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Pet rat behavior

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  • 24-03-2010 11:04am
    #1
    d31b0y
    Registered Users Posts: 2,028 ✭✭✭


    Hi all,

    Just moved from an apartment to a house a few days ago, but ever since our little rat doesn't seem to be his same lively self. He seems quite reclusive, hides in his bed most of the time, under blankets. He never did this before when we were in the apartment. He was always either out and about, or he was on top of his blankets. We have been taking him out in the evenings, which is when he always used to come out, so he can get used to the place but he either hides under the couch or in our clothes and won't go anywhere else.

    He didn't eat much at all last night. He is more nocturnal than not, so is most active at night. Normally his bowl is close to empty when we wake up, but as far as we can tell he didn't eat much of anything at all last night. We're definitely not over feeding him. He gets very small portions. Once in the morning and once in the evening.

    Do you think he could just be taking a while to get used to his new surroundings? I know there are a few cats in the neighbourhood, and one in particular is used to entering peoples houses if a door is left open. I thought maybe he was apprehensive because he could smell them but we have been and are being extremely careful not to allow the cats near the door. I have a funny feeling that the old tennant used to allow the cat in because he is quite brazen, but the place has been painted and empty for a month so I would have thought that any lingering smell would be gone by now.

    Any ideas here? Has anybody any experience when it comes to moving house with a pet rat / gerbil / hamster etc?

    Thanks,

    d31b0y


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    #2
    joyce2009
    Registered Users Posts: 530 ✭✭✭joyce2009


    would it be the new positioning of the cage as in is there a window nearby where theyre used not be or maybe a draught??
    I hope its just settling in to a new enviroment,,,,btw do you only have one little rat,,they do prefer to have company being social critters.:)


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    #3
    madrabui
    Registered Users Posts: 423 ✭✭madrabui


    Oh the poor little fella. Check if any of your neighbours use those electronic pest deterrents.


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    #4
    d31b0y
    Registered Users Posts: 2,028 ✭✭✭d31b0y


    joyce2009 wrote: »
    would it be the new positioning of the cage as in is there a window nearby where theyre used not be or maybe a draught??
    I hope its just settling in to a new enviroment,,,,btw do you only have one little rat,,they do prefer to have company being social critters.:)

    Yeah, we do only have the one at the moment. We had talked about getting a second but he is almost a year old and fully grown. I have talked to a pet store owner and done lots of research and from what I can tell it can sometimes be very difficult to merge a new rat, especially one that is not from the same litter. The last thing we want to do is upset him anymore. Instead, he gets loads of attention off us :) And he was perfectly happy in the old apartment.
    It is slightly colder than the old apartment, but even when we have the heating on, he doesn't seem like himself. There is no more or less light on him during the day either. Fingers crossed he is just settling in, but if he continues to eat very little it will be a trip to the vets and I know he won't like that. He was at the vets when he was younger for a sprained / swollen leg and he had to get injections :(
    madrabui wrote: »
    Oh the poor little fella. Check if any of your neighbours use those electronic pest deterrents.

    Certainly might be worth checking out, although it is a very pet friendly neighbourhood (hence the cats :)).


    Thanks for the input all! Hopefully he will be back to his happy little ratty self again in the coming days!!


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    #5
    joyce2009
    Registered Users Posts: 530 ✭✭✭joyce2009


    d31b0y wrote: »
    Yeah, we do only have the one at the moment. We had talked about getting a second but he is almost a year old and fully grown. I have talked to a pet store owner and done lots of research and from what I can tell it can sometimes be very difficult to merge a new rat, especially one that is not from the same litter. The last thing we want to do is upset him anymore. Instead, he gets loads of attention off us :) And he was perfectly happy in the old apartment.
    It is slightly colder than the old apartment, but even when we have the heating on, he doesn't seem like himself. There is no more or less light on him during the day either. Fingers crossed he is just settling in, but if he continues to eat very little it will be a trip to the vets and I know he won't like that. He was at the vets when he was younger for a sprained / swollen leg and he had to get injections :(



    Certainly might be worth checking out, although it is a very pet friendly neighbourhood (hence the cats :)).


    Thanks for the input all! Hopefully he will be back to his happy little ratty self again in the coming days!!
    yeah it might be a bit strange now at this stage to get another little rat ...I hope he picks up though,poor mite..They are such lovely pets,,my two are 1 year old too and i hate to think of anything happening them:).best of luck and keep us posted on how he's doing.


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