Quite... it's scent marking... not a lack of sphincter muscles!
xx

Urine marking -- the deposit of small drops or smears of urine on the ground, objects, and other rats -- is a form of chemical communication. One rat generates the chemical signal (a drop of urine), and another rat identifies, integrates, and responds to that signal either behaviorally or physiologically.

Urine contains a lot of information about the rat who produced it: its species, sex, age, reproductive status, sexual availability, social status, individual identity, and current stress level, as well as the age of the scent mark itself.

Both males and females urine-mark, but marking is sexually dimorphic: males mark more than females. In addition, adults mark more than juveniles, and intact rats mark more than neutered rats. Female marking tends to follow the female's 4-5 day reproductive cyclical: females mark most the night before they ovulate.

Rats urine-mark their environment, particularly objects they can readily walk upon. They mark other rats as well, and they mark over novel odors and the urine of other rats.

What is urine marking?
Urine marking in rats refers to the deposit of drops or smears of urine in the environment, sometimes accompanied by secretions from preputial sebaceous glands. The rat leaves these drops on surfaces, objects and other rats as it passes, by rubbing its anogenital area over the top of an object (called an anogenital drag), or by lifting a hind leg over the top of an object while walking beside it, leaving a small trail of urine along its length (called a leg lift). Rats deposit urine on each other via the crawl-over response.

The urine marking position in male rats is quite subtle. It consists of a slight arching of the back, which places the penis lower and slightly forward of its position during normal walking. The rat may pause momentarily as he deposits a small quantity of urine.

But it's urine they use to do it with lol! You call it 'scent marking' it's also called 'urine marking' which doesn't sound quite so aesthetically pleasing! I think they are cute - I just don't want any pet that leaves a constant trail of urine all over the house! Just me!



I was wrong about the reason for them not peeing - but I did read somewhere ages ago that it is the constant dripping of urine all the time that is the reason you never see them peeing a whole puddle! I didn't look into it at the time as to why - I just remember reading that it's why they don't appear to 'pee in the house'.

i have been in my new flat for nearly a week now and i'm starting to think about getting a couple of male ratties i have ideals in mind on what i would like. but aside from p@h (which i refuse to go to), i haven't a clue on where to really go for them?

any help would be much appreciated