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New Rat Problems.
Topic Started: May 25 2008, 01:02 AM (58 Views)
Lilac

I have sixteen rats all kept in a huge cage. I just got my sixteenth rat today and he seems to have lit the problem torch!!

He bit me and although all of the rats have excepeted him the only had that hasn't it the 1.5 yr. old alpha, Niko.

Help?? How can I teach him not to bite me, as i've never had a rat bite me before and why won't the alpha accept him when he has accepted all of the others before??
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Breawna
Administrator
Hello and welcome to the forum! We're glad to have you! Sixteen boys! You've got your hands full, don't you?

As far as the biting goes, continue holding him daily. He will gradually become accustomed to your smell. You can also put a recently-worn T-shirt of yours in the cage, that way he can get accustomed to your smell on his own time as well.

And as far as Niko not accepting the new guy goes, I am curious to how you are introducing them?

Make sure you are introducing them on nutral territory, such as the bath tub or the couch. Pop one rat at a time with the new guy, letting them each get to know him one by one. The next day put one of the rats with the new guy, and add one rat at a time until all of the rats are together on the nutral territory. Introduce the alpha last. Once they are getting along well, you can throughly clean out the cage and put the new guy in.

Good luck, let us know how it goes!
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