Behaviour changes in my pet rat.

Question
Hello, A few weeks ago one of my pet rats was put down due to a cancerous tumor and now i am left with a single rat. As this rat is quite old, around three years, I have not considered getting other rats for company but have given him plenty of attention myself as I know how they can become lonely. However, since the death of his 'brother' (they were bought as a pair but one was Rex and the other ordinary smooth haired so i am not sure about them being family) the lone rat has grown in a tendency to nip fingers when he is being handled, which he had never done before. The nips were never hard and he let go immediately but they have been getting harder and more violent; he recently drew blood from my mothers finger. When he bites we leave him alone, or stop stroking him, and do nothing to aggravate him, but he still seems to bite for no reason. Could this change in behavior be due to the death of his 'brother' or is it something that is my fault; even though his treatment has not changed and he is not provoked nor shows signs of distress before he bites.
Your opinion would be greatly appreciated.
Thankyou,
Becky

Answer
 It certainly could be due to the stress of losing his brother.  It could also be due to senility in old age; it is fairly rare that rats make it to three years old.  Another possibility is that he is losing his eyesight and/or hearing and having a hand near him startles him and his first reaction is to bite.  When attempting to handle him, move slowly, perhaps tapping on the side of the cage to let him know you're there.  Even if he's deaf he should be able to feel the vibration.

 Hopefully it is just stress and he will settle down, but since you mentioned it is getting worse it probably is not going to get any better.  Be very careful when handling him, making sure your hands are free from food smells, and allow him to come to you rather than reaching into his cage and picking him up.  Some rats can develop 'cage aggression' where they will be protective of their cage, so perhaps if you only handle him when he's out of the cage he will be better.

 Well I hope everything turns out, good luck!




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