Dominating your rat?

[Livyaahh]

Hello. I'm having a tough time with my bully rat Rolf. He is quite mean to the other guys and sometimes it gets out of hand and he gets nasty to anyone he gets close to. He really annoys another rat of mine, Jerry, so much so that Jerry got very annoyed and bit him about a week ago. So I tried the same thing that Jorats did to one of her new rats Ferdy in an intro video on youtube, by trying to push his head down. But he just squirms and backs up and its really difficult to keep him there. I've also tried grabbing his scruff but he still gets away. I really don't want to be too forceful to him because I hate thinking that I'm hurting him or anything. What should I do?

 

[jorats]

Yes. You need to be forceful so that he knows you are the top Boss. It can also help them feel better when you channel your energy into him, in a calm manner.
Hold him with your other hand so he doesn't squirm away and press firmly but gently down. The fact that he resists you is a good sign.

 

[Livyaahh]

okay thank you how long do I have to keep him there for?

 

[Kibble]

I don't know if this is quite the same, but I hold my 'nibbly' rat's head gently but firmly whenever he gets overexcited. As soon as he relaxes, I start firmly stroking his head, and keep it up until he's bruxing and boggling. When I tried to think 'discipline', he struggled and got frightened and it never worked - I have to make sure I'm thinking, 'love hugs'.

 

[jorats]

It should only be seconds...5 seconds about.
Kibble, it could be the same. Any good energy helps.