New Rat Mom - Help with Introductions?

[emilyw25]

I'm a very new rat mom, so any advice/criticisms would be welcome.

Hi! So I've ended up adopting a young (at a guess I'd say he's definitely less than a year old from looking at photos of other rats, but I've no clue on a specific age, I'm afraid) boy rat (Harry) from a family friend. She had bought him from a pet store for her young children who very quickly lost interest. She was planning on returning him to the store but I said I'd have him; I've always wanted to keep rats.

From what I can tell she did very little research. The cage she had for him I'm 99% sure is a hamster cage, and while it's not minuscule, it's most certainly not big enough for him from what I've read. She was also keeping him alone, which I know is a definite no-no.

I invested in a new (much more suitable, and much bigger) cage for him, and a bunch of hideaways, hammocks, and toys to keep him occupied. He's been living on his own for just under 2 months - in total - and about 3 weeks with me. I've been handling him as much as I can, giving him treats and things, letting him hide inside my sweater sleeves and he seems to be getting used to me, though he still sometimes gets spooked by sudden, loud noises, and he doesn't like being picked up all that much.

Then yesterday I went and adopted him a friend. I went to a pet store and got another little boy (who I think is younger, because he's slightly smaller, and is also a dumbo rat I think), who's (unfortunately) being kept in Harry's old cage. I'm hoping it's just temporary because I'd obviously like them to be living in the same cage. I'd really love some advice on introducing them, getting them comfortable with each other. Like I said, I'm incredibly new to all of this but want to give my new little boys the best life possible.

The new boy (who has no name as of yet) is still quite shy as he's just been brought home, but he's taken a few treats from my hand which is a good start.

All in all I just want to make sure I'm doing everything right, and would love to know how to move my new boy into the big cage with Harry.

I hope this is okay. Sorry for the long post. Thank you in advance; I'm looking forward to being part of the rat community!

Emily x

 

[Galethemo]

Congratulations on the new rats! To get them used to each other, I would move their cages almost touching, but not quite. I know my male rat would possibly try to bite another rat through the bars, so just have them a few inches apart for now. After they seem like they have interacted some, I would move them as close as possible, but keep close watch. Look for signs of red liquid coming out of one of their eyes; that could lead to distress. If your rat's eyes start boggling when they're brought together (eyes going in and out), that would be a good sign. When there is no bad interaction, try to hold one rat to the other, but not quite in the other rat's cage, that would be going into another territory. If one lunges at the other, immediately go back. If they sniff each other with no hostile behavior, do that for a few days. I would then put them in the same cage, and watch for any bad behavior. If they start grooming each other, good. But if they start fighting and possibly play fighting, I would separate them for a break. Keep doing this until they seem like they can get along without supervision. I hope this helps; congratulations again!

 

[emilyw25]

Congratulations on the new rats! To get them used to each other, I would move their cages almost touching, but not quite. I know my male rat would possibly try to bite another rat through the bars, so just have them a few inches apart for now. After they seem like they have interacted some, I would move them as close as possible, but keep close watch. Look for signs of red liquid coming out of one of their eyes; that could lead to distress. If your rat's eyes start boggling when they're brought together (eyes going in and out), that would be a good sign. When there is no bad interaction, try to hold one rat to the other, but not quite in the other rat's cage, that would be going into another territory. If one lunges at the other, immediately go back. If they sniff each other with no hostile behavior, do that for a few days. I would then put them in the same cage, and watch for any bad behavior. If they start grooming each other, good. But if they start fighting and possibly play fighting, I would separate them for a break. Keep doing this until they seem like they can get along without supervision. I hope this helps; congratulations again!

Thank you! I'm very excited and love them already.

At the moment they are across the room from each other, I think Harry is vaguely aware of the new little guy's cage, but I'll definitely start by moving them closer. Should I wait until my new boy has settled in a little more? He's not quite used to me yet and is still quite shy - it's only been a day.

Thank you again for your reply! I will give it a try and see how it goes

 

[Galethemo]

Thank you! I'm very excited and love them already.

At the moment they are across the room from each other, I think Harry is vaguely aware of the new little guy's cage, but I'll definitely start by moving them closer. Should I wait until my new boy has settled in a little more? He's not quite used to me yet and is still quite shy - it's only been a day.

Thank you again for your reply! I will give it a try and see how it goes

Yes, I would wait a few more days until he seems happy and is playing around or sleeping soundly in his new house. After that, I would do a few inches apart for the cages. You're very welcome, and I hope it all works out soon!

 

[emilyw25]

Yes, I would wait a few more days until he seems happy and is playing around or sleeping soundly in his new house. After that, I would do a few inches apart for the cages. You're very welcome, and I hope it all works out soon!

Wonderful, thank you! I'll definitely do that. So do I! I really hope they end up best pals

 

[jorats]

Hi! Congrats on your two new buddies! There are some intro steps that many of us have come up with to avoid too much stress and fighting. Placing rats in the same cage without proper intros on neutral ground can result in fights and injuries. So I highly recommend using a bathtub or table top and allowing them to meet each other there, place a plate of mashed bananas in the centre and let them get to know each other. I would do meet ups for an hour each day for a week. If that goes good, I would than scrub down the biggest cage, remove all scent of rats so no rat can claim the space and become territorial. Place both in the new fresh clean home and watch them for the day.