Cage chewing

[MissKitty]

I have more or less become the legal guardian of my 9 year old brothers rat. My parents bought her alone and I will be adopting a sister for her within the month. It would be sooner if I were not about to leave for several weeks.

We just moved her to a larger Martin's cage last night, and I had the door open tonight letting her investigate freely. I was keeping an eye on her in front of the cage as she climbed out and back in repeatedly. Anyway, I was waiting for the tea kettle and when it whistled I closed the cage door. When I came back she was pretty aggressively nibbling the bars. I touched her nose lightly and said "no" and she pulled away, but only to go back to chewing immediately. I tried this a couple times before letting her back out for play time (which I was planning on doing anyway). She gets a fair amount of the time out of the cage everyday, considering we have three separate people eager to play with her and varying times.

Anyway, I would like to know if there is any way of discouraging this, and how harmful it could be. I'm hoping she doesn't do it more, and that getting her a sister or two might help. If anyone has any suggestions I can pass on to my brother and father in the interim, while I am away, it would be greatly appreciated. It is also entirely possible that I'm being a hyper paranoid adoptive mommy.

I have read stories of broken teeth, which I know can grow back but I still wouldn't want the stress of that for her or us!

***Positive end note: When she was first brought home, she was in a 10gal aquarium, as per suggestion of the pet store. Yesterday we were able to put her in "The Rat Retreat" from Martin's Cages. She seems to be enjoying the extra room, and I'm really excited about expanding the family! I am just worried about the bars, and don't want anything to happen to her while I am away.

 

[MissGuardian]

I hope you figure out something..
I have one of those rats..
She´s been chewing the bars pretty much since I got her..(which was in the summer)..
She gets to be out to play often 4-5 hours a day, but still chews.. So I haven´t figured out why..
I´ll try clickertrain her tho, maybe she gets more tired in the little insane head of hers..
Good luck!

 

[victoria]

Sometimes they chew because they are bored, sometimes because they want attention. If the cage is big enough for her and she has some enrichment in it (hidey house, toys, wheel, etc.) then she may just be doing it to attract your attention. If you ignore her (as terrible as it sounds) she should stop, otherwise when she gets a cage mate she should improve as she will have round the clock company. (Very happy to hear she is in a cage and will not be alone for too much longer!)

 

[jorats]

She sounds like a sweetie who knows what she wants. I'm thinking like Victoria, she might very well stop when she gets her buddy.

 

[lametigerjail]

Hi MissKitty! I found your post because I'm having the same problem with one of my two boys lately. And I was wondering if you found a way to solve your problem? Did you ignore them? Did it stop when you got a new cage mate?

My two rats have been with each other (as far as I know) all of their lives pretty much. He would sometimes chew on the bars to get my attention that he's hungry and whatnot, but I've been noticing it more and more in him lately. My rats have an igloo, a wooden house, ladders, ramps, hammock, I don't know what else to give them! They also have a play pen that I put a wheel in, boxes, tubes and tunnels into. It shouldn't be boredom, but it might be. I just don't know what else to give them. Also, with the chewing on the bars, I tried ignoring him, but it's almost like nails on a chalkboard with me because I cringe and hate it. I've grinned and bared it and completely ignored him, but he only gets louder. I'd hate for his teeth to get damaged for it, but I can't give him food every time he demands it. Last night I had a hard time falling asleep and staying asleep, and that's when I noticed that he chews the bars when we're sleeping too!!

I was just curious if you found out how to make your chewing rattie stop, and how did you do it? I'll keep trying new things to see if it helps with my boy's boredom.

 

[jorats]

He's not asking for food. He's doing this to get attention. Pay attention to him when he's being quiet and ignore when he's chewing the bars.
Keep in mind that the rat is most likely enjoying the chewing of the bars. rats are funny that way.

 

[Joanne]

but I can't give him food every time he demands it.

As a general rule, rats should have food available 24/7. There should always be water and food blocks available. For a varied diet you can give him fruits and vegetables - they're good for him and not fattening.

 

[lametigerjail]

Well I don't feed them often actually, I switched them to a block diet which the bag says feed rats 2-3 blocks a day, so I feed them breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Sometimes I'll skip lunch if they're going to get veggies for treats and I wanted them to be hungry enough to eat all of their medicine (when I was still giving them the baby food mix). So I know he can't be hungry, but I saw it as he's so bored that he'll accept food. Kind of like how I eat when I have nothing to do... :/ Haha. But yeah, ever since I've been giving them more cardboard than I used to (I give them toilet paper rolls and tissue boxes usually, but now I try and find more boxes (or any cardboard) that I can for them. And I've noticed he's been chewing the bars a whole lot less often! I'm just upset that I can't switch around my cage too often and even when I do, it's not like they have more "fun", they just get confused and don't know where to go (because I can switch platforms and ladders around). Haha. I've even been thinking about just buying a new cage, so they can go into this one for a week or so, but then can be in the other one! I thought that might be a neat idea. Though it's just a thought right now. But thank you so much guys!

 

[Joanne]

Sorry, I'm still worried you're not feeding them enough....
My rats will eat their medicine and veggies, fruit, etc even though they have access to the blocks all the time. Rats have a very high metabolism and need to eat more frequently than us.

 

[Moon]

Yes, rats should have access to their blocks at all times, though the bags say to feed a set amount, their little bodies don't do well that way.

 

[MissKitty]

Honestly, I just tried to ignore her chewing, and play with her when she wasn't. She hasn't been chewing lately. She does however poke her little nose out and hold onto the bars whenever I walk by which is sickeningly adorable! I always sniff back at her if i can't get her out at that moment and sometimes give her a treat or some toilet paper to pull through the bars.

I agree on the feeding, the 1st blocks I had said the same thing (2-3 per day) and that just didn't seem enough, so I did some research and now I just give her a handful everyday. I also, met up with a local rat rescue and purchased food through them that was considerably less expensive and specific for rats. Some of the regular pet store blocks are kind of overpriced, and often aren't rat specific. Basically if you have them on a good rat block, they aren't really going to overindulge, just make sure there is always food available. I would check the forums for some articles on good lab blocks. And fruits and veggies should always be regular treats!

They like to hide excess food anyway, just make sure you take old stored food out when tidying the cage. I started putting blocks in different parts of her cage because she like running around and moving them or stashing them about. Also, you can make little rattie pinatas with the food. Wrap a bunch of paper around some food and hang it up, or use a toilet paper roll with the ends cut and folded in. I also hung a little wire basket in her cage with some cotton strips, and sometimes I put some blocks in there. She seems to like getting climbing in and out, it swings and is cute to watch!

Overall, he seems maybe underfed and a little bored. So give him more food, and make it fun to get to! Solves two problems in one!

 

[lametigerjail]

Thanks guys! I'm baffled about how the bag instructions could be wrong... but I wonder if there are different brands of blocks that could possibly not be 2-3 per day, you know? So I'm going to have to check that out. I switched to the block diet because I've read it's much healthier and also because my boys are really big, so I thought it would be good diet food. I just wonder how to keep a constant supply of blocks in there, but also put them on a "diet" then... Ah I'm so confused. Which means more researching for me! And of course if you could expand on how that works, the diet thing and keeping blocks constant in their cage. Bah, baffled. Haha. But I've noticed that he's stopped chewing completely (as far as I know), so that's not an issue anymore. So that's one problem done! And another problem was created haha. But no really guys, thanks I love learning more and more about my guys. And I'm glad you found a great technique to keep your rattie interested with the pinata thing and such. I'll have to try that sometime! Comments and advice are of course welcome! Thanks again!

 

[MissKitty]

First, this thread has a ton of information and opinions on different lab blocks:
viewtopic.php?f=38&t=12402&hilit=lab+blocks

I personally started with the Kaytee Forti diet ones that are on that list when Kitty was tiny (she's still small haha). But I think it was too much protein for her, even with daily fruits and veggies.

I purchased Mazuri through a local rat rescue. I know you can order it online too, and there are various stores.

Even if your rats seem fat, they are probably fine. Boys are usually larger and more chubs than the ladies I've enjoyed the company of haha. If you are really worried about them, it might be worth the peace of mind to just get them in a vet for a general check up - or try to find a local small animal rescue or breeder for comparison and insight. I purchased my cage through a rat rescue and made fast and very informative friends!

Also, though some rats may, most of what I've read indicates that they won't often over eat their blocks, even if available. I know that Kitty doesn't, she is a big hoarder! Another reason I play games with her when I give her food! I don't go ridiculous either, I think my suggested # of blocks is around 4 and I usually throw about 6 in there. I try to put what she hoards in the bowl before putting fresh in there too, just to keep track. Hoarding is totally normal, so if you start giving them more and they hoard some - its fine!

My concerns for your boys are primarily, that I don't want them pining or stressing for food, and just in case anything happens where you can't be around to feed them on a normal schedule they've always got a little back up!

I hope that helps! Sorry if I ramble, I'm sleepy.

 

[lametigerjail]

Thanks so much MissKitty! And don't worry, I ramble even when I'm not sleepy.

I totally agree that I don't want my boys stressing when it comes to food... and I'll look into the link you gave me, thanks for that! What they are on right now is Kaytee Forti-Diet. I know that people have said my rats are chunky, and some have said they're the biggest they've seen, and compared to others I've seen, they're huge. xP I don't mind it, I just don't want them to have breathing stress caused by being over weight, since they're already currently sick with lung issues. That's my only concern. But yeah, I just heard Grif chewing on the bars just now... and even though it makes me unsure that they'll be hungry enough for their medicine, I cracked and gave them 3 bigger sized blocks and 3 littler ones. >_< Hahah. I'll see how this works come medicine time in a couple of hours. xP Thanks for the tips, again