# whats the difference between play fighting and real?



## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

im sitting on the bed with my two boys& they're trying to get at eachothers private parts but they're making eachother squeal but they're not drawing blood or anything. could I just have a moaner?


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## Perocore (Jan 6, 2014)

Real fighting involves facing each other head on, or chasing and violently striking across the rump/shoulders. They will draw blood, and they will hiss and...well it's pretty obvious and pretty horrific- I've only seen this once at a local pet store when two recently tossed together males started attacking one another. 

Squealing is pretty normal, that's just what rats do when they're roughhousing. And they'll sniff and investigate "private parts" presumably to identify one another...a lot of animals do this, I don't entirely know why but they have much stronger since of smell than us, especially in urine. ((And I'm not entirely sure how appropriate that last comment/question is //is fairly young))


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

what does roughhousing mean? and they do stand up and face eachother but only once or twice. and what you mean? you don't think what comment is appropriate? and they are only 15 weeks old so im not sure wether it could be their age like.


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## Kinsey (Jun 14, 2009)

They are probably just playing. Fighting will involve blood, hissing and loud screams of pain. The attacker will chase the submissive rat incessantly. They won't just sniff privates either, they'll bite, and they do not mess around. I had a male decide to tear a pair of babies apart and had I not been there they would have been badly hurt.

Sometimes during play or dominance challenges they will rear up and wrestle. The difference is you will not see blood, they will both be in on it, and often it will end in grooming.


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

could it be jelousy? cos jacks all me and flash isnt that bothered about me? infact he's scared of me and I dont know why. im so fed up cos I try so hard with him and I don't know what I've done :-(


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## Scott (Dec 11, 2013)

I do have 3 females - oneof them does not seem to really care for me unless I have treats. But I guess she likes me in her own way.


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

yeah mine are the same. one loves me whether I've got treats or not and then other one will take treats from me but runs back off again.


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## Juliah456 (Mar 12, 2014)

My boys were just thrown together by their previous owner.. Miraculously they get along splendid and cuddle together all the time  I used to be worried by their fighting too, but at first I decided to just go by the rule of 'no blood, no fight'... Also, one flips the other over don't be too worried, he's probably just barbering the other to show dominance. Gabriel has a tendency to turn Gus over and barber his belly, but it's all just dominance stuff, no worries.


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## aimleigh (Feb 7, 2014)

ah, I'm just gonna go by your rule of 'no blood, no fight' hehe. Hopefully they will calm down


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