My rat is leaning, acting weird, and keeps rolling over. What's wrong?

Rats, particularly as they grow older, are prone to getting tumors in their brain. In an older rat, this would definitely be my top differential. Other causes include an infectious disease or lack of sugar. In order diagnose a brain tumor, diagnostic imaging would be required. Hope this helps. He should be seen by a vet right away if the seizure activity is continuing and is violent in nature.

Hello, I'm sorry to hear you don't feel trusting of your veterinarian's medical opinion. I can't do a physical or neurologic exam online, so it's difficult to advise much in these cases. Pituitary tumors are extremely common in female rats. I think an ear infection would be much less common and not a cause of such severe disease.

I'm sorry that Carrie is not feeling well! Head tilts in rats are commonly caused by ear infections, however, other diseases such as certain cancers, or stroke can cause these signs. How quickly treatment needs to be started really depends on what the underlying cause is, so it is impossible to say what will happen in the next two days. If Carrie is having difficulty moving around, it may help to provide some moistened food (pellets with water on a small plate) for her so that she can access food and stay hydrated. In my experience, head tilts can progress rather quickly, but are not necessarily painful and most animals do well with antibiotics and anti-inflammatory medications. I hope this helps and that Carrie gets well soon!

Neurologic symptoms such as loss of balance, confusion, falling over, etc can indicate a serious neurologic disease. If Bb's eye is also bulging, it is best to seek veterinary care immediately. It is possible she has gotten into something toxic, is very ill, or is experiencing a problem with the muscles or nerves in her body.

Symptoms may be any abnormal behaviors, circling, aggression, seizures, head tilt, pain, scratching the ear, altered mentation, confusion, unwillingness to eat/drink, etc. I'm so sorry for the loss of your rat. You may wish to consider a necropsy for confirmation of the cause of her illness.

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! While it is unclear what is going on this may be a metabolic imbalance such as decreased blood sugar or perhaps a gastrointestinal issue or infection. Regardless, this is considered an emergency and Wally should be evaluated by a veterinarian for further assessment and treatment. They would be able to gather more information, perform and exam and decide what to do next. I am hoping for a speedy recovery!

Based on what you are describing it does sound as if Lucy is very ill. I would recommend either having her rechecked at your veterinarian or asking for a referral to an exotic capitalistic that can perform more specialized tests on small mammals like blood work, x-rays, and ultrasounds. Based on the age of your rat she may have something more serious going on like an internal infection or cancer. In the meantime, try to encourage Lucy to eat as best you can by offering her her favorite foods and/or syringe feeding her some baby food. I'm sorry to hear that she is not doing well and I hope your vet can help you find answers. I hope this helps. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. Best of luck.