# First time rat owner..... HELP!!!!



## icklescarab (Jun 8, 2010)

Hi,

We bought our two rats (alfie and pinky) onn saturday.

We got them settled in their cage and left them alone for a couple of days.

I sit and talk to them in a soft happy voice so that they get to know me and I leave the door open so that they can come up and sniff me if they want to.

Alfie is very timid and shy (a bit of a scaredy rat) and usually hides underneath Pinky. Pinky is the boistrous older brother and usually gets fed up when Alfie is pestering him so sits on him to get him to stop. They're really funny to watch.

I've stroked both of them while they were in the cage so they are slowly getting used to me. They don't mind me putting my hand in the cage as that usually means dinner time (especially when there are apples on offer).

Has anyone got any useful tips on how we can progress from here as I really want to pick them up and teach them some new tricks?

Thanks!


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

Just go ahead and pick them up. Forced socialisation (not mean as it sounds lol) is usually the best and quickest way for rats to get used to people. Apparently fear can't be held for longer than 20 minutes. Have a blanket or something like that over your knee so they can hide if they want, or perhaps they could go inside a jumper or something you're wearing. That will allow them to get used to you while still hiding if they aren't too sure bout things yet. 

You could give them treats from a spoon such as baby food or yoghurt, so they have to stay on you to eat opposed to running away and eating a hard treat. 

Forced socialisation does tend to be the best way as it leaves both humans and the rats wary for a shorter period of time. It's better for them to be nervous for a short while and then they can enjoy being handled and exploring out of the cage sooner, opposed to being nervous inside of the cage for a lot longer if you wait for them to come to you. It may turn out they won't even be nervous when you start handling them.


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## icklescarab (Jun 8, 2010)

Thanks..... I'll try it tonight!


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## clarry (May 19, 2008)

Yeh, If they dont bite you when you put your hand in the cage then im petty sure youre fine to just grab them (in a gentle way) lol. Thats the way ive always done it with all my babies, although rats do have the ability to bite they really dont often bite to hurt you unless theyre really scared (which isnt often because they tend to be quite trusting) so dont worry about that  
Also they might seem scared when you just grab them but i have heard that they cant hold fear for more than 20 mins, so if you keep them on a sofa or a bed with you for 20 mins they tend to eventually curl up with you or near you


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## musapan (Apr 4, 2009)

I completely agree with the above comments. You really have to get in there and pull them out of their cage as much as you can; they don't need any sort of acclimation period before you can handle them, like hamsters. The more you leave them alone, the more they're going to fear you, and the harder it's going to be to socialize them. Make sure they know you're not at all afraid of them, and even if they seem reluctant to come out of their cage, believe me, once you get them out they're fine. 
Soon they'll be waiting excitedly for you to bring them out! Good luck!


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## icklescarab (Jun 8, 2010)

Well Alphie has been really good. He keeps on trying to bite my nails because he's used ot me giving him treats lol ;D

I'm going to try and get Alphie out first because he's the most sociable whereas his brother isn't. I think if Alphie gets used to us, his brother should follow suit. 

Also, the sqeeking thing totally works because Pinky tried to bite me the other day when I was trying to get him out so I could clean the cage. I squeeked and he backed off.


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