[jamesReid]

Hey all...


So is this normal behavior for male rats? They seem to get along great.. then next thing you know they are fighting...


Look at these pictures...

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Look at the open wound he has!!!

and this is them after they fought...

What am I to do to stop them from fighting like this? And how will I ever get Hector to be friends with them if they fight like this!?!?!

And here is a quick video I caught of them fighting.. Normally I stop them when they do this.. I dont want them fighting.. But i wanted to catch it on tape once..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKVJEGEhFe0




What do you all think of this??

 

[lilspaz68]

Bug me tonight to look at the video (cannot view youtube or photobucket at work)...the wound isn't anything, so don't panic. its all surface.

 

[jamesReid]

That one wound is all they waythru the skin.. looks like it need stitches....

 

[Vladina]

Hi Jimmie,
I am glad Lilspaz is going to look at the video tonight when she gets home..she will be able to give you a good opinion on the fighting video. Is this Whiskers and Robin in the video? Not Hector, right? Who was it that got the wound?

 

[lilspaz68]

That one wound is all they waythru the skin.. looks like it need stitches....

nope, ratties get slices to the skin that goes right down to the muscle (usually over the shoulder, back of the neck and upper back)...the skin tension pulls them open. By tomorrow you will see a ton of healing, and I bet that he's ignoring it completely.

Getting stitches isn't worth it and will cause more discomfort to him and your wallet.

 

[lilspaz68]

I have pics, but cannot access PB here

 

[lilspaz68]

Here is a good example of a slice through the skin, which has opened up from skin tesnion. They often don't bleed a lot and there's not a lot of nerve endings there so the rat just keeps on going.

This mess, even though it looks awful was most likely a shoulder skin slice, but because poor Gilbert came from the filthiest conditions imaginable, it got very infected and needed vet care eventually.

THIS is bad...

and things like this where you see the puncture wounds

Your 2 boys are boxing and doing a standoff...as soon as one bolts, the other chases, then they turn and do it again right? They are establishing dominance. As long as you don't have "rat balls" and more serious injuries then I wouldn't worry yet. They will need to work it out, so let them, as much as you want to stop them, it just delays the process.

Do either of them rub their paws or dig with their paws in territory Hector has been in? Do they rub their sides on things, start to harrass their brother more, puff up their fur, arch their back, drop their head and start moving like an armadillo, maybe doing the butt shove to each other? These are signs of hormonal aggression, and depending on the severity, someone may or may not need a neuter.

As for your intro vids (I took a peek), Hector is acting just like a baby, they are rude, and think they can take on anything...eventually the adult scares the bejeezus out of them by pinning them when they have had enough, and I assume this is when Hector starting freezing? I call this teaching baby Ratiquette... That they can't get away with everything. Teach them who's boss, as long as there's no active aggression and more of a "pin the annoying thing down" deal. The butt hoist is also very normal, they are sniffing at their genitals. A bad reaction would be a bite to the abdomen or the genitals, these are serious male bites, and are meant to maim.

Hector doesn't really have a place right now, and I bet Whiskers is excited that there's another rat around he can easily dominate so he is not he bottom of the pecking order anymore.

When doing intro's remove all things like bedding (you want to watch them at all times), any places they can go into and not go through, but have to turn around and come back out (the carrier is one)...a rat going in is fine, but if a stranger rat comes in behind them, they may panic and attack. I have video's of intro's in my bathtub if you are curious? I use yummy liquidy food also to get them to stay together and eat together and also distract them from each other.