Astilbe is dying..

Question
QUESTION: Hi Robin,
This is my second case of rat trouble. All the same symptoms and behavior. I have had two rats twice and one of them would develop a sudden sickness like a respiratory problem within overnight. They'd be fine the night and day before but by the next day, something would be definitely wrong.

The loose all enthusiasm for food, interaction, and moving about. They walk and sit around with a hunched back and very puffed out fur. Refuse all food and don't respond to touch, They breath heavily and very fast with a distinct little tapping noise with almost every breath. Within several hours to the next day, they are gone.

I've gone through one rat and now I fear I have another one who is going to go the same route. The first one was Sweetpea, who died with all those symptoms suddenly appearing when I got her out one night, I tried giving her vitamins and encouraging her to eat and drink (no luck) but she died within the very next day.

Now Astilbe has the same symptoms and I'm desperately trying to get her to take vitamins mixed with anything from jelly to mashed fruit to Oatmeal. She only licks the food and quickly looses interest. She is very miserable.

It hurts so bad now because Astilbe has been the healthiest rat ever since the first day I got her (in the Spring) and she was the most interactive and sweetest little baby ever.

My oldest Rat, Priscilla has gone through both these episodes in perfect health and no symptoms like that at all.

I'm so depressed right now....

I know there is probably nothing that can be done but if you could get back with some kind of advice I'd be so grateful.

Thank you....
*Susan

ANSWER:   It certainly is a bit strange to have this happen twice and to have been a sudden onset of symptoms followed by death.  It's possible that whatever they had was the same and may have just been a coincidence, other than that I would suggest there may be some kind of environmental hazard that may be affecting them.  If another one of your rats passes away from this I would suggest having a veterinarian perform a necropsy to see if he or she can determine the cause of death, which may give you a better idea of how to prevent it in the future.

 At this point I definitely would take Astilbe to the vet if you can.  They will be able to give her fluids and suggest some possible outcomes and methods of treatments.  It's really impossible for me to tell you exactly what is wrong with them, the symptoms you are describing are common to the end stages of many different health problems.  If I had to wager a guess I would say it might be an internal tumor which are fairly common in rats.  They can wreak havoc quickly and eventually cause death.  There really is no way to tell unless a vet can look inside either with an x-ray, exploratory surgery, or after death.

 For now try to give her baby food or mushed up rat blocks and offer gatorade if she doesn't want water.  Don't bother with vitamins, they aren't going to help at this point.  Keep her comfortable and at room temperature and hopefully she will pull through until you can get her to see a vet.  I really hope everything turns out for her, please keep me updated on her condition.  Good luck!

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: I'm am so grateful for your quick reply. You are wonderful!

I have a very bad feeling it may be Step Pneumonia which I've read it can sudden occur and kill within 12-24 hours. The symptoms I've read are respiratory problems, depression, and ruffled appearance. That fact that is hits SO suddenly and kills so fast really makes me wonder.

Poor Astilbe just sits around very sickly with her fur ruffled and her little eyes closed, breathing very fast. She is very weak and almost goes limp when I gently pick her up.

She has very little desire for food but will lick and nibble at some mashed up fruit and will lick a little bit of water from my fingers (but won't drink from a dish directly) Its very limited though.

My local vet might see her because they've dealt with exotics. But I don't know. By tomorrow morning Astilbe might be too far gone to even begin to try to save her.

I'll try the gatorade and continue offering her little bits of food.

This is just heartbreaking. She is -very- special to me.

Thank you so much again and I'll let you know what happens.

ANSWER:   Pneumonia is sudden onset, and it certainly could be that.  Other signs include a blue tinge to the feet and nose and abdominal breathing, which is basically very labored breathing where their chest walls suck in as they try to breathe and get oxygen which, even though they are breathing a lot, doesn't make it to the blood fast enough.  I had a rat with a lung tumor show these symptoms and it was fairly sudden onset as well, though it was just over a week before she passed away.  Hopefully it's something that can be cured, I can definitely understand how rats can make such an impact on your life and it can be hard to see them ailing.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Robin,
Astilbe passed away this morning. I tried so hard to help her, tried offering her liquids in any form I could as well as all her favorite foods. She was just too sick.

There's no way I could have gotten my little girl to the vet in time either because I believed she passed away in the early early morning hours.

I'm pretty heartbroken, there never will be another rat like Astilbe, she had the most wonderful personality I've ever seen. She loved being tickled and was so playful. She'd come everytime when I'd call her name without fail and she just plain loved being around me. She'd fall asleep in my lap in perfect contentment. What was unique about her too is back at the petstore, she stood out from all the other rats because her nose was a slight upturn to it and her snout was overall shorter so she had a much more rounded face than your normal rats. This was odd to me at first but after a short while it just looked so incredibly cute to me. Astilbe was so sweet she'd even groom my hand while I was petting her.

Now she's gone. I'm going to miss her so much just like sweet pea. It won't be the same without her...And poor Priscilla, now she is by herself -AGAIN- I don't want her to be alone but I'm kinda afraid to get another rat for fear that the new one might bring in sickness to Priscilla who has been perfect for so long.

One thing that can just somewhat set some peace on my hurting heart is that I know Astilbe had a happy little life. And she was happy with me and Priscilla. Astilbe never failed to make me smile and forget anything that was bothering me even if I was having the worse day.

Well, Thank you for taking the time to help me out and all your kind words. Its so nice to have people like you who understand and can relate to your feelings when you have a sickly little animal you are so close to. I know few people would understand getting so upset over a rat.

Here is some pictures of Astilbe if you'd like-

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb33/Zeldamae2007/l_c818437b1c4800a7871046de9

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb33/Zeldamae2007/May2608009.jpg

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb33/Zeldamae2007/May2608002.jpg

*Astilbe is on the left*
http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb33/Zeldamae2007/july16th08016.jpg

Answer
I'm very sorry to hear about your little girl =(  I know she was special to you and had a wonderful life with you as her owner.  I know it is hard to think about this now but you may want to consider having the veterinarian do an autopsy to figure out why she died, especially if this problem has happened to you before.  It will also often give peace of mind if something is found that you could not have prevented.  The vet can suture the incision when he or she is done so you can bury her at home.  Just something to think about.  Again I'm sorry for your loss =(