Curing an aggressive pet rat
Is your rat aggressive?
Do your rats often start fights with the other rats? Does it bite or scratch you or the other rats? If it does, maybe it can help you. Whether he is aggressive with you or with other rats, it is important to take steps to prevent someone from being hurt.
Why is your rat aggressive?
There are several reasons why your rat can be aggressive. It could be due to hormones. All rats go through a stage of “adolescence” between 6 months and 1 year of age. At this stage, your rats’ hormones can literally overwhelm you and this can lead to aggression. It can also be due to stress, perhaps you have lost a friend or experienced a change of environment. It can also be due to illness. If your rat is in pain or unwell, it may become aggressive. It can also be caused by your rat’s past experiences. If you’ve been abused by people before, or maybe they don’t handle it enough to know we won’t hurt you, it can 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 cause aggression in other rats. Both male and female rats can be assaulted, but males tend to do so more frequently.
What can you do about it?
Fortunately, there are several things you can try to treat your rat aggression.
My secret weapon
Vanilla essence. If your rats are fighting or are having trouble introducing 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 each other, in fact they’ll probably like the taste.
The smell of the vanilla essence (which is very pleasant) will cover its own natural smell, which may be offensive to the other rat (as rats use smell as a way to communicate). The taste can encourage rats to lick each other and grooming will start the natural bonding process. This is all I need to do to stop any aggression on my rats.
If your rat is being aggressive with you, rub the vanilla essence on your rat and a little on your wrist. This way they will both smell the same and are less scary and less offensive to your rat.
Secret weapon 2
The vanilla scent was a temporary fix to stop my boys from fighting, but when I finally found out what was causing the fights, it was easy to 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 one rat next to each food plate. They didn’t have to share anymore and all the fighting stopped after that. It was astonishingly simple. They used to fight even when it wasn’t time to eat, but all of that stopped.
Patience
When dealing with aggression or any other negative behavior from your pet, you need to have a lot of patience and understanding. Changing behaviors takes time, and while vanilla scent will help you, you must deal with the problem at its source. If your rat bites out of fear, your main job will be to build a trusting relationship. Sit by the open cage relaxing or reading a book and let your rat come up to you and sniff you. Offer him a treat when he gets on your lap. Building a trusting relationship may take time, but it pays off in the end. To deal with fights between your rats, keep a mysterious water plant on hand. Spray your rats if they fight and if this doesn’t work, throw them a towel.
Homeopathy:
Homeopathy is a wonderful tool when it comes to health and behavioral problems in your rats. It is completely natural, so there are no side effects, but it really works.
PetAlive’s aggression formula is best for use on rats. It comes in granule form, so you can dissolve it in soy milk, yogurt, or your rat’s favorite beverage and they’ll lick it up. The product is marketed to dogs and cats, but it worked wonders for rats.
The granules have an immediate calming effect and will generally help curb the aggression within a few days. The formula won’t change your pet’s personality, but it could change their lives, if that means spending time outside 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 poor health. Your rat could be aggressive because it feels sick. See my rat health checks page for more information and take your rat to the vets if necessary.
If your rat has had a change of environment or has lost a companion, this could be the cause of the aggression. Check your surroundings, check that you are not too hot or too cold. If your rat is left alone, get him a companion. Rats are very sociable animals and they love having another rat to snuggle, groom, and play with. Human companionship is not enough. Female rats are easy to introduce, but males can be a bit tougher. Check out the rats introduction page for tips on making things better.
At Final Resort
If you’ve tried everything and nothing has worked, it may be time to consider neutering your pet. in males, aggression can be caused simply by hormones and castration will stop excess hormones around the rats’ small bodies. There have been many reports that neutering has completely stopped aggression in pets and made their lives that much happier.
Of course, anesthesia is more serious for rats than, say, cats and dogs, so it’s something you need to consider carefully. You should find a vet who cares for rats and respects you and your rat. Simply calling the office and asking a few questions will usually help you determine if he or she is the right vet for you.
After surgery, your rat will need to be nursed for a few days and then he can begin to build a trusting relationship without the aggression.