i am worried my rat is ill or dying

Question
hello i am worried about my pet rat matilda and am hoping you can give me some advice. she is my first rat and i was given her by a stranger whos add i found on gumtree. i have had her about two months and was given her with very little information as they too where given it by someone else. she is very confortable around me and will sit quietly in my arms or by my feet. i think she is at least a year old but may be one and a half or even two.
the problem is that over the past week and a half she has started to cahange from being enerjetic and responsive to very sluggish, clumsy and ooking constantly tired. her eyes have red sores around them similar to ones she had on her body but have now gone away. she will fall over things and walks very slowley and clumsily. i am worried she is  dying or that she is deaf. i play my music quite loud and have stopped doing so now but am worried that it has damaged her hearing still. basically she is walking like she has no enegry eating and drinking very little and has sore eyes. can you offer any help?

thank you for your time
sincerely, simon

Answer
Hi Simon

You need to go to my site, sandyscrittercity.com right away and learn about rat ailments. I am thinking she may have an inner ear infection which will cause her to be dizzy and clumsy too due to the pressure on the nerve in her ear that leads to the brain. This controls balance and coordiation.  She can only recover with medical treatment such as antibiotics and something for inflammation.  She needs a vet but not any vet will  suffice.  Please let me know where you are so I cain  give you names of vets that  can help her.    At any rate, my website will help  you learn all you need to know about rats and their care so please make sure you check it out right away and get back to me for a follow up.