Pet rat healthy one day, now he falls over and acting weird.

Question
QUESTION: My baby, Irwin, 1 year old, was as healthy as can be and then last week he began to become unsteady on his feet and falls over and cannot get up w/o help.  His feet are red and seem to be scratched and he cannot hold himself up to clean himself. He just falls over on his side and stays there for a minute before he tries to steady himself up. He does have an appetite and will drink water. He makes grunting sounds every so often when holding him. His eyes are becoming somewhat crusty and his front legs didn't seem to hold him up.  This came on so suddenly, I am extremely worried.  Any ideas what this might be? and/or what remedies I should try. The only different thing we have done in the last month is change his bedding from the brown paper like bedding to the Animal Planet softer bedding, which does seem to have more dust.  Thank you for your time.  I am so worried about my baby.

ANSWER: Hi Kim

I am sorry Irwin isn't doing so well. From what you describe, he sounds pretty sick. What could very well be happening is that he may have an inner ear infection.  Is his head tilting to one side? When he tries to walk, does he seem to walk in circles? The grunting could be congestion from his chest or nasal passages which means he may very well have an infection. Mycoplasmosis usually starts to hit rats over 6 months old. Its a slow moving bacteria that all rats are born with and when the rat has a weaker immune system due to stress and other issues, myco often causes them to become sick. Myco can cause respiratory infections, ear infections, urinary tract infection and female reproductive tract infections as well.  
Its difficult to say what is wrong with him from here and the good thing is he is eating and drinking...but he needs to see a vet right away. Usually when rats start to show signs of illness, that means they feel pretty darn lousy. Rats, by nature, are great at hiding pain and illness since they are basically the lowest on the food chain and are preyed upon by so many animals....they need to hide their weakness so they do not fall victim to predators any faster than they already do.
Do you have a vet that is skilled in working with rats, or an exotic specialist?  If so, call him ASAP. He needs to be seen and given oral antibiotics for sure.  Rats health decline very fast so I would try to see if your vet has a 24 hour emergency number. If not, there is usually a 24 hour animal hospital in most areas, esp near larger cities. If the 24hr clinic doesn't see rats, you can tell them to call an exotic vet to guide them or to simply treat your rat as if they are handling a newborn kitten. Usually if the vet that is not experienced with rats can understand that rats are treated alot like very young kittens are treated, that helps them feel more confident that they can care for the rat, even to get him stable till the regular vet is in on Monday.

Let me know if you need help in finding a vet in your area. I can look for the nearest vet that is registered with the AEMV (ASSOCIATION OF EXOTIC MAMMAL VETERINARIANS)in your area.
I wish I could wave a magic wand and make young Irwin feel better...which I hope he does soon. :-
Keep me posted, please, and thank you for caring enough about your little critter that led you here in the first place.


Sandra Todd

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

QUESTION: Thank you so much.  That really makes sense.  I am really thinking the new bedding is adding to his misery too.  I gave him a little bit of aspirin on some avocado and he loved it and it actually moving a bit more stable.  Unfortunately, we live in a somewhat rural area and won't be able to get him to a vet until Monday. Our ER vet in Ventura, Ca. is for dogs and cats primarily. I checked for an exotic specialist and there is not one that I could find that is nearby.  Any suggestions to keep him comfy until I get him to a vet at least until tomorrow?  You are so kind.   I will keep you posted.  Have a great weekend and God Bless you for your help and  love for these little guys.

Kim

Answer
Aspirin or childrens tylenol or childrens motrin is about the only over the counter product you can give safely for pain medication. BE SURE to let the vet know you have used these products soon as you get the rat in for an appointment though. Its important to remember to tell he or she any meds that you have used prior to seeing them. Do you have any antibiotics that you have used previously for your rats at home that have not yet expired? Most medications are suspensions and expire anywhere from 14 to 30 days after mixing so those wont be good unless it was not long ago you first got them.
Benadryl may also help dry up any fluid that may be in the inner ear that may be causing the rat to be off balance, providing this is indeed the problem...which I just cant make that call...it wouldnt be fair to say.

You can use liquid benadryl (depending on the rats weight) 0.2 mg per pound twice a day or every 12 hours. How much do you think your rat weighs?

You can write to me at Sandyscrittercity@yahoo.com for further information.