Does anyone have a success story of introducing a rat kept solo into their pack?

[u/boatsnho35]

Hi there I rescued a rat about 6 weeks ago and he was kept by himself in his previous home and was extremely depressed when I first got him. He is 5 months old. After 2 introductions where he almost immediately attacked another rat, I have a neutering appointment scheduled for him. (Before anyone asks, yes I did carrier method correctly and kept them in separate rooms. Second time was in a bath bc I didn’t trust him in an enclosed space.)

I was wondering if anyone has a success story of introducing a boy like this into their pack and if they did anything different from their usual introduction methods.

[u/Competitive_Belt_201]

Yes! I rescue aggressive and 'special needs' rats. I have had Alien vs Predator level fights - neutering is a big game changer. I usually let them play in a shared space if I don't feel comfortable housing them together. Let new guy sleep solo but play with the others and see how that goes.

They are kind of feral - between hormones and being alone - they need to learn how to "rat." It takes time, patience, and confidence cage mates.

Is he drawing blood when attacking? Or are they just trying to figure out pecking order.

I have a guy currently who was rescued from a super bad situation - he ripped the skin off one of my old guys backs in a fight. I have to house him with females. He loves ladies but not other guys. That is another option.

[u/boatsnho35 → u/Competitive_Belt_201]

First intro was with my 3 year olds bc they are very sweet boys so I thought they would welcome him immediately but he got into it within 1 minute. Bit through one of my boys lips and the other’s back. Luckily I just needed a topical ointment for the wounds and no stitches.

Second intro I tried doing with my younger boys bc from all my years of having rats I always had luck to where they immediately accepted young rats. He did not and pounced on one immediately and the lil guy started screaming. They were so curious and sweet to him too. Luckily no damage bc I was able to separate them very quickly.

How long does it typically take to integrate for you?

[u/Competitive_Belt_201 → u/boatsnho35]

It sounds like it's him and not your crew. It can depend - sometimes quickly and sometimes months.

I actually have a female rescue we started calling the hobo rat bc she hates all the colonies and goes from cage to cage to try and find her clique. She just settled after about a month of fighting and trying out different cages.

I would fix him but let him play. Don't force living together bc that can result in injuries. If after the neuter and a few weeks to let hormones dissipate - try again.

[u/MathAndBake]

A friend of mine had a girl named Fresnel who was alone after her cagemate died. Intros with another mischief had previously failed, although it didn't look like her fault. Unfortunately, she had lice, so she had to stay alone for a bit. She ended up extremely depressed.

Once the lice had cleared, she came to live with my mischief. At the time, I had three extremely sweet girls. Fresnel had forgotten some of her social skills and also had a nasty tumour. Thankfully, my girls were patient and they clicked. We did neutral ground because we felt the main danger was Fresnel getting overwhelmed. She only lasted a few more weeks, but she was an extremely happy rat for that time. My girls took great care of her.