Behaving Like a Rat

Rats have their own distinct behaviours and understanding them will make your pet rat a more enjoyable companion.

Fighting & Wrestling:
There is a distinct difference between playful wrestling and harmful fighting. Aggression in rats is rare, so you should be able to tell the difference.

A fight will involve actual injuries and probably blood. Separate them as quickly as possible by splashing or spraying them with water until they separate, then reach in and grab one and move him to another cage, or box, until they settle down.

Wrestling is very common in all rats and the kittens (baby rats) do this often. They’ll squeak, pounce, mount, box, chase, and do a lot of rough play. Adolescents (3-8 months in females; 6-12 months for males) will do the same, just rougher. Adults spend most of their time sleeping, grooming, and quiet play - quite content to leave wrestling activities to the young ones.

Mounting:
Mounting, or "mock mating", is seen in both genders, but most commonly in adolescent rats. This behaviour is usually part of play, an outlet for hormones, and not a display of dominance. Mounting lasts a couple of months in male rats. Females will do it longer, usually when they come into heat, which is every five days, or so.

Teeth Grinding, or Chattering:
Called “bruxing”, this behaviour can be a sign of calmness and happiness, or rats will do it when they’re frightened, or very sick. Knowing your pet and its environment will allow you to know the difference.

Licking:
Your pet rats’ will lick as part of their social bonding behaviour. Older rats groom younger ones as a parenting instinct to show domination; younger rats groom older ones in submission. When wrestling, the rat that is pinned down will submissively lick the other one, signalling that the game is over.

Bar Chewing:
Pet rats usually chew the cage bars because they’re bored, or nervous. This behaviour is most common in rats that live alone, so getting a cage-mate and a lot of toys to play with can correct this behaviour. You can take your pet out for longer playtimes, and covering part of the cage and dimming the lights will help. Rats are more at ease in the dark and surrounded by the protection of solid walls.

Being creative communicators, your pet rat may simply be telling you that he’s out of food, or water, or feels his cage needs to be cleaned. A new cage may also bring on this behaviour, but only temporarily.

Head Swaying:
Rats are best at seeing contours and contrasting shades and don't see color or depth very well. To see where something is, rats will sway, causing the nearby objects to appear to move in front of background objects. Your pet will do this often when judging a jump, or when something interesting, or threatening, enters a room.

Urinating:
Rats urinate when scared. They will also do this as a form of territorial marking. You can discourage this latter habit by not letting your pet rat walk on things he habitually marks.

Biting:
Unlike other rodents, rats rarely bite for trivial reasons. If your pet bites, look for the reason and correct it.

Fear. Rats that are handled often and trust people are not likely to bite out of fear. They will be scared if in a recent fight, or if they smell a predator. Rats will also show fear from gloves, socks, Band-Aids, and anything else that covers your hands and feet. Rats recognize you by smell and texture, so these coverings can fool your pet and cause them to bite.

Mistake. If your finger smells like food, your pet may bite thinking it’s a treat. Rats will eventually learn to lick you, rather than bite. A rat can also miss the target when being offered a treat, so try giving only large treats and not through the bars of their cage.

Pain. If you touch an injury where they’re tender, then your pet may bite out of pain. Most won’t bite, but will make puffing, or squeaking, sounds instead.

Motherly Protection. Your pet rat may show aggression when pregnant, or with a litter. This is a natural instinct. Leave her alone until she feels comfortable with your hand in the cage.