# Rats and dogs together?



## tasha (Oct 16, 2006)

I am getting a chihuahua within the next couple of days and I'm wondering how my rats would get along with her.

Do your dogs (especially small dogs) get along with your rats or should I not introduce them?


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## JennieLove (Jan 2, 2007)

If you plan on introducing them, do it through the cage. Never let them together, at least not until you know for a fact that your new pup wont use them as a chew toy. Even so, you never know what will happen next. Some dogs are perfectly fine with other animals, like rats and other small pets and can really care less when the little guys are running about all around them, but alot of dogs do have a natural instinct to kill small pets like these. My BF just got a new puppy and as of right now the pup doesnt really notice my two boys. One day he did pay some attention to them and after a quick bite on the nose the pup doesnt really care to be around the rats anymore LMAO! Alot of the time, if any other larger pets try to mess with a ratty, the ratty would win and the other pet learns not to mess with them again.


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## Vixie (Jul 21, 2006)

Keep those two AWAY! xD

My dog is a chihuahua and he's already had it after many of my rats, unfortuntely killing one. but of course he's an old stubborn fart and doesn't listen to my parents(listens to me, thuogh, but I'm at school most of the day so I can't be there all the time).

But, of course, if you're getting it as a puppy, it can be easily trained to at least tolerate the rat and not go nuts.


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## HENRY (Feb 2, 2007)

Ok here what i have read. You the papers that you can pick atthe pet store. It says do not put males togeather or females becouse they mint fightor kill the other one.so just keep the away far the other one.


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## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

i have a yorkie mix and he is great with my rats and rabbits. he doesnt bother them at all. it really all depends on the dog.


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## tasha (Oct 16, 2006)

Thanks! We're getting our little puppy tonight so I'm gonna try showing him the rats through the cage. I'm sure he has sharp little teeth and will want to play so they won't get together at first =\ My husband says he's pretty sure the rats would win in a fight anyway LOL! They're almost as big as the dog.


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## hjkaga (Dec 27, 2006)

yea, be especially careful during the puppy stage cause they tend to play more and will play too rough for the rats. they really shouldn't be "playing" together anyway...but you can get the pup used to them and teach him/her that they are part of the "family" too. then you can have them out and not have to worry about the dog trying to attack them and bugging them through the cage either. good luck and be careful.


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## tasha (Oct 16, 2006)

Yeah okay.. everything went well, in fact the rats barely notice the puppy except wanting to lick and taste him.. the puppy keeps licking them on the nose and I think may have nipped my Cliffhanger on the nose but she did not care. I'm careful not to let Jay (my baby chihuahua) too close or let him play cause he's a bit big and rambunctious. But both my little girls were very friendly to him! I can't wait until Jay gets old enough to realize he can't be rough with them, and I can let them have a little supervised playtime together!


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## cupids_cuties (Jan 7, 2007)

my rats like to play with my dog too

splash loves to tease her and alice likes to bury her nose in my dogs fur and groom her paws lol

im glad they get along fairly well( your rats &dog


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## RaTt (Feb 16, 2007)

my rats have no problem with my dog, but my dog does not like it when they crawl on him, he starts spinning around trying to find the pest untill it falls off of him, after that he doesnt really have any problem with them, infact some times hes even scared of them lol


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## shinzo-chan (Apr 2, 2008)

I wouldnt know with rats as i am hopefully getting two does once my cage arrives, but my lab mix has always been good with small animals apart from one incident with a hamster. He tried to get into the cage to play whilst we were out - Prim was out first rodent pet EVER do he was very curious - and managed to rip the top of the cage off and poor lil Prim scurried out and hid behind the washer. He was fine though. My dog, Jack, was fine after a good telling off and understood, now hes perfectly ok with smaller animals. Over the years as the poor rodents came and went (dont live long  ) he just used to sit and watch them for ages, it was quite amusing that he was so fasinated by them. Even when my gerbil tried to attack him and got a chunk of his tail he still just sat there and looked at him with a really bored expression as if to say '....what the **** are you doing...?' XD


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## AlxBlack17 (Dec 3, 2007)

We have two shih tzus (1 year and 6 months old). When I was home for spring break, the younger one sat and growled at them the whole time if they were in the same room. While my mom was holding Yuki, the older on lunged up onto the couch and tried to get her. Luckily I managed to grab him in time because he wanted to kill her, not play with her.


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## CrazyBones (Apr 1, 2008)

My small dog Johnny (miniture pinture) hates my rat, he is so scared of my rat, but my rat is interested in him. My bigger dog is really interested and i dont like it. the bigger dog will love to get its teeth around my ratty.

I reckon small dogs are frighten of ras, but all dogs are different.


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## xampx (Dec 31, 2006)

Our dog thinks the rats are her babies, and the rats see the dog as a free ride and try and climb on her back to escape. They lick each other too, but we dont have the dog in our part of the house very often and the rats are always shut away when no one is around


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