I think my rat might be lonely

[dan2333]

I think my rat might be lonely (his brother died in April). I thought about getting another rat but I don't want to have anymore pets right now.

If I spend more time with him will he be less lonely? It would be good if I could just borrow someone else's rat for the time being.

 

[Cigar]

I'm sorry to hear that you lost one of your rats, that's really sad. :[ I'm sure you're right about your current boy missing the cuddles and grooming that only another rat can give him. I've had lone rats before and seen the loneliness their go through, so I feel your heartache.. It gets difficult when you decide not to have anymore rats though. In the wild they would live in huge colonies, always having someone to groom and chatter with.

Depending on how old your boy is, I might consider finding him a home with rat friends.. Maybe a rescue has someone that could use a companion, so you could "borrow" them and provide a home for the homeless as well as keep your boy happy.

 

[dan2333]

I'm going to contact the humane society tomorrow and see if I can adopt one.

 

He is for sure lonely.
Looseing a brother is hard enought, let alone when you have no one else.
Spend as much time as possible with him, but I do suggest getting him a friend or if you don't want anymore pet's atm, then giving him to someone who has rat's.
I always recommend have 3 rats at the same time, because that way if one leaves us, there's still 2 there.
I'm sorry for your loss :hug:

 

[jorats]

You might consider fostering? Contact a rescue near you and see if they can loan out two young males for your sweetie.

 

[lilspaz68]

How old is your boy? what is his health like?

Its hard to bring in more rats (adopt) if you are trying to get out of them.

 

Fostering would be an excellent idea

 

[SQ]

Fostering two other rats would be a good idea, maybe someone on here might have 2 boys you could foster.
But don't forget to do gradual intros so no one is hurt.

 

[victoria]

Dan, I also see there is a lone boy at your local humane society viewtopic.php?f=17&t=19956... although it would be best to foster a pair so no one is left behind, this boy is already alone and may have been at the shelter for quite a while. Seems like it's worth a trip into the shelter to meet him at least.