# Looking for more experienced home for aggressive female - Cincinnati, OH



## eyohkay (Jan 20, 2011)

I recently adopted two female rats from my younger sister, who had purchased them from Petco and then quickly grew tired of them. Macy has become a bit too much for me to handle, and I am hoping to find her a home with someone a bit more experienced, as this is my first time owning rats in several years.

When she first came here, she was very cage aggressive. She has lunged from higher levels at my hand while spot cleaning (like, with teeth bared, flying through the air). While a bit on the jumpy side, the bites didn't seem to be bites out of fear, but more of a "get out of my space" kind of thing. She takes treats from my hand with no problem and when I can manage to get her to come out of her cage, she does fine aside from her skittishness.

While the time I have been spending with her seems to be improving her behavior towards me, the same cannot be said about her bahavior toward the other rats. Poor Bailey, her cagemate for around three months now, is constantly being picked on. I hear squeaks throughout all hours of the day and night, always as a result of Macy asserting her dominance... flipping her over, biting, tugging ears, chasing throughout the cage. While there are times that they do get along, and can often be found lounging together in the hammock, I feel as though I hear these squeaks of protest far too often, and I just feel bad for Bailey.

The final straw occurred earlier this week, when I began intros with my new girl Chrysanthemum, who turned six weeks old yesterday. Macy attacked Chrysanthemum, and even a squirt bottle and my best efforts to break up the brawl couldn't prevent Chrys from coming away from the ordeal with a gash down her back almost an inch and a half long. While not deep, there was definitely blood drawn. At this point, I am afraid to even consider trying intros again. 

I really don't have the money to spend on more cages and more mouths to feed, so separating her in the hopes that I'll find her a suitable cagemate isn't really an option. I believe a little work could go a long way for her, as her cage aggression has already improved quite a bit since coming here. She has not drawn blood from me in several days, and if it weren't for the issues with the other rats, I wouldn't even be here. She's got quite the quirky personality and is a riot to watch. She's a bit OCD about keeping her cage organized, so my favorite game is to simply scatter all her toys and things around the cage and watch her run around like mad, frantically trying to get all of her things back in their designated corner.

I live in the Northern Kentucky/Cincinnati area, but often travel between the Lexington, KY and Columbus, OH areas to visit family. I would be willing to drive any reasonable distance within these areas.


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## eyohkay (Jan 20, 2011)

Someone please help us out. ):

Due to Macy's aggression towards the new girl, they have now switched cages-- Chrysanthemum in the big cage with Bailey, and Macy in the QT cage alone. I hate doing this to her, but my only other option is to keep Chrysanthemum by herself, which isn't an option at all. The QT cage is not big enough to house two, and I cannot afford medical care for four girls should they need it, so getting another rat is not really something I can consider at the moment.

I am willing to drive a considerable distance from Lexington, Cincinnati, or Columbus to see that she goes to a good home.


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## littlematchstick (Apr 12, 2009)

If you don't have any good luck on here soon with finding a home you could try the forum at goosemoose.com :

http://www.goosemoose.com/component/option,com_smf/Itemid,118/forum,rat/

they seem to have a bigger rehoming section then we do, and you might have better luck there. I live in Northeast Ohio so that's quite a drive, and I really can't afford to take in anymore rats right now..or I would. Good Luck!


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