It is very rare for pet rats to aggressively bite, but they can and will bite for several reasons. Figuring out what that problem is may be difficult, but it might put an end to the biting (hopefully it will).
The primary cause of any bite is fear. If you haven’t had your rat for very long, he may be anxious about his new environment; he may also have been handled badly or not socialized as a baby. If your rat has started biting out of the blue, try to think about what has changed in the environment to make him feel anxious.
If you think your rat may be fearful, you must be patient and understanding, giving him time to settle into his new environment and introducing yourself to him slowly and carefully. Start off by just resting your hand in the cage or putting an old t-shirt that you’ve recently worn in their cage; this will help him get used to your smell. You can also try slowly feeding him treats, and letting him lick something tasty from your fingers. When holdling your rat, don’t take him too far from his cage; being able to smell it may decrease his anxiety. Also, try to interact with your rat about 20-30 minutes a day. These are trust-building exercises that may help him adjust better. Is he a nervous rat?
A nervous rat will run away from you, and if you try to pick it up, it may be so fearful that it feels the only option is to bite. Thus, it is important to consider how you are handling the rat. When picking rats up, you must always support their feet, because they get very anxious if they don’t have their back feet on something solid. Some people think picking a rat up by the base of its tail is a good way to handle them, but it’s terrifying and painful for the rat. Make sure you’re handling your rat in the least stressful way possible.
Older rats that bite are more of a problem, because the reasons behind their biting can be more complex and may require more patience. It’s rare for a rat to be aggressive by nature; generally the rat was mistreated or not socialized as a baby. Many people believe that a biting rat needs to be put down immediately. In certain cases, this may be true–if a rat is severely aggressive or it is exposed to children. However, it is my opinion that rats are naturally sociable animals, and it is very rare for a rat to be aggressive and unhandleable for no reason. I think there is hope, it’s just a matter of figuring out what the reason is and handling it properly.
Good luck!
I have a pink-eyed white male rat. He kind of sheds his hair, everytime he walks past the bars of the cage there’s always some hair leftover. And he bites. He almost bit my moms’ nail off. And once I put my stuffed animal near the cage to see what he’ll do and he sniffed it, and then bit it REALLY hard. I’m not sure what to do. Can you help me out? Please!!
my boy bites because he is too close to the girls cage
I have just recently got 2 female rats. I have made several attempts to put my hand in their cage to pet them, and everytime I do they plung to bite me. One of them did manage to bite me the other day. I got these 2 from someone that has had them since they were babies. Even if I try to talk to them through the cage the one will just to plunge at me while I am talking to them. They are the worst tempered rats I have ever had. Is there any advice someone could give me.
I have a similar problem to Anna’s. I adopted four female rats from the Humane Society about a week ago who were already living together. Two are friendly and easy to handle. One runs away when I try to handle her - I’m just going to give her some time to adjust and approach her slowly. The fourth one worries me, though, because she runs to the door when I open it, but when I put my hand out to let her sniff it or to pet her, she immediately bites it. The only time she doesn’t bite my hand is when I am giving her a treat. It seems (to me) that this is coming from pure aggression - but, although she is somewhat dominant, she isn’t particularly aggressive toward her sisters. Do you have any suggestions for breaking her of the biting habit when it isn’t (or doesn’t seem to be) out of fear?
Me and my fiance got two rats yesterday. Actually, first we only had one, but since she had bitten my fiance and seemed too afraid, we decided to go out and buy her a companion to ease her stresses. That seemed to work really well but today she keeps nipping at my fingers everytime I let her sniff my hand. The other rat seemed like she was more relaxed yesterday than she is today. Yesterday she let us approach her with little to no problems and she didn’t bite which was good. Today, she keeps running away from us everytime we try to handle her.
Any assistance will be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
A friend of mine gave me her rat about 3 months ago. The rat seemed tamed and social, at first, for about 2 1/2 months then one night when I saw her poking her nose out at me from her cage I decided to put my finger in the cage and let her sniff me. After 5 seconds of sniffing my finger she tried to latch onto it. I immediately countered, without true knowledge of how to handle the situation, by trying to reach in and let her climb on my arm. Bad mistake- her teeth left two really deep puncture marks on my sacred middle finger. I’ll admit I didn’t approach her again for about three days, I feared being bitten again. What puzzles me the most is that I’ve never been bitten by a seemingly friendly rat and this bite was pretty gruesome. How do I handle her now? Everytime I put my hand in the cage she nips or is ready to bite me. I fear that the answer is persistance- I don’t want to risk my beautiful middle finger again or have a mauled hand by the time she warms up to me again.
My Boy was very badly treated at a pet store and all the staff are seemingly Ratphobioc, the guy that sold him to us litterally got as much bedding as he could between himself and the rat and THREW the rat in the box, no health check, no sex check, nothing.
He’s been skittish all the time we’ve had him, and after 5 weeks has shown the occasional step forward in trust, then giant leaps back into biting, boxing at the cage when you get close etc.
We’ve got two young rats now too that we wanted to introduce to him, they are gorgeous and friendly and were hand;eable from the word go. I thought it might make him calmer all round seeing them being played with by me, but all he does is snort at them through his cage bars and sidle up to and kick the bars of his cage nearest to theirs.
I’ve tried everything, he’s in the best surroundings possible, quiet, safe, warm but not hot, he’s well fed, he’s given treats that he does take without biting, but make one move, make one sound, even if a bubble floats up in his water bottle, he jumps about a foot and runs for cover. There is nothing at all that works.
There is NO WAY I’m having him put down as I know he could be amazing and he’s fit as a fiddle. Rehoming centres tell me that they don’t take animals in unless they’re mistreated and due to his temerament I can’t sell him. I can’t introduce him to the other boys as I feel he’ll rip them to bits.
Any help would be appreciated.
Hiyo, Ive just got a pretty lil guy from a friend of mine. He dosent seem to be aggressive at all, but he apparently will nip and is is the reason their neighbor wanted someone to look after him. He is four months old at the mo and incredibly shy, as his former owner never handled him. I was just wondering about the best way to treat him, and get him used to being handled:)
HI, Brought 2 male rats 10 days ago at a pet shop. Beautiful red eyed white with grey. Felt sorry for them in a very little glass cage. In the shop they said they were about 10 weeks old. They were both very nervous at the start but they calmed down pretty quick. The 1 comes downstairs with me and really enjoys being handled. The other 1 is still very nervous, will take a treat of me but when I try to pick him up he panics. When I put my hand in the cage so he can smell me he bites, he also bites when he is on my hand. Don’t know what I am doing wrong. I talk to them, they have a big cage and toys and they have plenty to eat. Can u give me a bit of advise.
my white, red eyed male rat also used to bite. he started off friendly but when he reached around 4 months he become aggressive, puffing up and biting for no reason, i heard it was because hormones so dicided to have him neutered. he never fully become welcoming to cuddles, but since that day has never showed any sign of wanting to bite me.
the reason rats bite is because when you hold them to much they get awfully scared. they think that when you do something so much that scares them, they think that they have to scare you right back to get even. all the time males. i should know i have 11 rats
Hi can anyone help me, I bought two male rats a month ago(2 brothers) but after two weeks I had to give one back to the petshop as he was having fits. Ever since I gave him back the other guy wont let me pick him up and anytime I go to even touch him he squeaks and lies flat down. He also bites when you try and put your hand into the cage. I need help because its so frustrating. Thanks
Will a rat bite if I try to give it treats from my hand? I’m interested in training my three boys.
Hi. I got a white female rat about a month ago. And when i got her, she was 3 months old, and pregnant. I suppose, that is why she bit me. Twice, and really hard. But that is understandable. She was pregnant, and i believe every animal is protective when pregnant. Well…about two weeks ago, she gave birth to 11 cute ratlings. The point is, she still bites (at least she tries, I put my sleeve near the cage, and sometimes she just sniffs it, but sometimes she charges and bites the sleeve). Well…I wonder, if anyone had ay simmilar encounters
with a pregnant rat. Will she stop biting when the ratling get older and when she stops nursing them?
I intend to keep 2 female ratlings(some of the others will go for addoption, some for feeding purposes (i’m sorry, i have no other option..), and also I indend to keep the mother, but only if she stops biting…. i hope she does.
So…the main thing i want to know (and if someone experienced can answer me), will the mother rat stop biting, when the young are old enough?
Thank you and pardon my english (i’m not from an english speaking country
)
I have a 9 month old rat and he is really mean and aggresive. He is really nice and sweet when hes in his cage, but once he gets out he’ll try to escape, and if you pick him back up he will aggresively bite at your hand or wrist. Hes drawn blood on my hand about 5 times. Hes also done it to other people. Any advice?
I bought two young female rats from the pet store a week ago. Both of them run away if I try to hold them or if I make any sudden movement. They’ve never squeeled when I picked them up or bitten me hard but as soon as I get them out of the cage they run back to it. I’ve started resting my hand inside their cage and let them run around and climb on it and sniff me to get used to me. Neither of them have bitten me hard but they do bite. It’s almost as if they are curious but i’m not sure. I don’t know if it’s their nice way of saying “Get your hand out of my cage” Or if they’re trying to play with me or what. I always wash my hands before I handle them so I know they don’t smell like food. I’m affraid that the nibbling will turn into harder bites. Should I spray them with water when they nibble my fingers? Or should i let them nibble and hopefully their curiousity will die down? Any Help would be appreciated! Thanks!
I think this is a harmless way for them to test the waters with you, or maybe even a playful thing, or just a way to check you out. I don’t know about spraying water on them, that seems like to a little rat it may be a little too traumatizing, and it might confuse them and just make them more timid. Our two new rats have been doing the same thing and acting like yours. When they start nibbling, I remove my hand quickly (I try not to jerk it away, but I’m still getting used to them too) and I let out the highest pitch possible for me and very loud “ouch!” Not because it hurts, but it’s the closest thing I can do to mimick their “rat language” and perhaps after awhile they will understand. Rats need to chew, that’s why I’m scared to let them nibble on me- one day they might think I’m a wood block or something and dig in!
I always had nice gentle friendly social rats until one day. Stumpy was just a mean rat. She would race out of no where and bite me as hard as she could. I had to shake her off once. Each time I thought I’d need stitches. Now I am afraid to hold my new ones. You might say I’m traumatized. Any suggestions how I might overcome this new fear? I rescued many of these rats from petstores and previous owners which might account for some of their bad behavior. I am very trusting and patient and hope to be close again with my little monkeys. Thanks. Jenna
My rat has in the past two weeks started biting me. Two of the bites bled, teeth like razors! He grabs hold of my wrist and kind of seems like he’s humping me. Is this a sexual habit of rats? Cats will bite the neck of the female to keep her still. It wasn’t too much at first, but it’s become sort of scary. I don’t want to pick him up! This morning he was okay for a few minutes out of his cage, then I put him up pretty quick before got aggressive again. My hands look like I ran into a few big rose bushes!
I have 2 rats, a male and female they recently had babies and the female is separate with her babies. The babies are now 3 weeks old and until today the mother had no problems with me putting my hands in the cage or picking up her babies. Today i tried to pet her and she bit me hard enough that i was pouring blood. What could be the cause of this i want to socialize the babies but now i’m afraid she will draw blood again and why now and not sooner?
This is some info for Janice, I have had rats, mice, guinea pigs, gerbils, hamsters and a chinchilla and they All nibbled if i left my fingers around them for too long, I know chinchillas nibble to check things out i just assume that the others including rats do the same. They all nibbled but biting hard was something they never progressed into, i had a guinea pig and a dwarf hamster that bit since i got them and i never figured out how to stop it but the rest just nibbled and nothing more for the rest of their lives.I dont think you should be too worried about it becoming more than what it is.
Also for Janice i forgot to include that some rats such as my female who i got from a pet store are sold as feeders and are not socialized very much so that may depend on where you got them. I know that Petsmart sells rats for pets and not feeders and they usually are very tame.
hi guys, ive read alot of these, and i have a simular problem, i got a female rat about 3 weeks ago (the rat is about 2 month old) and i pet her every time i walk past the cage and often give her treats. i let her out of the cage for about 1 hour a day but when i move towards her to try and pick her up she either runs like hell or turns around and bites me, its no little nip either i bleed like mad when the happens, please help me and my little timmy..
my rat does the same thing im not sure why because i have two and one is completely fine with me then the other bites and really hates it :S
My male rat, is only a few months old and i have him now for about a month. At first he didnt bite, he would smell my hands and sit on my shoulder and fall asleep in my hood BUT now he has just gone so aggressive. I thought of putting some liquid treat on my finger but instead he gnawed at my finger and ripped skin off. He won’t let me grab him as he always squirms, squeaks and then bites. He has drawn blood from me twice now. So i left him for a couple of days to calm down. He’s in a quiet, safe environment. And for the past 2 weeks i have slowly been trying to socialise with him, let him know my surroundings but block off wires and anywhere he can hide but he is still very aggressive and keeps trying to grab my fingers near the bars of his cage and he keeps biting me. I’m considering selling him and getting two females but i don’t want to get rid of him as all my previous have never bitten or nibbled me.
Can someone please offer any advice or information. I would really appreciate it. Thanks.
A book called The Complete Guide to Rat Training: Tricks and Games for Rat Fun and Fitness, by Debbie Ducommun, has a great deal of training and acclimation information that is very useful for socializing rats.
Also, as Sarah related in her comment, some males develop an overload of testosterone and need to be neutered.
i just got a young female rat as a companion for my other young one. the older one is as sweet as can be and the new one can see her approach me and come on my hand and etc. but this new one bites me for no reason. i was petting her one day and then she just turned her head and bit my finger hard even though i had pet her for like a minute. any pointers?
im thinking of seperating them and putting her in another cage so she is not as dependent on my older one. I dont want to get rid of her for being aggressive but shes not really responding to me
Hi Geneva,
Firstly, don’t put her in a seperate cage. She will learn to trust you over time trhough observaing your other friendly rats confidence of you.
Has your new rat been well socialised (i.e. is she from a breeder)? Pet shop rats have usually not been handled much and it can take time to get them to trust you. But you can ‘trust train’ rats - you just need time and patience.
I had problems with my first boy when I got him (foolishly from a pet shop as I didn’t no any better at the time). He was very skittish and would bite to warn me to stay away… but step by step we made excellent progress and we became the best of friends.
I suggest getting a book on rat care, or else do a google search for ‘trust training rats’.
Hope this helps and best of luck,
Helen
I am starting week two with my first rat. He is still very skittish and will not come out completely on his own. But he will come up and step onto my hand with his front paws only. Since I have read many places that rats need to be out of the cage for a period of time each day, I bought one of those balls to let him run around the house in. Unfortunately every time I try to put him in it he just sits and stares. I have tried using treats and moving it very slowly to give him the idea but it just isn’t working. Do you have any suggestions to get him moving? I think he would like it a lot better than being cooped up all day.
I just recently got two female rats. They are both dumbo rats and one is albino and the other one is black. The black one is very sociable and sweet and will sniff you and be very interested in you picking her up. My albino one seems very scared and very resistant to want to be bothered. i have tried giving her treats and has snapped at me several times. There is really no reason for her to being startled and she will literally knock the treat out of my hand to get to my fingers. I am not really sure what to do. i have never had a rat that acts this way with me. Will it effect my other rats that house with her? should i take them out so they do not get harmed?
Hi, my partner and I have had pet rats for the past 7 years. We’ve had no trouble with our rats, male and female they were the best friends us and our kids ever had. However when our last lot passed away about 8 months ago we purchased another 3, one male and two females they all have their seperate cages. Our male is a beautiful delight he is very gentle and loving,Our black hooded female She’s great. However the other one is not very pleasant she has recently become very foul temepered and will bite at any chance. My 1.5 yr old was putting food in her cage with me watching her and she lunged for her and bit the top of her finger clean off. She tries to bite now any chance she gets. She was alot older then the other two and they were all from the pet shop. I suggest if anyone wants to have a nice tame rat that will not bite i recommend purchasing one at 5-6 weeks off age. They will stay tame and loyal, as we’ve always experienced. We felt sorry for the older one being locked into a tiny cage thats why we purhased her also. She’s no good for anything though. Don’t purchase older rats that are adult size as you don’t know how much they were handled or how they were treated, it could increase the risk of being bitten.
I have 2 rats, and I did the same thing with them that I did for my ferret, since they all have a tendency to nip or bite….I snap my fingers…it’s instant distraction. Rats are Soooooo sensitive to sound, that they never nipped again…I also got them at 4 weeks old…two boys…I’ve read over and over, never to get just ‘one’ rat….they are far too social and smart to be alone….I’ve also read that females are more playful and active…and males tend to be a bit more mellow.
I’ve been reading anything I can get my eyes on for them…they absolutely fascinate me every day!!!
and I’m sure you handle them often….but if you don’t…do
Also albino rats…tend to be a bit shy…as they have very very poor vision…all rats do, but even more so with albinos.
My two rats are from the same litter…and the chocolate eyed one is Very Cautious, while the black eyed one just runs all over my arms and neck!!!
Patience…do it every day. If you force pick them up..do it very gently and be very still…let them explore….