How/When do (female) pet rats mature?

I have a female rat, approximately five months old, and she's very high-strung. We get along well; she rides on my shoulders, follows me around, and loves to play. But she won't let me hold her. She's too restless and always wants to be moving. She's a good pet, but she can't sit still. She's still just a baby, could her restlessness and need to be running around and getting into everything just be a young rat phase? Is this normal?How/When do (female) pet rats mature?
Well female rats are more active and playful then males. But yes, this is just a phase. One of my babies, (she will be a year old in February) use to be so hyper all the time, she use to run around and popcorn but now shes a lap rat. She rarely has bursts of energy anymore. Enjoy it while it lasts, they grow up so fast!How/When do (female) pet rats mature?
Rats physically mature around 8 months of age.





This behavior is very common in females. They're always on the go and getting into everything. Some will calm down when they get older but the males are more of the cuddlers.





Also, is she the only rat you have? Rats are very social creatures and should always be kept in same sex pairs. Lone rats can become very depressed and even go as far as harming themselves out of loneliness. Her behavior could be a result of this. Try getting her a female friend and see if she calms down. She'll have someone to get rid of all that energy with.





Good luck!
if you can get your female to calm down tell me your secret cause all of my girls are insanely mobile and crazy lol. it's a female thing really. think about it, female rats are like female humans us girls rather be social butterflies, move around and are always inquisitive as were males in both human and rodent forms are slower, tend to do what needs to be done and then plop down and vegetate!
yeah... I am still waiting for that myself after a year... lol... males are known to be more cuddly than the females... I suggest to try to get her to calm down, I take my laptop and put it on my lap, and let them crawl under it, or put a blanket over my lap and let them play while I read a book or something... it gives them a warm dark place to play, and associates saftey with your smell... so she might calm down... we do have it though, that if they girls are running on the bed, and we touch them, they stop and let you pick them up for a few seconds... then want to play again.
Hey Moriah,


Yes this is normal for female rats. My three females are all exactly like that, they like to be on the move (they are 9 months old). This is not so much of a young rat thing as a female rat thing. Males are much more content to sit on your lap, females like to see what is going on out there!





Hope I helped


Andy D.





P.S.


Some females calm down with time.
THIS IS COMPLETLY NORMAL REMEMBER WHEN YOU WHERE 5? :)