I have a male rat, albino, about 4-5 months old. He is normally very sweet and docile and comes when called, however for about 10 minutes today he ran around, his movemets violent and jerky, chewing on things, and giving me light quick nips whenever I tried to catch him. He normally sticks to me and shows me complete devotion and love, so you can see how this is odd.
Then, he proceeded in licking and suckling on his genitals in a non-grooming way-autoeroticising (pleasuring himself). Afterwards, he had returned to his loving docile self. I am not bothered by him pleasuring himself, but could it be that he was only acting violent because he was feeling aroused? And is it normal for male rats to pleasure themselves?
Please don't answer unless you will act maturely.
Thanks :)
2007-12-16 08:06:32 · 14 answers · asked by Jess 4 in Pets ➔ Rodents
I think you're way off base about the Rat "pleasuring" himself. I raised Rats for several years to sell for snake food and I never once saw that kind of behavior. It sounds like he got into something that might not have been good for him. Also, if you're allowing him to run around helter skelter, you must remember he is not a domesticated animal, like a dog or cat. Eventually, if you allow him to run around, someday you won't be able to find him. He will fly the coop, so to speak.
2007-12-16 08:16:14 · answer #1 · answered by Charles WE 5 · 0⤊ 5⤋
I've seen my males rats do something of the sort (and usually mount the other males in the group then clean themselves afterwards)
It's likely he's gotten excited, especially if he's around 6 months they get to the teenage stage (mood swings, acne ect lol) but it's normal for a rat to popcorn around and clean themselves then settle back down again.
Males can get a penis plug which they have to clean out, it could be that.
Are you sure he's a he? (veeery obvious testicles) as females will act like this in season too.
I can only echo the others about getting a same sex friend or two under 12 weeks old, as rats are very social animals and need constant companionship of their own kind to keep from become bored, lathargic and depressed. There is no excuse to keep a rat on his own without trying every attempt under the sun (including neutering and trying with females)
Just search "lone rats" and "single rats" to see all the results against keeping rats on their own.
The national fancy rat society is the biggest rat club in the UK
http://www.nfrs.org/company.html
The Rat and mouse club in America is the biggest club in the USA
http://www.rmca.org/Resources/apair.txt
This is only a small sample of articles of keeping rats in pairs, even rats in labs have to be kept in pairs for their mental welfare.
2007-12-16 10:05:09 · answer #2 · answered by solaflare09 2 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have three males and especially before they were 8-9 months old sometimes they were just full of energy and would occasionally act a little unpredictable and would even try to nip at me, and run away even though normally they would all come when I called. I found that when they were acting like that they would just start roughing around and chasing each other and would soon calm down. If your rat is alone I would suggest getting him a new male as close to his age as possible or a baby no younger then about 7 weeks. Do NOT put a female in with him as you can get upwards of 15 babies a month. If you search for how to introduce rats to each other, there are many helpful sites.
Another possibility...
Rat urine is incredibly sticky and male rats tend to pee on everything (I assume you've noticed this). Sometimes for some reason rats can occassionally get a type of blockage in their urethra, which makes then kinda freak out and need to really, umm molest, themselves to clean it all out. Make sure he has clean fresh water always and clean bedding to help prevent this. Especially if hes out running around it is good to provide him access to his cage for water etc or put him back in his cage once an hour.
and lastly,
He might have just been really excited, and then wanted to play with himself. Since rats are most active at night most rat owners probably haven't noticed this event. Unfortunately I have occasionally witnessed it to happen.
Just be sure to keep an eye on him and trust your instincts. If you really think something is wrong take him to a vet that treats rats. Sometimes though, our little fuzz balls just do thinks we dont really understand! enjoy it!
I hope this helps!
2007-12-16 09:02:18 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 7⤊ 0⤋
this is normal in the overbred (petsotore or reaserch lines) its essentially him comming into age males tend to get a burst od testosterone between 4 and 6 months of age, its entirely normal (thouhg doenst happen in ALL rats and is more commonly not seen due to it being more often a night time behaviour...)
males tend to jerk when they get realy frisky and over excited, do a hop bounce jerky movment and nibble at her...
i wouldnt worry, it should calm down once he passes the 6 month mark.
hes likely doing it around you because he doesnt have a buddy however males that go through this high testosterone phase can also become very agressive with other rats at this point so if you are going to get him a buddy get one and keep it in a seperate cage NEXT to your current male so they can see and smel eachother, and let them play together outside of the cage but dont try housing them together untill after this phase has died down.
2007-12-17 12:32:40 · answer #4 · answered by Gems 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
interesting. I've had male rats for a few years and never had one do this before. It could possibly because he felt aroused. I would keep and eye on him. If he does it alot make an appointment with your local vet. Make sure there's nothing else wrong with him.
2007-12-16 08:11:10 · answer #5 · answered by LitaG 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
i have never heard of rats acting in this way, however male sugar gliders are know to self mutilate their genitals/ themselves when they become sexually flustered. Maybe your little guy is just going through a change in his life. i recommended taking a trip to the vet if it gets worst. good luck
2007-12-17 19:47:23 · answer #6 · answered by faith 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
wow we had a male rat for 3 years and never experienced anything like that good luck and maybe call a vet or something and see what it is they have to say
2007-12-16 08:11:08 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think that is normal behavior, and it has been known for single rats to act strange. Please get another rat to keep him company! It might give him the rat social stimulation he needs! Please read these articles:
http://www.ratfanclub.org/single.html
http://www.rmca.org/Resources/apair.txt
2007-12-16 09:51:35 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
I have had rats before, and never saw that.
2007-12-16 08:12:56 · answer #9 · answered by Whynot 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Get a rat of the opposite gender as his companion, and see if this solves the problem. Course, there is the issue of reproduction. You could either give away the baby rats when they're a little older, sell them, or get a garter snake, and feed the young to the snake to control population growth.
This last one sounds sick, but thats how the lab at my old school dealt with controlling population of mice in captivity.
2007-12-16 08:24:10 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 7⤋