I'm pretty sure that he'll still recognize the rat smell as potential food regardless of if you feed him rabbits. Some of my snakes that haven't made it up to rats yet still perk up if they're carried past my pet rats' cage. I've never had them strike at me but I haven't pressed the issue. After I handle the rats I change clothes and wash my hands (or if they've been crawling all over I take a shower). I think you'll save yourself a lot of headaches if you just move the rats into another room.