Ronnie and Derek enjoying play-fighting with each other (more info here), but have recently started to often roll on their backs in the cage when I go to pick them up, so I can ‘groom’ them in the way they groom each other while fighting. Watch a video of this below.
Ronnie and Derek respond to a ‘clicking’ noise, as do many other animals, when they’re going to be fed a treat. Watch this below and see how excited they get when they hear the clicking!
With the heat of the summer arriving, Ronnie and Derek inevitably started to feel extra warm for the first time.
Although rats don’t benefit from fans in the same way as humans (as they don’t sweat), Ronnie and Derek appreciated the cooling effect of a fan which had an ice pack attached to it and was blowing on their cage.
See a video of them reacting to the fan, below. Read more about them coping with the heat, including photos, here.
Ronnie and Derek enjoy occasional supervised garden explorations! Watch a short clip of them exploring, below.
Ronnie’s been caught on camera stealing from Derek – see video below.
It’s the usual routine – Derek goes to the side of their house with a couple of rat nuggets, then Ronnie spots him, goes up on top of the house and launches an air assault by stealing one of the nuggets Derek has. Usually there’s a bit of protestive squeaking from Derek but he was quiet this time.
I suspect Derek takes two nuggets because he knows Ronnie’s likely to steal one. It’s a mystery though why Derek always goes down the side of the house when he must realise Ronnie will be a thief – but perhaps it’s more of a mystery why Ronnie has to steal from Derek in the first place when they both have easy access to the nuggets!
Leaving a ‘cheesy ball’ potato snack on top of Ronnie and Derek’s cage is one way to keep them occupied, although not often as they’re not exactly nutritious!
Watch the videos below to watch them in action – the first one is the ‘fisticuff’ highlights and the second one has more of the action.
‘Fistycuff’ highlights
Main action
Watch Ronnie and Derek making a cress mess as they tucked into a tub of tasty watercress.
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