take care of them all! X3
 

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