# Older rat bit me?



## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

I had 2 girls, Pretzel and Tavi, we recently put Tavi down (they are going on 3) pretzels been alone since Tavi passed
Today i got out of the shower and went to my room, i said hi to pretz, got dressed and went, opened up the cage and let her sniff my hand. Anyways, she bit my pointer finger, she drew blood and i couldn't get the bleeding to stop for atleast a minute; Then she walked away from the door, _literally collapsed on the plastic level_ and just stayed there, her sides looked like they were panting (?) but she was breathing non-normally, she jumped onto the wooden house, straight onto her face, jumped off that (onto the floor) landing on her nose, then she layed there, her flanks were *heaving* then she dragged (literally dragged) herself into her wooden house.

What did i just witness?
Should i be concerned about the bite at all? Their is a gash in the main part of my finger, and she cracked my fingernail with her top tooth (its still bleeding... she bit me at 3:07 PM, its 3:53 pm, its been off and on)


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## Jess <3 (Jan 23, 2014)

Oh dear, she sounds very poorly. Perhaps she bit you out of pain? I've heard of rats having seizures before and a video i've seen of it sounds a little like the behaviour you described (jumping around, panting and then dragging herself). But please don't take my word for that, it's not something i've ever experienced myself. I'm very sorry for your situation, i guess the best thing to do is get her checked by the vet. 
I wish you and Pretzel the best.


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

It could be that 
it seemed to me (and im no expert, they are my first rats) that she simply couldn't get enough air? like, you know when humans hold their breaths and then have a mini heart attack after they release, because they held it too long? thats kind of what it seemed like to me...idk, i don't know all that much about them *sigh* thank you for helping


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

edit: well idk i just watched a video of a rat having a seizures, and its nothing like whats going on with Pretz


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## Jess <3 (Jan 23, 2014)

Oh sorry, i guess i imagined what you said different to how it happened. Do you have a good vet near you that can help? If she's never bitten before but bit hard enough to break your nail and then acted the way you described i think there must be something wrong...


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## kksrats (Jul 25, 2014)

Your finger will heal, I'd be more worried about the rat right now. Loss of coordination could be something like a stroke, maybe a brain tumor, idk. How is she acting now?


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## Hey-Fay (Jul 8, 2013)

Pinched sides mean pain and gasping is a bad bad thing. Get her to a vet ASAP. If your vet isn't open then an evet will do. I've lost two so far and right before they passed they had breathing troubles and pinched sides. This isn't something to mess around with. A vet visit right now could save her. kkrats is correct, a stroke is very likely given her age.
What color are her toes, tail tip nose and gums? If they're bluish it means she's not getting enough air.


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

Thank you guys!!
I'll update you all soon.


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Seizures and fititng in rats can vary a lot, this definitly sounds like something serious going on with her, could be she was having a stroke or heart attack or similar. Poor thing, i hope the vets can help


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

I went in to check on her, and shes perfectly healthy... i have been keeping a close eye on her- she seems 100% fine, shes not aggressive, no flank heaving, nothing.


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## LittleBird (Jun 22, 2014)

It does sound like she had an episode of hypoxia. (not getting enough oxygen) That can cause strange behavior as the brain needs O2 to function properly. That would definitely explain her biting you and the behavior afterwards. I would still get her checked out by the vet even if she seems ok now. Because of her age, it's likely to happen again. Or, and I hate to say this, she might be exhibiting the good before the bad- meaning, animals (humans too) will often appear to get better just before they die. I hope I'm wrong but I just wanted you to be aware that it happens.


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## Elliemay (Oct 11, 2014)

I too would be worried about seeing the good before the bad. It sounds like she was trying to get your attention to show her distress. I'd take her to a vet, or at the very least call the vet, maybe they can give you some free advice, however with shortness of breath they're mostly likely going to tell you to bring her in just in case. As for you finger, it'll be ok. Fingers bleed a lot and it's completely normal. Last time I was bit on the finger it would bleed on and off for nearly three days. Just keep it clean and I'd avoid a liquid bandage even though it's tempting. The label says do not use on animal bites, I believe it's a bacteria reason but I'm not really sure. Hope all goes well, keep us updated please.


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

We took her to the vet..
they found nothing.
not a single thing wrong with her. 
The vet didn't believe my story until I showed her the(mostly healed now thank god) bite in my finger.
Nothing is wrong
at all
The checkedher for everything.
Nothing came up?!
she'sbeen acting normal, other then she's been lkicking me ALOT and she mostly stays in her wooden house.


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Keep an eye on it, some fits are audio generated and can be from an entirely unexpected source (pest scarers in a neighbours house, hoovering somewhere nearby and energy saving lightbulbs are all sources i've come across). What variety is she out of interest. Theres a genetic link between black eyed whites and audio generated epilepsy


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

Well, she's a hooded rat...nothing else in your post made sense?Sorry


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## LittleBird (Jun 22, 2014)

Shadowcat2002 said:


> Well, she's a hooded rat...nothing else in your post made sense?Sorry


She's talking about certain sounds can cause rats to have fits like you described.


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

Oh.that might explain it..my mum had music playing from Pandora


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## Isamurat (Jul 27, 2012)

Sorry yes, certain rats can have fits triggered by certain sounds. These tend to be very high pitched and often something well outside our hearing rrange (like a dog whistle). This can make it very hard to track down the cause. For example a few years ago one of my friends rats started fitting occasionally, he checked out as healthy, no other issues but he would have violent fits. After checking the bulbs and any other possible sources of the noise her next door neighbour mentioned in passing they'd bought an ultrasonic pest scarer that was working well. Looking into it they discovered it was on the wall in her house directly next to the rat cage on the other side of the wall in my friends house. The rats were getting this sound constantly, yet my friend and her neighbour couldnt hear anything. Once the neighbour found out she was mortified and turned it off. The rat didnt have another fit.


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## Shadowcat2002 (Sep 28, 2013)

That probably was it. I'm glad i know now, the vet said it could have been the storm (we've been having pretty crappy weather) that freaked her out, possibly into hyperventilating..Thank you all so much though.


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