Rat lost his brother.

Dr. Marie replied:

Sorry to hear that Baby lost his brother.

My first instinct when I read your question was to say that he will do just fine on his own. However, I did some research for you on the social requirements of rats and came across some interesting studies.

It is believed that if a rat loses a cagemate they can go through something called "social isolation syndrome" where they do experience stress.

With that being said, I think Baby will show you whether he is doing ok or not. One of the best indicators is whether he is eating and interacting with you.

Do all you can to enrich his life and spend lots of time with him and he will likely be ok.

If not, then you may need to consider getting another rat.

One additional thought...if he is really not doing well it may be worthwhile to have a vet examine him to make sure that there is not something else going on with his health.

Hope he does ok!

Dr. Marie.

---This question was asked in our Ask A Vet For Free section.---


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