Should I get my male rat(s) neutered?
I wrote this article years ago and I no longer hold the exact same views of neutering as I did when I wrote this. It seems like this article has helped many people, so I will leave it up without changing it. In my opinion, there is nothing wrong with neutering rats, but it isn't always worth the money and risk. I haven't gotten a rat neutered in many years and I don't intend to ever again. If you want to get your rat neutered, go for it. But I no longer will do it for my own.
This is a complex question that will have a different answer
for each person. In order to help you make an informed choice, I have listed some pros and cons.
Pros
Cons
I personally love my neutered boy, Pooka, but I have only had one neutered rat so far. He was neutered at three months and has never mounted a female. As I write this, he is living happily with three females who adore him. He tolerates their hyperactivity and dominance when they can’t tolerate each other. He gladly lets them groom him and does it in kind. When they want a quiet cuddle companion, they seek him out over anyone else. When they want to play, they know he is always willing. His fur is soft and oil free and he doesn’t stink at all.
Pooka may be awesome because of his personality, but I have no doubt that he wouldn’t be quite so amazing (or happy) if he wasn’t neutered.
I plan to get all my future males neutered, even if I have no females, as the fact that no hormonal aggression will occur is enough of a selling point to me. Add the no buck grease, and neutering is perfect for my pets. Neutering may not be right for everyone and if your rat has had bad URIs, it is more likely to not survive the surgery and being put under suppresses their breathing.
I recommend everyone consider neutering their rats, especially if they get males from questionable sources. Though I have no proof of this, I believe hormonal aggression may be hereditary and there fore, poor breeding may make males more likely to experience it. Three of my five previous males developed hormonal aggression in one form or another. One ripped part of another rat’s face off and was aggressive towards humans, one was terrified of other rats and lashed out when scared (after living peacefully with rats before he was 6 months old) while he was sweet to humans, and another constantly humped his brother in dominance to the point of aggression (plus, he was just nasty and had no sense of hygiene!).
Neutering carries enough benefits that for me, it is worth the risk.
For more information about neutering, check out RatBehavior.org.
Pros
- They will be able to live with females without breeding.
- They will no longer produce buck grease (yellow grease in their fur), so their fur will be less oily and softer.
- Depending on the rat and age they are neutered, they will have no interest in mounting females.
- They will have no chance of developing hormonal aggression, something many male rats suffer from around 6 months of age which can result in either aggression towards rats, aggression towards humans, or aggression towards everything, resulting in a very unhappy rat.
- No more large testicles, for those who don’t like seeing them.
Cons
- Some rats do not survive the surgery.
- They cannot live with females until 10 to 14 days after surgery.
- Neutering removes necessary hormones for proper growth, so if they are neutered young, they might not grow as well as an intact male.
- Some neutered males still mount females, which can be annoying to the females.
- Neutering after hormonal aggression has taken hold may not completely eliminate aggression as it might have become a learned behavior and need work to re-socialize the rat to rid it of aggression.
- Not all aggression is caused by hormones, so it may not prevent or stop all aggression.
- It is hard to find a good vet to do it.
- It is hard to find a low price to neutering.
I personally love my neutered boy, Pooka, but I have only had one neutered rat so far. He was neutered at three months and has never mounted a female. As I write this, he is living happily with three females who adore him. He tolerates their hyperactivity and dominance when they can’t tolerate each other. He gladly lets them groom him and does it in kind. When they want a quiet cuddle companion, they seek him out over anyone else. When they want to play, they know he is always willing. His fur is soft and oil free and he doesn’t stink at all.
Pooka may be awesome because of his personality, but I have no doubt that he wouldn’t be quite so amazing (or happy) if he wasn’t neutered.
I plan to get all my future males neutered, even if I have no females, as the fact that no hormonal aggression will occur is enough of a selling point to me. Add the no buck grease, and neutering is perfect for my pets. Neutering may not be right for everyone and if your rat has had bad URIs, it is more likely to not survive the surgery and being put under suppresses their breathing.
I recommend everyone consider neutering their rats, especially if they get males from questionable sources. Though I have no proof of this, I believe hormonal aggression may be hereditary and there fore, poor breeding may make males more likely to experience it. Three of my five previous males developed hormonal aggression in one form or another. One ripped part of another rat’s face off and was aggressive towards humans, one was terrified of other rats and lashed out when scared (after living peacefully with rats before he was 6 months old) while he was sweet to humans, and another constantly humped his brother in dominance to the point of aggression (plus, he was just nasty and had no sense of hygiene!).
Neutering carries enough benefits that for me, it is worth the risk.
For more information about neutering, check out RatBehavior.org.