Asking for a friend: Intro advice.

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emberanne

Active Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2011
Messages
40
Location
WI, USA
A friend of mine has a young buck she adopted just a few months ago.
and is adopting another young male from a friend who can no longer keep him.
She really wants it to be able to work out so they can be cagemates and get along. Whats some good advice I can give her??
 
Usually people quarantine new rats for 2 weeks if they aren't able to do a proper quarantine. It is 4 weeks for a proper quarantine with a different air supply, etc. You may want to read up on quarantines and also the thread about the importance of a proper quarantine on jorats forum. You just need to be aware of precautions to take and what the risks are if you do not take them. If a new rat comes from a source you trust or has been in a home where it was basically quarantined, many people take a calculated risk and do not quarantine once the new rat has been found to be healthy and parasite free.

To get ratties used to one another you put cages near each other but far enough apart that they can not reach. You exchange dirty cloths from one cage to another and put rats in one another's cages when the occupant is not home. This is usually done over a
one or two week period, sometimes longer depending on the rats. Sometimes it goes much faster, depending on the ratties.

When they are no longer showing signs of aggression toward the unfamiliar rat, then you do intros in neutral territory. I would suggest you put the plug in the tub, put a fleece blanket in the bottom of the tub and put in a dish of yummy food such as yogurt.
Then add rats and watch.

When rats have been able to be together in a neutral place for 20 to 30 minutes without any signs of aggression on a number of occasions, you repeat in a non neutral area such as the play area.

When rats have been together repeated times in a non neutral area without any sign of aggression they are ready to live together.

You take the large cage they will live in and completely wash it out so it doesn't smell like anyone. You rearrange the items in the cage as well. You don't want ratties thinking they need to defend their territory. Some people suggest having the cage empty except for a plate with yummy food and gradually adding items over the next few hours. You put in a
plate of yummy food. Sit back and keep an eye on them for the next 8 to 12 hours or so.

Each step usually takes a week, but with some rats it can go much faster. There is another step for rats that are very aggressive toward one another but it is not normally needed.

If at any stage ratties show signs of aggression (puffiness, snorting, backing rear end
into other rattie, etc) then you go back a step as they were not ready yet. A bit of aggression is normal and they will pin and power groom but there should be no blood.

==========================================

Also, sometimes boys need to be neutered in order to live with other rats
 
Can you give us their ages?
There are so many ways to do intros, when one type doesn't work, you try another. We can help, so many of us have done intros in so many ways, we always have good ideas to try.
 
ok, well I believe her rat(rat A) is 7-8 months old.
The other rat (rat B) is from trusted friend, who wanted badly to adopt a rat but upon adopting said rat-quickly learned she was allergic.
She feels so badly about it and just wants to rehome him somewhere where he will be well loved and taken care of.
As far as I know rat B is very young, she has only had him about 3 weeks. He's a real calm, easy going guy though, I got a chance to meet him when she first adopted him.

Ok, back to the friend with Rat A, all I can think of is that she has her little guy on homemade food, Id guess if theyre going to share a cage and food dish she'll have to ween Rat B to the new diet.

Thanks for all the advice guys. I will be passing it all along to my friend who'll be very grateful.
 
Sounds like rat B is a baby so he will need to be in his own cage to start. Rat A is a full adult, so best to take intros slow since he's an adult male.
I've never weaned rats when it comes to changing diets, I always did cold turkey.
 
I think she's going to pick him up today.
Should she let him adjust to his new surroundings for a couple days before trying to introduce them to eachother ? Put their cages near eachother? Any other tips?
 
emberanne said:
I think she's going to pick him up today.
Should she let him adjust to his new surroundings for a couple days before trying to introduce them to eachother ? Put their cages near eachother? Any other tips?
That's a good idea. Since both rats have lived alone, no other rats around, then they are pretty safe against the nasty viruses so I'd go ahead and have their cages next to each other for a few days. Then she should intro the two in the bathtub with some really yummy food in the middle so both will get distracted and want to eat first.
 
Well, the owner apparently decided to gift her rat to a friends little sister?
Im not sure how young, I don't know much it.
I was a teeny bit frustrated, because despite being new to keeping rats-I know that my friend was already ready and willing to adopt him-and would have been able to provide a good home for him and I know nothing about this other person.

Of course it's possible it's a new, future Rat lover in the making. :)
So, I've passed along as much
info on care as I could and encouraged my friend to contact me if the home didnt work out.
I guess that's the best I can do.
 
That is frustrating...especially if the friend already fell in love with the idea of the new rat. That happens to us here all the time. We decide on a rescue, we want them badly and they are no longer available.
Maybe next time.
 

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