How to introduce younger rats with older rats?

Question

I just adopted today 2 black and white hooded female rats. They are both about 6.5 weeks old. I also have had for a few months now 2 older female rats. I think they are about 1 to 1 1/2 yrs old. These two are both a little skittish of me still but absolutely love each other. The 2 older ones I got from a pet store feeder tank and I don't know how they were treated at the store because they still are skittish with me and will nip now and then but nothing serious. I was wondering though what everyone's ideas are on how to introduce 2 young 6.5 week old baby female rats with 2 older female rats? Any advice would be appreciated thank you so much!

Answer 1

i had a very similar situation recently. i have two young girls not full grown yet.. and well i am babysitting four full grown rats (two boys two girls) they are all pretty nice so what i did is put then in a neutral environment (on my couch) and let them aprouch each other. don't be too shocked if there is some fighting... mine fought a little and one of my little girls even got bit and bled :( but she is okay now... and they all get along great and it is just two days after the meeting.. if you just let them go up to each other and check every thing out i think it should be okay

Answer 2

Well, first of all, you need to create neutral ground. In other words, ground that neither of them claim as "their" territory. Or else, this will cause fights. It also needs to be contained so that neither of them can flee if they feel there is danger. I reccommend buying a shallow kiddie pool at your local WalMart (they're really cheap). Fill the bottom with bedding, like you would with a cage. Place all of the rats in the pool and let them check things out. Only do this for about 5-10 minutes. Repeat this procedure everyday. Then, every 5-7 days, add 5 or 10 minutes to their "play" time. Feel free to add toys after a couple of visits. They should get along just fine then. If any violent acts take place, shorten the visits again. If these continue to occur, it may just be that they aren't ready yet, or they'll never be ready. You really can't force them to be friends, you can only try. Hope this helps!