Unusual Rat Behavior

Head Rocking from Side to Side
Pews otherwise known as Pink Eyes Whites, will notoriously rock their heads from side to side when looking at something because they are know to have poor eye sight and this rocking motion lets them see a little bit better. Some darker colored rats will sometimes rock back and forth as well but you will mostly find the white or lighter colored rats with pink or dark red eyes that do this. Rats have very poor eye sight but the rats with pink or red eyes have an even harder time seeing so rocking their heads back and forth helps them to see what they are trying to look at.

Aggression in Male Rats
Some male rats will be the sweetest most lovable pets you've ever had until they reach puberty, around 6 months old. Then their behavior might change and they may become aggressive to the point where they attack their cage mates, bite any hands that come their way, hiss at you when you come close to the cage and have to be put in a cage by themselves for all these reasons.

This is usually caused by high testosterone levels in male rats and can be fixed by having them neutered. Not all male rats will have this problem, in fact most rat parents will never have a rat that acts this way. It is rare but it does happen. Neutering a rat also comes with its own set of dangers because some rats will not make it out of surgery and there is the possibility of infection after surgery.

Eye Boggling and Bruxing
Eye bogging refers to the time when a rat's eyes vibrate very rapidly in and out of the eye socket. This often happens at the same time they are bruxing or grinding their teeth. You may hear your rat grinding its teeth if you are close to them at the time they are doing this. A rat will move its lower jaw up and down very fast, making a grinding noise. If your rat is eye boggling and bruxing it means he is very content, relaxed and happy.