rat having strange behavior

Question
why would my rat resort to eating its own poop when there is a bunch of actual food right in front of it?

Answer
Gross as it sounds, this is actually normal for them to do.
What you just witnessed is not a rat acting gross, but instead, it actually has a "name" which refers to animals eating their feces and it is called Coprophagy! I know, still funny that it has an actual name but it sounds better than "poop eater"  :-)

Dont take it from them (doing this can actually cause them to lose the nutrients they require) and chances are, they got to it while it was being expelled rather than once it hit the floor anyhow.

Why do they do this?

This is a normal thing for rodents as I said earlier. Eating their own feces actually replaces nutrients that were missed being absorbed during the first phase of digestion so they do this to recover those lost nutrients. Eating their feces also aids in maintaining the normal gut flora that is needed.  

I know....kind of gross, but rats are not the only animal that does this.


For rat owners that also have dogs, this ones for you:)

Next time your dog gives you a big kiss, remember they also have been guilty of doing this...and if you have dogs AND cats, they probably find snacks in the litter box too....remember when you thought kitty was constipated because she had not pooped in the box lately?  Check Fido's breath.  

LOL