What age should my rats be before beginning trick training?
If you've ever wonder just what age your rat's must be before you start training, then I have good news for you! The truth is, rats can be trained at any age so long as they can physically perform the action and find food to be motivation. The youngest rat's I've trained were just under 4 weeks old - and the oldest rat I've trained was just over 2 years and 7 months old! Both the 4 week olds and the 31 month old greatly enjoyed training, although the older girl was much easier to train complex tricks with due to her greater experience resulting in a longer attention span.
But while rats of any age can learn, waiting a few weeks for your new rats to adjust to you and their surroundings won't hurt. By letting your rats become familiar with their new surroundings, they'll be able to better focus on training when it comes time to do so. In fact, my best trick rat (Shadow) didn't even start formal training until 6 months old, and was just moving past basic tricks at over a year old! Despite that, she thrived on trick training as she grew older, and was soon able to learn even the most complex tricks within just one 10-15 minute session.
But while rats of any age can learn, waiting a few weeks for your new rats to adjust to you and their surroundings won't hurt. By letting your rats become familiar with their new surroundings, they'll be able to better focus on training when it comes time to do so. In fact, my best trick rat (Shadow) didn't even start formal training until 6 months old, and was just moving past basic tricks at over a year old! Despite that, she thrived on trick training as she grew older, and was soon able to learn even the most complex tricks within just one 10-15 minute session.
4 Week Old Rat Spinning |
2.5 Year Old Rat Spinning: |
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