# Arm waving/shaking?



## simx48 (Mar 16, 2012)

I've had my two female rats for about a month now and recently I've noticed a strange behavior developing in one of them. I always feed them applesauce and one of my rats has started shaking/waving her arms between bites while she's eating the applesauce. I don't really know how to describe it, it's kinda like she's straightening out her arms and then bringing them back in again really fast. Any idea what this means?


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## RatzRUs (Feb 5, 2012)

Is she putting her paws in it? Sometimes I give mine yougart out of a bowl and they all get into the bowl at once and then it gets stuck to their paws so they shake them to get it off it's rather entertaining


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## simx48 (Mar 16, 2012)

I put the applesauce on my finger and let her eat it, sometimes she grabs the applesauce so maybe that is what she's doing. Thanks!


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## A.ngelF.eathers (Jul 6, 2011)

That's probably what it is. My boys love grapes but don't love their stickiness. There's a lot of little nibbles then flailing and licking to get the juice off their little feetsies. xD


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## Lex (Mar 22, 2012)

Two of my rats do that when they drink water from the bottle above their heads. Not always, but when they're getting a good long drink. I figured it was just a rat quirk....it makes me giggle.


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## lilspaz68 (Feb 24, 2007)

Rats hate sticky things on their paws, so will do that fast shake off to remove it


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## therathugger (Feb 9, 2012)

She is trying to wave lol


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## Bright.Side (Dec 19, 2011)

Lol, my girls do that too. I don't know exactly why, but I try to be around when they go to the water bottle. It's just sooo cute!


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## minnehaha25 (Mar 14, 2012)

You know raisins and grape skins are poisionis to rats right


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## therathugger (Feb 9, 2012)

Are you sure? I have never heard that before! Pretty odd....


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## A.ngelF.eathers (Jul 6, 2011)

minnehaha25 said:


> You know raisins and grape skins are poisionis to rats right


You know this is a mixed debate, right? As far as rats go. There are reputable sources who claim they're fine, then there are sources who claim they're not.

I've give my boys raisins before, and they loved them. They eat grapes which have been peeled first, as they don't like the skin.


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## Campuschris (Mar 31, 2012)

minnehaha25 said:


> You know raisins and grape skins are poisionis to rats right


My vet actually told me this exact thing yesterday when I was there. Also said that apple seeds are poisonous to them (and many other things) as well.


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## simx48 (Mar 16, 2012)

I give my rats grapes. At first they would eat the skin, now they don't anymore. They also used to eat raisins but don't anymore.


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## Paul_Julian (Oct 31, 2011)

If you give too much grapes/raisins, of course it will make every animal ill. It's normal thing. 
The same thing would happen if you give too much of some other food. 
Fruits seeds (apple, cherries, plum, peach etc.) are poisonous because of the cyanide. Of course if you're rat eats 2-3 seeds, he wont die, don't worry. he wont die of few raisins of grapes, too ( unless he chokes or such, but it's different thing). Raisins are present in rat food you buy in pet store, so it cant be poisonous 
When giving grape to my rats, I cut it open, and take the seeds out. Rats can easily eat pulp and they leave mere peel  The same with apple - I cut out the core, and rats eat all the inside and leave very thin apple peel. There are many good and healthy vitamins and goodies just under the peel. If you peel the apple yourself , you toss out all those vitamins.


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## British (Apr 2, 2012)

...Grapes and raisins are toxic to DOGS. When fed to dogs, they cause renal failure. Have not seen anything to indicate the same is true for rats... Source, please.


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## Flashygrrl (Feb 8, 2012)

The stickied foods post and Google-Fu all say that they are good for rats, especially the purple ones. It's probably not a good idea to feed more than a few because of how they can be so juicy and also because some have seeds, but I wouldn't be afraid of feeding them.


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## BigBen (Nov 22, 2011)

Flashygrrl said:


> The stickied foods post and Google-Fu all say that they are good for rats, especially the purple ones. It's probably not a good idea to feed more than a few because of how they can be so juicy and also because some have seeds, but I wouldn't be afraid of feeding them.


I believe that the seeds are not good for rats, because like appleseeds, they contain Prussic acid. (I vaguely remember reading something to that effect, anyway). I was told to give my rats only seedless grapes, in any case.



Paul_Julian said:


> . . . Fruits seeds (apple, cherries, plum, peach etc.) are poisonous because of the cyanide. Of course if you're rat eats 2-3 seeds, he wont die, don't worry. he wont die of few raisins or grapes, too ( unless he chokes or such, but it's different thing). Raisins are present in rat food you buy in pet store, so it cant be poisonous
> When giving grape to my rats, I cut it open, and take the seeds out. Rats can easily eat pulp and they leave mere peel  The same with apple - I cut out the core, and rats eat all the inside and leave very thin apple peel. There are many good and healthy vitamins and goodies just under the peel. If you peel the apple yourself , you toss out all those vitamins.


Good points. My rats won't touch whole grapes or apples, but love cut ones. And as you say, the quantity of toxin in the seeds is low, but why take chances?



British said:


> ...Grapes and raisins are toxic to DOGS. When fed to dogs, they cause renal failure. Have not seen anything to indicate the same is true for rats... Source, please.


Didn't know this about dogs, thanks for posting this. It seems there are a number of foods that are bad for dogs, but okay for ratties. I already knew about chocolate and cooked chicken bones.


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## British (Apr 2, 2012)

BigBen said:


> Didn't know this about dogs, thanks for posting this. It seems there are a number of foods that are bad for dogs, but okay for ratties. I already knew about chocolate and cooked chicken bones.


Here is one source that I just plucked from a google search; I picked this one because it was written by a vet. But if you google "grapes and dogs", there are many more sources 

http://www.petfinder.com/pet-care/grapes-raisins-dogs-sick.html


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