About Robin Bartlett Expertise I can answer any rat-related questions including feeding, housing, breeding, showing, genetics, health, and behaviour. I am a veterinary assistant and though I cannot answer in-depth health questions I am familiar with the most common ailments and treatments for rats. I have owned rats for 10 years and have been breeding them for 5 and have studied everything about them that I can get my hands on. I currently run my own rat care website at http://careguide.evergreenrattery.com and have been answering rat and other rodent questions via email and IM for several years now.
Experience I am a veterinary assistant who has owned rats for 10 years and bred them for 5. In this time I have learned nearly everything there is to know about rats and continue to study more about them every day. I have been answering rat questions via IM and email for several years now and I am currently ranked #3 on Yahoo! Answers for the best answers in the rodents category.
Organizations RatsPacNW, RMFE
Education/Credentials Though I am a veterinary assistant, I have not gone to college for it. My parents are both vets, and I have grown up with our family business and have learned what I needed to know on the job.
Question Ok, so i have four rats that all live in a large cage together. Early tonight, my oldest rat started showing intense lethargy, labored breathing, and hunched posture. She has a tumor and is very old so we thought it was just old age. However, just a few hours later, my other middle aged rat started showing the same symptoms. When i take the two out they just want to lay down and sleep. They can barely walk, have poor ballance, and can barely open their eyes. I went online and read about a virus called virus, and i was wondering if that could be it.
I have separated my two healthy rats and put them in a different cage downstairs. I'm really worried that they might catch it too, and i dont think i can handle loosing all four! What do you think is happening to them, why do you think it's happening, and what do you think i should do?
Answer It very well could be a virus, though your rats would have had to come into contact with other rats to catch it. If you have been to a pet store, rat show, or handled any other rats it is possible you could have brought the virus home. If you haven't been around any other rats for over 3 weeks, it could be something else.
Pneumonia can be sudden onset like this and without an aggressive course of antibiotics they won't survive. I would definitely take the ill ones to the vet, and keep the healthy ones separated until the other two are better. If it is pneumonia they may pull through with antibiotics, if it is a virus unfortunately there isn't any way to cure them. With most rat viruses, they should still be on antibiotics; though the antibiotics won't actually hurt the virus they will help the secondary bacterial infections (usually mycoplasma) that will pop up when the rat's immune system is compromised by the virus, giving them a better chance and survival.
It is very important that you get them to a vet, or they will very likely not survive. I'm sorry to hear your rats aren't feeling well, I hope they will make it! Please let me know how things turn out.
