When I have a litter, the babies are held as soon as possible after birth. Sometimes right away if the mother is having trouble cleaning, this sometimes happens the first birth. Then I leave mommy alone and just watch her for the first two hours to make sure she is cleaning, hiding and feeding them. After that two hours I take all the babies out and check to see if they have milk tummies. You can see the milk bands through their abdomen. They are handled for about an hour every day from day one. This makes sure they are tame, however some problems are genetic and no matter how much you handle them they will still run or bite. Rats like this SHOULD NOT be bred from.

SweetPea is Nuggets daughter right? The buck could have had temperament issues and passed it on. Feeder and most "pet" pet store rats are not bred for temperemant or health. They are bred for money. This is why petshop rats are more prone to tumors than breeder rats. Breeders breed out the bad traits and breed for health and temperament, and longer lasting ratties who are not as prone to tumors or Myco infections.

With patience though, Sweet Pea can turn around as long s it is something that was not genetically passed on. Try taking her out of the cage and letting her run awhile in the bathroom or a safe room while you watch her. Try giving her reats. NOT FROM THE BARS of the cage. This is a big no-no! This leads to biter rats becase everytime you stick something through the cage, whether it is food or not, she will think it's a tasty treat and try grabbing or biting.

Try offering new toys and a secure place she can go if she feels threatened. If you can't get her out of the cage, leave it open and let her explore a little. Then when she is out offer her the treats and try picking her up. Don't just grab her, go slowly and kind of scooot her into your hand, not cupping her. This way she feels less threatened. Try this twice daily for a few weeks and then gradually increase her out time with you. If she doesn't change just know it's just in her background to act that way. There is nothing you can do about it. Some rats just don't like to be held, period.

I wish you the best of luck and hopefully this will work for you. Those babies are sure cute!