[littl3red]

Hi all,

I haven't been on in a very long time but I have something I'm a little bit worried about. My hairless rat, Tetra, is the first hairless I've ever had. And she looks pretty skinny/hunchbacked to me? My other girl, Moya, is much bigger than her, and a little chubby too. I was worried for a while that Moya was stealing food from Tetra so we have been separating them while they eat, but Tetra just looks skinny. Is it just a hairless rat thing/I'm too used to seeing furry rats? Maybe I need to see what a healthy hairless rat looks like to know what I'm looking for.

I just took these with my cell phone real quick, but I think in the second one you can see the "dip" in her belly that I'm worried about.

 

[Isamurat]

She is quite underweight. You can see her bones far too clearly. i would tty feeding her calorific foods like cooked pasta in a sauce and cooked rice and egg. adding coconut milk/cream is a great way of boosting her. If you feed them both a small amount of dry food twice daily then take her out at a different time (at least a few hours before or after) and give her a calorific meal this should help her. To be honest at that skinny i would get her checked out at the vet too. I've seen pleanty of hairless rats and they tend to be very smooth.

 

[kksrats]

I agree, she definitely needs to gain some weight. The hunched posture could also indicate pain or illness, so a vet check would probably be a good idea.

 

[littl3red]

Alright. I wasn't sure if I should take her to the vet because she has been acting active and perky, like her normal self, but I also know how good they are at hiding illness. I'll try feeding her bigger meals/more calories and keep an eye on her, and if she doesn't look any better I'll take her to the vet.

And she doesn't sit hunched over like that normally, she has food there, she's just hiding it! I guess I should have specified that. It's just like, even when she's stretched out/standing all the way up, her back has a pretty big curve to it.

 

[Akarah]

I'm not too worried about the hunched posture, but more about her being under weight. I agree that a check up at the vet is a good idea. A high calorie diet will help her gain some weight. She is gorgeous though! I love hairless ratties😊

 

[kksrats]

Ah ok, didn't realize she was eating lol Makes me feel a little better about her weight knowing that she's not just hunched and squinty all the time

 

[kksrats]

Knowing that the weight isn't from sickness that is

 

[littl3red]

Yep! I emailed our vet just to see if they thought I should bring her in immediately or wait and keep an eye on her. I don't think she's sick, I think she's just recovering from having her food stolen all the time! But still, definitely better safe than sorry.