My rat Sammy has a rapid breathing and heart rate!

Question
Hi Janell,

I am worried sick about my pet rat Sammy. I thought that he was a little quiet yesterday but other than that he seemed fine. Tonight I came home and he looks really poorly. He seems to be breathing very fast but he is making no noise that I can hear out loud or that I can hear when I listen to his chest. All I can hear is the horrible sound of gasping for air. His heart also seems to be beating much faster than all of my other rats. He coat has gone all starky and he now has Portheryn around his eyes. His eyes are half closed. He doesn't feel cold to touch and although he is just leaning up on objects in my cage or laying in my arms, every now and then he gets a bit more lively and I have seen him clean himself once. He is a rescue rat and so I can not be definite about his age but I think he is about 5 months old. I am so scared because I had another rat called Skye who died last year just one month older and who seemed to exhibit the same kind of symptoms but she was cold and had a slow heart rate and died very quickly. Please could you help me and give me some advice? At the moment he is with his cage mates who are leaving him alone but I am worried that they may pick on him during the night. Here in England it is 12:15am in the morning and so I can't get to a vet now. Is there anything I can do for him now? Many thanks and best wishes. Rachel Greenaway

Answer
Will Sammy take any treats? Start by offering him a piece of chocolate - milk or dark, avoid white. It will help soothe respiratory distress if he's in any - it sounds like he is, despite that you can't hear any lung noise. He does need to see a vet pronto, but in the meantime, keep him warm and draft-free, and if you have a humidifer, I'd set that up for him. Keep it far enough from the cage that you won't roast him or get him wet, but he'll still get the vapors. Use nothing in it but water, however. If you're worried about the others picking on him, do you have another cage you can put him in for the night?

Does he seem to be hanging his head over the edge of toys or ramps, with his body elevated? It could be a respiratory infection or congestive heart failure - but a vet could tell you for sure. In the meantime, keep him comfortable. Good luck! I hope Sammy is on the mend soon!