# new rat owner~have kind of a problem?



## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

hi I'm Joanna  so I got my first rat Popuri several days ago (from Petsmart, I know I know I should have gone to a breeder and I definitely will the next time I get a rat). She's several weeks old and dumbo eared, light gray with some darker gray areas. I have a question: the store owners told me she doesn't get along with other rats, but she was EXTREMELY sweet to me so I bought her. however a bunch of people yelled at me after I bought her saying she needed a companion. so I bought another rat from the same store (so no germs from another store) and tried to slowly integrate them and the store was telling the truth, Popuri was very angry to see the other rat. I then noticed after putting the other rat in its own cage that it had diarrhea in the box it came in so I immediately took it back to the store and cleaned super hard in hopes if it was sick it wouldn't infect Popuri. 

I know that was super nooby of me, and I should have probably quarantined the rat even if it was from the same store and it was only a few days after I got the first one. I thought it would be alright since they were from the same store. 

Popuri has grown extremely attached to me already. she asks to come out of her cage constantly and wants nothing more than to sit on my shoulders in my hair contently. if I give her plenty of attention every day will she be ok on her own?


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## raving_ratties (Sep 2, 2013)

Unfortunately, no. Rats need, need, need one companion or more. No matter how many toys you buy your rat, or how much you play with her, nothing will compare to having a buddy for her to sleep and play with.

Go to the same pet store and try buying a different rat. During immersion, it is extremely common for your currently owned rat to show some light hostility towards the newbie. This is because she is asserting her dominance. Put both rats in a neutral area; like the bathtub for example. Allow the two to sniff each other, and only break up quarrels if you see blood. Do this everyday for a week or two, and in no time the two should be buddies. Hope this helped. 


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

The problem is our constantly doesn't usually match rat's constantly. Mine sleep on and off throughout the day. Let's say you sleep 6 hours a day. You spend at least 2 hours a day eating/bathing/etc. I'm going to assume you have a job or go to school. 8 hours. We are at 16 hours a day you cannot spend with either rats. There are only twenty four hours. This of course assumes you don't have to go to the store or have something your rat cannot come out for. Don't forget you can't also do things like cuddle her in her hammock, groom her, play with her, etc. just like another rat could.

What do you mean she didn't get along with the new rat? Is she an older female meeting a baby?


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

no she is a young female. I just got her a few days ago. at the store she was separated from the other rats and they told me she doesn't like other rats.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

but, I want her to have a friend if possible :/


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Well, can you describe her behavior in the meeting?

What you should do: Put the cages side to side. If this upsets your resident rat, tough nuts. Wait until she is not affected. Cage swap. Do this for about a week in total. Try intros again. Normal things: pinning, grooming, wrestling, squeaking. Things to beware: hissing, puffing up, rump bites, sidling, blood.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

she was very on edge, she attempted to bite at the other rat (I didn't let them touch each other as soon as I saw her reaction to the other rat)

thanks for those tips. I really want her to have a buddy I feel bad for her when I'm at work.

side note: she has never bitten me not even once except slight feely nibbles. she is not aggressive to anything except other rats.


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

I would try again; on edge is normal. The rule of thumb is no blood, no foul.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

okay I see. I will get a different rat from the same store tomorrow or the next day and start the process.


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## Grawrisher (Sep 10, 2013)

The key to intros is basically saying "look, this is your friend, learn to love her, my way, no highway option" after being alone for quite a while (I didn't know any better) I introed penny to resident aris, aris is a bit of an odd duck and tends to move to new hiding places if penn tries to join but ultimately they get along and they play in ways that I could neve play with them, they are opposite ends of the spectrum in personality but thy keep each other company


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Fuzzy Rat, the true shoulder rat that taught us all about immersion theory and in many ways changed the way lots of people socialize rats was an only rat for much of her life. So a rat can do very well on her own with constant human companionship....

BUT...

I work at home, and whenever we went out she tagged along, she had constant human companionship up to 20 hours a day. And she was NEVER left home alone.... not for more than a few minutes. She was a real lifestyle, not a pet rodent. We shopped at rat friendly stores, ate at rat friendly restaurants and went to rat friendly parks and beaches. So, yes, she thought of herself as part of the family and preferred the company of humans over rats all her life. But when she got older we did get her companions who cared for her and snuggled with her and kept her warm on cold nights and preened her tails and yes amazingly enough we could finally sit down and eat in at Taco Bell.

So a single rat is doable, and can work out very well for a rat but it's seriously going to change your life. And by the way you might actually come up with a very remarkable rat after investing several thousand hours doing it, and getting a reputation as the person who always walks around with a rat, which isn't all that bad.

I'd recommend that there's no rush to get another rat, take some time and really bond with your new rat and once your rat loves and respects you, you can lead your rats, old and new through an immersion introduction that you can control hands on from the middle of the ring.

I might add that certain rats don't play well with others... ever. They are very rare, but not unheard of.

Either way keeping a single rat happy and emotionally balanced is 2.5 full time jobs wrapped up on one.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

Aw that sounds wonderful I wish I could do that but I do not work from home and even if I did get a job from home and took most of my courses in January online (which I plan to do) I'd still have to leave the house for some of my classes. So I should get her a friend...I did read a couple websites that said some rats really don't play well with others hopefully that is not the case but the pet store did separate her from other rats even though she'd been around other rats since birth


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

There is a big difference between something that can't be done and something that is really hard to do. Raising a happy healthy rat alone can be done... it's just about the hardest way to do it, unless you are a shut in.

I find that sometimes people like a challenge and will try anything you tell them not to do, on the other hand if you tell them what it takes to do it they more commonly make the sane and reasonable choice.

Whatever you do avoid rats smaller than your girl and pups at all costs. Older female rats tend to attack and kill other girls pups, and that includes the nicest ones... it's just instinct. And if your girl is a scrapper you will need to give the other rat a fighting chance. I try and do introductions with me in the middle after I've bonded with both rats, so neither bites me and I can break things up when they get out of hand. Still it's useful to have oven mitts handy, a rat fight can get wild and a little bit dangerous fast.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

The other rat that I returned was an itsy bit smaller than her, I'll try to find one bigger or more exact to her size next time


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Don't forget to choose your next rat based on personality too. As much as it's going to hopefully be your current rat's friend, it's going to have to be your friend too.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

Help, the rat I returned because I saw it had abnormal overly loose stool I believe might have infected Popuri. She has never pooped out of her cage or had abnormal feces but today she went all over my couch and it was just like the other rat's, very loose and slightly diarrhea like :/ I feel so stupid for letting that other rat near her (although it was very briefly) if it was from her I thought since they were in the same store at the same time it would be ok. Should I take her to a vet if this continues :/


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## nanashi7 (Jun 5, 2013)

Yes, you should, as it could be an issue. Make sure to hydrate her. Make sure new rat #2 is inspected and clear and is quarantined.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

I returned that other rat the same day when I noticed I thought it might be sick. I didn't like it as much personality wise either I was kind of rushing finding another rat I'm going to be more selective when I get another one tomorrow (and this time quarantine it even though they are from the same store) I believe it was a false alarm as her stool seems fine now but I'm going to keep an eye on her. I just freaked out as I thought I got her sick.


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## Xerneas (Aug 6, 2013)

Just a thought but that could have been fear pooping, actually. It's exactly what it sounds like and it's super yucky and loose and smells godawful. A lot of rats tend to do that when they are first brought home since they fear poop in stressful situations. The red flag is that Popuri had it too... Maybe if this was her first time on the couch, or if she was upset by the other rat's smell, or something weird like that. Not sure. Hope she's OK.


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## TikalKeria (Oct 8, 2013)

That was her first time on the couch so hopefully that was all ._. I feel silly now if the other rat was just fear pooping also since she had just come home.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

Every new rat owner is going to go through the stress of things going wrong. Most times it's not something serious. The problem actually sometimes gets worse when you are a member of a rat fraternity such as ours. We read about all of the terrible things that happen to other people's rats all over the world condensed into a a few threads. I mean how, often do folks log on to say how healthy their rats are today? But if a rat is sick it gets discussed, so it actually looks like 'most' rats are sick or dying. Not so. 

Sometimes it's hard to just wait and see what happens next, but more often than not, that's all it takes to get through a crisis. 

And when giving advise, not seeing someone's rat in person, it's always safest to tell someone to go see their vet. Basically, and I realize it's hard, you sort of have to keep your finger off the trigger and not panic.

My rule of thumb is not how sick a rat looks but whether it is getting worse. Just about everything that happens to a rat has a fast onset. I mean one minute your rat seems fine then it isn't. If it stays relatively the same it usually gets better pretty fast too; if it gets worse from hour to hour or day to day it requires intervention. Same is true of children's sicknesses. All of a sudden your young child is sick and has a 103 fever, it will usually go down in a few hours or with a little Tylenol, if it starts going up instead you are on your way to the doctor or ER.


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