# Rat is very skinny and doesn't seem to eat much?



## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

Hello! I have one rat and lately it seems like hes very skinny and doesnt eat much no matter what I give him. I usually feed him vegetables or cereals and pasta, and once in awhile ill give him a little bit of chips or short bread cookies. But I'll put a bowl full of food in his cage in the morning and then I'll come home at night and it looks like it was barely touched.

He doesnt seem to have any health issues, his eyes, nose, and gums looks healthy, his teeth doesnt look too long, he sounds healthy, his lungs doesnt sound like he wheezing for a lung infection. Sometimes I do notice he breathes pretty hard and deep but idk if thats normal for rats or if thats an infection, I gave him some Amoxicillin just in case for about 2 weeks it didnt stop the heavy breathing so I thought its normal for him. He does seem a bit lazy but I think hes always been that way since I brought him home. And even tho I only have one rat he seems happy cause I always play with him after work and hes always happy to see me, he stands up on his two feet when he hears me coming in, its cute! 

Anyways can anyone figure out why he not eating, hes getting pretty skinny, I think hes always been a skinny one since I got him but now he seems smaller, idk if theres something wrong with him or hes just a rat that doesn't have a big appetite. 

Thanks!


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## Heyyouguys (Jun 19, 2016)

Sounds like he's depressed to me  sure he'll be happy when you get home from work and want fuss, but the poor guy has probably been super lonely all day. Rats need to live with others, that's just how they are. 

I had a dog once who had been bounced around from home to home and never got attached to anyone and when we finally had her for a while (while my uncle got his house sorted out to accommodate her) she refused to eat. She would only eat fresh meat, and if we just gave her a complete biscuit (kibble) diet, she wouldn't eat properly for days. It was very sad. 

The advice you're probably going to get from many people on here is to get another few rats so that he can have some friends.

We are social creatures, and if we spent all day every day in one room with... let's say an elephant (an animal that is massive compared to us and doesn't speak our language, but can still show affection) we'd soon miss being with other people. That's how it is for a lone ratty.

That's my personal perspective on this problem, but overall I just hope your guy doesn't get too skinny and ends up being poorly because of it. Sounds like you're doing everything else right so he should be eating fine, so his diet isn't the problem.


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

Heyyouguys is right


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## mis.kay (May 29, 2015)

I agree with the others. If he seems in good health, chances are this is what's wrong. If he came from a place with other rats then this is even more so the issue because he once had rat friends and now only has you. I would consider adopting at least one more. Two rats isn't much more work compared to one.


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## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

this is good advice but my rat been in solitary all his life, even when I brought him at a pet store they only kept one rat per cage and I think now hes a year old and I'm afraid bringing in another rat they will fight. Especially since hes a dumbo rat and I read somewhere that they can be more aggressive then a fancy rat. I'm also afraid bringing home a sick rat or one with mites and then they both get sick. I'll keep that in mind but its going to be hard to adjust to two rats lol


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

Dumbos are fancys


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

You still can introduce a new rat.Your rat won't get sick from the new rat because you'd need to quarantine the new rat anyway.


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## Ratologist (Nov 24, 2016)

A couple of things: First, I have personally read that dumbo rats are more friendly and easy-going. And you'll probably find most people here would say that the markings & ear placement of a rat have very little to do with temperment. Dumbo rats *are* fancy rats, as are all other pet rats. 

Next, in the grand scheme of things, your rat has only lived 1/3 to 1/2 of his life so far...with another 1-2 years to go. That's an awefully long time to be lonely. It's also the case that he'll live longer if he has a friend. As others have already mentioned, I strongly suggest a friend. 

Finally, my rats don't eat a whole lot during the day, either. They do most of their eating at night. For that reason, I only give fresh veggies at night. They're going to get dry or wilted if I leave them out all day. You said this in your post:


> I usually feed him vegetables or cereals and pasta, and once in awhile ill give him a little bit of chips or short bread cookies. But I'll put a bowl full of food in his cage in the morning and then I'll come home at night and it looks like it was barely touched.


Do you also give him a regular block-type rat food?


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## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

I'll look into getting a 2nd rat but I know its going to be pretty pricey since I would have to get a new and bigger cage and more toys and blankets. 

And no I dont give him any rat food, only because no place here sells any kind of hamster or rat food, not even wal mart unless i make a special trip to the pet store and I dont have a car at the moment. Plus i find it healthier just to give him veggies. And if I do feed him veggies I usually take it out of his cage if he doesnt eat it all cause it starts to smell pretty bad.


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

Mirax said:


> I'll look into getting a 2nd rat but I know its going to be pretty pricey since I would have to get a new and bigger cage and more toys and blankets. And no I dont give him any rat food, only because no place here sells any kind of hamster or rat food, not even wal mart unless i make a special trip to the pet store and I dont have a car at the moment. Plus i find it healthier just to give him veggies. And if I do feed him veggies I usually take it out of his cage if he doesnt eat it all cause it starts to smell pretty bad.


most pet stores have bad food.order something like oxbow online


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## Miss_Rattie (Jul 5, 2016)

If you can't get another rat, then maybe re-homing him would be the best option as, as Ratologist said, he may still have another two years to live which would be a long time to be alone. I adopted my boy Reg almost 2 1/2 years ago, as he was in the same situation. His cagemage had died and he was alone and loosing weight and so his owners decided to re-home him.

I managed to introduce him to my two girls very easily and he settled in very quickly and the three became best friends. I would say that he has been a happy ratty ever since and put on weight quickly when I got him, and is now an elderly boy. So, I would try and get another rat, or re-home him if another rat is not an option. I know it is difficult with pets, but I do think that we have to ultimately do what is best for them - in the UK even lab rats cannot be homed alone as they do need to have company.

Best of luck with your boy.


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## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

i can do that, thanks!


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

Mirax said:


> i can do that, thanks!


do you mean rehome him or order food online?


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## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

Miss_Rattie said:


> If you can't get another rat, then maybe re-homing him would be the best option as, as Ratologist said, he may still have another two years to live which would be a long time to be alone. I adopted my boy Reg almost 2 1/2 years ago, as he was in the same situation. His cagemage had died and he was alone and loosing weight and so his owners decided to re-home him.
> 
> I managed to introduce him to my two girls very easily and he settled in very quickly and the three became best friends. I would say that he has been a happy ratty ever since and put on weight quickly when I got him, and is now an elderly boy. So, I would try and get another rat, or re-home him if another rat is not an option. I know it is difficult with pets, but I do think that we have to ultimately do what is best for them - in the UK even lab rats cannot be homed alone as they do need to have company.
> 
> Best of luck with your boy.


thanks! i will look into getting a 2nd rat, im just worried about bringing home a sick rat or they end up not getting along then im kinda screwed. Just gotta plan out my budget and see what to do. Thank you!


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

I said that your rat wouldn't get sick from your new rat because he would need to be quarantined.You may want to get 2new rats incase intros don't go well and then they have a friend in quarantine.


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## Mirax (Oct 29, 2015)

Rattielover965 said:


> I said that your rat wouldn't get sick from your new rat because he would need to be quarantined.You may want to get 2new rats incase intros don't go well and then they have a friend in quarantine.


how long does the new rat have to be quarantined for until they can be cage mates or introduced to each other?


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## Rattielover965 (Apr 26, 2016)

Read 'Sticky:Quarantine information ' in the health forum, it explains how to quarantine properly


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## Ratologist (Nov 24, 2016)

Mirax said:


> And no I dont give him any rat food, only because no place here sells any kind of hamster or rat food, not even wal mart unless i make a special trip to the pet store and I dont have a car at the moment. Plus i find it healthier just to give him veggies. And if I do feed him veggies I usually take it out of his cage if he doesnt eat it all cause it starts to smell pretty bad.


What else do you feed him? He needs more than veggies, cereal, and pasta. What about protein? Fat? 

As I said, if I gave my rats their food only in the morning, they wouldn't eat much either. They do most of their eating at night. If you're putting veggies in the cage in the morning & taking them out at night when they've gone bad, your rat has no real opportunity to eat during his waking hours.


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