# Are albino rats generally more timid?



## SwampWitch666 (May 9, 2016)

I have a skittish albino and I thought that might just be his base personality. But now I'm speaking to more people that have had albinos for pets and they say that their albinos are (in general) more skittish, timid, shy, and were harder to socialize than their other rats. Is this true? Or could it be because of the bad eyesight?


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## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Albino rats have really bad eye sight and their sense of smells is also not as good as the other rats. Both can impact your rat's confidence. However, a rat's personality is mostly genetics and correlated to bad or good breeding practices. You are more likely to end up with a skittish rat, if you get it from a pet store; this is because pet store rats are from rat mills where there is no selective breeding for good temperament.


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## thyme (May 25, 2009)

It's possible, and I don't doubt that the eyesight could play a part in it. I've had four PEWs and they've all been pretty easygoing. Hannibal, my current guy, is very laid-back and nothing makes him happier than hanging out in my hood. Even if he's just been out, he'll act like he's attention-starved and try to crawl back up my arm. He gets pushy when treats come out (mainly just popcorn and peanuts), but he's super friendly, if a little clumsy.

The poor eyesight was more obvious with Boris, my last PEW. He was older, though, and could be a bit jumpy if I didn't start talking to let him know I was there before I reached in. He never bit me or anything though.

My other two, Humphrey and Ziggy, were also pretty friendly. Humphrey was the first baby in his litter to make an impression with his outgoing and fearless personality, which is why I picked him, and Ziggy loved being up high and meeting new people.

I did know a tan rat with pink eyes who never really came around. She squeaked in fear when touched, refused treats from my hand, and ran away when the cage door opened. Her two buddies liked her well enough, though.


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## keykaye (Jun 11, 2015)

I have a white rat with a brown nose and tail base that has bright pink eyes and she is also skittish. Her sister who is almost identical has dark ruby eyes, is more brave and such but like her sister neither one really like it when i reach in to grab them. The dark red will let me pet her in the cage, but her sister with the pink eyes can be real scared of hands at times, but she will still take food from me. Both were rescue rats so their backgrounds are unknown, as they were dropped off at a rescue with a box full of females nursing their young. Beside my rats i have seen some very friendly albinos on videos on youtube though, so maybe eyesight can effect it, but no two rats are ever the same.


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## Ratloved (Oct 4, 2015)

I have two PEWs, and also knew their mother. Both are young neutered males around five months old. They are very sweet.laid back guys. Neither one of them are skiddish at all, both are inquisitive but very loving. Their mom was very, very sweet also. So I think genetics and how they were raised play a bigger role on personality than their hair color.


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## moonkissed (Dec 26, 2011)

Color itself does not have a role in their personality. 

I also do not believe that their eye sight make them any more timid in any way. All rats have really not that great vision and they do really well. Alot of my rats have red/ruby eyes and are absolutely wonderful  I also have a girl who is almost blind and she is super friendly and not timid at all. Since having my girl with vision issues I have read up & discussed it with some experienced people and rats who are blind or with severe vision issues actually can go on with almost no difference in their life because of rats already having such bad vision anyways they adjust really really well. Honestly you would not even guess my girl has issues except her eyes are noticeably weird.

What does play a role is genetics and the line they come from. PEW is fairly common in both the pet store and feeder lines. Not all feeders are bad but since PEW is not very popular as pets they are mostly bred without alot of care. So it would make sense that the majority are not going to come from very awesome lines.


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## RatAtat2693 (Jan 13, 2016)

I've noticed that rats with any form of pink/red/ruby eyes tend to be a little more shy at first. This isn't to say that they won't make good pets - my red/ruby eyed Rex, Shamus, is a confident adventurer, but he startles a little more easily than his black eyed brother. He's friendly, never bitten anyone, and loves yogurt.

I do think there is a correlation between light eyes and timidity, but whether it's their sight of not, I do not know.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

I work with rats outdoors, and despite popular belief, some rats do have very good eyesight... yes it's low resolution, but they can use it very effectively in daylight...

See videos:

https://vid.me/bYiW

https://vid.me/BzNQ 

In fact Fuzzy Rat could find the house from over half a mile away by tracking back the path we took just by looking backwards along the way away from the house... Her spacial abilities were remarkable and her eyesight excellent... she could recognize people she knew from over 50 feet away even when they approached against the wind.... She was supremely confident and very friendly...

This is Misty... She has black ruby eyes...

https://vid.me/SgmU

Notice how close she stays and how she follows the hand and sometimes gets a little lost when she can't identify her people... Her eyesight isn't really that bad... but she can't function at nearly the same level as Fuzzy Rat did. Oddly, she seems to have slightly better night vision than in broad daylight. The video was taken when she was only about six or seven weeks old and she's come a long way since in using her eyesight... but she isn't nearly as naturally confident as Fuzzy Rat or Max who had natural brown eyes were. She makes up for her shortcomings by staying close to us.

As to the question of personality... I do believe that rats are born with a certain personality, but it does develop according to their abilities. Two people with great personalities are going to express them differently given their physical abilities and upbringing... 

Some time ago, I worked with someone who had a PEW shoulder rat who was actually quite impressive. And I know of a very competent, deaf shoulder rat too. So anything is possible. Just because a rat doesn't have good vision or hearing doesn't mean it can't develop confidence and competency. 

But let's face facts, sighted people have it easier. Rats with good eyesight are going to become more confident in wide open spaces faster than rats that can't see well... and regardless of personality, sight will make some difference in how a rat expresses it's personality. You might even argue that given the difference in ability, Misty is actually more outgoing than Fuzzy Rat was... I mean it was a lot easier for Fuzzy Rat because she had such good eyesight, whereas Misty has to deal with a world that isn't as clear... So maybe it actually takes more courage for her to go outside than it did for Fuzzy Rat... 

So basically... I'd say yes, eyesight has a lot to do with confidence... but a rat's personality has a lot to do with it too. Like humans rats can overcome handicaps.

I'm not going to go into a nurture vs nature debate, both are important and one modifies the other. I've never met two rats with the same personality, even from the same litter and I've seen vicious rats make great pets and I've seen sweet rats screwed up so they bite... 

If you spend time with your rats, consistently encourage them and get them used to your voice and to trusting you they will come around. Even absolutely blind rats can become great pets and best furry friends.


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## Fayrie (Jun 28, 2016)

My most out going rat was a pew, Mumford, he was a pet store rat. He was the sweetest boy in the whole world, he would fall asleep on my chest at night in his old age and I would wake up in the morning to him awake but curled up looking at me. He had bad eye sight and eventually went blind, he lived to 3.5 years.


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## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

My only albino, Sugar, was actually quite timid at first. (Probably the most timid rat I ever met!) I rescued her with her sister Spicy from the Humane Society. She took a long while to open up but now she is just as bold as any other little lady!


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

I don't have albinos but I have 2 ruby eyed rats and 2 black eyed rats and they may get startled more easily but it does not effect their personality whatsoever. Infact my both my rubies are very sweet natured and prefer being around me rather than going of playing like my blacks.


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