New rats!
I’ve had my two young female rats (around 8–10 weeks old) for 5 days now and I’m still learning how to read their behaviour.
They are both quite confident and will come up to my hand, take treats, climb around the cage door, and investigate me. I’ve had a few nips/bites, but I honestly can’t tell whether they’re scared, warning me off, or just curious and testing things with their mouths.
I’ve read that rats sometimes “taste” things with their teeth, but as a new owner I’m finding it hard to tell the difference between normal exploration and a bite that means “leave me alone.”
What are the signs that a rat is likely to bite? Are there differences in body language between a curious nibble and a genuine defensive or aggressive bite?
One of them will take treats from my hand but usually runs away to eat them before coming back for more. She doesn’t seem terrified of me, which is why I’m confused. I don’t want to keep pushing her if she’s scared, but I also don’t want to overreact if this is fairly normal baby rat behaviour.
The other takes treats from me and eats them right where she was given them, so she seems a bit more comfortable, but I also felt her teeth on my finger this evening.
I absolutely adore these little girls already and I’m completely obsessed with them… but if I’m being honest, I’m also slightly terrified of them. Every time one comes running over to investigate me, part of me is thinking, “Aww, she likes me!” and the other part is thinking, “This is it, I’m about to lose a finger.”
Any advice from experienced rat owners on how to tell the difference between normal rat behaviour, and how to move past the fear of being nipped, would be really appreciated!