# Understanding puffy rat fur when deciding whether a rat is sick



## Topple (Jan 11, 2018)

Hey all,

I've posted a few times before about wheezing noises my rats were making, and I thought they might have a respiratory tract infection. I totally changed out the lining of the cage and removed some potentially dusty toys from the cage, and they have not made any breathing noises for the last week or so, but I've still been on edge looking for other signs of sickness (just in case)

One sign I have seen mentioned often online is "puffy or disheveled fur" and I find this very hard to judge myself. I posted two pictures (taken within an hour of each other, today) below: one is a picture of two of my boys when they are sleeping on the hammock. I find when they climb in together and start jostling around to get comfortable, the fur gets rustled up and can stay that way until they stop sleeping. The next picture is one of those same rats who woke up and came out for a treat - as soon as he woke up and climbed over to see me, he seems to have smoothed his fur back down to normal.

I am so sorry if I seem like a crazy hypochondriac rat momma, but I am just wondering, does this look normal? Or could sleeping with the ruffled fur mean that they aren't feeling well?


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## Shadow <3 (Jan 25, 2017)

They look normal to me.


Obviously I'm not there (nor a qualified vet), however rats actually puff out their fur for many reasons beside illness. My girls puff out their fur much more than your guys in those pictures when its cold out, or even when they're sleeping. In fact, my older girl Berry is is perfect health yet always looks like a little porcupine when sleeping 


I really wouldn't worry about puffed out fur/ruffled fur on its own. Typically, if ruffled fur is an actual symptom of illness you'll also see extreme lethargy. That's because ruffled fur is a result of your rat not grooming themselves regularly - something all but the sickest rats do compulsively. And looking at them while they sleep/when they wake up doesn't count, because they haven't had a chance to groom (which they'll probably do as soon as they wake up).


As for puffed out fur, if its a symptoms of illness (or anger - I did an intro where the older girl puffed out all her fur and hissed at the new rats! She was soooo angry!) then I find that you'll usually see an extreme amount of puff. I'll include a picture of my girl Latte being puffed out and sick below as reference:










And this was an extremely ill girl:








Don't worry, I'm pretty sure its a rat owner requisite to be constantly worried about our little fluffs. I know I had a horrible experience with pneumonia when I got my first girls, and in the next few months after that I was so paranoid that I was taking them to the vet's every few weeks! But in my case it all turned out to be nothing, and as I got more experienced with rat I've realized that usually I can tell when they're getting sick just by the slightest changes in their behaviors.


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## Steffy (Oct 6, 2017)

I was going to say something along the same lines but Shadow beat me to it

Photo 1 looks like they're just sleeping, photo 2 looks normal to me. 

I think it's normal that they get a little untidy when they sleep in a pile. Mine usually "have an extended bath" after they get up, i.e. groom all untidiness out.

How warm/cold is the room they're sleeping in? They can puff themselves up a little when they are cold. Also, when they tuck their head under, the fur will automatically puff a bit.

This is what "sick puffed up" would look like (it's a photo of a mouse but the fur and posture are similar to a sick rat)


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## Fu-Inle (Jan 22, 2015)

Its hard to tell unless you know the rat and you see them everyday but when their fur is puffed up, their face will look bigger and fatter than usual.


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## Kelsbels (Aug 12, 2015)

That picture that Steffy posted is a puffed up look I'd be concerned about. Their eyes can have quite a sunken-in look to them. The second picture Shadow posted is also a very good indication something is up. You have the puffed up look, the porphyrin build-up, the eyes semi-closed, and the rat is sort of on her side. 

If ever your rats are laying on their side it's apparently a sign of illness or cause for concern. The recent girls who have passed all were on their side at some point puffed up (they weren't like this for long bc we rushed them to our vet), and the first thing my vet asked if we noticed they were laying on their side. 

From the pictures, your boys are looking normal. It's hard not to worry about our little rats. Especially since there's a lot of horror stories online .


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## Topple (Jan 11, 2018)

Thanks everyone! Those pictures really helped - both the picture Shadow and the one Steffy posted both have a clear "that doesn't look right" aura to them. I think my rats might just be really untidy boys! They scuffle a lot and so I catch them often with fur all ruffled up, but usually they shake it out after a few minutes. I did notice my room was a little bit cold (the weather fluctuations here mean constantly adjusting the thermostat) so maybe that was part of the reason. I've turned up the heat for them just in case


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