Two un-introduced rats?

Question

I purchased a seven-month old rat (Slick) from PetSmart a week ago. He has been on quarantine in my travel cage because I already have a four-month old hairless (Baldy) that I want to introduce to Slick. Baldy is like a chimpanzee on crack... he is extremely hyper and won't sit still unless he's eating. Slick is an extremely calm, unaggressive little rat. I am concerned that Baldy will try to bully Slick (although Slick is bigger) because, I don't know how to explain in, but he just seems like "that kind of rat". What is the likely-hood that they will get along?

Answer 1

my rats are the same, I it's better because Gin my calm rat doesn't try to fight back, so my other rat Tang doesn't over bully her. They get along great, personally I think it's better because they fight as much as two dominant aggressive rats would.

Answer 2

If you do the introduction correctly it should be alright - they are both young still. Introduce them in a neutral place like the bathtub, because rats are scent oriented and introductions on one another's space can lead to trouble. Dab them with vanilla essence or something (non-toxic) to mask their scent a bit. When you get them into the new cage, be sure to put a new nestbox, tunnel or other structure where the new rat can hide that does not have the established rat's scent. Above all, do the introduction little by little so that you minimize any aggression that could generate a fearful relationship between them.

Answer 3

Need to introduce a new rat to another or an existing group? Whether you have cage mates that have been apart for awhile, babies or an older rat, adding a new companion can cause problems as the new rat finds its place in the social structure. There are times that rats will simply clash and will not get along. If, despite trying these tips, the introduction doesn't work, you may need to consider keeping those rats in separate cages permanently. Good luck!