Archie is a nipper/grabber

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1095732

1095732

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 24, 2013
Messages
331
Location
Hamilton, Ontario
Archie (one of the rescue boys) is a nipper/grabber. Whenever my hand goes near him he chomps down. He's not being mean about it, just very grabby. I have others that do it too, but very lightly and it's not an issue. When they realize it's not food, they let go. But with Archie, ow! He does it whether he's in the cage or out. And he doesn't let go, he tries to take my hand with him. Now when I see him coming I take my hand out of the cage. He's not grabbing hard enough to cause bleeding, but enough to really hurt. Any tips on how to work with this?
 
I was going to suggest leaving your hand so he can figure out that it's not food but then you said he wants to actually hoard the hand as well. Usually babies do let go. Have you tried saying "eek" very loudly and even shrilly when he does this?
 
If a rat grabs your hand and tries to take it in the cage, just go with them, don't pull back. They will realize you are NOT food and will let go soon enough.
 
I've tried "eeking" and it seems to make him grab on harder. It's like he gets scared, and wants to run to the back of the cage but doesn't let go. Other times he has no reaction. I try letting him take my hand with me but the grabs really hurt. They break skin but not enough to bleed. When I do let him take my hand he just pulls and pulls. Sometimes he lets go, usually he doesn't. The only time he lets go quickly is quick "nips" through the cage bars. I don't stick my fingers through the bars but if I'm standing close enough to the cage that he can grab me, he will grab hard and quickly let go.
 
With my girl who had this problem, I took her out to play with me as many times a day as I could, and we did stuff she liked. We played with her toys and snuggled and I petted behind her ears. But the second she bit me (mine did draw blood) she went back in the cage and her play time was over. Eventually, she associated biting with the end of her fun time and she stopped. That's what I did with my nibbler too.
 

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