My rat is too fat :(

[Crimson]

I have 5 rats:
2 boys in one cage and two girls and a neutered male in a separate cage. The young boys and young female are all normal weight.
The neutered male, Mr Jingles however has gotten so obese that his stomach has outgrown his legs and he continues to gain weight. We are starting to get worried about him.

All the rats get at least half an hour outside their cage daily to play and run around. They have fair amount of space to run around when we let them out (our whole living room). Their cage is also quite large.
Their daily diet consists of lettuce, cucumber, carrots, lab blocks, a few almonds and sometimes a bit of rice or whole grain bread.
All are healthy and show no signs of depression or illness.

Please let me know if you can think of anything that might help. We know this weight gain can't be good for him and don't know what to do.

Thanks

 

[xxchelle]

Could it be a thyroid issue? Someone more knowledgeable than me can weigh in on this (no pun intended) but I know thyroid issues in other animals and humans can cause a lot of weight gain.

 

[jorats]

What type of block do they eat? You may need to start limiting his food intake but don't limit the veggies. No more bread or almonds for him anymore.
Also, can you get him to exercise more? 30 minutes a day is not that much... you'll need to get him moving more. Make him work for his food.

 

[Moon]

Almonds are very fatty, and apparently he's not moving around enough to burn that extra bit off. He would not be the first plus size rat we've seen on the forum, though, so you are not alone!

He is beautiful by the way... what a gorgeous face!

 

[Fidget]

My Touille is too fat too! My first fixed boy, I never had a problem with my unfixed boys getting too fat for their size or age, and my other kids now (3 fixed girls and one unfixed girl) are at good weights (except fixed Fidget who is not healthy so I have her out for private meals twice a day with ensure & calorie-heavy food).
So I know it's not their diet.
Mine all live together, so I've found all I can do with Touille is keep to their regular dry food, but separate him at dinnertime for a 'special' diet too. The others get their veggies with their ration of rice, potatoes, tofu, pasta, or whatever has calories, and he just gets veggies with a nibble of the 'good stuff' for the pleasure of it. He goes home after the others have eaten the more fattening stuff up (which conveniently usually goes first).
It's tough getting the right action & schedule, my kids would rush for dinner and eat just a bit then have a nap before eating thru the night, meaning too much calorie stuff for Touille to go home to - So I found feeding them dinner later (closer to their active night time) would make them more likely to eat up the more fattening stuff sooner.
Trial & error, same as everything with such individuals.

 

[littledevils]

It could also be heart related, I find a lot of rats that have heart issues are also overweight.

 

[Fidget]

Oops, sorry, just noticed your chub :heart: is living separate.
So it should be easier to regulate his diet. I would suggest gradually cutting back his dry food to a little less than he usually eats more & more each day, and keeping dinner to lots of fruits & veggies & just a nibble of anything with any fat or calories (for pleasure's sake). I sure wouldn't quit his dry food for just fruit & veggies cause it could upset his digestion. Just gradually and make anything with calories a treat. (And I never quit Touille's bedtime treat either, I don't think enhancing life means robbing it of pleasure )