How to Learn About Your Rats

 How to Learn About Your Rats

-Quirks and Personality

Rats like most pets have distinct personalities. Figuring out their quirks will be helpful in training and playing with them. For example one of my rats likes to run around and jump on my hand while I clean their cage. For my rat (Scabbers) that likes to chase my hand I make a point of playing with her while I clean the cage. Learning that she likes to chase my hand helped me realize she is more interested in rough play than her sister. Her sister (Remi) likes to run around and inspect their little hutches after I return them to the cage. This has helped me learn that she is the more adventurous of my two rats. When I first got my rats I noticed how they acted. Remi would come out of her little corner and sniff my hand but Scabbers would stay and watch. Occasionally Scabbers would follow Remi but only rarely. It was obvious almost immediately that Remi was more adventurous. She is the leader most of the time too. Surprisingly Scabbers has evolved to like people more than Remi. She is shy at first but she likes to be held when contrastingly Remi wants to be left alone to explore. When I have friends over I always let them hold Scabbers before Remi because I know Scabbers is less likely to run all over them and try to jump off of them onto a chair or their cage.

-Likes and Dislikes

Rats like humans have likes, dislikes, and preferences. Like I mentioned before, my rat Scabbers likes rough play while my other rat Remi does not. She is ok with me occasionally petting her. She will get involved during the rough play once Scabbers starts chasing her. They both get very excited and enjoy being gently flipped onto their backs and getting pet at rather random moments during a chase. Both my rats enjoy being nestled up in warm clothes. When I wear a jacket they climb inside and almost borough around. Scabbers likes to run up the sleeves of my long sleeved shirts or jackets. Remi doesn’t do this. She hasn’t shown any particular interest in doing it and that is ok. Scabbers runs in and out of my sleeves while Remi climbs the cage and rests on my shoulder. 

-Test New Activities

Testing out new activities for your rats is a great way of learning more about them. I tried out a bath scavenger hunt. I put water in a shallow tupperware tub and put some food at the bottom. I put in some blueberries and some garbanzo beans. The rats sniffed around the container a little and then they walked away and seemed to have no more interest. I gently lifted up one of my rats and rested her in the water. She didn’t panic but she quickly left the water and didn’t come back. A couple activities I want to test with my rat are a dig box, which is a box on dirt or sand that has food buried in it for your rats to find. Rat toss is also another fun activity. It sounds dangerous but if you do it right it will be fun. Lay some pillows out and pick your rat up. Very gently toss your rat onto the pillows which should be at most a few feet away from you. One of the activities I have also done with my girls is made them little boxes with treats inside. One of the simplest kinds is one involving a toilet paper roll. You cut the roll into six little circles. Then you wrap them around each other with a treat inside so that the treat is hidden. I have given my rats about 3 of these in total all separate occasions. The first time they chewed through

 the cardboard, the second time they used their little paws to pry apart the roll, and the third time they chose to chew through again.

-What Motivates Them

Figuring out what motivates your rats is trial and error. My rat Scabbers is heavily influenced by food. I give her cheerios, and using those have taught her to come when I click my tongue. For some rats food doesn’t motivate them. Some rats prefer getting pet. Rats can also have motivation for certain foods. My rats like all the fruits and vegetables I have given them. Some rats may only find motivation from liquid food. My rats are more motivated when I use cheerios than if I use baby food. A lot of people who have trained rats prefer the liquid food because it is faster for the rat to lick it off of your finger than to eat a cheerio. You can also train your rat with toys. If they are better motivated through their play items you can use that as leverage for training. 

- Observe their Favorite spots

Observing where you rats go in and out of the cage is a good way to learn what they like. For example I have a hammock that both of my rats spend lots of time in. They lay on top of each other and curl up in little balls. One thing I think may correlate to this is that they like to crawl in tight spaces. My rats also like to climb. They choose to climb up and down bookshelves and notched doors in my room when they are free roaming. They also enjoy being in warm spots. Like I mentioned before, my rats like to be in clothes like my jackets. They like the warmth. Sometimes I will sit on the ground or in a comfortable chair with them and have a blanket. They typically choose to explore under the blanket. Another funny behavior my rat Scabbers participates in is running under her bedding. I use cloth bedding and when I clean their cage Scabbers will wait until I put down the cloth bedding to run under it and drag it all over the place. I’ve learned that I need to let her do this for 5 or more minutes before I can continue cleaning.