How do you introduce rats to eachother?

[Emily H]

my current rat, Luther, needs a buddy. I'm not sure how to introduce a male to him. Ive only had Luther for 2 weeks and 2 days, and he's not full grown yet. I have an extremely limited budget at the moment, and my parents wont pay for anything to do with the rats except bedding, food, etc. I only have 11$ for stuff until christmas. I cant get another cage to introduce them, so is there another way without paying for stuff?

 

[Ellen]

they need to meet on neutral territory... for "proper" intros there a long list of things and ways to achieve correct meetings... for instance this video shows the correct procedure. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZk8JOQj5mY

just let them meet on neutral ground. but make sure you KNOW that both rats are healthy. you don't want them spreading anything between each other.
if they begin to fight (and i mean serious fight, not little tiffs) remove them and try again in an hour or a day or something.

oh and HEY you can get decently priced cages at thrift stores... just be sure to thoroughly clean them!!! soap and bleach do the trick and also thoroughly rinse.

but it is true what the lady above me says... rats cost money. and to keep a rat in optimum health there WILL need to be vet visits... so i suggest getting a little job so you can afford the up keep of your ratties.

 

[pezza]

Hi, I was looking at a video on youtube about that this morning. Its a great vid type in on youtbe how to introduce pet rats together. Its rated 5 star. HOPE THIS HELPED!!!

 

[ThaRatChick]

If you are on such a limited budget, what will you do when your guy needs vet care? I'm not sure if a rat is a good pet for you...

For introductions, you NEED 2 cages. One cage must be for the new rat to go into quarantine, so that it won't pass any diseases onto the older rat. You can't just throw two rats together and expect them to get along. Here is the process-
http://ratguide.com/care/behavior/introducing_rats.php