2 new adult females BITING. Help.

[thegoldenrat]

Hey guys!
I just adopted 2 adorable adult (age: 10 months) ratties. They seem very sweet when I hold them but when I try to take them out of the cage, they bite HARD (blood). Ive never experienced this before...

I adopted these rats from a reputable breeder, so they do not have a history of abuse. Im positive that they will warm up to me eventually but what worries me is if the biting is a matter of being a stranger...will this mean that should I introduce them to friends or have someone rat sit, that this biting will always be an issue? I dont want to worry that someday a friend or child will get bitten by my rats. Should I have adopted babies instead of adults?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

-M

 

[Joanne]

If the breeder was reputable, then she would have told you about this behaviour... just sayin'...
So hindsight is 20/20. If you are willing to put some work and effort into it, you may be able to turn these girls around. If they are fine while out and being handled, then they are probably guarding their cage. I honestly haven't worked with any cage-aggressive rats, but I would approach it like any time I was trying to win over a rat - positive reinforcement. Make them happy to see you, excited any time you are near. The quickest way to a rat's heart is through their stomach. Find some treats they really enjoy and every time you think of it, give them a treat. (Never through the bars!). Push the treat into their hands/mouth as they are approaching so they don't try and grab it (safer).
Until you win them over, try to be careful and not give them an opportunity to bite you. Open the cage door when it is out-time and let them come out on their own. Make sure they are out before you attempt cage cleaning. As you gain their trust/acceptance, give them small opportunities to succeed. For example, offer the back of your hand near the cage. No bite; give reward. Short sessions. After the rat succeeds several times at one distance, move a little closer and try again. You are conditioning the rat to associate your hand with good things. If they do nip you, EEEP loudly. You are communicating to them your displeasure of what they are doing.
Until you have them totally accepting you, I would warn other people to keep their hands OFF the cage, plain and simple.
Good luck!

 

[jorats]

Your boys are at that age to be hormonal and territorial so the move is probably what set them off. I would think it's the stress of the changes. They should settle down with time. If not, they may need a neuter.
A breeder rehoming 10 months old rats... I would not call that ethical but then anyone who breeds living beings for money is not an ethical person as a whole. But that's not the point here, this can happen with any setting, pet store rats, rescue rat or breeder rat. The good news is that you can still work with them and help them adjust.
How long have they been with you now?

 

[thegoldenrat]

Hi JORATS~!
Thank you for your reply! They are females not males...so it's probably they are really scared and stressed. They have only been with me a couple of days...

Already I see an improvement. Just today, they both came out of the cage to my lap to eat. They still wont let me touch them when they eat....but we are gaining trust slowly.

Thank you so much for your advice! I don't think these ratties had a whole lot of out of cage time and personal attention. So I wanted to give these little nuggets a nice home with lots of love.

Ratties Rule~
-M.
:mouse1np1::mouse1np1:

 

[thegoldenrat]

Hiya Joanne-
Thank you so much for your advice. Very very helpful.
Since I've never experienced this before....it sort of freaked me out. But I already see improvement with regards to trust, which is really nice. They are just really scared. I don't blame them. Adult rats having a new environment, new person, new smells.....it must be a lot.

I got my first yawn at the cage today which was a good sign and the other rattie bruxed in my arms. yay!

Thanks again!
-M.

 

[Joanne]

I'm glad they are showing signs of coming around. Slow and steady wins the race!

 

[Velo]

Sounds like things are going nicely!
2 out of my 3 girls went through a phase where they constantly bit me.
Nowadays, they have no interest in biting me, but they did have a time of maybe 2 weeks where they were obsessed with drawing blood.
My best advice - be the source of yummy food and niceness!

 

[thegoldenrat]

thanks Velo! Treats and love it is!

 

[jorats]

That's great news! They only needed to adjust and settle down.