Agatha Scrat bit my daughter and drew blood!

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ratmommy - 18 Jun 2006 15:52 GMT

Agatha Scrat was in her tube loft and my daughter put her finger at the
end of the tube for Agatha to sniff. Then she started crying saying
"Ouch, Agatha let go!" I pulled my daughter's finger away and it was
bleeding pretty good. She cried for a while and she is typically pretty
tough. First, I cleaned out her bite with a little antibacterial soap
and hydrogen peroxide. Now it's bandaged. Are there any diseases she
could get from this bite?

Agatha has been really friendly up until this point and I thought rats
rarely bit. Did we do something wrong by putting a finger near the end
of the loft or is Agatha having an attitude problem?

Thanks,

Kim

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Tiger Spot - 18 Jun 2006 18:53 GMT

>Agatha Scrat was in her tube loft and my daughter put her finger at the
>end of the tube for Agatha to sniff. Then she started crying saying
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
>and hydrogen peroxide. Now it's bandaged. Are there any diseases she
>could get from this bite?

Nothing particularly horrible is likely, but keep an eye on it and do
go to a doctor if it starts to look at all infected (red, swollen,
etc.). Hydrogen peroxide is a great idea.

>Agatha has been really friendly up until this point and I thought rats
>rarely bit. Did we do something wrong by putting a finger near the end
>of the loft or is Agatha having an attitude problem?

She may be getting territorial, or the finger might have smelled like
food (although usually when friendly rats mistake a finger for food
they let go as soon as they realize what they've got hold of). Also,
if your daughter moved unusually quickly or if the rat was asleep,
Agatha might have been startled or frightened.

I have only been bitten a few times. I have been mistaken for food,
but those nibbles have never drawn blood. One rat got territorial
about a particular hiding place in the cage, and bit me twice when I
reached in; she got over it eventually. My husband got himself bitten
when he stuck a finger in the face of a very ill rat, because she was
in pain and did not want to be messed with.

--Theresa
--Theresa

http://tiger_spot.mapache.org

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Joanne - 18 Jun 2006 22:14 GMT

> Agatha Scrat was in her tube loft and my daughter put her finger at the
> end of the tube for Agatha to sniff. Then she started crying saying
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>
> Kim

Your daughter must be so upset over this incident. How old is she? and
how old are the rats?
When some rats are new and skittish, I always recommend never putting
your fingers in the cage or through the bars. The new rats need to first
become socialized and learn that their new hoomins mean no harm.
Tell your little girl to never put her hand in the cage, instead, have
her open the door and offer her shoulder or arm to the rat. Let the rat
decide if she feels like coming out. The more "down the shirt"
socializing you do the more the rat will want to come out and play with
their hoomins. Eventually, when you get to know your rats better, learn
their body language, only then should you offer your fingers in the cage.

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Joanne
Owned by 20 rats.
Webshots: http://community.webshots.com/user/joanneb70

-------------------------------------------------------
~Ignorance is not innocence but sin. *Robert Browning*

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hylourgos - 18 Jun 2006 22:54 GMT

Joanne,

Thanks for the advice. My daughter is six and is a real animal lover.
She was initially very upset but mostly because the bite hurt so much.
Within 30 minutes she said she still liked Agatha Scrat, but she
thought maybe Agatha needed to go to "time out". I just felt really bad
because this happened under my direct supervision. My daughter is very
gentle, quiet, and calm and I think this has left her a little
disillusioned. I told her she can read in front of their cage and not
to put her fingers in or anywhere near them until I've had more time to
get them socialized.

In defense of Agatha, I think she was probably sleeping. Also, she has
displayed her dominance over one of the other rats and seems to have
claimed the tunnel loft as hers. She may have thought another rat was
trying to get in with her. I know that Agatha was biting pretty hard,
but it may have been me pulling my daughter's finger away that really
caused the blood.

To be honest, I'm a little nervous about grabbing them now, so I may
just read on the floor in front of them with the cage door open and let
them come to me. If that works out for a little while, I'll put them
down the shirt. These rats are only a couple of months old and we've
only had them three days. I know they need more time.

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Pet Forum / Mammals / Rats / June 2006

Agatha Scrat bit my daughter and drew blood!