problem biting

Question
We have two male dumbo rats, Vic and Bob, that we got from a pet shop. Bob is very well behaved and usually responds to a short sharp hiss if he ever does step out of line.  Vic on the other hand has developed a bad habit of biting, this doesn't appear to be aggressive, its seems to be more curious nipping and pulling on clothing but it can none the less be painful.  I've tried hissing, saying "no" loudly and tapping him lightly on the nose to try and deter him but none of this seems to work.  They are both fairly young, probably about 5-6 months and although Bob is the smallest of the two he appears to be the dominant one, they spend at least an hour a day interacting with us.  Vic is also an albino rat so we wondered if he might suffer with bad eye sight and/or bad hearing... could this explain this behaviour? Do you have any suggestions of how to stop him doing this?

Answer
It might explain it. He isn't doing this aggressively, though, for sure? Are you sure that you aren't unknowingly encouraging the behavior by smelling of food/treats?

If you've tried the pushing him away, exclaiming "OUCH!" or "No!", putting him away when he nips for a few minutes or simply relocating him away from you after a nip as well as flat out ignoring the behavior and only giving him attention during positive affection; you might try speaking rat to him. By this, I mean if he decides to pull on you and you don't like it, very quickly (but gently) slip your fingers under him and roll him abruptly onto his back, index and middle finger around his neck and palm on his body, to hold him in place. Hold him there for a few seconds and then let him up. GENTLE is the key, but firm, and decisive.

This is an unusual way to approach it and I know there's rat behaviorialists out there screaming, however consider what rats do to each other when getting a point across. They squeal, grab each other, and flip each other over. It's a dominance thing.

Now, you DO NOT want to use that approach if he's being aggressive. You'll wind up with a nasty, nasty bite.

Good luck.