Turning biters into lovers...

[frankykeno]

Jamie's got it right about mama rats. Even the most even tempered ones can become quite the protective nippers when they are nursing so wait until they've weaned their litter and had a few days to forget the experience.

Remember that rats are always, always food driven. Use this to your advantage. Put down a small bowl with various human food treats - one small one piece of each. Things like banana, a bit of oil dipped bread, a grape, chunk of chicken, a few M&M's (yes rats can eat chocolate)...basically things that later can be used as hand fed treats to entice the rat. Keep the same stuff and offer it every other day, watch to see which thing that particular rat seems to grab first and quite enjoy eating. After a week of this, when you've figured out what that rat's favorite treat is...just offer only that treat for another week every other day in a small bowl. Get that rat hooked LOL. The next week start offering it only from your hand...if Miss Ratty wants her treat "fix" she has to come to you to get it. Let her "steal" it and run off the first couple of times...this step is to only get her to equate your hand and her precious treat. Once she's taking food this way without nipping, next remove her to your lap and present the treat there.

Some rats won't eat on your lap, they are too nervous or nosey but again, it's to get her to relate "human = yummy treat = I LIKE HUMANS!" lol Most rats enjoy behind the ear scratching, under the chin rubs, that sort of thing. If you hear them grinding their teeth, they are happy...if their eyes sort of bulge, called "boggling", they are REALLY happy! If they pee on you, consider yourself marked as "one of the family" LOL

If you take it slow, don't give the rat a reason to see you as a threat and use their natural food driven brains to your benefit usually within few weeks you will have an adult rat that sees you and runs to stand up and greet you (which is rat speak for "hi there! I like you! do you have a treat for me? I really like you! so how about that treat!!!")

On the other side, when I have a rat that is being a bit of a turd I do tap them sharply on their snout or smack my hands together loudly and yell "BAD RAT". Amazing but they are quite intelligent enough to know that you don't tick off the lady that #1 brings food, and #2 feeds your nasty butt off if you continue to nip for no good reason.

Here's a link for good and bad humans foods....

http://www.ratnutrition.com/suppleme...forbiddenfoods