Intros

[violet976]

Bosco didn't get huffy with Bug, his fur just started to poof while he was running around so I decided to stop before he took it out on Bug.

I didn't feel comfortable with putting Minx in the intros yet, as up until now Bosco had gone into attack mode very easily & I was afraid I wouldn't be able to break up/watch 3 rats with just me doing the intros. I figured I'd cross that bridge once I saw any forward progress between just the two. What's the consensus on having Minx be a part of this at this stage? Good/bad? Minx does really well with Bug now, but still has an occasional screetching match with him (no blood, I think he's just a youngin & pushes her too far. The same happened when she intro'd with Bosco, almost a year ago). I wasn't sure if Minx might be seen as "territory" & cause more trouble at this stage.

 

[jorats]

I would definitely add Minx, she might very well be the one to keep both boys gentle. My Molly does that in the cage, she breaks up any scuffling that goes on. Females can be such a wonderful addition to colonies.

 

[smilez_n_hugs]

I would definitely add Minx, she might very well be the one to keep both boys gentle. My Molly does that in the cage, she breaks up any scuffling that goes on. Females can be such a wonderful addition to colonies.

Agreed.

 

[Moon]

It's tough.. Minx could be the element needed to wind them down, or another way to amp them up. But from what you've said so far, I'm thinking she could be an important part of the mix

 

[violet976]

Woo hoo! We're making progress now, folks. Got about 45 minutes with Bug, Bosco & Minx on the dryer (turned off). All rats ran around, no huffing/puffing, & even some mutual grooming. I was able to sneak some pets in & even got some photos!

more here:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=177774652270353&id=104740432907109&aid=36651

Thanks for putting up with me. You have no idea how thrilled I am to have gotten this far, & your advice & reassurance is what got us there.

 

[jorats]

Nice!!! Good job!

 

[smilez_n_hugs]

:joy:

 

[Moon]

Awesome!

 

[violet976]

Well, I stayed up til 4am with the buggers, & after having a 2 hour long intro session on the dryer with no incidents, I attempted to put the travel cage with them, which went beautifully. I then decided to attempt moving them to my bed, which went beautifully. So... I decided to give the cage a shot, & it went without a single incident. I then stayed up & watched 2 movies til 4am, making sure they seemed alright, & finally fell asleep. Woke up a couple hours later & everyone was doing great! They shared a breakfast together, got a full cage cleaning, & are happily snuggling in a hidey hut. I moved my housecleaning day til tomorrow so I can watch them, but so far they are doing fantastic!

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?fbid=177774652270353&id=104740432907109&aid=36651

 

[smilez_n_hugs]

:joy: That's great, I guess they just needed a lady to keep them in line!

 

[jorats]

I LOVE neuters. lol Excellent intro!!!

 

[violet976]

Thanks guys! I couldn't have done it without you. :wink: & I definitely knew there was a risk present in progressing intros so many steps in one day, but being as I saw no sign of aggression whatsoever, I decided to just try moving forward each step to see if Bosco was indeed less aggressive than I had initially suspected (following neuter). & I did watch them like a hawk for almost 6 hours straight & slept with the cage right next to me.

Definitely seems like we're done though, they've been playing all day like they've known each other for years.

I'll still be continuing to follow these threads though, as the intro process really is a fascinating one. (Not that I'm more than relieved to be done with it on a personal level.) :laugh4:

 

[mamarat]

Neuters have always worked magic for me too. Beautiful to see them all together.

 

[jorats]

I'll be soon be attempting a difficult intro, even though everyone involved are neutered/spayed but have got some really strong personalities in the colonies.
It will be quite interesting how it's going to go. But something I'll attempt only in a couple of months.

 

[Moon]

Sometimes it just makes sense to move the intros along quickly when they're going well. I've had a couple intros that were just one really long day, and others where I've had to do the more usual steps. So glad it's gone so well!

 

[coreline]

ok, so just a minor question ~

Mini had an urgent spay about 3 weeks ago due to vaginal bleeding. I slowed down re-intros due to how small she is (her incision was about half to 1/3 the size of my normal sized girls. Mini is 185g and TINY lol. I basically wanted that sucker mostly healed up before she was back in the cage. primarily due to her being the clear Alpha).

I did a relatively fast intro, a couple play dates of varying range of neutrality (her hospital cage was all ready in the same room and near the main cage) and basically just had to pop her back in. there was some power humping on Mini's part (only female rat I have ever had that humps to show dominance. she upholds her nickname of the Tiny Tyrant well), but no boxing, no squealing, etc. everyone mostly just accepted Mini back as queen of the RUUD again.

today I found some scratches on Hazel. (Hazel and Roxy are the girls she was reintroed to) nothing major. they seemed to not be fresh, as they were scabbed over. definitely scratches as they were long and shallow. starting at the shoulder blade and down her back maybe a half an inch to an inch. no missing fur, no slicked back fur, etc. no other injuries like bites.

I see all the girls sleeping together a lot. though Mini is iffy, she sometimes sleeps alone, but that's normal for her. the dynamic is pretty much identical to pre-spay times. I've seen maybe one or two couple second long boxing sessions between Hazel and Roxy during play time, but nothing that would really stand out or alarm me. their room is right next door to mine and I am often awake until 1 - 4am due to insomnia. I can't imagine missing a fight at those hours.

basically unless I see any major injuries things are probably cool, right? Mini has only been back in the cage for a week and a half now. I assume they are probably still working out their dynamic a bit and maybe there was a little scuffle.

 

[jorats]

Honestly, I'd be thinking mites or lice and do a treatment for just in case.

 

[coreline]

that was my first worry and she's going to go in for a check soon. but at the same time, it really does look like a scratch, not scratching from mites. idk, the last times I've seen mites it's looks a bit different than this. more fur loss, more scabs, more itching.

but I am paranoid about mites because some bedding that hadn't been frozen first was put in their cage recently. I've had such a bad experience with carefresh and mites in the past. at least one if not 2 mite break outs from it, urgh.

edit: oh! but the main reason I worried about injury is the appearance (shallow, long lines) + her scabs are now mostly gone (no fresh ones so far) and I haven't seen her itching at all. so while I am setting up for potential mites, still a little worried that it's an injury.

 

[jorats]

It sounds like a superficial injury, if it was an injury and not herself scratching, then I'd say it's nothing to worry about, there will always be slight scuffles and injuries because a rat zigged when she should have zagged.

 

[coreline]

yay! ty ~

I've been super paranoid, Mini is a little more bossy than normal right now. though, it is laugh inducing sometimes. she bosses me around too. 185g and she owns the place ~