Rat hiccups

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sandie

sandie

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Jun 6, 2017
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Is this a thing? I noticed one of my little guys kind of jerks his head slightly, but it's usually when he's happy. There is no sound at all, his head just jerks slightly and it usually doesn't last too long. I find him doing it when i pet him or talk sweetly to him. I was thinking he was "hicupping" because he's too young to boggle? It's very cute though!

What about you guys? Have you guys seen your rats "hiccup" at all? Is this normal or a bad sign? I am wondering how common this is
 
Sheldon said:
Do you have a video? What you are describing just sounds like normal movements.
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I hope so! Unfortunately I haven't caught it on video yet, I have only seen him do it maybe 3 times over the past month (that is, since i got them), i was afraid it was a sign of him fighting an infection since I tend to imagine the worst case scenario with everything lol

The only other possible symptoms are that he rarely sneezes (i don't think I've ever seen his brother sneeze) and i have also found very very tiny red spots on a white blanket which i thought was blood but I read could be porphyrin from sneezing which sounds more plausible, however his sneezes are pretty rare so I'm not sure.

I was watching videos of healthy rat hiccups and they look just like his, he doesn't make sounds or appear to have any problems with breathing and he's very active (much crazier than his brother!) so I'm just trying to relax for now since it's probably nothing, but I'll keep watch. I just thought it was an odd behaviour and was curious how common it was
 
I have found that 'hiccups' seem to be a symptom of myco .... when I treat with antibiotics for a myco flareup, the 'hiccups' stop and do not return
 
SQ said:
I have found that 'hiccups' seem to be a symptom of myco .... when I treat with antibiotics for a myco flareup, the 'hiccups' stop and do not return
Click to expand...

Hmm, that is what I've been reading up as well, while others say if there is no sound it is nothing to worry about. It doesn't happen often and it seems he has stopped for now, he hasn't been sneezing at all either so I'm not worried at the moment. I wish there was some research on symptoms in rats.

I wonder if it would it be a good idea to give him a bit of honey or dark chocolate just in case? I heard that those can help, is that true or are those bad for ratties?
 
I don't know about honey,
but chocolate does not help fight myco, etc. A tiny bit of dark chocolate is used when rats are in respitory distress in order to try to keep their airway open until they can see a vet.

Keeping rats healthy and doing what you can to feed them whole foods that will support their immune systems. Keeping them in a large stimulating clean environment with friends, etc and spending time with them daily so you can notice any tiny change and therefore catch and treat illness early are all important in preventing illness.

Myco flareups need to be treated with antibiotics, not chocolate and not honey.

While I told you what my experience and the experience of some others has been re 'hiccups', there are also respected rat owners on this forum who believe that 'hiccups' are not a problem.
I have found that years ago my rats no longer seem to develop scarred lungs since I started treating myco flareups immediately.
 
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Yes, dark chocolate only helps respiratory symptoms. It does not treat the underlying illness. You need antibiotics for that.
 
Ooh so that's why people are using dark chocolate! Thanks all for the useful information guys. So hiccups might mean that the myco is becoming active in the lungs? And if the hiccups stop, it's safe to say that his body has "fought it off" for now? I don't have any antibiotics on me and I'm not even sure which kind to use during flareups, they are only 6weeks old right now so I'm not sure it is a good idea to use antibiotics yet but I don't know since this is my first experience with these adorable critters haha. Is there a kind of antibiotic i should have on hand in case that i can get over counter? I just wanna take good care of em so I really appreciate all the info!
 
You need a prescription to buy antibiotics, unless you buy them online but if you buy online they might not be what you think you are getting, they could be mislabelled, a totally different medication, fake or expired. Some people use fish antibiotics but they are not safe to give to rats as they are not strong enough to treat rats and can cause the rats to become even more ill.
Plus when rats are ill, they really need to see a good vet so that you will know exactly what is wrong and get the right meds for them. The amount of meds they are given depends on the strength of the meds and their body weight so having a reliable digital scale with a tare function is a good thing to have.

So, you need to find a good vet that is very knowledgeable about rats or is a good vet who is willing to learn. Having a good vet is essential because rats are prey animals and hide illness so when you notice they are ill they are already very sick and die fast. If you establish a good relationship with your vet, you may be able to get meds from your vet to have on hand.

Rats are not inexpensive. - Medical care can be expensive and ill rats need immediate treatment so it is important to have something in place to pay medical bills. It is strongly suggested that rat owners have a bank account with at least $300 for the first rat and at least $200 for each additional rat .... and that the money is replaced as it is spent. Some people such as myself have a credit card to play for medical expenses.

From what you wrote they are likely ok, but if they are ill or do become ill, there are antibiotics that are safe for young babies. If you recently got them, they could be stressed by the change.

The red discharge is likely porphyrin as you thought - that means they are stressed and may be ill so keep a close eye on them. Spending a couple of hours daily playing with pet rats is important for many reasons and it also lets you know if there are any changes in their behaviour so you will know when something is different so you can tell when they are ill.

I am confused, how can they be 6 weeks old if you have had them for a month? Did you rescue and hand feed tiny babies? Babies should never be rehomed until at least 6 weeks old and baby boys stay with mom and sisters until 5 weeks old ...... although people who don't care or don't know much about rats do take babies away from their mom too early.

There is a lot of good info and ideas on this forum. Here is a good site for info http://ratguide.com/

hope this helps
 
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SQ said:
You need a prescription to buy antibiotics, unless you buy them online but if you buy online they might not be what you think you are getting, they could be mislabelled, a totally different medication, fake or expired. Some people use fish antibiotics but they are not safe to give to rats as they are not strong enough to treat rats and can cause the rats to become even more ill.
Plus when rats are ill, they really need to see a good vet so that you will know exactly what is wrong and get the right meds for them. The amount of meds they are given depends on the strength of the meds and their body weight so having a reliable digital scale with a tare function is a good thing to have.

So, you need to find a good vet that is very knowledgeable about rats or is a good vet who is willing to learn. Having a good vet is essential because rats are prey animals and hide illness so when you notice they are ill they are already very sick and die fast. If you establish a good relationship with your vet, you may be able to get meds from your vet to have on hand.

Rats are not inexpensive. - Medical care can be expensive and ill rats need immediate treatment so it is important to have something in place to pay medical bills. It is strongly suggested that rat owners have a bank account with at least $300 for the first rat and at least $200 for each additional rat .... and that the money is replaced as it is spent. Some people such as myself have a credit card to play for medical expenses.

From what you wrote they are likely ok, but if they are ill or do become ill, there are antibiotics that are safe for young babies. If you recently got them, they could be stressed by the change.

The red discharge is likely porphyrin as you thought - that means they are stressed and may be ill so keep a close eye on them. Spending a couple of hours daily playing with pet rats is important for many reasons and it also lets you know if there are any changes in their behaviour so you will know when something is different so you can tell when they are ill.

I am confused, how can they be 6 weeks old if you have had them for a month? Did you rescue and hand feed tiny babies? Babies should never be rehomed until at least 6 weeks old and baby boys stay with mom and sisters until 5 weeks old ...... although people who don't care or don't know much about rats do take babies away from their mom too early.

There is a lot of good info and ideas on this forum. Here is a good site for info http://ratguide.com/

hope this helps
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Thank you! Yeah my bad I meant to write 9 weeks, I have no idea why I wrote 6 lol sorry to confuse :S Yeah I havent seen any more red spots, they're in my room so I listen for sneezes and stuff and I shake their fleece from crumbs every day so that's how i noticed the spots but there havent been any more recently. Will keep an eye on him though, thanks a lot for the link and information!
 

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