How To Deal With Pet Rat Aggression Towards Humans

[@mangosaidno]

I adopted my rat from a previous owner and my two rats would bite me everytime I put my hand in the cage the bite was deep and would bleed badly. I had to work pretty hard for them to get comfortable around me, it might be because of the past owner but I’m not sure so I just sat at their cage for 20~30 minutes everyday and just talk to them through the cage and it helped immensely

[@puppyunicorns1232]

Alana Rabinowitz I know where u got bit. It’s because they are not used to you :)

[@stickyoctopus293]

Thanks for the tip and well done with your rats! Good luck for the future! :)

[@Ghennesph]

It's perfectly normal for a rat to be cautious around someone they don't recognize or aren't used to. You should wear gloves during your first couple weeks of having a new rodent pet; the gloves taste bad and aren't comfortable to bite, so you can get them used to being handled while teaching them that biting a human is unpleasant. Once the rat is used to your smell and used to being held and handled, if you don't abuse it, it should be quite tame.

[@gracielapeneff9672]

reeco kay are you serious? wtf is wrong with you?

[@NCHLT]

@@reecokay4796 I can see why you only have 1 sub This ain't puma messi's channel

[@naomilovenpeace]

My boys used to bite my ears until they figured out that they were part of my body. It wasn't super painful but still a bit harder than a harmless nibble. They would tug on them and try and figure out what they were. I used the squeaking method and they figured out they weren't toys pretty quick.

[@crosscutter5388]

My girls used to do that also. I would just move my head slightly and now they know that ears are part of me and not something to bite lol

[@vincento_squish]

Mine used to nibble my toes haha

[@FukaiKokoro]

Naomi Williams one of mine likes to stick her face inside my ear.

[@Jonaperq]

@@FukaiKokoro Here too. The best feeling ever.

[@tocabea8013]

@@FukaiKokoro OMG SAME mine rarely do but sometimes 😂

[@shannonbriggs100]

I’m so grateful I’ve never had to deal with this. I got three boys about a year ago. The first month of having them, I got bit by one of my rats. My fault as I startled him and my fingers were covered with food. I remember crying out in pain and him looking up at me in shock. After that, he always made sure to be as gentle as possible. Whenever I give him food, he never snatches it off me, he takes it dead slowly to make sure it’s not something like baby food on my fingers. He really enjoys grooming me back too and at first he would nibble a touch too hard but after a few squeaks from me, he understood. I’m getting another two boys in a week and just thought I’d rewatch some of your videos to make sure I’m prepared. I’m incredibly nervous as I’ve never introduced rats to each other before.

[@coldflower1012]

Shannon Briggs I love how gentle your little rattie boy is

[@trekadouble757]

I have made five integration in four years. Two adult rats in a group of two, one young in a group of three, two babies in a group of two, a baby in a group of three, a baby in a group of two. I always read the guidelines of integration again every time, and I end up not following them exactly every time. Also my rats free roam in my room once they are old and big enough so I have that to consider as well. The thing is, every integration is different. You need to watch your rats, watch if they are curious about each other or not. Watch their body language, it's honestly pretty straightforward and easy to understand in rats. You also need to trust your pets too, that is key. Rats understand other rats better than we understand them, so you need to team up with your rats and trust their judgement on the new ones. My leader rat detected hormonal aggressivity in another rat long before I even knew it was a thing. My leader rat was like a partner to me honestly when it came to handling the group. I would trust his judgement about the other rat and I used his behaviour as the guideline to know when to separate one rat from the others, when to step in, and when not. And I would use him as an example in training because the other rats used to do what he did. If I hadn't trust him, I wouldn't have handled my hormonal agressive rat correctly. I won't give extensive guidelines here because clearly a KZbin comment is not enough, just what seems to me like the most important advice of all: If you see blood, you are doing it wrong and you need to intervene.

[@linsdae1290]

Thank you so much for this video! My rat seems very cage aggressive and after reading an article that basically said biting is weird and that none of the author's rats ever bit him and he doesn't know anyone who was bitten by a rat, it really made me feel like a bad parent. It's good to hear some real advice instead of judgment.

[@N0.U]

“Nobody can bite when they are eating.” *WATCH ME*

[@garyadamsgma1495]

Very very well researched, thanks! Breeders also have a responsibility to do what they can to breed out aggression. I do feel that genetics does come into play. Great job Esther! I’ve been bitten only once and it does hurt!!!

[@Freeyourself206]

People should also know about genetics if they’re going to breed. It’s one of the main reason cancer in rats is so rampant. No knowledge of breedings they just inbreed two cute pups.

[@Cheese_Boi1986]

rat bites are no joke i hope it didnt scar. ive just started feeder breeding waiting on my first litters, ive decided if i get a very tame rat or line then they will be sold as pets where the aggressive ones will be guaranteed to meet my python all breeders will be retired after 8 months and live the rest of their lives in the luxury cages and runs XD

[@lenitaa7938]

​@@Freeyourself206The cancer rate is due to the domestic rats began as the lab rats! They were bred to have tumours! The only thing I can think of is to breed back to the wild rat genes! Get the wild pup rats, raise them and breed them with the domestic rats! Or start all over from the wild rats!?? I am curious if anyone attempted this..

[@cookiebandit18]

Oh gosh this is nice to see. I took on an older rat who had always been a biter, and finding detailed advice while figuring all that out was impossible. The rat care stuff aside, no one talks about how stressful it gets to keep getting bit in a session, or even that your knuckles hurt a lot less when it does happen. It's really nice to see someone out there offering actual guidance and support for this process.

[@cassandralindsay7927]

My aggressive rat will just grab that spoon and run with it 😩

[@millalol8360]

I started laughing so hard when I read this ahah

[@dolleum3856]

🤣

[@alex_playz61]

amazing

[@CC-gx4lz]

Ahahahaha that’s how Luther is when I feed him a tube of cat treat…

[@WolfsRainToboe2]

Hello and thank you so much!!! I just have to tell you that before I watched this video I had never been able to pet one of my two rats due to cage aggression but then I saw your video and I'm proud to say that today I have pet my rat Sammy a little for the first time 😍❤️🐀🐁 This video just saved his life!! Really I had given up on him but was introduced to this channel and this video in particular and amazingly it helped the very first time 😱❤️ so thank you for saving my Sammy's life and my trust in him!!! ❤️🐀🐁

[@mullerlarco]

This is a really helpful video, thank you

[@shannongregg1180]

I feel the same it is so scary sometimes

[@rodentsncats31]

:) keep up the good work. I had a rat several years ago that would lunge at me and other people and he gave me some pretty awful bites. He was human aggressive, cage aggressive, and rat aggressive, but I managed to get him over all three with a large amount of patience and TLC. His last cagemate however, is the rat that gave me temporary nerve damage, I couldn't use my hand for two years.

[@neatznotso7424]

woah! Thats hard core and insane! I'm glad your hand got better even if it took two years...

[@cksrufthsu]

My rats never bite me. I consider myself very lucky to have them. They love kissing me too

[@joshuarosen6242]

I had 9 rats that we got as kittens and they were all lovely. We then adopted two young adult rats that hadn't been properly socialised with people or other rats. One of them gave me a really nasty bite when I first me him. We had to neuter them because they were terrified of each other and had a serious fight involving blood everywhere (it was really frightening). They calmed down but they were never friendly like all our other rats. It was pretty horrible but we kept them until they died and tried to do the best for them but I think they were too old to learn how to behave properly with people.

[@Abbytempleton]

My dumbo rats never bit me but my new fancy rats do 💀so I'm trying to work on it

[@Maddie-rh3go]

@@Abbytempleton I JUST GOT TWO BABY FANCY RATS !!! one of them, ash, keeps biting me but bolt hasnt really done it, when i go to pet him he moves his head wherever my hand goes so that i cant pet him😭😭

[@Abbytempleton]

@@Maddie-rh3go i think it's a fancy rat thng , but pleaseeee consider buying gloves bc if yo avoid it they will neverr stop biting . I can pet mine gloveless now!!!

[@drkatel]

I know this video is a few months old, but it's exactly what I was looking for. I've had rats for a long time, but until now I've NEVER been bitten. My girl Opal, at 7 months old, has just started biting when we reach inside the cage, especially my daughter who's away at college and hasn't had the bonding time. When my daughter is home for a month at Christmas, we need to work hard on this. Opal is random as to when she bites, but it's always been when a hand is reaching around inside the cage. Twice she was in a hammock at the time, which is easier to understand than the more random episodes. As you said, when she approaches us on her own, she doesn't bite and she's never shown a hint of aggression outside the cage, while playing or during trick training. I feel way better knowing you had this problem with Blackberry.

[@kionopopi]

THEIR PAWS ARE SO FCKING CUTE!!

[@neatznotso7424]

oh my god thank you so much for such a great video! I've been looking on the internet for ages now trying to find out what we can do with our second rat Missy (after Missy Elliot of course). We got her from a pet shop and she was a lot older then any other rat we have had and I don't think she was handled much which just breaks my heart and I'm glad we got her out of there. Both me and my son fell in love with her instantly and the first day we had her she travelled home in my sons hoody and was just very affectionate and super cute. There were no problems between Missy and our older rat Cardi, they were fine straight away. Listening to you talk about how most aggressive rats are fine outside of their cage and don't bite but do when they are inside their cage is exactly how she reacts and I hadn't been able to find any information that stated this until now. She has drawn blood on my sons finger a few times and all he had been doing was picking their pellets up, he was no where near her and she lunged at him from the other side of the cage and bit him, she has done this several times and it always seems out of nowhere. I tend to just not put my hand in the cage at all, she has bitten me a couple of times when I have put my hand in the cage, so Ive just stopped doing it. We never pick her up from inside the cage, she is pretty good at coming out when we make kissy noises because she knows she might get a treat. She has never bitten outside the cage which made us feel it was some sort of territorial thing but we just didnt know how to stop this behavior until now! I am so stoked and cant wait to start and to tell my son who is beginning to feel that Missy just hates him (even though outside the cage she always tries to climb into his mouth so I really dont think thats the case at all). Sorry for the stupidly long comment but I'm just so excited to have found your channel and to hear someone talk about Missys behavior and how it can be fixed! So thank you so much. Much ratty love.

[@pearlwittman3550]

Amazing video! One thing I'd like to suggest is do NOT offer your knuckles. You can get a pretty serious joint infection resulting in nerve damage, especially if you're immune compromised. Try to offer the back of the hand but the flat part, not the joint part. They can't get a good grip there either

[@dummbobqqqqq]

Why is it easier to get an infection a few inches down?

[@lucindacash3697]

@@dummbobqqqqq the blood supply is not as good in knuckles meaning less wbcs to fight infection.

[@anneparker237]

I have so much respect for you and your ways with these most awesome beings!

[@blanchybaby]

My rat bit my knuckle once so bad he got the bone! He bit all the way through the cartilage and I felt his teeth graze the bone. He was stuck there for a few seconds. It hurt SO bad and took a year to heal as it got infected.

[@hexmaniacgabby5160]

@Jay L weirdo

[@brandonforrester2455]

That's why im scared of getting rats as pets, they're so cute, but also dangerous at the same time with all the diseases in their bodies they can probably give you rabies if you're not careful and kill you

[@blanchybaby]

AnAkiNN domestic rats don’t carry diseases and rabies isn’t a thing here in the U.K. I don’t think it’s very common in other countries but I don’t know for sure. They are such sweethearts, I cannot recommend pet rats enough!

[@Daniel-ob7pl]

@@brandonforrester2455 hamsters 👌

[@isabelle9914]

great well now i’m scared of my rat

[@charlottemoocow]

Thank you for this. I have one aggressive boy out of my three. He seems very territorial over his cage, particularly his sleeping igloo. Even when he is out he almost seems to not realise initially that it’s my finger, and then once he knows it is, he licks away. I wonder if he might have an eyesight issue or if he’s just feeling threatened.

[@leslieabla]

Charlotte Moo I don't know about the eyesight thing because rats generally have pretty bad eyesight. But if you make lots of quick movements they might react out of instinct without thinking, which can end up in you getting bit.

[@kristinrogersdotter5492]

This was really helpful. One of our girls started biting us when she was about 1yo. No medical issues that we can find. What you said about not putting your hands in their personal space/cage makes sense as she doesn't often bite outside the cage. Her cage mate just died so I'm renewing my attempts to getting her used to my hands so I can interact with her more.

[@leslieabla]

2:50 Latte is like "Hey I want some of that!"

[@tripsmith8591]

Thank you so much for this video! I was at a loss on what to do with my aggressive girl, but I'll definitely be trying these tricks out this week!

[@cassidyzombie7142]

Thank you so much for this video, we have two female rats but one is particularly aggressive and the other one is now following suit. Neither of them have been handled and they were both really timid when we got them. I think the aggressive one just doesn't like hands though now you've mentioned that! I'll be trying everything you've laid out here, wish me (and my hands) luck! 😬

[@spellcxster9268]

I just got my pet rats about a week and a half ago; they’re both girls and named Willow and Kyla. There were no rats in shelters near me, so we got them from a local non-chain pet store. I could tell they weren’t really handled, they were mainly being sold as feeder rats, but I fell in love instantly. Willow is very tame and has never once bitten or nipped me. She loves to climb on my shoulder and sniff my ear, which feels SO weird. Kyla, on the other hand, I thought she was aggressive. I believe she might not have the best sight though, as her eyes are more squinty when compared to Willow’s. She nips very lightly, I think she’s either just curious or thinks my hands are food! haha x

[@ambriadanielsband4132]

True Serendipity rats do have sight defects and the nibbling is her way of testing out the object in front of her

[@finvodahmindovahkiin1875]

My two rats are named Harper and Willow XD

[@TipsyFlipper]

Your fur babies have such great tempers, it is amazing seeing how you dealt with one that was a lil aggressive. Very honest and amazing video. thank you.

[@kenzienixon4043]

I got my 2 female rats about 1 month ago their about 3/4 months old. They are very hyper and always want to come out but the problem is I can’t get them out because every time we put our hand near them they nip us, this morning I went to get some stuff out their cage that they ripped up and out of no where she nipped me I pulled away instantly, she made me bleed. Someone please help me I want them to have a good life but it’s not possible unless they stop biting/ nipping me because it hurts !

[@aniojamila3776]

Sry my english is really bad but let the cage door open and let came them out by themselve . Outside the most rats didnt bite on neutral ground

[@deplorabledave1048]

Neither one of my rats tried to bite me. But they couldn't quite figure out why they couldn't drag my finger in their cage with their teeth. They seem determined to drag the whole finger in their cage. Lol. Once they figured out it was attached to my hand, they were content just to lick off the almond butter in place.

[@mrbigglesworth_Official]

Had same thing. But they just pulled my finger in and started licking it lol

[@bruhgamer316]

Jay L what

[@juliablack9143]

Thanks for the info, one of my rescued rats came from a classroom, where kids would poke their pencils in his cage, so he always lunges at fingers or anything like that, so I will definitely use some of your tips, but in all your videos you use meat baby food, what's so great about it, can you use normal fruit or vegetable food, or is the meat one the best?

[@sk8deyfromthesk8park21]

Assassin _ Kat113 you can use other babies foods as long as the said ingredients are safe for rats to eat

[@neatznotso7424]

yeah I don't understand the whole baby food thing at all, I use grains and then supplement that with whatever other fresh foods they like, especially fruit, and they go mad over yoghurt but thats just an occasional treat. So yeah I would like to know why baby food is used so much as well.

[@fergusweston5961]

Anita Davis my dad always says exactly that... "They go MAD for the yoghurts"

[@trekadouble757]

I guess that's baby good is healthier than threat. It's for babies so it's not too salty and it has nutrients in it. To train rats not to bite you need to give them a lot of food, so it should be a healthy food. And rats need a lot of protein, so meat baby food is a good choice. Yoghurt or fruits are good, but not in the quantity required for the training.

[@punkynicoplays4080]

I will never understand why teachers get rats as class pets. 🙄

[@StarStone-sb9lx]

Thanks for taking your time and making these videos so much appreciated ❤

[@johnernest2779]

Very nice information. I've only had one rat out of 40 some that would occasionally bite. It was a male and when he would bite it was so hard that he would hang on when you pulled your hand away. Yes it was very painful.

[@nilspochat8665]

It never occured to me until now that a brain tumor could have this kind of effect on a rat's behaviour. How sad it must be to see your rat in such a state of pain that he is attacking you out of it... So far i've been blessed with my rats : they've never even bit, not even in the slightest, you know, even the kind of gentle bite to try and be sure of the feel of your skin under the tooth. I even asked myself if they realised they had teeth. Of course a plethora of my books could confirm that they do have them but towards humans, even in situation of discomfort (which never happened either since they were/are the most sociable of pets) no bites whatsoever. I guess it really depends on the character of your rat(s) and especially if they are used to being handled in order to avoid teaching them no to bite.

[@nilspochat8665]

btw, thanks for once again such great content. keep up that good work of yours it really helps rat owners and puts joy into the life of rat lovers.

[@jasminesandoval4205]

seriously AMAZING video! loved the presentation! btwi love berry 🥰

[@mary4618]

But what if my rat stops eating just to bite me?😂 I feel like he is super insecure amd scared all the time...idk what to do...he also gets 'bullied' by my other boys...

[@ShadowTheRat]

That's why you give the liquid treats off a spoon first. Also be sure to watch for body language, food is a great distraction and motivator but if you push too much they can still react.

[@lillyjacob1134]

My biting boy was also dominated/bullied by the other one. I assumed this put him on edge more. He bit 3 times with blood everywhere, but with small encounters each day he has stopped biting thank goodness. I think I was rushing the trust, it takes some of them longer. These videos by shadow the rat are so helpful! Good luck 👍

[@xZsas]

I got bitten few days ago by my new rats. They are 2 older female rats (they are around 1-1,5 years old, I got them from someone who's wife was allergic). One of them seems a bit uncomfortable being touched so I wasn't trying to rush her. The other rat seemed a bit shy first so I would pet her once in a while to get her to know i'm not a treat. This went great for a week as they started being less shy in the cage and coming up more to the bars. But now a few days ago the one that wasn't super uncomfortable suddenly bit me really hard! Honestly I got super scared of her right now.. I went to the store and bought some baby food now and let's hope she will start liking me a bit more, haha! And Hopefully I wont be as scared of her anymore. I really love rats and I really want them to be happy and comfortable with me petting them!

[@cksrufthsu]

I do flip them a lot just to tickle them , but didnt know thats show of dominance

[@ShadowTheRat]

It’s not. Some people will forcefully hold down their rat trying to “dominate” them which of course just scares the rat. Turning them over to tickle them or rub their bellies and then letting them up is fine, that’s something I do with my girls as well and they accept it just fine :)

[@amijacks]

2 questions: I have 2 new, unsocialized rats.... saved them from being some python's dinner. for the most part they are very gentle around me, but definitely skittish & don't want me to pick them up. they will accept food from my hands, but now they are test biting my fingers & hands to see if I'm food too. Question #1) is using liquid food better in the beginning than solid food bc it encourages licking & using their tongues verses solid food which encourages using their teeth? and if the answer to Q1 is 'yes', then Question #2: What liquid food do you suggest? you mentioned "meat baby food." could you please elaborate? thank you so very much! 🤗 (I'm trying to be a good & loving rat 🐀 mommy!)

[@aggucciss]

So far my boy rat has bit me or my boyfriend 3 times and all of those seemingly without any reason. Once bit my boyfriends ear, once my lip (which I figured he mistook for food probably,since I had recently eaten), but the most recent one happened today. I was just laying on the couch, watching youtube and he climbed out of the cage and on me (he has free access to roam around outside his cage). I do not understand what triggered the bite as he was not scared of me and I wasn't bothering him aswell. He was just climbing on me and all of a sudden he has bit my ear and there's blood everywhere. So my obvious reaction is a yelp of pain and the rat ran to his cage straight away. Any ideas of what I should do? I've had rats before, but never encountered a real bite from one, so I'm kind of just confused all around.

[@coldflower1012]

Agnese Cherry maybe the rattie didn’t realize it was a part of your body it sounds dumb but I think it happens

[@GG-kn2se]

Late but other people have said this has happened to them specifically on their ears, like a curiosity bite. Would be surprised if he bit your ear again after that reaction.

[@PeterBenedetto]

My female rat is super aggressive. Thank you for making this guide, I hope this helps.

[@lavishjules]

I'm sure I've watched this video a few times but didn't notice the cute keyboard shelf! Also one of my boys got out when he was young and avoided socializing with me. Now that I caught him in the he's constantly wary of me. I'll have to apply these tips more to try to build a better relationship with him.

[@mihatwd9492]

This video really helped me. Thank you

[@skylahenry8552]

My rat will back away from me if I try to touch him. I've been trying to socialize him for a year without much luck. Sometiems, especislly if he can't back away where he is, he will stare at my hand for a second before biting me. He slowly bites harder, sometimes drawing blood. Does anyone know why he does this? Or how to make him stop? I still can't pick him or his brother up. Got them from a small local pet shop who i don't believe socialized them at all.

[@stevemoon2136]

Thanks for sharing more insightful rat info. So useful to me & many other rat lovers. ❤🐀❤

[@yikesitsmaha9411]

When I got my first rat Billy, he was described as vocal and nippy. When I got him he was a quiet little guy very fearful of everything, I had to teach him minimal and natural things. Sometimes he got a little too excited with food but never bite with no reason. (Only if he mistakes your finger for food or u startle him in his sleep) but always a gentle bite. He does get a little moody with his brother(s). I sadly believe his past owners weren't the best to him.

[@clarespam9185]

I need help, I got two males rat 2 months ago for my pet rat as playmates but they are really aggressive. I tried the spoon and food trick but one of them just hanged onto the spoon. I can’t stick my hand in the cage without attacks and I am at a loss on what to do. They are 2 years old and there names are Ryan and Ricardo. Ryan is the really aggressive one, Ricardo isn’t that aggressive. Btw when I got them I noticed that the tip of Ryan’s tail is gone and he is missing a finger. They both had respiratory issues when I got them. I am at a loss please help.

[@wiktoriaszweda2278]

This is very helpful, I've adopted my 5th generation of rats a couple months ago and they were brought to a rescue while their mum was still pregnant, the rescue didn't really specialise in rats so they weren't socialised at all, I've managed to deal with 2 of 3 of my boys nipping and biting but I'm still having issues with one.

[@kimberley3181]

my rat comes from a really aggressive background, he cant be with other rats (according to the previos owner) so i have him in a huge cage on his own. Ive had him a month now and he doesnt mind me moving things about the cage but he still refuses to let me touch him. I tried the spoon trick but he just stops licking the spoon and turns around to bite me whenever i start to pat him. So far i've been able to only gently pat him when he's fairly tired but still awake, had him boggle a couple of times when i've done that so hopefully its a good sign ._.

[@PhilosopherGaming]

This is quite handy stuff to know. I've got three girls who are six months old that I've had for a couple of weeks, and one of them is a proper little hand biter. She's been up on my shoulders: no biting. On my head: no biting. My arms: no biting. Legs: no biting. Hands: "I must put holes in this" xD Oh and as for gloves, I wouldn't necessarily say that you need Kevlar. Anything around £60 and rated as good for needle handling would do the job. Gloves with Kevlar panels are pretty unwieldy and make it hard to judge how much pressure that you're applying to stuff that you're holding.

[@ch4rkue]

Both of my boys are *very* aggressive towards disposable rubber gloves. I have no idea why! And recently, I was cleaning the cage and I put my boys on the bottom level and I was cleaning the top. Sunny ran up to the floor my hand was on and but it as hard as he could and held on for a few seconds while I tried to pull away. My rats are never aggressive, unless I am wearing rubber gloves. Is there any particular reason they would be scared of them? (They did not have a previous owner before me)

[@haileyyuly8726]

You probably should not try to pull away as this could make the wound even worse...I myself did this and ended up with a nasty scar

[@robijuli236]

holy shit!!! i cant believe those tiny lil teeth actually did that much damage 😳

[@lisalovesg33]

This was extremely informative and helpful! Thanks so much for sharing with us.

[@gummi3619]

Tyty!! You are an amazing rat owner

[@smhryan]

i adopted two male abused rats. and one of them ( who was thrown across a room) and he bites deep and quick. i feel he generally bites because hes scared of humans, but im doing all i can to rehab them

[@lilyflower9797]

Here is a short backstory: I got a pet rat for Christmas, but only one, so I had to wait about 2 weeks to get another bc the stores didn't have any. When I finally got my rat and introduced my two rats, they instantly started fighting and kept fighting for several hours. Now ik that ur not supposed to flip rats on their backs, but when I did it to the new rat that kept attacking the older rat, I found that she attacked the other rat less. Flipping the attacking rat on their back really helps for me.

[@stickyoctopus293]

I have a rescue rat and in his old home he would love being flipped but now that he is with me, he doesn't like being flipped. How do I help this? Btw, I got him in March, this year.

[@clognog8049]

We had a really mean rooster that would give people bruises

[@yeshelloiamsnek580]

ClogNog I heard roosters can be really mean so I'm too afraid to get too close xD

[@maddieburnett40]

This helps a LOT thank you so much xxx❤️

[@MailACoconut]

I was wondering if you could make a video about dealing with rats that are aggressive toward each other? My boys are bullying a new addition and have recently inflicted a larger bite (though nothing too serious). The new boy is neutered, but neither of the other two are. I’m just not sure if I should neuter the other two males or if they will eventually get past the fighting. I have them separated right now and have been allowing them to socialize in a play pen while they are supervised. I’m just not sure when I should give up on socializing and get the other two neutered... Anyway I love your videos! Thanks for all the information and cute tricks!

[@ryh8798]

PeachPits my two boys were fighting a lot like that all the time and always had wounds from it so like you I separated them and also put them in a nuetrel area, it also helped to put some vanilla extract on their backs and the base of their tails and rub it in a little (it covers up their scent and they like the smell of it) don't worry if they lick it since its safe. Also unless you see blood you probably just need to let them sort out their differences. I hope this helped a little and that your boys do fine! ( both of my males are intact)

[@skyfitzpatrick4994]

Hayy again please can u do a updated cage tour to help me out please as u know im getting my girls soon and i would love some ideas xx

[@ShadowTheRat]

Hey there! I actually just did a video on how I clean my cage - if you skip to the end you can see the end result :) kzbin.info/www/bejne/qH-4Y42JedCJnKs

[@skyfitzpatrick4994]

Shadow The Rat thanks again your girls are amazing and have an amazing life with u does it take long to train them ?

[@louiefallon8633]

I've had dozens of rats over the years and one of my new ones hates/or scared of our hands. She's bit a few times causing blood and have started pulling my sleeves over my hands when I pick her up and once she's in my hands she's fine. Ur vid was well I formed and ill try ur spoon technique thank you.

[@DirtScraps]

I know it’s totally uncool to comment on an almost year-old post; but I just wanted to say that I am SO grateful for this video. ❤️🐾❤️

[@bobbyboss282]

One of my rats had a litter and became maternaly aggressive but it has been 7 weeks and she is still very aggressive. I'm not too sure what to do as I can't handle or touch her as she just attacks me.

[@kaeceel9043]

i'm not quite sure why but all of my white and black (not dumbo but (?) regular) seem to be aggressive. my one boy spackle is sooooo aggressive nothing has worked i am seriously so concerned. like he won't even let me pet him unless he is like half asleep. i'm so worried bc he won't allow me to get my other rats out of the cage unless he is on my finger biting or trying to climb out. i'm worried if he gets out and i try to get him to go into the cage he won't let me and will end up biting me realllly badly.

[@farewell.wanderlust]

i recently got a rat, and she was never bitey within the first week or two i had her. she started lunging a little, but i didnt think of it. it only escalated, and now she tries to bite me whenever im near her, but by her body language i think she just doesnt trust me. im gonna try to get her used to me more, but im way too scared of getting badly bitten by her.

[@ambertaylor4554]

I adopted 2 brothers about 2 months ago and 1 bites and one nibbles. They are 5 months old now. When I hand the biter a yogie he so gently takes it from me! It blows my mind because I never had a rat who bites and those sweet babies would always just snatch a treat out of my fingers...so kinda of confusing when a biter takes the snack so peacefully. His body language is normal but anytime I'm trying to do light cleaning in the cage or let him smell me he bites. I almost gave them back to my local rat rescue because I can't properly take care of them if they are like that. But I can't find it in me to give them up. I'll keep doing my best with them. Thank you for this video. I know already a lot of what you said so maybe in this instance fixing them might be way to go. I have only owned male rats and never had an issue but these guys were a surrender to a rescue so no telling their background.

[@ryugaann]

What kind of wet food do you recommend I have a mother rat and one of her babies I just adopted them

[@ShadowTheRat]

Any rat safe wet food works really - I typically use plain yogurt as my usual wet food treat and occasionally throw in some meat baby food or whipping cream for extra special occasions (like taming).

[@ryugaann]

@@ShadowTheRat ok ty

[@ryugaann]

I'm curious what about plain Vanilla Ice cream

[@andreasandrini9192]

Thank you, I'll try with the spoon method. I adopted a boy who has beef with hands, but will climb my arms and nibble gently at my ears, or lick noses. He just hates with a burning passion hands, will take solid food from them no problem, but as soon as he sees a finger he lunges.

[@tannihobbs2944]

I’ve had my rats for about 6 months and I’ve only been able to stroke them three or four times. They are just always trying to bite me. I got them as babies and they’ve just been defensive ever since I got them

[@specificsoup]

recs for setting up a ramp down from a critter nation cage (since there's a shelf on the bottom it's lifted off the ground) into an out of cage area? i was going to have free roaming area inside my room and bring the rats there but 2 of my rats are fearful and yesterday one bit me, not as hard as is described here but harder than they've nipped me before just out of thinking my finger is food or something....... so.... i need to get them safely out of their cage and not have any gaps they could escape from. I'm thinking some kind of ramp down and cardboard "gates" and i also have a cat "playpen" but it's just the connection part is hard?

[@emmakilgannon2892]

Do you have a video about rat agression to other rats? I have two girls who are sisters and usually get along well. But sometimes they get into fights over the fresh veggies I feed them, even if there is a large amount. My one girl (Bubblegum) hoards them all and takes them out of my other girls mouth (Marcy). Then after Marcy's food gets stolen, she gets into a fight with Bubblegum and very occasionally pulls out a few tufts of fur until Bubblegum forces her to submit. There is never blood, but lots of squeaking and it worries me.

[@crosscutter5388]

I have only had one of my girls bite me hard enough to bleed but was totally my fault. She was a "rehome" and her original owner was an 11 yr old who would chase her trying to pick her up. I moved too quickly in front of her and she reacted. Grey will now climb onto my arm and shoulder and let me pet her. I used peanut butter to get her used to my hand and see that i meant her no harm. Take your time with your little ones and they will pay you back with affection. Thank you for this informative video.

[@nickiwoodington6855]

You know that peanut butter is a terrible choking hazard for rats, right?

[@michelledavid2543]

Please help. I bought a female rat 8 weeks ago from a Pet shop. I hadn't planned on getting one, but when I saw her in the cage all alone, I feel in love and couldn't leave her there.They said she was 10 weeks old. RUBY- has been very skittish since day one, but after 2 weeks of really persevering, letting her climb all over me and 3 x 1hour sessions free roam a day, she seemed to settle a little, but would not let me pick her up what so ever. She would bite me and draw blood. On the day I purchasing Ruby, I then went home and did loads of research and found out how cruel I was being having a lone rat. So I then went on a mission to get another to keep her company. Unfortunately it took 3 weeks until I could find one locally due to lockdown. The second baby TEPEIA I bought was handled a lot, and really wasn't skittish at all, so I thought that this may help Ruby calm down and eventually allow me to pick her up.But it hasn't, instead Tepeia has become very skittish, but does allow me to pick her up and has never gone to bite me. I've been looking on different websites to see if I can over come the issues I am currently experiencing, but have found nothing that seems to work. I've tried Malt paste, neither of them like it. Baby food Ruby liked it when I first had her, but won't touch it now. I'm going to be truthful , my son has re-named Ruby the rat from hell, and I'm being to believe it myself.I have several nasty deep cuts and I'm getting that I'm afraid of her.She's happy to climb all over me, and will walk onto my hand, but She will not let me touch her,if I try she bites me. PLEASE PLEASE HELP.I don't want to try and re-home her but it's not fair to her if I'm not going to give her the love she deserves. I'll try any advice you can give. Thank you

[@charlienope.1001]

One of my boys started attacking and biting my other boys, the boy in question is named Remy, he's 1.5years old. Me and the breeder I got him from thinks that it could be late onset hormonal agression, which she's never seen in her bloodlines, anyway, I have a neuter scheduled but it's not til next month. What can I do to keep him from becoming too lonely and how can I handle him safely? He hasn't bitten me yet but I'm still a little wery. I have him separated from my other boys for their safety and his, they have plenty of room, multiple food bowls and and water bottles, multiple hides, etc. Is there something else it could be? Any advice or help would be amazing

[@chrystalminor1422]

The only meat baby food I can ever find also has gravy or something and is very liquidy. What are you using that looks like peanut butter?

[@yviebarker9533]

I got my rats a couple months ago but I’ve never been able to properly handle them and take them out of the cage because they always bite super deep one of them lets me pet her in the cage as long as she’s not in her bed and the other is a lot more skittish so isn’t that keen on me petting her but it makes me so sad that I can’t properly handle them I’m going try the metal spoon thing and see if that helps :(

[@autumnlachance1501]

Help, my female rat that I've had since she was born. She bites firm but doesn't draw blood especially through the cage. I try sometimes she just decides to nibble then turns into warning bites out of the blue. She is fine outside the cage though. What should I do?

[@RavenIsAnArtist]

My boy, Happy, is so cuddly, and never bites - At least everywhere but your nose. Like draws blood. Nowhere else just the nose. Everyone's noses.

[@elly512]

I had 4 male rats until a few months ago, when 2 of them passed away from being sick. My 2 surviving boys have both been to the vet recently, and are heathy. However, one of them (Loki) has developed an agression problem since then. He has started biting me and when he’s out having play time, he doesn’t come up to me or want to be near me. He used to be one of my most friendly and curious rats before all of this. He has also gotten into a fight with my other rat (Orin), and I have had to separate them. Orin is now completely terrified of him. While they are now living separately, I let them have play time together and I monitor them closely. Orin runs away as soon as Loki comes anywhere near him. Orin has always been a bit more skittish then my other rats, but he is very friendly with me and loving with other rats. None of these problems have shown up before my other two passed away. I don’t know if it’s that Loki isn’t sure about dominance anymore or if he’s just grieving and it’s coming out as agression, but I don’t know what to do. I don’t want either of them to have to live alone, but I have to make sure they are both safe. If anyone has any tips or advice for this, i would appreciate it so much!

[@MyPerfectMischief]

Elly Helsel how old are your two boys?

[@elly512]

My Perfect Mischief they are about a year and 8 months old

[@MyPerfectMischief]

@@elly512 I don't really know much about rat behavior like that. I was thinking if they were around the 6 month mark, it could be hormonal aggression, but that would have come up a while ago for you. I'm wondering if maybe one of your rats that passed away was the alpha, and now the 2 remaining are trying to re-establish their new hierarchy. From my understanding, you're only supposed to separate if one or both are causing physical injuries to the other. Depending on if you want to continue to have more rats or stop after these 2, I'm wondering if maybe bringing some babies into the mix would help.

[@deph92]

Any purpose why metal spoon? Is it because if they bite the spoon they cringe?

[@ShadowTheRat]

Metal is unpleasant for any animal to bite and so rats quickly figure out that biting liquid stuff on it is a bad idea. And if their first few experiences getting liquid stuff is on a object that hurts to bite then they’re likely to generalize this to when you offer liquid treats off your hands.

[@Piercingconsciousness]

My rat just bit me on my nose and im not sure if it was aggressive or an accident. I was laid still on the sofa, my other 3 had just been climbing all over my face and in my hair. Then reggie came over sniffing my hands nibbling away (totally normal) then came sniffing my face and then bit my nose. 😔 im so confused. It bled but not super painful

[@EvieSmith-ix9mh]

I have a male rat that suddenly became aggressive. I've been bit 5 times now. Each time I almost pass out from blood loss. He is getting Neutered on the 22ed and getting a major cage upgrade after he is fully recovered. He will be introduced to a female. He has never been with rats, she was with rats, but hasn't been for a few months. There cages have been right next to each other since I first got them. I need help first getting him to stop biting, and second trying to help introduce him to the female. Any help i can get would be amazingly appreciated. Thank you.

[@ShadowTheRat]

Once neutered you will need to wait at least 2 weeks for hormonal levels to fall (and for him to be sterile which takes at 10 days post neuter), and possibly longer. After that I would start with the neutral territory meetings, and depending on how that goes progress from there. Until then stay safe, don't give him a chance to bite (not only is it dangerous to you, but the more he bites now the more likely it could become a behavior pattern, which you want to avoid - distract with food, use gloves, and whatever needed to keep yourself safe and him from biting you), and if you want you can work on some positive reinforcement safely by giving liquid treats on a spoon.

[@landi76]

whats flavour is that paste at 4:10 ?

[@BenPortmanlewes]

Hi, we've recently lost squeaks, so poor old bubble is on his own. Squeaks was a bit of a bitter, now Bubble has bitten me a couple of times which he has never done before and has always been the mellow one. I'm trying to back off and give him his space but if left alone he just stays in his bed and only comes out to drink and get food that he takes back to bed. He's very sad about squeaks. What do you suggest, I'm a big tough bloke but rat bites really hurt and are deep, don't heal well either! I'm nervous of him now

[@ShadowTheRat]

If he's on the older side and this is a new behavior I'd consider a vet visit first. Rats don't tend to change behavior like that and it could very well be a health issue. I've had some rats go through brain tumors and it can definitely change their personality, as can any sort of pain or other illness. In the mean time be careful interacting with him, especially in the cage or whenever he is inside something. Rats bites can be both painful and dangerous and I know from my own experience that they can cause some serious damage. I'd also take notes about what seems to trigger his aggression - for example is it always in the cage? Does he still try to bite when already being held? Does he fluff up or show any other strange signs? And so forth.

[@lukydelgado5984]

My rats nibbled on me a few times. They don't do it anymore. Thank you for the information. I hope I never need it.

[@AlexaWilson12]

One of my rats is named Cream! Cream and Custard are beautiful little brothers. They had a third bro, Cake, but he passed due to genetic disease. Just wanted to compliment you on your cute names!

[@StudioMod]

Do fancy rats carry Rat Bite Fever? It seems hard to pinpoint if that subspecies carries the disease.

[@ShadowTheRat]

Most rodents can carry it, but in order to be infected with it they’d first have to come into contact with an infected rodents bodily fluids. So for the vast majority of pet rats, hamsters, gerbils, etc, they won’t have rat bite fever or any transmissible diseases as they are kept in a sheltered environment away from potentially infected wild animals. All that is to say you’d be more likely to get rabies from a dog than rat bite fever from a rat/other pet rodents - but it pays to be careful and so if you feel sick after a scratch or bite then it’s worth getting checked out by a doctor (usually the worst that happens is infection though, however infection can absolutely get out of hand and so if you see a wound get red and swollen it’s a good idea to get it checked by a doctor. So far I’ve had a lot of rodent bites and scratches and haven’t had to go this route, but if I had any concerns about the wound healing or felt ill otherwise I absolutely would).

[@StudioMod]

@@ShadowTheRat Thank you for this! That's sorta exactly what I've been looking for. They are not as hardy as I thought because they get sniffles very often and it sometimes leads to lethargy and I get them some antibiotics and they clear right up. I didn't know if RBF was something they were also born with or not like the upper respiratory infection stuff they often deal with. And thanks for the concern. I was taking care of a feisty one year old cat who loved to draw blood lol. Should be okay. Fancy rats and dumbo variants really are perfect pets. I actually sleep in bed with my rats lol, they are such cuddle bugs and love to cuddle under my chin.

[@arsonchild47]

I got my three pet rats in October, but I've only been able to hold them a couple of times. They get Proctective over themselves and territory, so they bite whenever I try to let them smell me. It's really frustrating, as I've never given them a reason to be afraid/aggressive to me. I'm stuck and I don't know how to train them from here. The couple of times that I picked them up, they were the sweetest things, but otherwise they kind of bully me. I'll definitely try these tips, and I hope I can bond with my rats more!

[@serenity_fallz66yt6]

One of my rats was put down today because she had a cancerous tumour :( the other one won’t let me near her and will bite me if I put my hand in her cage. Please give me tips because I want her to feel comfortable around me but I don’t know what to do :/

[@jamielindsay6795]

We received an aggressive pregnant rat and it has been extremely aggressive, I think the pet store owner lied to us and sold us an adult female. After the babies are independent were either going to release her or surrender her. She bites as hard as she can and her teeth can go in deep so its sad but never make the same mistake we did which was buying it beforehand online.

[@Wehehay]

I taught me rats by hand feeding them like putting their food through the bars and one of them is biting so I’m trying to lay treats on the ground and putting cardboard shaped fingers to the cage to teach them not to bite but my dad keeps hand feeding them what should I do ? ( they are male btw)

[@nevaehlesteberg7687]

what kind of meat baby food do you use? I have a baby rat about 8-9 weeks old who is having a tendency to nip and lunge at me when I am giving her treats or letting her sniff me and I've been trying to find some sort of liquid treat for her, and her sister, to help with getting them to trust me and help with training.

[@wdkjwjdnejcnejsnwsjeimdeij6843]

My rat Pancake just bit me and drew blood :( The eating thing doesn’t work because they’ll just stop eating, they’re very skittish and i have to coax them to eat yogurt near me :(

[@des8ballpool578]

Is he still biting him? Mines will not me and make me bleed which is why he hasn’t been or his cage I had him for about 3weeks I haven’t tried touching till after 1 week of them being at my home he will randomly just bit

[@wdkjwjdnejcnejsnwsjeimdeij6843]

des8ball Pool He may be scared. Pancake hasn’t bitten me since, but to be fair I haven’t tried petting him very much since. I have held him to transfer him from cage to carrier many time since however, and he hasn’t bitten me when he’s had the chance. My advice would be to be patient, I’m sure your rats will learn to love being pet, It’s never too late!

[@savannahlevy97]

Pancake is such a sweet rat name.

[@crazykitty545]

@OP My new boys I just adopted are 5 months old and both of them tend to bite…I got bit by the more aggressive one and my bf got bit by the skiddish one….would the spoon method be the best way to start with them?

[@cloyann]

When I first got my male rat and he was a small baby so his bites just felt like little nibbles and he would bite while we were playing he’s now gotten bigger and now he really bites be and makes me bleed this is so helpful I’ll definitely go get him neutered hopefully next week. He’s just too aggressive when we play

[@fergusweston5961]

Can I have a like for Darwin and Luna, my passed rats? I miss them alot

[@millalol8360]

I know the feeling of loosing pets, my hamster passed away almost a year ago (11 months) and it’s so sad and the feeling is awful, good luck, I think you need it.

[@teanlanc1562]

I have a rat called luna! She is really feisty though haha, we only got her and her sister midnight yesterday

[@dylanwhocares3627]

💔💔😭😭

[@dylanwhocares3627]

@Jay L Come again?

[@Rebnirak187]

@@millalol8360 i had a hamster who did suicide... He hang out of his house... Maybe my fault.. 🤔😢

[@rorysclowntears]

My one girl, Mercury, antagonizes the other rats, especially my girl Moony, she just keeps doing it despite Moony’s attempts on kicking her off. Last night I had to separate Mercury and while trying to do so she bit the hell out of me and wouldn’t let go. I had to separate her into a temporary cage so hopefully I can try to fix this. I have tried multiple attempts to bond with her and I the girls were getting along together when I introduced the new girls to my Quad Squad but then she slowly got aggressive. I got her from a Exotics store that sells rats from a breeder. I don’t know if it’s because she was specifically supposed to be a feeder (she wasn’t labeled as the pet rats just feeder), but why is she so aggressive when Cloud isn’t? I got Cloud from the same place and she was labeled as a feeder. I’ve worked with former feeder rats in the past to transform them into pets, but I’ve never had a rat so aggressive to the point it made ME bleed.

[@johnbradshaw7525]

I had one rat, Hartley, who became really aggressive towards me following the death of the dominant rat. He was ok with me when he was outside of his cage but as soon as i put my hand into his cage he would bite me. He would regularly draw blood when he bit me. I took him to the vets & he tried tardak with Hartley but it didn't work. I ended up having him neutered but sadly he died shortly after having the surgery.

[@B1ll-c1ph3r-c7j]

So i havent finished this video but i jave a question If i try giving my boy a treat with fear aggression and he still bites when i attempt to pet him while he eats a treat he still bites how do i fix that-?

[@amberparks-newlove6378]

One of my rats doesn't seem to be really aggressive but he does nip quite a bit and it's worse than a nibble and he is constantly trying to run. I've been trying to work with him but nothings changing. He doesn't seem hormonally aggressive but he's been this way since I brought him home

[@cassygould3084]

I adopted two female rats, a mother and daughter from someone who clearly did not treat them well. The mother is extremely nice and the daughter is not, the person I adopted them from said they were not aggressive and did not let me hold the daughter. I've had them about a year now and I still can't handle the daughter, I attempted the spoon thing but she just bit the spoon or pulled it away. If I move she get spazzy and jumps at the slightest noises. I've tried petting her but it only lasts a second as she goes for my hands. I need to pick up up with fabric around my hands when I need to take her out of the cage for cleaning.

[@honeymoonaddict5000]

I got my 3 boy rats from someone who couldn't care for them anymore and they were being neglected so I did what I could but they always try to bite me or attack me but every once in a while one of them actually let's me touch him and ocasionally I will try to take him out to bond but he just tries to bite.