File :-(, x, )
Anonymous
/an/

(Pic slightly related, rat here has a cataract...)

I think my rat has an orbital hematoma. I woke up this morning to discover she had one enlarged, red eye and her other eye was normal. The eye was slightly bulged, but looked normal around the outside. There was no open wound or discharge. It just looks like the rat equivalent of a human having a bloodshot eye. She's sleeping now, but she's active when I play with her. Should I be worried? Have any of you had rats with this before?

TL;Dr -- My rat's eye is red and enlarged, but there's no discharge or wound. Is this an orbital hematoma or something worse?
>> Anonymous
>>344960

Please, I know there are a lot of rat owners on /an/
>> Anonymous
While many /an/ denizens have a very good basic knowledge of animal care, but when it comes to more obscure things, you'd have to be pretty lucky to get a decent response. I would suggest posting on a rat-specific board in case another owner has maybe had the same experience.

My own advice is to wait a day or two to see if goes away - if it gets worse or doesn't go away, see a vet. Perhaps it's an allergic reaction to something? Have you switched beddings recently, or used any chemical cleaners around the cage?
>> Anonymous
Wait a couple of days and then take it to a rat-friendly vet
>> Anonymous
Rats are slightly cuter than roaches. I wouldn't really want to touch either.
>> Anonymous
it's common for a rat to have one eye bulge I personally wouldn't worry unless it starts acting strange or isn't able to walk or something.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
Similar thing happened to one of my rats. I would take her to the vet if it doesn't seem to get any better within a few days. My poor Trotsky (see pic - taken after the vet) ended up with an abcess behind his eye (vet thinks his eye ruptured). He never really recovered, ended up having to put him to sleep about 2 weeks later.
>> Anonymous
>>345392

Oh my God, I'm so sorry!

I'm monitoring her closely and her eye seems to be slowly shrinking back to its normal size. I wiped it gently and placed a hot compress on it. She is as active an happy as ever, especially in her new cage. Hopefully, she'll be back to normal soon.

Her sister lost an eye as a baby in an accident with a wire wheel (not my fault, adopted her in this condition), but she's happy even though she's only got one eye.
>> Anonymous
Dear rat owners,

There is a mouse or rat that I have trapped in a room. What do I bait a trap with so I can catch it?

I have the space under the door plugged up, but I hear it trying to scratch its way out. What's a good kind of trap i can buy to put against the door so that it will go under the door and in to the trap.
>> Anonymous
>>345549

Trotsky's owner here again - thank you for the condolences. If your baby's eye seems to be going down, good! Maybe it was just severely irritated? Keep an eye on her, and good luck!
>> Anonymous
I also had a very similar thing happen with one of my girls who was getting on in age (2+ years old). She was still very active, eating, drinking and sleeping unchanged, as it didn't actually seem to be causing her any pain. There was a little clearish discharge, though. Took her to the vet and they told us that it was glaucoma. Gave a prescription for an anti-inflammatory which seemed to help a little, but other than that, there wasn't much that could be done. Since sight isn't a rat's primary sense anyway, surgery of any kind would be difficult and risky for no real reason, especially as she was a pink eyed rat and had shit for vision to start with.

She lived just fine for several more months; about half a year, actually.
>> Anonymous
>>345650
Peanut butter.
>> Anonymous
     File :-(, x)
>>346110

Thanks! I know they have such a sadly short lifespan, but their personalities more than make up for it. I know every single rat owner says that, but, its true.

>>346106

I thought it could be glaucoma, but Einstein is still only 35 in rat years (13 months). I'm not ruling it out, though. I've been treating her with saline eye drops and she seems to be doing well. There's no discharge, but it did look a little dry yesterday.

Her sister Wink only has one eye and its interesting to see how she barely even relies on sight but gets around like crazy!

Pic related, its Wink exploring her new cage. Excuse the crappy quality. :3