Something strange is going on... please help!

[Slapdash]

I just got home about 20min ago and there was a cat in the hallway outside our door, we live in an apartment complex. It had a recent lion cut from the groomer and had quite the gut and was super friendly so I knew he was well taken care of but since it's so hot I left a bowl of water out and he's been hanging out outside our door ever since lol

Anyways thats not the real problem! Went over to say hi to the ratties and none of them came out to say hi to me as usual. This is especially unusual for Rosie who is normally in your face every second, happy as can be. I've been medicating them with doxy for about two weeks for URI's. Rupert the hairless had it real bad most likely myco the vet said and I treated 5 of 6 because most of them were showing some signs of a minor URI and they're living in the same cage as him anyway. So Rosie had a slight congestion sound in her breathing the last few weeks but nothing serious and she's always been perky as can be, eats well and everything.

Well when she finally came out she was slow and scared looking and her head was tilting to one side! :sad3: Then I looked at Rupert and his head was slightly tilted too. Rosie was wide eyed and hiding which is NOTHING like her. The other 4 seem a little spooked too but mostly themselves.
So I don't know what is going on here? The head tilts seem minor but they're there so I took some pics...
Rupert

Rosie

I was wondering if their behavior had anything to do with the cat outside our door, they've never met a cat before, maybe they can smell it? Do you think the head tilt and behavior are related? I don't see how they could be? I'm really worried about them. What should I do/ watch for? Anybody experienced anything like this? Sorry if I seem to be overreacting but my gut is telling me something is up weather its just the cat or if its medical. Thanks in advance!

 

[xxchelle]

Whenever I see a head tilt I think inner ear infection. I doubt it's related to the cat. Maybe they both just happened to get inner ear infections at the same time? I'm not sure.

 

[lilspaz68]

Is it a true head tilt or just a reaction to their fear of the predator they smell/sense?

Keep watching the tilts, but I bet it was the cat. Some rats don't care (see Chu the Cat Chaser) and some go rigid in fear, and even will stop eating if in constant exposure with a cat. Most get used to it, but expect some fear in the beginning.

Btw we all sit and stare at our rats and wonder "Is that a head tilt?? Maybe not...oh wait, maybe it is???" (not blinking) as the rat inquisitively looks at the crazy person staring at them LOL

 

[ryelle]

the first picture looks normal, but the second makes me a bit wary. But, i recon its probably the cat making them uneasy. And atleast you only got wierd looks from them! i get attacked if i smell different!

 

[Slapdash]

They're all back to normal :joy: I'm still gonna keep an eye on Rosie's head tilt though cause it's the second time I've noticed it but then it goes away? Thanks again everyone I was really worried, they've never acted so different before, they'd jump if I just tried to pet them

 

[crumbilina]

I bet it was the cat (but keep watching).

Whenever I have been around a cat my ratties don't go back to "normal" until I do laundry and have all the smell out of the room. This is something I don't really get since one pair came from Chelle and she has many cats... Either way they avoid me after cat contact. So just watch the head tilt and see what happens when the cat smell goes away.

 

[crumbilina]

haha you beat me to it

Glad to hear that they are mostly back to normal.

 

[Joanne]

My rats are definitely afraid of cats, and respond immediately and fearfully to the scent of a cat. They do NOT respond to the scent of our dogs. There is a link somewhere on this board to a TV clip about an experiment with lab rats that they put outside in a farm environment, and in that clip they said that the lab rats were afraid of cats too, although they had been lab animals for generations. It's a distinct survival advantage, and I can see how they have that response, as all the rats that that didn't run in fear for their life got eaten!
Anyway, I think your rats were acting strangely because of the smell. No worries!