New Rat Owner Here-ratty seems to be acting strangely

[CaroLovesRatties92]

I'm not sure how old he is. He is a fancy rat. Male. I know he is young but don't know how young exactly. The first night I had him he climbed into the top corner of his cage and held on all night. Seemed to be sleeping though. Ever since then, for the past few days he stays balled up in the corner at the bottom instead sometimes sleeping and sometimes not. He doesn't look sick at all and he seems fine when I am holding him but isn't very active in the cage. He cleaned himself earlier today and eats and drinks fine.

 

[GrayLightNewDay]

He could be bored and lonely if he doesn't have another ratty to live with.

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

Well when I got him he was the only one they has and that was 3 days ago. I am for sure going to get a male dumbo to be his buddy but I have been searching for a dumbo for a month and can't find one I would just get another fancy so my new guy isn't lonely but I live in a small town and don't know where I can get another one.

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

What should I do? I think he is miserable

 

[Ace8670]

Man I tried looking into Craigslist and all of them are large feeder rat breeders and the human society's doesn't have any ATM in the southeast MO area I will try to look around more for you and see what I can find I heard there have been problems with rats getting sick with something on the east coast but that might just be rumors spread around this desert but I will keep looking for you and try to find you a rat

What town do you live in?

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

I love in Cape Girardeau. Thanks so much! I've been looking EVERYWHERE for a male dumbo but any male at this point because I hate seeing my new baby so sad.

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

LIVE*

 

[Ace8670]

Sorry I did a lot of searching but so far most that I have found are up by Indiana or Illinois I will keep looking tho hopefully something comes around soon

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

How can I keep him happy for now? I can tell he is lonely even though I play with him all the time.

 

[Ace8670]

Ummm try a baby plush toy the one that's suppose to sound like a heart beat ? You give him lots of fruit and veggies as treats? I have never had one alone before so I really don't know. I suppose you could also try to carry him around in your hoodie for that closeness it's nothin compared to the companionship of another rat but maybe it will help I promise I will keep looking

 

[Ace8670]

Also add a diffrent cool toy to his cage everyday keep him stimulated and make him more exploring also could try stringing some treats up high so he has to climb or stand on his back legs to get them to make him more interested

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

Ok thanks so much. He has tons of toys but doesn't seem like he cares about them :/ Am I allowed to post a video here?

 

[DaneliDesigns]

Taking him out to spend time with you for longer periods of time every day might help. If he is lonely, interacting with you should help a lot. We had one rat for a while (we have two now) and we took him out every day to do a little bit of exploring and cuddling, and it gave him a lot of extra stimulation and kept him from being so bored and lonely.

 

[DaneliDesigns]

Whoops, double post!

 

[CaroLovesRatties92]

Please watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2F5bO7d ... e=youtu.be

 

[Bundyrats]

Hopefully he'll become more relaxed but it does look odd, like something is not right. Is he acting normal when you have him out of his cage?
How old is he and what type of environment was he living in before?

 

[Petunia]

you just got him 3 days ago? he's probably just getting used to his new home, they can take a few days to a week to adjust to a big change like that, so that may account for some of his behavior/sleepiness etc.

about the cage, you got a lot of neat things in there! very creative ideas, wanna work on my cage for me? :nod: :lol: :thumbup:
I wonder though if the water bottle might be up a bit too high for him to reach? It's hard to tell not knowing the scale of things.

for places to find another rat, I'd call some vets in the area that treat rats and see if they know anyone who might have a rat they need to rehome or some rats from an oopsie litter or something like that.

Also you can post a "in search of" ad on CL and other places to let ppl know that you are looking.
Good luck!!

 

[Rat-Violi]

Hi, I'm also looking for a friend for my female rat. She's been alone for 5 months now but she doesn't look bored, not yet. I take care of letting her out of her cage at least 2 hours every day. She likes sleeping inside one of my sleeve or in my hoodie. She is not too big so I can put her in a hamster ball; she roams in my apartment. Have you tried it? There are different sizes.

 

[Ace8670]

Okay I'm gonna post some Craigslist posting one idk if I would even want to try it he is a feeder but has all ages and the other are older rats but says they are hand tame
http://semo.craigslist.org/pet/3645729763.html
http://semo.craigslist.org/pet/3568878282.html

Here is also a list on pet finder within 500miles you can skim through and see if any of them are close enough
http://www.petfinder.com/pet-search?ani ... stance=500

I keep checking with the humane society as well still haven't seen anything

 

[UhHuhHer]

I think it's too soon to know for sure if this is just him getting used to a new cage or if something else might be wrong. I'd keep an eye on him and watch for any physical issues, but he's probably just adjusting. Until he has a friend, you need to be even more of a friend to him. He has a lot to stimulate him in his cage, it looks like, but there's no substitute for physical assurance. Hold him a lot and talk to him. Have him with you as often as you can throughout your day. My General was alone when I first got her, and we were hardly apart when I was home, in the weeks where I was searching for a cagemate for her. Hopefully all of the physical interaction brings him out of his shell a little.