# My rats won't drink from a water bottle!



## teaelves (Nov 13, 2012)

Hi Everyone,

I have three female rats who are almost three months old. I got them when they were six weeks old and their owner told me that they still hadn't learned to drink from a water bottle yet and were just drinking from a dish. I had purchased a water bottle already so I put it in the cage, and sure enough they didn't drink from it so I gave them a dish so they wouldn't get dehydrated. Now, they are much bigger and rowdier and tend to get bits of food in the water dish and I have to change it frequently as a result. I would really prefer that they drink from the water bottle for sanitation, smell, and convenience. How can I train them to use it without dehydrating them in the process?


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

try something tasty in there, like a bit of apple juice or milk. When they are next to it just touch it with your finger and let them lick that off you, then move a bit closer until they can smell the tastyness on the spout, they should pick it up from there. 

I honestly find it odd that rats don't learn to use them at 6 weeks, my babies taught themselves at around 2.5 weeks old, presumably from copying mum and trying new things. I wonder if they were offered a water bottle at all as youngsters before you got them.


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## teaelves (Nov 13, 2012)

Thank you so much for the advice about putting some juice in the bottle; I did half juice, half water, and the ratties are drinking it up! Great suggestion.


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