Shrieking Rat (Especially During Intros)

[Dazzle87]

Ember has always been a screamer. If she gets groomed too much, she screams. If she doesn't want to be picked up and I touch her, she screams. She's a very friendly girl, don't get me wrong, just...moody lol.

During intros though, it is just extreme. She does open mouth high pitched shrieks if anyone comes anywhere near her. If that doesn't scare them off, she will puff up, sidle, and eventually fight if I don't stop her.

(She's poofing at the rat to the far left, the rexy girl is her sister)

Is she afraid? I'm not really sure what to do, as none of the other rats really know how to interact with her because of it.

For fun, other pics from the intros:

Who'd think this cute face was causing all this trouble?

 

[fenshae]

She sounds like my boy Einstein. He is the friendliest, cuddliest rat, but he was such a PAIN to do intros with because he would scream like a stuck pig anytime anybody looked at him funny. He has mellowed out tremendously with age...depending how old your girl is, it might just be an issue of hormones. From 6-9 months they seem especially "teenagery" in my experience.

I think the shrieking is due to insecurity. Einstein NEEDS to be the top dog, he will always try to force submission out of anyone around him, but he's not very big and he's terrible at fighting so he's always picking fights he can't win. I think he knows that he's smaller than the average male and is trying to make up for it by throwing his weight around.

 

[hopefloats]

We have had a few screamers. 1 boy problem solved with a neuter. The girls they ended up stopping on their own. Our boy with the neuter would bite hard and make gashes with his screaming. Romeo our other screamer, well he still screams in the cage when the boys pin him or anything. Horatio is a screamer too and it causes the other boys to attack him when he starts it.

Most have slowed down, or stopped completely, we had a few other that scream as well. I had to go really slow with my screamer girl, because my girls were meaner than the boys were for intros. I did a bunch of small intros and it took a bit longer for move in, once they get used to the other rats, they seem to stop screaming.

It just amazes me with the screamers how one little scream and every rat near them, tenses up lol. I love that first picture shows intros well lol

 

[jorats]

Ya, she's quite scared but she should get over it soon enough. When she gets in that state can you put your head over her and kiss her with your warm breath on the back of her neck? That seems to help with my scared rats.
Is she very social with you?

 

[SQ]

Gabrielle sceams .... she screams when other rats come near her in the cage and when I pick her up.
She is fine running around on her own or climbing on me or being petted as long as it is on her own terms.
I am hoping she will soon settle down and at least stop screaming with the other ratties, it really upsets everyone in both cages.

 

[Dazzle87]

She is 11 months and spayed, spaying is different from neutering though so I don't know how much that matters.

Yup, the other rats do not like it at all. They've even tried approaching her submissively and slowly but she doesn't want them near her at all.

I'm surprised that other rats do this too though I'm glad she's not just completely nuts :giggle: She's the only rat I've ever seen this with.

She is very social with me, but once she gets tense like that, anyone, her sisters, even me, just upset her :?

I'm hoping that if she keeps being exposed to them and seeing that they aren't so bad she will calm down, the silly girl.

 

[jorats]

I think you are right...keep doing what you doing, she should calm down. I think I've got another such rat in one of the babies I just adopted. Should be interesting. lol

 

Bug, was is and always has been a screamer since I got her at 6 weeks old. Intor's were horrible ..if someone would look at her, she would scream bloody murder! even now, if I pick her up when she does not want to, she will scream haha

 

[Dazzle87]

Haha sounds like Bug is her long lost twin! I truly wish I could teach her some rattie social skills lol.

 

Haha sounds like Bug is her long lost twin! I truly wish I could teach her some rattie social skills lol.

I'v been trying to teach bug for the past 13 months with no sucess! if you figure out a way, let me know haha

 

[Godmother]

My Caramel was a screamer. She had had a bad experience as a little ratty; her previous owners hadn't known about intros, so they just dumped her into a cage with an older rat who promptly attacked her. She then lived alone for many months until I adopted her.

So she was terrified of other rats and would screech when they came close. Eventually she got used to the others and was fine living in a big group. And she stopped screeching, too!

 

[Dazzle87]

Well, I'm seeing some improvement .

 

[jorats]

Well, I'm seeing some improvement .

Awesome! but don't be alarmed if in a day or two she's back to screaming.

 

[Dazzle87]

She very well may, but I'll take any improvement! She wasn't happy about it, but Thames has been trying to cuddle with her in their little mushroom hut.

 

[Dazzle87]

Picture evidence :heart:

I'm figuring she'll always be difficult but I was really scared we'd never get anywhere with intros!

 

[jorats]

Is that her little face poking through? What a sweet pic.

 

[Dazzle87]

I thought I'd give a happy update, Sid is living with all my girls now . Ember still isn't too fond of him and wants him to stay away but no fighting so I kept them together. The funny thing is, you'd think that she'd get along with him better than my other girls based on personality! Luckily there are three other girls for him to cuddle with haha. Hopefully if someone else deals with this this will give them hope, that it can get better anyway.

 

[jorats]

Great update!