Too thin rat - very concern.

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RatsForever

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2007
Messages
1,221
Location
New Brunswick
About three weeks ago I rescued a rat, Oscar, from a not so nice place and he was in very rough shape (viewtopic.php?f=56&t=21631). Oscar is slowly recovering and is more active and wide-eyed. He is also turning out to be such a sweetie! But, what is troubling me is his weight and fur - he is still very thin and his fur is still rough and looks thin (he was treated for parasites). He was also treated for respiratory and UTI. No matter what kind of food I give him, he is not gaining any weight. If you could see my other curvy rats you would know that they are not starving. :giggle: His sides look sunk in and I can feel his spine and hips. Also, as you can see from the picture below, his fur looks so dirty (he is a PEW) and in terrible shape. Unfortunately, the picture doesn't capture how thin he looks. I've followed some of the past advice that has been given on the forum on how to help a rat gain weight but nothing is working. I have tried Ensure, Soy Baby Formula, oatmeal, olive oil in mushed-up lab blocks, avocados, bananna, blueberry, carrot, peas, and so on. He does eat but not as much as the others. I'm beginning to wonder if he has a more serious illness that I am not aware of, like diabetes or kidney failure. The earliest vet appointment I could get was next week. So until then, can any of you more experience rat parents offer any advice? Thank you and Happy Holidays!

Picture108.jpg
 
What a sweet boy... I do see why you are concern. He is very skinny and looks sickly with that coat. As far as adding weight on, you seem to be doing everything he needs. How is his activity level?
 
I'm glad to know I am doing the right things with food. Thank you Jorats. You also thinks he looks sickly - that's what I was afraid of. :sad3: His activity level is quite low and he does sleep a lot. But, he is slightly more active than when I first brought him home. During out time he has moments of wanting to explore and is quite curious but then he will run up on my shoulder, curl-up, and sleep (while the others are still running around). He also bruxes quite a bit while he is sitting on my shoulder and is quite cuddly - could that be a sign of pain perhaps?

I'm scared that he may be suffering. Usually I can tell if they are but not this time. I'm going to call the vet tomorrow morning and ask to squeeze me in this week.
 
You msy want to get the vet to test his urine.

How is his breathing now?

Paul (Liverpool baby) was always inactive, small and thin until put on heart meds.
He did not have an enlarged heart but we thought it must be a heart problem other then chf because of his response to the meds.
Turned out the problem was not with his heart. (Identified later upon autopsy.)
The heart meds helped him and gave him a good quality life for quite a long time.
 
I was able to change my appointment for tomorrow instead of next week, with the same vet that saw Oscar last time. Oscar had diarrhea this morning but perhaps it's because of all the soft foods I've been giving him? He took a couple bites off a boiled egg and oatmeal but that's it. Oscar is not well at all. I'm afraid I may have to make a difficult decision but I'll see what the vet says. :sad3:
 
I have been in the same situation with my rescue Wallace. He spent I am guessing most of a year in a hamster cage with no hiding place and pine shavings. He has his own cage and loves to sleep in his hanging tube. His fur is is patchy and he is thin despite everything I have tried. He developed a tumour on his leg and the vet says due to his thinness he wouldn't survive a surgery. She thinks he may have a metabolic disorder due to his life before me. He his happy, I give him meal drinks like Boost and Ensure, and still eats and sleeps as usual. I will continue to give him a better life than he had. I hope you find a solution. He is obviously better off now that you have him.
 
One thing you can check - one of my rats started losing weight (I think she had a stroke because she was also a bit 'off ') and I finally thought to check her mouth. Her teeth were wearing unevenly and one was really long and sharp. I had no idea that they were that bad. Once her teeth were trimmed, she started putting weight back on again. So he could have a problem with his mouth.
 
I just returned from the vet. He didn't think I should have Oscar pts just yet. I hate to see these little souls suffer. I was sent home with baytril and doxy and was encouraged to keep doing what I've been doing regarding food. Also, he checked Oscar's teeth and they are fine. The vet thinks that perhaps his heavy breathing is interfering with this eating. I have to bring Oscar in again next week for a recheck and possible x-rays. On a plus side, the vet did think Oscar was more active than from the previous visit.

Thank you for all your advice.

Happy Holidays!
 
How heavy is the "heavy breathing" you mention? Breathing harder/faster will burn more calories than breathing freely, depending how heavy the breathing is it could prevent a rat from gaining much weight, or even contribute to losing it.

More active sounds good though. I hope the meds will do something positive for him.
 
If the meds don't help, try zithro + baytril.
If that doesn't help, ask to try benezapril to test for heart problems.
Not all heart problems show up on xray.

When I have had rats that didn't respond to antibiotics for respir, either they had damanged lungs or heart meds helped.
 
I've noticed that with my sickies too. If they have a bad uri they have trouble eating. Eating takes a lot of energy and so does breathing when you have limited lung capacity.
 

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