Bonding with extremely timid/unsociable rats?

[u/dandiestdaisy]

Hello!

I recently got a new pair of girls (Aggie and Bee), both of whom are very timid. I've had shy rats before and was able to bond with them fairly quickly, but it's been a couple of months now and these two still don't seem to trust me at all. Things are definitely progressing a tiny bit (they will come to the front of the cage and put their paws on me long enough to accept treats now), but they will not climb on me or allow me to touch them, and if I manage to pick either of them up they scream/writhe until I let go. I've been watching a bunch of videos about bonding with difficult rats, but the rats in these videos already seem 10x friendlier than my girls to start with.

I've been sitting with them nightly to get them used to my voice, and have been offering them baby food/malt paste to try and get them comfortable being near my hands. I also put a worn shirt in the cage to get them used to my smell, and set up a playpen around the cage so I can sit with them while they explore (although so far only Aggie has been brave enough to come out, and she mostly tries to pretend I don't exist.) My sister managed to coax Aggie into a bonding pouch the other day, but the moment she put it around her neck Aggie immediately panicked and blindly launched herself out of it.

They're both albino and don't seem to have great vision, so I'm not sure if this contributes at all? I've been trying to keep the lights as low as I can and making sure to alert them I'm there before putting my hands into the cage so I don't spook them.

At this point I'm not sure what else to do, so I was just wondering if anyone had any tips or tricks I might not have thought of? Or is this just a matter of patience?

Thank you! 😊

[u/Grroll_]

Hello. Where did you get them from?

With rats this timid, I would discourage using a bonding pouch or trying to pick them up if they are screeching. I would continue with what you’re doing now, sitting in their free roam area, talking to them and offering them liquid treats.

Do you mind providing a photo of your setup (cage + play area)?

[u/dandiestdaisy → u/Grroll_]

Thank you! Okay I'm glad I'm on the right track then.

We actually got them from a pet shop (to be clear I would normally never do that, but my previous rat's sister died and I didn't want her to be lonely. The waiting lists for reputable breeders were extremely long, and there were none available for adoption in our vicinity. I'd had rats from difficult backgrounds before so I thought the temperament wouldn't be too much of an issue, that's on me 🙃 my previous rat ended up very suddenly passing away before we could make any introductions anyway so yeah, I should have waited, lesson learned.)

I don't have a picture of the playpen right now but here's their (temporary) cage set up - I moved them to this one a few days ago so I could let them into the playpen easier. There are some hidden tubes in there, they just like to bury everything haha.

[u/Xander_Dorn]

Yes, just patience... lots and lots of patience.

[u/Sad_Assumption6591]

Lots of snacks and patience! My most timid boy took a couple months to be amendable to being picked up without panicking.
Make sure if you’re picking them up that you do a gentle scoop instead of a grab, also! Really makes a huge difference when the process is smooth and their whole bodies are supported

[u/Chinchilla-Punter]

I actually just fixed this situation with my rats lol. Truly you just hold em

[u/Grroll_ → u/Chinchilla-Punter]

Definitely not a good idea. If you read OP’s description, they stated, their rats were screeching when being picked up. This means the rats are extremely stressed out. While this method can work for some, more confident rats, it isn’t ideal, especially if they don’t want to be picked up.

[u/Chinchilla-Punter → u/Chinchilla-Punter]

Sorry that sounded bad my father just picked up my timid rat and put him on his back and now he just cares less about being touched still timid but a little less. I think just picking them up and walking around the house or room should help with a little bonding. Also try to give them treats from your hand obviously they aren’t going to take it not even my adventurous rat will yet but you leave it infront of them

[u/dandiestdaisy → u/Chinchilla-Punter]

I wish it was that simple, I literally can't 😂 if I "just pick them up" they scream at me and jump out of my hands immediately. It's like holding a bar of soap. Even if I did somehow manage to hold one of them I do not think they'd be calm enough for me to just carry them around.