Thoroughly clean out the cage they will be sharing
When you decide that they're on friendly enough terms to live together, it's time to prepare their new living quarters. The cage shouldn't smell too much of the former owner. Clean it out well and give it a sprinkle of vanilla extract. Before you put both rats in together, rub their tails and noses with a drop of vanilla as well. (Just don't get extract up their noses!) This way they both smell the same. This will help them get used to each other quicker.
Introducing females to females
Female rats usually get along with others very easily. A very few females are extremely territorial, but most will readily accept new girls on their turf. I have had no problems with females getting along and all have readily accepted new friends without a squabble. They do express dominance by grooming each other (sometimes a bit too much) and by play-mating, but I've never seen any of them fighting.
Introducing males to males
Male rats are very reluctant to accept newcomers, with one exception. If you introduce a 5-8 week old rat to an older male, the older one will adopt the younger as his son and will be very gentle with him. Later, after puberty hits, it is much harder for male rats to accept others. Even males that do get along will occasionally become so territorial at puberty that they will beat up their former friends. Males usually always fight to some extent and do a lot of boxing, power grooming and flipping of subordinate rats. Male rats seem to enjoy playing rough, but if one is getting picked on too much or is getting hurt or scared, it's better to separate them.
Introducing females to males
This is the easiest combination to introduce, but please don't do it unless one or both are neutered or the female is two or more years old. (Menopause hits when females are about 1 ½ years old - waiting until two is safer. Males never stop being able to have children!) The male rat will usually be delighted to share his home with a female rat, but you do have to watch out in case the female is very territorial. If you move a female rat in with several males, this may cause the males to fight over her, so keep an eye on their relationship, too.
If you want to have baby rats, you may think it's great to keep them together, but a female can get pregnant the minute she gives birth, which means her body will be producing milk for her new babies, while it is also nourishing the babies growing inside her. This leads to a high level of stress for the female rat, and she won't be a good mother or a healthy rat. It may sound wonderful to have a family of rats all living together, but in reality it's just too much to ask of the poor girl.
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