# How do you "wrestle" with your rat?



## lonerambler (Mar 6, 2014)

Well, I have two female rats that love to climb around and play with each other, but for some reason they don't seem to enjoy playing with me (aside from climbing on me, training with treats...). 
However, they don't seem to like to wrestle with my hand as I have heard some people do with their rats, although they always take treats directly from my fingers, let me pick them up (specially when they are trying to reach something), and they will do anything you can imagine like climbing on me, getting in my sleeves, and even wrestle with each other on my lap... so I think they are pretty socialized and used to me.

Being female and young, I get it's very hard that they let me cuddle and pet them, but I'd love to be able to wrestle with them, as it sounds pretty cool, so I'd like to hear some advice from you guys: how do you start wrestling with your ratties, what movements do you do with your hand and fingers... etc.


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

I'm so glad someones put this up! my boys are the same, I am going to keep an eye on this, id love to be able to wrestle with my boys! makes me happy to see or hear them being happy.


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## Chove (Mar 23, 2014)

Yeah, I'm not sure what it entails either.


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## rainbowrats (Jul 25, 2013)

I'd also like to know.. My girls are fine with petting usually, but no wrestling has been allowed..


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## lalalauren (Jul 3, 2013)

When Thaddius was younger, he loved to wrestle. I'd start by flipping him on his back and tickling his tummy, and then my hand would scurry away and he'd chase it. Sometimes I'd dart my hand back into him and give him a little scritch or roll him over again, and he'd nibble at me and chase my hand around the floor. Sometimes he'd hump my hand, or get a bit carried away with his teeth, so I'd stop and say "no", and I think he understood, as that was always followed by lots of licks.

My current babies don't really wrestle. I flip them over for tickles, which they love, but they don't really chase my hand.


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## NeeNee (Feb 5, 2014)

Like above...I flip my guys over and hold for a little...or squish them, scratch and rub, then "run away" with my hand, tapping my fingernails along the way 

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## DustyRat (Jul 9, 2012)

The only rattie I have who plays with my hand is Jet. I lay my hand by her and she bites me. Then I ruffle her fur. Then she bites me and so on. She doesn't bite hard as she is playing. My other girls just give me the evil eye if I mess up their fur, lol.


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## Maddie (Jan 13, 2014)

Lol my boys like to wrestle but only for short spurts. Rikki likes to hide under a dresser or something and pop his head in and out and fight with my fingers that usually results in my fingers and his paws baby ting at each other. He is more into scurrying about and hiding and then me trying to catch him. If I tell him I'm giving up he walks over and sits on me then darts away and comes back.Now Ty likes to play rough (and his brother doesn't like it) so normally that falls on me to do it. Usually I will flip him on his back and tickle his tummy which he loves. Then he will chase my hand about or I will chase him. Sometimes they both want to play which honestly it's insane with two flying rats.


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## Phantom (Apr 4, 2012)

I wrestle with my rats all the time. It's a lot of fun and they enjoy it so much they'll come up to me during free range time quite often and want me to wrestle with them. The way I wrestly with them is I flip them on their back and scratch their bellies and neck. Sometimes they'll hang on my hand with their legs like a cat and lick or nibble my fingers. When I'm done or they've had enough they will popcorn and run around the room. Pastoolio does 180's back to me and usually wants me to wrestle with him again. I also scratch and shake their butts and they'll do the same thing. 

When a rat has done something wrong I never punish them. I just take them away from what they are doing that is considered "bad", like chewing on my bed, and then I wrestle with them and pin them on their back a bit longer and all is well afterwards.


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## Juliah456 (Mar 12, 2014)

lalalauren said:


> When Thaddius was younger, he loved to wrestle. I'd start by flipping him on his back and tickling his tummy, and then my hand would scurry away and he'd chase it. Sometimes I'd dart my hand back into him and give him a little scritch or roll him over again, and he'd nibble at me and chase my hand around the floor. Sometimes he'd hump my hand, or get a bit carried away with his teeth, so I'd stop and say "no", and I think he understood, as that was always followed by lots of licks. My current babies don't really wrestle. I flip them over for tickles, which they love, but they don't really chase my hand.Sent from Petguide.com Free App


 Gus likes when I flip and tickle him too ^_^ can't imagine how my girls would react if I tried something like that on them though!!


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

mine don't like it :-(


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## Kuraudia (Jan 15, 2014)

I don't know if this is considered "wrestling" but my Wedgie loves it! While he's in the cage, I put my hand in and tickle him (anywhere is fine) and he goes nuts! He starts running, he jumps around, he goes on the bars, he sometimes hides and then go back out. Sometimes while I tickle him, he'll turn around and "attack" me, but not at all painfully. I can do it out of his cage, but then he doesn't know where to hide 
If I put him in a hoodie pocket it's fun too because I tickle him and he jumps around in the pocket and tickles me back!
With Harley and Flash I tried real wrestling, turning them over and tickling their tum-tum, but all they wanted was to turn around, so I think that failed a little bit. Wedgie doesn't mind being tickled in the belly


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## Perocore (Jan 6, 2014)

When my boys are in "play mode" they both will "wrestle" with me if I just prod them gently. They're very silly little crazies, and will roll over, jump, whirl about and roll around holding onto my fingers or playing tag. They'll also play a game where they jump at me and I tickle them, and they shoot away and bounce back a few seconds later. I assume you just have to wait until your rats are in the mood to play- which for my boys is usually from 9 pm to 10 pm...or 4 am some nights, ahah.


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