what you should know!!!
Rats are delicate creatures!!! They have VERY sensitive respitory systems!!! Imagine living under a blanket, having no fresh air unless someone else decides it for you......thats what living in a tank is like for them!!!!
Drafts can get your rat very ill with mycoplasma, which left untreated will kill them!!!
Pink and ruby eyed rats have vision issues!!! They are very sensitive to the light and prefer artificial lighting!!! Please dont take them outside as the sun can and WILL blind them!!! while traveling outside, ensure the carrier is dark!!!
IF YOU HAVE OTHER RATS PLEASE READ THIS!!!
When introducing new rats to each other, its best to do it on a neutral ground, meaning a place your current rat doesn't frequent often and hasn't "claimed"!!! Rats are natural pack animals and studies show that, rats tend to like rats that have helped them, more!!! Studies also show that rats are very empathic!!! They appear to feed off of each others emotions....Two of my baby boys I kept were so bonded that after stud muffin lost his brother waffles, he never wanted to get close to anyone, he became depressed and slightly aggressive (he was not a biter but he would sit in my lap and get very mad and puff up if I pet him, yet he loved attention before losing his brother)!!!
One study shows that rats are less willing to help others that look different than they have previously seen, However if the rat needs rescuing and the stranger then helps him, the rats are forming a life long bond, which he is now capable of forming with any other rat that looks like his new friend!!!
After a 3 week quarantine period, it's safe to start introductions!!!
I recommend taking a large box and making a maze out of old cardboard, or whatever ideas you come up with, get creative......the concept is to basically build a "house", this house will have one large area and one area too small for your new rat to turn around in!!! use scrap cardboard and cut to pre-measured size, Fold both side ends of "the wall" , completely cut out a door so its no longer attached....tape, staple, or glue the bent edge end piece of "the wall" to the box on each side to create the new rats "room" ....paper hole punch the door and attach a string long enough for your new rat to pull the door open to release original rat, I suggest adding tape to each side of the door and folding it over, to make the door bigger than the entrance!!!
The original rat should be the one trapped so it associates the new rat with a positive outcome!!!
Also keep in mind the room for your original rat should be small enough for your new rat to want to release the poor thing, there should be no room for original rat to turn around!!! This introduction will take some patience but its well worth it and has a very high success rate!!!
Another method is to put your original rat in a container (with breathing holes but dont let them near edges of container) put the container in a neutral ground and show the new rat how the lid opens!!! it may take a while!!! you dont want to show the rat how to open the lid until you can tell they are both distressed about one being trapped!!
If it goes bad the first few introductions, dont get discouraged and keep trying, if after trying ten days, with no progress, you may want to consider getting the aggressor neutered.....Dr. Dave from south St. Paul animal hospital charges well under $100 for a rat neuter and is very knowledgeable, compassionate, genuine and I HIGHLY recommend him!!!
Keep in mind that rats are empathic so if your afraid, so are they!!! YOU CANT BE AFRAID THAT THEY WONT GET ALONG, YOUR NEGATIVE VIBES WILL MAKE THEM ASSOCIATE EACH OTHER WITH BAD VIBES!!!