Normal or aggression?

[Chevalrose]

So we got the first pair of new boys from MRR last night and we put them in the bottom of the CN with the resident boys on top. A few times Romeo went to the corner to dig and snuff like he was trying to get to them. Oliver could really care less (but he's the boy that might be a little..."special" :giggle.

So is that digging/snuffing a possible sign of aggression, or is it normal for rats to do that when there are others nearby. I'm just wondering because Onyx did this when we first got the 2 hairless and we ended up having to get him neutered because he was quite the jerk to the newbies.

 

[mamarat]

Right now he knows there are new rats in the house and until he meets them face to face he'll be sniffing and trying to see them. Not sure if he could become aggressive though.

 

[lilspaz68]

At this point its just being territorial, but it could turn into hormonal aggression, you'll just have to to wait and see if he settles with the new boys in his home.

 

[jorats]

If the rats have not met yet, then don't even consider aggression. Don't expect it either, it's not really common. What is common is the behaviour of males showing an alpha attitude until they know all the dude rats are cool.
It's especially hard on the new arrivals because they know they are encroaching on established territories so they have to look strong in case the resident males decide to not play nice on their territory.