# Aggressive rat behavior that is out of character for my girls, please help



## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

I have two rattie girls that are 10 weeks old and they get a long great. Neither of them are aggressive typically, especially not towards me, but now when I stick my hand on the cage the rat that I have had the longest is biting me and she has never bit anyone.

I'm wondering if it's because we have another rat that has just finished the quarantine process and we have the cages next to each other but far enough away so none of the rats tails can go into the others cage or anything, but they can smell each other. The cages have been like this for only a short time.

I made sure that my hands were clean and didn't smell like any of the rats before placing my hand in the cage to fix something that had been knocked down. I also made sure they knew I was there before placing my hand inside. I was caught completely off guard when my hand was attacked by my rat that has never been aggressive or bitten anyone or any other rats. 

I'm guessing perhaps she thought my hand was an intruder in her cage and with the new smell of the the other rat in proximity maybe she got confused and attacked me. 

Does anyone have any ideas or advice to help me? This is only my second time doing a rat introduction process so I could definitely use some advice. The first time went so smoothly and without any issues, I suppose I was lucky that time.

Thank you in advance.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

OK, from your rat's point of view there's an invader in the house and everyone is on highest alert. Until your current rats get to know the new one, she's the enemy and a threat.

So bad things can happen until you get everyone properly introduced. Your rats might even get confused and see you as siding with the enemy.

Best luck.


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## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

Thank you Rat Daddy, I thought that might be the case.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

I would do the carrier method of intro. Some rats get over alert/ aggressive if they smell a new rat but don't get to meet her/ meet the new rat just gir a little and get separated again.


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## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

I've thought about trying the carrier method, I'mI'mst hesitant because my double rex rattie is small and I feel like she can't defend herself as well as the other two. Maybe that's just in my head though and I should just try it and see how it goes. Thank you for the advice, appreciate it.


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## HobieFinchArthur (Jun 18, 2016)

I don't think you've got anything to worry about  I find that the carrier method is often safer when it comes to smaller rats because most injuries are caused during chasing each other round the cage and a carrier doesn't have much room for that. You'll have a much better idea of what's going on in the carrier too, so if things are getting intense you can easily intervene with a glove. 

I can see why its pretty scary though, I've just started intros with two of my groups and after not having rats for a while, its a bit daunting!


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

How small is she? Can you weigh them and we can tell you if it is safe or not.


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## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

HobieFinchArthur: Thank you for reassurance, I'm still very new to intros so it's still unsettling a little.

Gribouilli: My double rex is about 130 grams and my larger girl of the pair is closer to 140 grams. The new female won't really let me weigh her, but she appears to be about the same size as my larger girl.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

MamaRattieRatFink said:


> HobieFinchArthur: Thank you for reassurance, I'm still very new to intros so it's still unsettling a little.Gribouilli: My double rex is about 130 grams and my larger girl of the pair is closer to 140 grams. The new female won't really let me weigh her, but she appears to be about the same size as my larger girl.


If they are all around 130-150 grams it is safe to introduce them. If one of your rats were 400+ grams that would have been different. However, 10 weeks old is considered very safe to introduce babies to adult rats anyway.


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

I'd recommend a carrier that opens from the top. The carrier method always makes me nervous because there's also not much room to stick my hands in to intervene.


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

It is called the carrier method of introducing rats, but you can use any small cage instead. I actually prefer to use a small cage as I can see much better what is going on. The cage needs to be small though and not high, because most bad bites during intro will happen when a rat tries to run away or climb up to escape confrontation. Here is the cage I used to introduce three make rats.


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## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

Thank you for the advice RatAtat2693 and Gribouilli, I really appreciate it. 

I think I will try the small hamster cage I have with the top that opens in case I need to intervene for any reason. I like the idea of being able to see everything that's going on as well as having easier access to breaking up any serious squabbles. 

You are all awesome, thanks again!


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

I like giving advise that always works, which is why I usually stay away from advising people on intros... I've had a few that took under 5 minutes and the rats pretty much met and instantly became life long buddies and I've had a couple blood baths. In the end they have always worked out and the rats became best of friends... actually sometimes the hardest introductions yielded the best friends in the long run...

To some degree, I've kind of given up on intros, I pretty much let the new rat go in the house after he of she has bonded with me and let the rats work it out for themselves.... But interestingly enough, more times than not, the rats find an enclosed dark place like a cabinet to have their brawl and work out their differences. Yes... a whole lot like the carrier method. Sometimes the rats will chase each other around for a few days or even weeks before they get there... destroying everything in their path... but in the end, it's almost always a deal that's done in a small dark space. On the other hand, when I have a real major size mismatch, the smaller younger rat is usually faster than the older stronger one and can keep it's distance until it's ready to "introduce itself". 

As a footnote for anyone with girls reading along... when we adopted Bunny we didn't know she was pregnant... When we tried to introduce her to Misty she immediately rolled over and submitted and Misty just started tearing her fur and flesh off... I had never seen anything like this before... After Bunny had her pups, the intro went pretty well, about a day of chasing around, but no injuries... Because we have Spot in the house, we had to introduce Lucky to Misty way too young. But Bunny, her mom, intervened and protected her... 

So as a new footnote of sorts, I might not recommend ever introducing a pregnant rat to another girl... things can go pear shaped really fast. On the other hand, you might be able to introduce pups to other girls, if mom is there to protect them... 

Still, take this advise with a grain of salt... it's based on a single experience... and usually I prefer to recommend things I know will work all of the time... and every intro I've done has been different.

Best luck.


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## MamaRattieRatFink (May 27, 2016)

Thank you Rat Daddy, that was all very good information to have and could be potentially helpful to many. 

Just an update, I did introduce my girls using my smaller cage and it went okay. There was some scuffles and a few minor injuries, but nothing serious and they all seem to get along great now and are living happy together.


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