Rat squeaking for no apparent reason

[Shuka]

I have never posted on this forum before, however, I need some help and advise!
I have had my rate Sam for a year now and we think he is around 2 years old (we rescued him). He is overweight and partially blind (due to poor nutrition as a baby). A couple days ago he started squeaking and jumping for no apparent reason, as if his cage-mate had bitten him. We separated the two (as Sam would sometimes attack his friend after these occurrences, thinking the other rat had bitten him). He also seemed very stressed around his cagemate, Frodo, and would puff up if they got too energetic. However, he is still squeaking in pain randomly. I thought it might be a sprained tail, kidney stone/urinary tract infection, or a back issue.
He does lick his tail profusely after randomly squeaking sometimes, however, not always. He also cleans his penis very thoroughly, at times, after episodes.... I'm getting mixed messages from him as to what is wrong!
His pee doesn't smell and is perfectly clear. He still has lots of energy, even though the squeaking attacks come more often when he's moving around the cage playing. He is also eating just fine and peeing in large amounts, although I haven't noticed him drink... which is disconcerting. We are giving him watermelon to make sure he keeps hydrated.
We are also giving him 40mg of baby Ibuprofen every 6 hours (he's a big guy, around 1lb 7oz) for pain management and that does seem to help a little.

However, it has been 3 days and the vet can't find anything wrong with him! Has anyone had this happen to their pet rat before?! I'm not sure what else to do...

Thanks in advanced.

 

[Freya]

Hi,

I took my boy to the vets this morning for a very similar reason. He was absolutely fine last night, but this morning he's been squeaking and freaking out a bit. I *think* he's done something to the base of his tail, because I think he's running away from the pain, and he doesn't want his brother grooming his back end. Poor boy is very down in the dumps. We're going to try him on metacam for a few days to see if that helps him; let me know how your ratty does!

F x

 

[Shuka]

I took my boy Sam to a different vet yesterday and she actually figured out the problem!
Sam had a Vesical Proteinaceous Plug (I have attached a document below concerning this issue). However, this was not the primary cause of the squeaking we later found out...
Due to the plug's size, the vet had to sedate Sam in order to remove it. During this procedure, the vet found that Sam had a large infected bite taken out of his penis.
I had separated Sam from his cagemate, Frodo, just a few days prior due to the fact that Sam would get stressed and puff up every time Frodo got too close. I also noticed that Frodo was trying to groom him too often down below which made Sam squeak and attack him.
Turns out my two rats are anything but friends. Frodo had taken a huge bite out of Sam's penis during a fight apparently and it had became extremely infected. It would have killed Sam if we hadn't figured it out and started him on antibiotics.
Safe to say my two rats are sadly never living together again...

http://ratguide.com/health/aging_degenerative_disorders/vesical_proteinaceous_plug.php

 

[Freya]

Oh my goodness! I've never heard of that problem; thank you for the link. I'll see if I can check Nigel later. My two seem to get on quite well apart from the odd brotherly argument, so hopefully it's not the same thing. Poor Sam, I hope he feels better soon x

 

[Shuka]

For the most part they got along and snuggled... I totally thought they liked each other... but apparently increased fighting is a common issue as male rats get older. And Sam is definitely aging faster than Frodo... and yet still thinks he is the dominant one
But Sam already seems better and isn't squeaking as much! Hope you can figure out what is wrong with your little ratty

 

[Freya]

Thanks - we'll see how he goes on the metacam and I'll go back to the vets if needs be. Glad Sam is improving! X

 

[ViciousCurse]

At least for my male rats, I notice they start to reach a certain age and then stop caring about trivial things like dominance. Usually happens right around their second birthdays. They aren't sick or anything, they just don't care when one of the younger rats starts climbing in the social hierarchy.

Anyways, as for the pair, I'd really see if you can try to introduce Frodo to another rat or a pair of babies. Frodo and Sam just seem to not work together, but maybe they'll be able to work with different rats. Sam, however, needs to recover from his injury first. Babies may be the best bet for either of them.

If issues still pop up, then a neuter may be needed.

 

[lilspaz68]

You may need to look for penis plugs regularly from now on just in case he's not able to bend or reach down there as well as he used to. Depending on the rat it might have to be a daily check so you find the plugs before they cause a problem like impeding urine flow or causing infections. If he still squeaks and licks his tail he may have injured his spine and the nerves are singing down to the tail tip. Ask your vet for Metacam/meloxicam as it's safer, more effective and you only need to give one dose a day for pain/,inflammation relief. It's rare that dominance actually builds up between cagemates as they age, it's usually the opposite.

 

[Rocket99]

I regularly check for plugs with my seniors, and once i start finding them on one particular rat, i know to check him once every day or 2 since he has stopped removing them. Usually due to a physical problem, often obesity, or just from being lazy and unkempt. Usually, when they pee the stream can force it off, but by no means do i rely on that luck. BTW, if you gently push down on the abdomen with your index fingers on either side of their penis, it will pop out like one of those rubber dolls that you can squeeze to force its eyes, nose, ears, etc, lolol. Anyway, be sure you either wear latex gloves or wash your hands extremely well BEFORE (and obviously after) you pop his penis out so that you dont introduce bacteria into that sensitive area and cause an infection. It sounds gross, but it is necessary with many seniors once they stop, or can't, do it themselves.

 

[ViciousCurse]

I check my rats' genitals at least weekly. I handle my rats at least daily and help them sit up and groom their genitals. Elderly male rats struggle to sit up and then reach down and groom their penis. They'll typically fall over. I usually hold my rats and help them sit up while they clean down there. They'll usually lean on my face or arms, or I'll actually hold them up with my hands.

When Gideon, one of my rats, was passing a kidney stone, I gave him purple grapes and he passed the stone and then promptly urinated all over my shoulder. Happiest time ever to have a rat pee on me. Don't know if it was just a coincidence that he peed right after I fed him some grapes, or if they're linked, but I give my rats grapes regularly now. And changed their diet to a healthier one.

So make sure they're being fed a healthy diet (low protein) and make sure they stay hydrated. A couple of members, myself included, will also recommend giving them water bowls that can't be tipped over.