Relationship

cure an aggressive pet rat

Is your rat aggressive?

Do your rats often start fights with other rats? Does it bite or scratch you or the other rats? If it does, maybe I can help you. Whether he’s aggressive towards you or other rats, it’s important to take steps to prevent anyone from getting hurt.

Why is your rat aggressive?

There are a number of reasons why your rat may be aggressive. It could be due to hormones All rats go through an “adolescent” stage between 6 months and a year of age. At this stage, your rat’s hormones may be literally overwhelming and this can lead to aggression. You may also be stressed, perhaps you have lost a friend, or experienced a change of environment. It can also be caused by disease. If your rat is in pain or unwell, it may become aggressive. It can also be caused by your rat’s past experiences. If it has been abused by people before, or maybe you haven’t handled it enough to know we won’t hurt it, it may bite as a defense mechanism. Some rats are genetically more susceptible to aggression.

All rats release pheromones in their urine and these pheromones in males mark their territory and can provoke aggression in other rats. Both male and female rats can experience aggression, but males tend to do so more often.

What can you do about it?

Fortunately, there are several things you can try to treat your rats’ aggression.

my secret weapon

Vanilla. If your rats are fighting or you are having trouble presenting them, this is the way to go. You can buy vanilla essence online or at your local grocery store. Simply rub a few drops at the base of both rats’ tails and along their backs. It won’t hurt them if they lick it off, in fact they’ll probably like the taste.

The scent of the vanilla essence (which is very nice) will cover up its own natural scent, which can be offensive to the other rat (since rats use scent as a way of communicating). The flavor can encourage the rats to lick each other and the grooming will start the natural bonding process. This is all I need to do to curb any aggression in my rats.

If your rat is being aggressive towards you, rub vanilla essence on your rat and a little on his wrist. This way they will both smell the same and it will be less scary and offensive to your rat.

secret weapon 2

Vanilla essence was a temporary fix to keep my kids from fighting, but when I finally figured out what was causing the fighting, it was an easy fix permanently:

I gave them 2 separate food bowls!

Yes, it really was as simple as that. I placed 2 food bowls at opposite ends of the rat cage and placed a rat next to each food bowl. They didn’t have to share anymore and all fighting stopped after that. It was incredibly simple. They used to fight even when it wasn’t mealtime, but all that stopped.

Patience

When dealing with aggression or any other negative behavior in your pet, you must have a lot of patience and understanding. Changing behaviors takes time, and while vanilla essence will help, you need to tackle the problem at its root. If your rat bites out of fear, your main job will be to build a relationship of trust. Sit by the open cage, relax or read a book and let your rat come up to you and smell it. Offer him a treat when he comes to your lap. Building a relationship of trust can take time, but it’s worth it in the end. To deal with fights between your rats, have a spray of vegetable water on hand. Spray your rats if they fight and if this doesn’t work throw a towel over them.

Homeopathy:

Homeopathy is a wonderful tool when it comes to behavioral and health problems in rats. It’s totally natural, so there are no side effects, but it really works.

PetAlive’s aggression formula is best for use with rats. It comes in pellet form, so you can dissolve it in soymilk, yogurt, or your rat’s favorite beverage and it will gobble it up. The product is marketed for cats and dogs, but it worked wonders for rats.

The granules have an immediate calming effect and will usually help curb the aggression within a few days. The formula won’t change your pets’ personalities, but it could change their lives, if that means spending time out of the cage, enjoying the company of other rats and people.

stop stress

Is your rat stressed or sick? Please check your rat for signs of ill health. Your rat could be aggressive because it feels sick. Check out my rat health checks page for more information and take your rat to the vet if necessary.

If your rat has had a change of environment, or lost a mate, this could be the cause of the aggression. Monitor your environment, check that you are not too hot or too cold. If your rat stays alone, get him a partner. Rats are very social animals and love having another rat to cuddle up with, groom and play with. Human company is not enough. Female rats are easy to introduce, but males can be a bit more difficult. Check out the rat presentation page for tips to make things run smoother.

a last resort

If you’ve tried everything and nothing has worked, it may be time to consider neutering your pet. in males, aggression may simply be caused by hormones and castration will stop the excess hormones raging around the rats small body. There have been many reports that neutering has completely stopped aggression in pets and has made their lives much happier.

Of course, anesthesia is more severe for rats than, say, cats and dogs, so this is something you should consider carefully. You should find a vet who cares for rats and who respects you and your rat. Simply calling the office and asking a few questions will usually help you determine if they are the right vet for you.

After the surgery, your rat will need to be cared for for a few days and then you can begin to build a trusting relationship without the aggression.

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