#rat introductions

[tesseractj]

I took this picture of a sweet pile of rats early this month. Spice was still alive and her fur and face are just visible, mostly buried in younger rat love.

This is an hour after successful introductions were done with my two newest Sanctuary Foster Rats. Momo came to the rescue with HLD, so she has issues using her hind legs properly. This is common in older rats, so her original age estimate(1 year) was probably off by a year. Piper is a younger rat who normally would have gone up for adoption, but she bonded with Momo.

I've had a lot of easy introductions over the years, but this one was almost too easy. The rescue had warned me that Piper might have trouble integrating, so I kept waiting for trouble and was ready to jump in. There was never a single issue. Even the brief tussles that would happen days later were drama free.

[sillydegu]

Seeking advice from people who have done rat introductions.

Laurel joined the trio in February, they mostly get on, but there's some occassional fighting resulting in minor injuries. I'm back to being able to let them free roam without incident, but it's taken a while to get there.

The shelter I got them from emailed me again, asking if I'd be able to take in another lone girl. It sounds like she had a friend until recently, but doesn't come from good circumstances.

So, my question is, does my group sound like one who adding another rat to is a good idea or not? I don't want to upset things further, or end up with two groups.

Should I get the rat?

Yes, intros should work out

No, it's not the right decision for the four rats I already have

Voting ended onApr 30, 2024

[notquiteaunicorn]

Well, I think introductions are going well... poor Bramble xD

[rams-rodent-world]

Tomka (the hooded lad) met his two new friends (Herbie - white, and Moley - black) today for the first time. We were very nervous but in the end it seemed to go okay. There was a bit of grooming and squabbling over dominance but mainly they just ignored each other. We’re hoping to increase the time they spend with each other tomorrow and hopefully within a week they’ll be proper friends and will be able to live together :D ( @thewillofalbusdumbledore ‘s rats)

[spacerobotcrew]

Rat introductions have been happening! :D

Bec’s normally a big grump but he really seemed to take a liking to Papyrus, it was cool. Have some pics of Bec and Papyrus being bros. Final pic is of him watching as Papyrus explored in the cardboard tube.

[thelaughingrat]

Started introducing neutered boy Basil to my ladies tonight, and three of the four rats in question reacted exactly as I expected: Basil got defensive, Roxy got dominant (and then got flirty), and Pepper was oblivious to everything going on around her. The surprise of the night was Lida Rose, who took one look at Basil, screamed as if she was being murdered, ran up my arm, and spent the next fifteen minutes hiding in my hair shivering.

Well, it’s not like I expected they’d all get along after one meeting. At least the other three managed to get along for about twenty minutes before Roxy and Basil got too argumentative with each other.

[therodentqueen]

So the rat introductions went pretty well for not being able to do it in a neutral environment (darn you, Abby!). I had scrubbed the space pod and all of the lava ledges, and I put in new hammocks and boxes and wiped down the cage as best I could. The babies spent a good hour or two exploring the cage while Abby looked on with a "what the hell is going on?" look on her face. The babies then followed Abby around as she tried to get away from them. After a while, she gave up, and the babies kept climbing all over her. They've been pretty good, and even took a nap together, but when they squabble, they are So. Friggin'. LOUD.