If that scared him too much it could have also put him off of rats for awhile. Unless the rat was a tiny weanling it probably could have been a bit too big.
I had a rescue last year that before she came to me was bitten by a medium rat. It took her 6 months in my care to go back to rats and I had to scent them and etc.
She still won't touch anything larger than a weaned.

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