# Unsocial Rats - when does it become a hopeless case?



## cahtch_me (Aug 15, 2014)

Hello - I "rescued" 2 male rats off of Craigslist. They were said to be friendly etc but the guy who had them didn't have time for them. And his only option was to bring them to the pet store where they would probably end up as snake food. I'm a sucker for a sad story and brought them home. They are not friendly at all. They are around 8 months per the guy I got them from. But they could very well be much older. They do not want to be pet, held, and are bitey. I'm going to give trust training and socialization my best shot. However, my husband and I had to have a frank conversation after I got bit and it drew blood - because we have a toddler and another on the way - that if they are too far gone what do we do? (I want my kids to be around them and enjoy them - this isn't my first to round with rats - but the first time I've dealt with unsocial rats). As I said in my intro post - I do feel a bit in over my head. When does a rat become a hopeless case? While someone is always home - they are not in a high traffic area but are exposed to the goings on of the household and I've been spending an hour or two every evening after the munchkin is in bed working with them. I appreciate the feedback.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Start here:

http://www.ratforum.com/showthread.php?67442-Immersion-Training-The-Guide

This will help you to properly socialize your rats.

Best luck


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

At risk of sounding callous, what is "hopeless"? While I respect people who cannot handle a situation that they didn't know they were getting into, I am critical of decisions such as handing them off to be snake food or to be put to sleep. So, I would first note that homes can perhaps be found through the forum with someone who will rehabilitate them or through rat shelters which have "sanctuary" rooms for said "hopeless" rats.

Many rats can be rehabilitated but it takes a lot of time and work and sometimes you can only hit a certain point with effort before needing to let time run its course. I did immersion with a two year old blind and deaf female who was aggressive and today she gave me her very first kiss -- a year laterm after four hours a day of getting bit for a week straight. Now, some people say you can't keep a rat that will bite as a pet and certainly not as a family pet but Iris (the forementioned rat) is very much that. She still will try to test her boundaries and bite others. I have trained my nieces on how to handle her situation.


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## cahtch_me (Aug 15, 2014)

Appreciate the link! I've started reading through all the stickies.


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## cahtch_me (Aug 15, 2014)

Yes. I don't want to see these guys snake food/put them to sleep at all! But no - you don't sound callous. I just haven't run into the situation of unsocial rats. Even my first rat - pet store singleton (before I knew that you should keep them in pairs) was super friendly. I'm going to give it my best shot - I want these two to work out - but I want to be realistic and whatnot too and make sure I've tried everything I can and hear feedback from others in maybe a similar situation.


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## Lita (Jul 10, 2014)

I would definitly look into someone who is experienced with untamed rats. When we got our trio we actually got four. First couple days were ok but soon the largest went from curious to violent. Just with us. We are not experienced rat owners, and i am terrified of bites, so she was a bad choice for us, but we couldn't give her back. So i got ready to get gloves and work out a plan of attack, until a coworker I was talking to said she had experience with rats like that and if the other three seemed ok without her then she would take her. We did a trial seperation, and the other three blossumed and became so much nicer and more friendly with us. My coworker took her and last time we spoke she was doing well and taking treats from hand without any issue. Sometimes you just can't handle a certain situation or an animal just does not fit, and there is no shame in moving them to someone else.


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## rileys-mom (May 26, 2014)

My two chocolate girls are exactly the same way and I rescued them from a Craigslist ad - also from someone who never had time for them. I've pretty much come to believe that these two girls will never be very social. It's the way they were raised. They lived in an aquarium and the only human interaction they had was someone throwing some rat chow at them. I did rescue them and I enjoy what little time I do have with them, but I have to be satisfied with that.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

If you really put in the time you will improve them a great deal, but no neglected rats usually never get 100% right. We adopted Amelia after 7 months of neglect and after about 3 weeks she was fine indoors, and sometimes playful and friendly... She liked to wake me out of my deepest sleep by putting her head into my mouth... But outdoors she was a basket case... I don't think she really ever trusted us 100% so she couldn't deal with the stress of feeling unprotected... Seven months of neglect took it's toll even if she did love us very much.

She was a great rat, but she was never really right, you always got the feeling like she was waiting for the other shoe to drop and someone was going to stuff her into a cage and leave her alone again.


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## gotchea (May 4, 2013)

Ratdaddy that is so sad! I feel like that's how my girls think. I kind of feel like they want me to leave them alone. One of my girls actually fell asleep on the couch with me yesterday and I moved to get the remote and she freak. It was the first time she was kind of comfortable with me and looked relaxed. They hate being out of the cage but once I go to put them back in the cage they give me a look like "I knew this was going to happen! You are never going to come back." It's awful.


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