Intro help

[Dahlas]

I did another intro between Miss Meesa and the gang......it didn't go as good. Nothing terrible but a lot more interest....a couple of my girls were grabbing Meesa by her bum....lots of interest in her...chasing her around, sniffing her........ a couple small scuffles and a few stand offs......Hubby wasn't impressed. He was frightened the babies (who are huge compared to Miss Meesa) would get hurt........
So just keep trying...right. Short sessions everyday? I don't really have a totally neutral area....It is a small house and everywhere the rats can go they have been. But the play pen had a clean blanket in the bottom and no toys...Just a clean bowl with peas in it.......

 

[SQ]

I use the bath tub, with plug in and blanket on the bottom as a neutral area. Dish of something yummy as a distraction.
I assume that they don't show any signs of aggression with cages next to each other and cloths switched from cage to cage?
If you have them together for an intro it should last 20 min s or longer so their anxiety levels start to decrease ... that way it will keep getting better.

 

[Dahlas]

Yep cages are together.....blankets have been shared, toys etc....no problems..... will try the bathtub but with 11 rats that is not much room to move around.......and my babies spend lots of time in the bathroom.....so it is probably no more neutural then the playpen....I take them in when I have a bath.

 

[jorats]

Sounds normal and not bad to me Dahlas. How long are the sessions now?
Why does hubby think the babies will get hurt? Does Meesa go after them?
Any chance you can take a video of the intro next time?

 

[twitch]

have you tried giving them all a bath together? that has always worked wonders with mine. even some of my more difficult intros were successful after a good bath together.

what i do is pop them all in the tub and have someone watch them to break up any bad fights while i clean out the cage they are to share, new liners, rearrange some toys, the whole sheebang. after that is done i run the bath water with them still in the tub, let it fill to a good level and wash everyone with johnson's baby shampoo. i dry off the newbie first and into the cage. i then go up the ranks from bottom rung to alpha, drying them off and putting them in the cage one by one. by the time this is done i normally have no more issues with intros. all that is left is the normal hierarchy shuffle and that i let them settle on their own.

 

[Dahlas]

Sounds normal and not bad to me Dahlas. How long are the sessions now?
Why does hubby think the babies will get hurt? Does Meesa go after them?
Any chance you can take a video of the intro next time?

Nope Meesa didn't go after the babies...they chased her. He is just protective of our babies....we all love them so much we are a little nuts......
It wasn't bad into at all just not as uninterested as the last ones. I was wondering if Miss Meesa being the only one not spayed might have made a difference. This is the first one since the girls where all spayed.....

Bathtub idea sounds interesting....My girls where just spayed a few days ago so I wouldn't want to bath them yet but I will keep that in mind......

I will get a video for sure next time....plus i would like you guys to see Miss Meesa walk....She looks...wobbily on her back end....alwatys has since I've had had her.
She is also clummy when she tries to jump....not anything really noticeable but more so then my other rats.......

Oh and the session was not that long...I should probably leave them in longer...I will next time. I didn't want to watch them and be on guard....I am so tired I just wanted to crawl in and let me kids crawl all over me...which is what I did....then got out and added all the new toys....

 

[SQ]

Bath tub with water is usually the last resort if intros don't work
- as most rats, in my experience, are afraid of it.

 

[Godmother]

I hope it goes OK without having to resort to water in the tub, although that sounds like it works fast!

The times I helped SQ with water in the tub intros, I got wet and scratched up! The ratties didn't like the water, so they all kept jumping out of the tub and climbing me. It was a full-time job for both of us to keep them all in there.

Luckily, from what you described, it wasn't a bad intro. No puffing, no boxing, no sidling, no squeaking.... sounds promising. I laughed at the thought that your husband worried about the babies!! Those "babies" are big and full of confidence; I don't think too many other rats would mess with them.

Looking forward to a video. I need encouragement, since I hate intros and I'm bad at them. I had started with Bill & Clara & Hilda, then Clara got sick and I stopped. have to start up again soon!