Rat help, questions, and rehome?

[freekygeeky]

My friednd recently brought 2 male rats from pets at home..
they have begun fighting... i have told her to seperate, as i cant imagien two males together? is it correct?
also they have started to sneeze, and when they sneeze they squeek, i asked her flooring she said wood based cat litter.. (could that be the problem?)


also her friend has 2 female mice she needs to get rid, in newmarket, not tame, and a little bitey, can anyone take them?

[Mischievous_Mark]

Originally Posted by freekygeeky

My friednd recently brought 2 male mice from pets at home..
they have begun fighting... i have told her to seperate, as i cant imagien two males together? is it correct?
also they have started to sneeze, and when they sneeze they squeek, i asked her flooring she said wood based cat litter.. (could that be the problem?)


also her friend has 2 female mice she needs to get rid, in newmarket, not tame, and a little bitey, can anyone take them?

My boys are fine together, Wood based cat litter is just as bad as wood shavings so ive heard.

IS there red muscos (sp) coming out when they sneeze take them to the vets and get some baytril.

Mine sneeze all the time and read muscos comes out something i cant get rid of but they are fine still eat and drink and move ect.

[fenwoman]

My mice are on wood based cat litter and are absolutely fine. My male mice occasionally fight too but any real aggressors who constantly attack the others get culled and fed to the cats. I would do the same with bitey mice too.

[freekygeeky]

Originally Posted by Mischievous_Mark

My boys are fine together, Wood based cat litter is just as bad as wood shavings so ive heard.

IS there red muscos (sp) coming out when they sneeze take them to the vets and get some baytril.

Mine sneeze all the time and read muscos comes out something i cant get rid of but they are fine still eat and drink and move ect.

Originally Posted by fenwoman

My mice are on wood based cat litter and are absolutely fine. My male mice occasionally fight too but any real aggressors who constantly attack the others get culled and fed to the cats. I would do the same with bitey mice too.

ok thank you.
dont know what to do!
she was told that they woudl be fine, but are clearly not, she is seeing the shop today so i will find out tommorrow what will happen.
thank you everyone. will keep you posted..


again if anyone would take 2 female rats, please get in contact

[JulieNoob]

Pets At Home don't sell mice - well none I have been in do ....

[freekygeeky]

Originally Posted by JulieNoob

Pets At Home don't sell mice - well none I have been in do ....

i think my local does, but its rats she got anyway.

[biohazard156]

Male rats are generally fine together, it's not like reptiles where males will constantly fight. However, like everything, there are exceptions to the rule. If they are fighting, she will have to seperate them. The wood based cat litter should be fine, but if she is worried about it, she could change to a paper based substrate. Some I have used for my rats are "bob martins paper cat litter" - Asda sell it i think, "Biocatolet" another paper cat litter from Pets at Home, or "Ecopetbed" which is a cardboard square beddding commonly used for horses. All of those are perfect for rats.

The sneezing is probably myco, which all rats carry about with them, but if they are poorly bred pet shop ones, or if they are exposed to something which has irritated the lungs etc then they will develop bad sneezing and chest infections (hence why shavings etc is bad for them).

[freekygeeky]

Originally Posted by biohazard156

Male rats are generally fine together, it's not like reptiles where males will constantly fight. However, like everything, there are exceptions to the rule. If they are fighting, she will have to seperate them. The wood based cat litter should be fine, but if she is worried about it, she could change to a paper based substrate. Some I have used for my rats are "bob martins paper cat litter" - Asda sell it i think, "Biocatolet" another paper cat litter from Pets at Home, or "Ecopetbed" which is a cardboard square beddding commonly used for horses. All of those are perfect for rats.

The sneezing is probably myco, which all rats carry about with them, but if they are poorly bred pet shop ones, or if they are exposed to something which has irritated the lungs etc then they will develop bad sneezing and chest infections (hence why shavings etc is bad for them).

thank you for that

[Esarosa]

Personally I can't stand wood based cat litter. As when it gets wet it breaks down and releases phenols which can harm rattie respiratory systems. I tried it with mine to test for myself and mine became quite snuffly, so they came straight off it.

If she wants a cheap alternative newspaper is fine. It will need changing more regularly but providing the ink is safe (most if not all are these days) that's an option.

In regards to males fighting, it could be a testosterone problem. Male rats can and do live together successfully. But some males are more thuggish than others and need the snip to calm them down.

[coopere]

Is she sure they are n't just play fighting? I have girl rats and they have scraps sometimes bit then snuggle up together. Do they actually do a lot of damage when they fight or not?