[MissSix]

A few weeks ago I adopted Petri from a shelter.
He was understandably agitated in his new home, all the new smells and such.


When he first met Beadle face to face, Beadle eagerly walked over to him and gave him a sniff. Petri arched his back, bruxed and leapt onto Beadle in a vicious attack. He pulled out fur in a matter of seconds. Even though Beadle is about twice Petri's size, he simply rolls over and cries for me to break it up- which, of course, I did. Petri is living in a cage within sight of Beadle's cage, and he puffs up and starts chattering and huffing whenever he sees Beadle.

I try to reassure him, I give them treats when they see each other, and I try to reassure Petri. The other problem is that Petri gets wound up really easily. Last night I was playing with him, tickling his sides, and he suddenly turned around and bit my hand. He latched on, and the I think the only reason he didn't break the skin was because he grabbed a tougher part of my skin. I told him no and gave him a little bob, he let go and nipped my arm in retaliation.

He bit my finger once before, but I gave him an excuse because he was riled up from Beadle being too close.

My vet has suggested neutering him, but she also says that is will only reduce some of his aggression. I really want to try something other than subjecting him to a surgery.

Does anyone have any thoughts or advice?

 

[ILoveMyMonsters]

I've been through a similar situation. It's never easy. I adopted my late Tanto at 12-18 months from a shelter, and his aggression started out minor and escalated quickly. The final straw for me was he cornered my younger, more timid male Axl in their cage and was going for his face. Axl didn't fight back either. He cried until I broke it up and separated them. A week later, Tanto was at the 'chopping block' being neutered.

The unfortunate fact about shelter animals is that, despite what some more naive folks may want to believe, they are unpredictable. It is a gamble to adopt - you have no idea what you are really getting. That being said, a little more background information would be helpful. What circumstances did Petri come from? How old is he? It would help me a little more. In regards to the neutering, I would absolutely do it. It's straightforward as with a dog or cat, and complications are rare. Plus you and Beadle will be less stressed, and Petri would very likely chill out some with less hormones surging through his better.

 

[moonkissed]

Please no bops for biting. That will only reinforce the negative association leading to more biting and a fear of your hands. Even if it is feather light and doesn't hurt at all, it is not a pleasant thing. Saying eek loudly to let them know they hurt you is enough.

When you first did their intro, was it in a neutral territory? Somewhere that isn't covered in Beadle's scent? Also when doing an intro masking their scents help some- either in the form of a bath or covering them in a type of food- chocolate syrup, yogurt, babyfood, vanilla seems to help alot too.

I wouldn't play with him until he was far calmer. He probably is not comfortable enough for that at all.

The stress of being around Beadle is likely causing some of the biting but I would say he also has some issues that need to be worked through. I'd take him far from Beadle- another room. Make sure you play with him first so you do not smell like Beadle. Go slow, work on trust, try feeding him on a spoon. You want every interaction he has with you to be pleasent and positive reaffirming, if you can.

Depending on his age, but since the vet did suggest it. I would likely get him neutered. It really does come with some risk. But in cases like this it helps alot. His aggression would come down a considerable amount. I think you would still need to work on him with trust because this seems to have more to do with that then hormonal. But it will be like night and day.

 

[MissSix]

Thank you for the information!

As far as history
Petri is 9 months old, he and his 12 other siblings were left at the shelter after their human could no longer care for them. He was one of the last to be adopted. That's pretty much the extent of what I know.

I introduced them in the bathroom.

When he's not riled up he's a very sweet rat. He snuggles up in my shirt, and he readily comes when I call his name. He doesn't hesitate to investigate anything I put in front of him. Normally he likes high energy games (he loves chasing a feather teaser).
He just seems to flip a switch when he gets ramped up.

 

[Korra]

Neutering USUALLY limits almost all aggression. It is 100 percent the best solution to problem males. I have three neutered males and have had 3 others in the past. I will never have unneutered again bc I hate testosterone lol

 

[MissSix]

If nothing else, it will reduce his male stink. I have to clean his cage every other day because the smell fills the whole room.