# 1 time mistake?



## Chance (Sep 8, 2008)

I posted a while ago that one of my boys had a bite on him from a cagemate. i still dont know which one did it.

i keep reading "no blood, no foul". no blood has been drawn since the one incident.

if the biting isnt ongoing, then could it have just been a mistake or something? like, they like each other but one lost his temper for some reason?

i just dont know what precautions i should be taking if this only happened once.


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## Mana (Apr 22, 2007)

It could have been. That happened with my rats once - one of them had what looked like a bite mark on her back that had drawn blood. It never happened again. 

If they're still living together peacefully I'd say it was just an accident - one of them bit harder than necessary, maybe he was startled, or got a little rough during play.


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## Chance (Sep 8, 2008)

Thanks for the input. they still power groom each other and have their squabbles for dominance. nothing bloody. at the end of the day though, they all cuddle up in the same hammock. hopefully it wont happen again


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

is it a bite or a self inflicted scratch wound?


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Sometimes rats zig when they should've zagged...and will get long slashes. When its a deep puncture bite (deliberate) then you start to worry.


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## Chance (Sep 8, 2008)

its weird, theres like a chunk of skin missing. kind of in the shape of a triangle. if i knew it wasnt a bite id say it looked like he got a chunk of fur caught on something and ripped the skin to free it. it looks nasty but its not a puncture

*edit*
i looked for a photo of something similar and this was as close as i could get

http://ratguide.com/breeding/figures/images/birthbite.jpg

its on his back and it looks a lot like the birth wound on the baby's arm in that picture


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

fur pulled out maybe?

Said the image was gone


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## Chance (Sep 8, 2008)

grr.

rehosted it

http://i36.tinypic.com/2hx3mfl.jpg


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Ahh a clean slice that opened up from the tension of the skin? Those look scary but often heal overnight 

Is anyone acting frightened around their cagemate? If not, I would say it was an oops


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## Chance (Sep 8, 2008)

the night it happened he acted scared of ME lol but was back to his normal self the next day. 

and you're totally right, it looked really scary at first. all scabbed over now though and it doesnt appear to have gotten infected at all. 

thanks so much


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