My girl is not the same....

[TillieBilly]

My girl Brie does not seem normal. She always runs up to me when I make a clicking noise, so she can get a treat. Today, she won't even move unless she has to. She just stays in the box in her cage. She is usually a squeaky little things. She does not like just sitting there while you pet her. She likes to play with your fingers and run around the cage when you try to get her. We play it like a game. But today she just lets you pet her and pick her up. She is not sneezing or anything, which is good but I cant figure out what is wrong. She got healthier when I rescued her from her previous owners. They eat great food mixes and only get little treats every once in a while. Clean cage and clean fresh water all the time. My other girl, Rita, is doing just fine. I cant separate them because I dont have anywhere to put the other one. Rita likes to hang out in the hammock a lot while Brie does not like the hammock. I do not know what to do I don't want Brie to pass on yet...I just got them...

[Mrs.Rattitude]

Is she eating and drinking ok? Listen to her breathing as well, put your ear to her side and make sure she's breathing ok and no weird sounds coming from her lungs. Didn't you say they used to breed her and you're not sure of her age right. Has she gained any weight, is her belly pear shaped by any chance? I'm grasping at straws here.

[TillieBilly]

I just listened to her and my spouse listened to her as well. Great heart beat and her lungs sound normal. No weird sounds, liquid sounds, or wheezing. They told me they use to breed her but I checked her shape and I don't think she looks like a pear. In which position should I study her shape? The boys said that she was not yet two. However, she is usually quite active and playful. I have only given them rat approved food, so nothing she ate should have bothered her belly as far as I know. She is starting to play a little bit in her box right now. I was out for most of the morning so I have not seen her eat or drink anything since last night. Last night she was her usual self. I bathed both Brie and Rita last night because they were starting to itch a lot and I wanted to make sure they were okay. They did not like it woo much but Rita seems to be thrieving after the bath and Brie not so much. Should I not have given her a bath? The boys never bathed them before.

[Mrs.Rattitude]

She could be stressed out from the bath, did she have any red around her eyes or nose after the bath? As for pear shaped and the best position to hold her in, look at this post. Both of these girls were pregnant.

http://www.ratchatter.com/forum/index.php?topic=4651.0

Just keep scrolling down to see how their shapes changed over the days.

[TillieBilly]

Okay checked her shape again. No pear shapes. Looks just like Rita. Yes, after the bath she did have red around her little nose. What does that mean?

[christianchickslc]

I'm sorry Brie isn't feeling well. The red porphyrin around the nose or eyes could mean she was just stressed out from her bath. If she still is acting funny in a few days, I would take her to the vet. My little Nutmeg was acting strange when I came back from the Philippines after two months. She used to be a spaz and would run all over the place, but when I came home she would just lay around and just wasn't herself. I thought she just didn't remember me, but she ended up being ill. So just to be safe, I would take her for a vet visit if she's still acting funny in a few days, as it might be an illness. Hope she feels better!

[Mr.Rattitude]

The red reads like porphyrin, a naturally occurring substance ... often found when rats are under stress.  Baths can do that

Generally your girl will clean it up herself, or you can use a soft tissue lightly to wipe away the "wet" discharge. If it continues, or re-occurs often, then a vet visit may be in order for a check up.

Seeing porphyrin around the nose often can be a common symptom of a URI (upper respiratory infection), which are also generally easily treated.

[TillieBilly]

So Brie is doing MUCH better!! I think she had a little cold. I contacted the college guys who had her before and they said they have not had a boy rat in over a year so no way she was pregnant. So I ruled that out. She is back to her rattie little self. My cats got use to putting their noses and paws resting through the rat cage....HAHAHAHA Brie looked at my cat Tillie and sniffed her nose and bit her. LOL teaches her not to get in Brie's way!! And our other cat Kigo put her paw in this morning and Rita did not like it so she bit her paw!! Scared them half to death but didn't hurt them! Glad my girl is doing better and back to her crazy self!!

[RatLover19]

My little rattie has always acted weird like brie. I was listening to her breathing and i just heard a weird little noise that sounded like it sounds when a bone creaks or something. I'M REALLY SCARED!!! Should I get her checked out at the vet cuz of how she acts + the weird noise? PLS HELP!!!! 

[christianchickslc]

She might have a respiratory infection, it's very common in rats. She would need an antibiotic from the vet. My little Pepper was wheezing when I brought her home and since I had extra antibiotic from Ginger's respiratory infection, I gave some to Pepper too and she's just fine now.

[Mrs.Rattitude]

Glad to hear Brie is doing much better!  Love how she told the cat it was her home. hehe

@ RatLover19, yes it does sound like a vet visit is in order.

[RatLover19]

My friends listened to her and said it was just her heartbeat. I might not go. Do u still think I should? She's been acting better with her personality on the bright side!

[Stargirl]

My friends listened to her and said it was just her heartbeat. I might not go. Do u still think I should? She's been acting better with her personality on the bright side!

By what you described above i would defiantly still get her into the vets at least for a checkup just to make sure she is not sick. Its always better to be safe than sorry.

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