crooked rat?

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Heather - 27 Dec 2004 14:10 GMT

Hi there:

I noticed my rat Petra has been grinding her teeth this past week, which I
dismissed, but on Xmas eve I noticed she seemed a little "off". She came
running for her dinner with the others, but seems to tilt to the left and is
a bit shaky on her legs. She's still got quite an appetite and seems very
lively, but is decidedly crooked and a bit "lurchy". I've done some research
and the two possibilites (I guess) are:

Inner ear infection-- I can see how this would cause the tilting, and
perhaps even the stumbling, but would it not also put her off her food?
Someone I know recently had an ear infection and he felt like crap.

Stroke-- If she had a mild stroke, I can see how it would also cause the
wobbliness and tilting. But would it not also affect her manual dexterity on
one side? Her paws still work perfectly when grasping food (and she does
grasp it, whenever possible).

Anyway I'll get her to the vet as soon as possible, but I was hoping someone
else had experienced something like this.

--Heather

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Phil L - 27 Dec 2004 16:16 GMT

:: Hi there:
::
[quoted text clipped - 20 lines]
::
:: --Heather

I don't know a great deal about strokes but inner ear infections are
*incredibly* painful...I've suffered with them regularly for the past twenty
years, usually having 3 or 4 per year, and I can say that if she does have
an IEI, she will not be particularly interested in food as chewing makes it
worse, even with strong painkillers at work - without them the pain is
almost unbearable....al this is from a human POV but I can't imagine it's
much different for other mammals.
I can manage soup and tinned spaghetti and other soft foods when I am having
an attack but chewy foods are strictly out...the pain doesn't come and go in
waves, it is continuous and it leaves you exhausted, is she lethargic?

If it /is/ an IEI, it may just be a mild one if she is still active and
eating her food as normal.

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Heather - 27 Dec 2004 19:13 GMT

She's just as active as always, maybe even slightly more so-- almost hyper.
Very greedy and grabby with all types of food, hard and soft. Hmm. Hopefully
the vet will have more insight when I take her in tomorrow. He did tell me
one time that rats and small animals are much better at dealing with pain
than we are, but whatever it is I hope it's not hurting her too much.

Heather

> I can manage soup and tinned spaghetti and other soft foods when I am
> having
[quoted text clipped - 4 lines]
> If it /is/ an IEI, it may just be a mild one if she is still active and
> eating her food as normal.

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Joanne - 27 Dec 2004 19:04 GMT

> Hi there:
>
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
>
> --Heather

My rats were never put off by food. lol My Russo had an inner ear infection
and the head tilt always remained. He never showed any signs of discomfort
though. He took his meds like a good little boy and that was it. But he was
tilty till the ripe old age of 28 months.

Signature

Joanne
Mom to 10 rats
http://community.webshots.com/user/joanneb70

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Meghan - 28 Dec 2004 04:21 GMT

Heather, I had a mouse with these same symptoms, and the thing I really had
to watch out for in the beginning was her ability to reach the water bottle.
At one point she was walking around with her head nearly upside down, so I
had to put an additional bottle in the cage very, very low to the ground.
For the first 2 days of her symptoms I had to "hand feed" her the water. I
also used soggy bread to get fluids in to her. She ended up on antibiotics
for a while, in case it was an inner ear infection (but the vet believes it
was a stroke), and now a couple of months later still is kind of wobbly but
is quite active and happy and eats like a horse. Just keep an eye on the
food/water intake until she gets to the vet.

Meghan

> Hi there:
>
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
>
> --Heather

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joe frank - 28 Dec 2004 05:29 GMT

Tooth grinding is normal. All the rats and mice that I have had grind their teeth. I would geuss
that tilting could be an ear issue but that lurching could be the signs of some neurological
disorder. Not to alarm you but possibly a tumor. The best thing to do is take your rat to the vet
and see what the vet says. In addition to antibiotics I would inquire about steroids. If your rat
had a stroke or has inflammation in the ear or has some other neurological issues a steriod would
provide immediate but temporary releif.

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Tania - 29 Dec 2004 19:51 GMT

Our Pluto had an ear infection too, despite a course of antibiotics he has
maintained the head tilt. He is still such a happy boy and eats, drinks and
runs around like crazy!!

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Tarn ...............
Pluto, Ulysses, Jerry,Smokie, Barney, Yoda & Yogi <:3_)~~~
At Rainbow Bridge: Buttons, Patch, Cookie, Fudge, Apollo, Zeus,Ben, Neptune
& Morpheus <:3_)~~~
http://community.webshots.com/user/tarn75

> Hi there:
>
[quoted text clipped - 18 lines]
>
> --Heather

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Pet Forum / Mammals / Rats / December 2004

crooked rat?