Terrified Rat :(

[Zanya]

So my rat Moose has been scared of us as soon as we got him. He freezes in fear and just stares at you hoping you don't see him. It has been getting better and today he actually crawled onto my hand on his own! But tonight it got worse. I placed him and my other male Malcolm in an aquarium for a maximum of five minutes to clean their cage. and then he FREAKED. I'm not sure if rats can have panic attacks- but he definitely had one. I took him out immediately and he squeaked in fear when he was picked up. I put him in a blanket and we wrapped him up and cuddled him for a while. I'm pretty sure that this stemmed from his pet-store days and before that when he was with a breeder. I think he was abused and when he was put in that aquarium he remembered it all. I just feel so bad for my Moose. :cry5:
What can I do to make him trust me and open him up more? I know he has a beautiful personality but I just have to get him to trust me :cuddle:

 

[dspch911]

Have you tried the sweatshirt method where you put a sweatshirt over another shirt and put your rats inside for bonding time? You can also try wearing just one shirt when you handle your ratties so they can smell the familiar scents each time. We had a couple skittish ones and I actually told them I was picking them up before I did it - scoop them up don't grab at them. I then gave them a small treat while I was hold them and when I put them back so they knew being picked up was a good thing. I repeating this over and over. He's a gorgeous boy!

 

[jorats]

Hi, he's such a cutie! How long have you had Moose and how old is he? How long has he been living with his buddy and does he act ok with his buddy?

 

[Zanya]

Have you tried the sweatshirt method where you put a sweatshirt over another shirt and put your rats inside for bonding time? You can also try wearing just one shirt when you handle your ratties so they can smell the familiar scents each time. We had a couple skittish ones and I actually told them I was picking them up before I did it - scoop them up don't grab at them. I then gave them a small treat while I was hold them and when I put them back so they knew being picked up was a good thing. I repeating this over and over. He's a gorgeous boy!

I have but he's just so scared all he wants to do is run away. He also won't take treats unless he's in his cage. And he only takes lettuce and carrots from me. Which I give him one or the other everyday(sometimes both)

 

[Zanya]

Hi, he's such a cutie! How long have you had Moose and how old is he? How long has he been living with his buddy and does he act ok with his buddy?

We have had Moose since August 27th. I'm not sure how old he is but I'm guessing around 3-4months. He has been living with Malcolm since August 29th they get along great and I've never seen any aggression in either of them with each other at all

 

[dspch911]

I have but he's just so scared all he wants to do is run away. He also won't take treats unless he's in his cage. And he only takes lettuce and carrots from me. Which I give him one or the other everyday(sometimes both)

What kind of treats are you giving him? No rat can refuse yogies...

 

[Zanya]

What kind of treats are you giving him? No rat can refuse yogies...

I've tried yogies, cheerios, and veggies and he just won't take them without being in his cage and not being held :disbelief:

 

[dspch911]

I've tried yogies, cheerios, and veggies and he just won't take them without being in his cage and not being held :disbelief:

We have some boys like that. Some take time, the boys I was referring too took about a year to let us cuddle them and then it was a bit reluctant. Just keep working on it one day you will notice the change and the its very rewarding..

 

[jorats]

I've had a few rats not take food outside the cage and held when they are too scared.
Do they have regular out time routine for play and interaction? If you can get him on a schedule, that might help. Like coming out every day at the same time. Are there any other pets near the cage that could scare him? Loud noise or too quiet? When I have scaredy rats, I leave a radio on and I talk to them non stop so they get used to the extra noise and motion.

 

[Zanya]

I've had a few rats not take food outside the cage and held when they are too scared.
Do they have regular out time routine for play and interaction? If you can get him on a schedule, that might help. Like coming out every day at the same time. Are there any other pets near the cage that could scare him? Loud noise or too quiet? When I have scaredy rats, I leave a radio on and I talk to them non stop so they get used to the extra noise and motion.

They don't have a set time to come out, but it's around the same time everyday. At night we will leave the TV on in the room for them. It's pretty quiet when we're in there holding them.

 

[jorats]

Try and keep a radio on or the tv on all the time except at night, just for now, see if he gets better. You've only had him for a month so he probably needs more time to settle in.
This site:http://www.joinrats.com has some great tips on earning trust with rats.

 

[Zanya]

Try and keep a radio on or the tv on all the time except at night, just for now, see if he gets better. You've only had him for a month so he probably needs more time to settle in.
This site:http://www.joinrats.com has some great tips on earning trust with rats.

Will do! Thank you :bunnydance: