[BlackRainbow]

I have just bought a pet rat, female, fancy rat, champagne coloured, 12 weeks old.
In the store she was on her own, as her sibling had been sold before her...I am unsure of how long she was alone for.
I have recently, reading rat websites, been reading that rats on their own can get lonely and withdrawn.
I am slightly concerned that if i leave Izzy (My rat) alone she will become withdrawn and unhappy.
Is there anybody who has kept a rat on it's own, or has any knowledge on this subject?
I'd really appreciate some feedback!
Thanks.

 

[jesirose]

You really should get another one. You're going to want to soon anyway
You don't have to get them from the same litter, just read about how to introduce new rats.

Imagine if you were all alone all day with no other humans to talk to or play with. Yes, she has you, but you can't spend all day with her and you can't relate to her the same. I think she would be pretty unhappy

 

[BlackRainbow]

Trouble is, i don't have, and certainly cannot afford another cage, so slow introductions using another cage are pretty much a no go for me.
Im a student and survivin on a tiny budget see.
Plus, izzy seems pretty territorial about her cage and putting another one in might upset her.

 

[Adie09]

well start saving up your money for another cage but in the mean time give her lots and lots of attention. And a little cage shouldn't be too expensive. She'll only be in it for a few weeks.

I had a rat by herself for...hmmm about six months maybe and she turned out fine. She accepted her cage mate just fine after being alone so long too.

it is better to have another rat but if getting another one will be delayed I don't think it's a big deal. Adie turned out just fine lol
I hope this is helpful,

Nikki >.<

 

[lovinmyworm]

My oldest rat has never been with any other rat since he was about 6 weeks old. He was a rescue and was basically kept alone and only let out of his cage for maybe 10 min a day. He was very withdrawn, slept alot and never played, didn't like anyone to go near his cage, ect. Now he has a friend, it took awhile to introduce them and I still don't leave them alone overnight but I can see huge changes in him already. They are left together durring the day when I'm home, but when I go to sleep I put the little one back in his quarantine cage just in case. My rat is friendlier, moves around more, doesn't sleep all the time like he use to, plays alot more, and is way more loveable towards me. This is only have a few days of having a rattie friend around. I can only imagine it will keep on getting better. I think that rats do need friends or they can get really withdrawn.

 

[BlackRainbow]

Thanks Nikki. That was useful =)

Izzy seems perfectly alert bright and at most times hyper. I'd be worried if she was lazy but she often won't stay still! The only problem i do have with her is handling, as she often bites and so i need to work on training her that my hand is not a piece of food!

But i keep thinking she might not need a companion because of how she is...so alert and seemingly happy. But i also wonder whether she was always like that.

She was alone when i bought her though,and my friend pointed out that she might be used to being alone, which could make things easier....

 

[Darksong17]

A healthy rat without aggression issues should always have a same sex companion, no exceptions. You'll need to start saving up now so that you can quarantine a new rat in another cage (separate building/airspace is best for quarantine and it should last three or four weeks with a bare minimum of two weeks.) and so that you can afford both of them and a nice size cage for the two of them. Lots of interaction until then will have to do.

You need to make absolutely sure you save up enough money in an emergency vet fund in case of medical emergencies as well. If you're on a low budget, you don't want to be stuck unable to care for your pets.