rat and seizures

Question
I have a rat that I believe may be having seizures.  He was fine until about a week ago or so.  He stands on his hind legs and its like he's falling backwards and twisting around,he ends up 'rolling' around and cant stand up.  sometimes he will seem to not be all there for a day or so afterwards. This is my sons pet, <the son is 4> and Im not sure how to explain to him somethings wrong.  Any ideas?  

thank you

Answer
Usually seizures including gnashing their teeth, and bouncing almost rabidly from area to area, their eyes are glazed over and they will bite down on anything near them. If they seem sort of non-violent, it may instead be a stroke, or multiple strokes. Seizures usually have a very quick recovery time and they appear to be pretty normal right after the episode.

Obviously, I can't tell you for sure since I've never witnessed these episodes; but I CAN tell you, either one is not a good thing. If you can afford a vet to have your pet looked at, I recommend that.

As far as telling your four year old.. things differ, of course, from person to person and child to child. How much about life, death, and illness does your four year old know? I prefer to be rather honest about all three accounts; but I've met a number of 7 and 8 year olds who tell me that they have a 10 year old rat (and in reality the parent has replaced the rat with an identical one 4 or 5 times). If you feel your child can handle it, it might be time to sit down and have a talk about how his rattie is not well and you may want to discuss the Rainbow Bridge, and how sometimes death is not always a bad thing, though it is permanent. If you're of a spiritual nature, this may also be the time to discuss Heaven and the possibility of people and animals watching over their living loved ones. "Gone, but you're never alone."

If you're unaware of the Rainbow Bridge, here's a link for you. http://www.petloss.com/poems/maingrp/rainbowb.htm

Good luck, I know this is really difficult for children.