# Why are my rats biting all of a sudden?



## Hasenplug22

I am very disappointed in my decision to get pet rats for my daughter for Christmas. I purchased them a month ago (from pet supply plus) and kept them hidden in my bedroom until now. Everything seemed to be going well while they were in my bedroom. I knew they were shy and skidish, so I let them come to me when I opened their cage and didn't handle them very much because they are so afraid. Never once did they even attempt to bit me. 
Since Christmas, they have been moved out into my living room and have started biting my hands when I put them in the cage to change food/bedding. They literally walk up to me and bite. They even bit my toddler daughter who (while my back was turned) stuck her finger in their cage. Before I could even tell my daughter to not do that...her finger was gushing blood. I have never fed them through the cage bars or tried to handle them very much while they are adjusting to their new home. In fact, when I do open the cage, they come right up to me wanting food.
What went wrong? I only got rats because they are suppose to be smart, gentile critters that don't bite unless they NEED to. Is it the change in rooms or because I bought them at a pet store?? I really need some advice because I feel like a terrible mom who bought her kid a pet that bites for Christmas. 
Also, I always wash my hands before doing anything with them so that they don't smell any food on me.


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## Gannyaan

Hey! Ill get back to you on this, but it seems like you purchased unsocialized adult rats from the pet store... ? Good news is, you can socialize them with a little work.... They are basically not seeing you as their alpha , but as a predator or intruder. You should start training them ASAP! Rats are very intelligent... Just imagine you put a few dogs in a cage, and never took them out for the first few months of their life.... Then all the sudden you try to step into their territory.... Is like that. It's 4:30am here, but ill look up some Links and send them to you.... I wish you luck. Pet store rats sometimes need a lot more work because they're not bred carefully or socialized.... 


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## Gannyaan

On, side note: you're a good mom for trying your best for your daughter ...  it will be fine. 


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## RatzRUs

A lot of trust training. Yougart on a spoon and talk softly. If you have to go to a route of forcing put on a pair of gloves I mean very durable ones and just holdvthem and talk nicely and soft. Rats are smart extremely smart I forget sometimes mine ae animals lol. It will take time,but they will notice you aren't their enemy


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## gemmk1

I rescued a nasty rat about 5 months ago and now she is as loving as my other 7 rats all i did every day is i put gardening clothes on and just rested my hand in the cage for a week,Then i used to have a rat treat in my hand and have the cage door open and make her come and get it out of the cage as she only bite me in the cage which suggest she was cage dominant but when she was out the cage she was a loving rat.I carried on mixing getting her to come out to me and putting my hand in the cage with a clove on then after about a month i just put my hand in with no clothes but in a fist and just rested it there and i used to talk to her and when she did bite i used to just say to her no that's bad.Then for another month i just used to pick her up out of the cage when she was not looking at me i used to get my hand quickly over her and pick her up gently .It sounds as if your rats are the same as my rat was once very cage dominant,Once out of the cage what are they like?


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## Hasenplug22

I've only taken them out a few times and they just try to hide. I feel bad like I am only making them more afraid of me so I put them back.


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## Incandescent

I don't think this can be blamed on either the rats' pet store pedigree or the change in rooms. Your rats are not used to being touched or interacted with. They're scared. Compared to them, you're huge. They don't know how to react to you, and they have no reason to trust you yet. Rats usually seem to have a better "starting level" of human affinity than most of the pocket pets, but they don't come pre-programmed with an innate understanding that you're not going to eat them, either. Fortunately for you, they're intelligent and they're curious, and you can use those traits to shape their behavior.

The yogurt-on-a-spoon technique really does help. It doesn't have to be yogurt -- anything delicious and goopy that they can't carry away to eat (peanut butter would work too, or similar). The goal is to keep your fingers a little less exposed to rodent teeth while also rewarding the rats for interacting with you in a positive (or at least neutral) way. You become Bringer Of Good Stuff rather than Big Threatening Hand In My House. To receive the yogurt on the spoon, they have to be reasonably close to your hands, but focused on something other than biting you. They learn that proximity to people = access to delicious stuff. Do this very frequently and in short sessions for maximum efficacy. (When I was teaching the dog equivalent to my dog training customers, I told them to have the dog near them while they were watching TV and do the training exercises for the duration of all the commercial breaks: short sessions, but frequent.)

How you're reaching into the cage may also be a factor. What are your hand movements like? How far into the cage are you reaching? Are the rats near the door when you initially reach in, or do they approach after your hand is already in the cage? Are you reaching to touch them, or just placing your hand inside the door?


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## CapnKennedy

The yogurt on a spoon is a great idea! It's just a lot of trust trainning and soon they will realize that you really won't hurt them. 

Good luck on taming you rats!


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## Hasenplug22

First I wait until evening to really interact with them... Meaning my daughter is in bed and the house is a lot quieter. Sometimes i don't even have to put my hand in the cage and they approach the opened door. My hooded rat (daisy) is less aggressive and always the first to approach. When I do put my hand in the cage it is usually only about to my wrist. I am actually afraid of them now since they started biting. 
My black/brown rat (Minnie) is the mean one that will just walk up and bite hard! I wore gloves tonight and it was as if they provoked her more. I don't try to grab/pick them up unless necessary. 
Come to think of it, they started this whole biting bit the day after their first vet visit. I am wondering if they are more afraid now since the vet really had to keep a good grip on them. It was probably very traumatizing for them since they appear to have had little human interaction.
To make matters worse, I found out tonight that they have chewed two small holes in the corner of their cage! How on earth am I suppose to fix that!?! I just patched it with a little duct tape and put some bitter apple in that area.
I am really starting to have buyers remorse.
Another thing, Daisy has started shedding a lot in the past two days. I have never noticed either of them shedding before. Is this normal? Daisy is the one with the suspected allergies (per the vet)...she sneezes all the time and gets a red gooey eye a lot. He said her lungs sound fine though. I have not yet been able to figure out what the allergy is to. I use only a little of ECO shredded paper bedding and paper towels in the cage bottom, so I am almost certain it isn't that.
I am frustrated about the biting and now they are destroying their brand new cage! This rat mama is not made of money. Ugh...


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## CapnKennedy

What kind of cage is it? And Minnie sounds like she may be the alpha..so you may want to try and focus socializing her the most. Shredding is just another thing that rats do, if you have any paper bags you could give Daisy one and I'm sure she would like that to shred up. Doing nice things like that and giving them treats will help them understand you don't want to hurt them too. 

I hope things work out for you :/


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## Hasenplug22

It's a large super pet guinea pig cage. 
And yes, I also think Minnie is the alpha. She is always play pinning Daisy to the ground when the play.

What brand/flavor of yogurt do you recommend?


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## Incandescent

Just a bit of whatever you have in the house. Peanut butter works if you don't have yogurt.

Cage chewing: Enrichment helps, but if they're determined and they don't get much interaction, it probably won't completely stop it. Toys don't have to be expensive, though. Think of the sort of things that entertain a kitten -- balled-up paper, something that jingles, toilet paper cardboard rolls, that sort of thing. Just something that they can use to entertain themselves.


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## CapnKennedy

Generic store brand yogurt is the same as Yoplay or whatever it is and I would go with vanilla flavoring. 
And plastic bottomed cages are easy for them to chew through. Check craigslist or ebay for a metal cage or see if you can find a larger bird cage for them if they continue to chew. For the moment though the duct tape you put over the hole should keep them from chewing over there anyway (the sticky side of the tape will get on their teeth and they aren't to fond of that and they learn quick that chewing there will make their teeth gross). Also, do you have any chew toys in there for them?


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## Hasenplug22

I have a lot of cardboard tubes and wooden chew toys in there for them, a dig box, a wheel, a wooden parrot ladder, three hammocks, and a plastic hut/barn. I also try to rearrange their toys and such when I clean out their cage. Just to keep it interesting for them. Minnie has gotten worse about lunging and biting and daisy just about bit the end of the eye dropped off when I gave her some Benadryl yesterday! I am very timid about putting my hand in there these days.


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## trematode

It set off alarm bells for me when you mentioned that your rats were kept in a quiet room with little human interaction. It took my rats about a month to get used to me, two to really come out of their shells. They were very wary of my boyfriend for much longer because he interacted with them less than I did. They minded different people and being in different areas when I first got them, but now they are fine (even great with strangers). I just wanted to say that having them be afraid and aggressive is likely normal given the situation and that it might take a while for them to warm up to you.


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## Rat Daddy

Okay let's start by fixing this problem. This like any other problem were probably best off by defining it.

First things first, before you start working with your ratties you have to realize that they are very smart and emotional creatures. The first thing we have to do is a mindset change. From here on out when you read the word rat think dog. That's right, rats are just about as smart as dogs, they are also pack animals and they very much need to belong to families. Just like a dog if you're not in charge they're going to try to push you around. Just like a dog if you trap them in a cage the going to try to get out. Just like a dog if you leave them alone they will turn antisocial. And just like a dog, puppies and pre-trained animals are easiest to start with. When you buy an adult rat in a pet shop it's a lot like bringing home an adult dog that's never had a human family. It has no clue what you want or who you are, it's definitely not housebroken, it doesn't know which name, and it has no concept of what the rules in your house or. Even though dog pounds are overfilled with purebred dogs for free, most people still buy puppies for outrageous prices. That's mainly because people don't want to deal with the neglect and abuse that the pound pooches have suffered and the resulting emotional damage they have.

That said, lots of people adopt dogs from the pound and wind up with wonderful pets. Mainly that's because dogs are intelligent and they can adapt and they can learn and given patients in the right environment most can be salvaged. In that regard rats are just like dogs, for the most part, pet shop rats can be socialized into your household.

Let's start with the cage, your rats are not digging their way out because of lack of toys. They're trying to get out. A wild rat might patroller territory along with its pack that runs several blocks in every direction. A cage, even a large one, or even a house is a very small territory for a rat to maintain. As rats chew wires and papers and cloth when they live with us they do need to be maintained in cages for their protection and that of our belongings. They also need to spend a good deal of time outside of their cage. When a rat has enough free range time it will actually want to go back to its cage to eat drink and sleep. As to fixing the cage a couple empty beer cans and a pair of tin snips and a little bit of crazy glue should solve your problem. Cut the beer can into sheet metal patches and glue the patches over the holes. You might want to buff the aluminum with some wire wool so that the glue sticks to it better. If your rats figure out that they can chew through aluminum you can always use soup cans. Hopefully once your rats are socialized into your family and have plenty of out of cage free range time the going to stop chewing up their cage. Otherwise, there are cages that are better suited for rats made out of metal.

Now let's address the biting issue. You've pretty much a ready come to the realization that adopting adult rats that were pre-socialized wasn't the best idea you've ever had in your life. Well it gets worse, by leaving them alone for a month you've taught them that they are on their own. They went ahead and set up a family order, or rather pack order without you in charge. They are now in the process of defending their family from yours. People don't realize that when they bring a rat home from the store they get a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take advantage of its disorientation and welcome it into their family. Having missed this opportunity you're going to have to upset their view of the world one more time and integrate them into your household. Just like humans, rats resist change.

By this point they consider their cage their nest and anything that comes into their nest as an unwelcome invader. So you're not going to work in their cage. You're going to start by establishing the ground rules on your turf. Remove the rats from the cage bring them to a room in your house that doesn't have places where they can hide and sit down on the floor with them. You can bring along your thick gloves and a bath towel to gain and maintain control of them as necessary. Also bring along some tasty junk food. Cookies, fortune cookies, chocolate candies, kiddie cereal or whatever treats your rats really like will be fine. For now, let's not worry about their diet.

Some people call this process forced socialization, in fact is nothing forced about it. It's natural and normal for rat to join a new pack her family, when it gets there it expects to find an alpha rat in charge. It also expects to go through kind of a hazing ritual where it's going to put up a show of strength, and be subdued by the alpha rat. Once it submits to authority the alpha rat is going to groom it's belly and welcome it to the pack they might actually have several fights, in some cases it will submit and in others it will be grooming its inferiors. At the end of the process the new rat will be well-established in the harmonious order of the pack. In nature, rats don't do this over the course of days weeks or months. It takes place in a single drawnout battle royale. So start by setting several hours aside.

So now that you're on the floor with your ratties gloves and towel nearby, you can start by offering them a treat if they respond in a friendly manner you can try to skritches a pet them. If this goes well you can try to get them to come up on your hand or onto your lap. If they choose to fluff up their fur and act in any way aggressively towards you swat them with the gloves are the towel. Most certainly I'm not advocating rat abuse. Although rats are actually pretty durable little animals, you can vary definitely hurt them if you get carried away. The object of the exercise is to show dominance and not kill your rats. Accompany the negative reinforcement by saying "No" in a loud and forceful tone of voice. Your rats will quickly learn to associate the word no with your displeasure. It won't take long for your rats to understand what no means with regard to aggressive behavior. Once your ratties start to exhibit submissive behavior reward them with treats. Also speak softly and a kind voice to them when they are acting nice. Give them skritches and hugs and scratch their bellies. But this is only after they submit to your authority or you're going to get bit. The whole process can take a few hours. Really, really screwed up rats might need a few long sessions. But you don't and a session until you've made noticeable progress. The only thing a rat learns from a session that ends without you being in charge is that it's in charge and every failed attempt just makes the next one that much harder.

Immersion therapy is sort of the best between trust training and forced socialization. You respond on-the-fly to your rats behavior. Remember down deep it really wants to be part of you are pack. It wants to know its place in your family. It really wants a great big alpha human to protect it and teach it how to behave. But before can love you, it needs to respect you.

I realize that when you went out and bought your rats you are probably thinking that you were buying big gerbils and not small dogs. But once you get through the basic socialization process you will have all the benefits associated with having capable, loving and intelligent pets that you would never get with a hamster or gerbil. Naturally, you can't realistically expect that they will live in a cage all their lives. Just like a dog they are going to need a few hours every day of playtime with you and your family in order to stay happy healthy and social. I know that this is very likely more than you bargained for but I can assure you that rats are worth the effort.

I'm attaching a photo of my shoulder rat, Fuzzy Rat when she was younger walking at heel on a public beach, after swimming with the kids. Don't try this with your rats, Fuzzy Rat is a very special animal that we raised from a tiny pup. The reason I'm attaching it is to provide you with a visual image of what a rat can be and what it can do. The first step in properly socializing your rats is to get the proper mental image of what you are working with into your mindset. The rest is just like raising children or training puppies and given enough patience everything will fall into place.


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## Rat Daddy

Sorry about the typos, I used the dictation software instead of typing, if something doesn't make sense, ask.


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## Hasenplug22

Thank you for helping me figure out how to tame them. I will start this tonight. However, I want to be clear that I did not just leave them alone for a month. They were hidden from my daughter (Christmas gift), but my husband and I interacted with them regularly. They were very sweet toward me and never tried to eat through their cage or bite until we took them to the vet on Dec. 22. After we brought them home they started the aggressive behavior. 
We moved them into the living room on Christmas Eve and it has only made the behavior worse. I'm not sure, but I feel like the vet initiated the whole thing being that they probably have never been handled like that before. 

I did purchase the rats from the pet store, but they were specifically "ordered" for me and I picked them up as soon as they came in. So I can't really blame the store, but instead the breeder.

I also did research on rats before I purchased them. I knew going in that they are very intelligent/loyal and that is the main reason I decided to invest in them.
My daughter's day care has guinea pigs and she adores them, but I knew I didn't want guinea pigs, and therefore started researching other possibilities. Rats seem to be the best fit.

Little did I know that one trip to the vet could change everything.

My only problem is that I won't get the rats out unless my daughter isn't around because I am afraid they will bite her again. Which means they only get to "come out" in the late evening. I realize that isn't ideal, but it's to ensure my daughters (and the rats) safety.

I will try "forced socialization" tonight. 
Thank you.





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## Rat Daddy

Again, try not to think in terms of forced socialization.... more like imersion into your family. Part of interacting correctly with your rats is to have the right mindset. Your balancing giving treats and encouragement as well as exercising control on the fly. Thinking "forced" is going to cause you to miss trust building opportunities, as the term "trust training" often causes people to miss the occaisions when a little display of dominence is required. My 7 year old daughter is actually quite good at it, because she reacts so naturally and immediately to what the rat is doing. She can flip from "NO" - head bop, to "good girl"- huggie in split seconds. The immediacy of the interaction really impacts and accelerates the rat's learning process. I've learned its go with your gut not follow a script. If you were training a puppy, you wouldn't refer to the manual to get it off your ankle or to determine what to do when it first retrieved a ball.

Vets know all about being bit by unsocialized small animals and they often treat such animals cruely and forcefully. When an animal has limited experience with humans this is likely to have a greater impact on them. But still, the process of rats becoming more defensive and antisocial without immediate socialization is very normal. We've dealt with it alot here. It's not your fault. In many cases people bring home their first rat and then think they need time to adjust before handling. Nothing is farther from the truth, rats think in terms of social interaction not location. They are at home with their pack where ever it is, not because they occupy a certain geographic location. If your rats are in a high traffic area, they should have a nesting box for some privacy. Rats do tend to contain their stress very well until they overload and act irrationally. Our newest rat seems to deal pretty well with strangers up to a point, then when we get back to the car she climbs up under the dash and hides above the glove box for about an hour until she's de-stressed and ready to come out. An old shoe box is all it takes for your rats to feel comfy.

Remember, it's not what time of day you start to work with your rats that matters, it's the length of the session, if you only have 10 minutes before bed, don't start. I've seen cases where it only takes minutes to take charge and become the alpha, some rats learn amazingly fast, and other matters where certain rats can put up a real fight for leadership and you can get hung up for hours. By the end of the first session, your rats should stop biting you and you should be able to pick them up and handle them, they might still be a little timid but you will be in charge. If things go really well, they will let you pet, skritch and hold them and take treats from your hands. Once you establish your alpha status you will use your subsequent encounters to reinforce your status as the nice alpha, bringer of treats and snuggles and the person that leads them out of the cage so they can explore. 

By the way, start teaching them their names, address each rat by it's name whenever you interact with it. (Nicknames will only confuse them. My shoulder rat will only respond to "Fuzzy Rat" or sometimes "Fuzzy"; sweetie, Fuzz, little girl, tail dragger, rat, etc are ignored as background noise.) Also start repeating their first two commands, "come" and "up on hand". Some time back I told my daughter that rats learn about a dozen human words, choose them wisely and repeat them often and in the same tone of voice. Actually over time they will pick up a few more words, but start with the basics.

Once you get your rats though basic training, you can start to introduce them to your daughter. BUT toddlers are difficult to deal with. We got our daughter her first rat when she was 5 and I still supervised most of the time. I have lots of experience with rats and toddlers as the kids parents all want their children to pet and hold Fuzzy Rat because she is so friendly and never bites. Toddlers are very unpredictable and on several occaisions I've had to react quickly to prevent our rat from getting squished or flung or dropped. And trust me, toddlers are very fast! Thankfully rats are pretty durable. Not all toddlers are tragically bad, one little three year old girl carried Fuzzy Rat around the playground for over and hour and was so friendly and gentle it looked like our rat almost wanted to go home with her.... but after way more bad experiences than good, my rats are off limits to toddlers. One little toddler was so nice and friendly for quite a while so I looked away for a second and looked back to see my rat getting flung by the tail. Even otherwise nice and gentle toddlers just get really stupid ideas out of the blue. Supervise your daughter very very closely, for her sake and the rats.


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## RatGirl_Red

i think its great you wanted to get your daughter rats...mine is 4.5 and she loooves her rats a lot and their super good with her but their kept in the living room where we play and do everything pretty much and when the little one sleeps (1.5) they run around on the couch all over us. 

it was a mistake to lock them away though, but spend some time with them and you will see completely different animals.


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