Part 1 - Judging Condition
When judging condition it is important to look at the whole rat, each part of them gives you different information and taking all these areas into account helps you really get a feel for how your rat is
The Coat
The coat is an excellent way to get an overall impression of how the rats are doing on a particular diet. It reacts relatively quickly to changes as the rats shed and grow new hairs, known as moulting. Hairs shed and regrow at different rates depending on where they are located. The head has the shortest moult period at about 4 weeks, this increases as you move along the rat with the lower back having the longest moult period of around 8 weeks.
This means that besides the first few moults (which you can often see as a line of newer fur travelling along the rats body, or moult mark) most rats don’t have an obvious time where they are moulting as different hairs fall out of sequence with each other. Instead the moult as the new hair is ready to replace the old hair.
It takes a large amount of nutrients to provide all the new hairs and if a rat doesn’t have enough to create the new hair it cannot push the old one out, meaning the rats fur is older than it would ideally be, waiting until it has enough to moult out as normal. This is known as being “stuck in moult”.
When judging your rats coat condition first of all give them a quick stroke, this tidies up the fur a little bit and gives a more reliable look than whatever mischief the rat has recently been up to. The stroking can also be used to get a feel of the rats fur, smooth and shiny fur feels like stroking silk (even in a coarser buck your hand still glides well), a rat that is excessively greasy feels sticky, a dry coat feels fluffy or rough. Once you’ve felt have a good luck, both from above and a side profile, paying particular attention to the fur over the rump.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here
This means that besides the first few moults (which you can often see as a line of newer fur travelling along the rats body, or moult mark) most rats don’t have an obvious time where they are moulting as different hairs fall out of sequence with each other. Instead the moult as the new hair is ready to replace the old hair.
It takes a large amount of nutrients to provide all the new hairs and if a rat doesn’t have enough to create the new hair it cannot push the old one out, meaning the rats fur is older than it would ideally be, waiting until it has enough to moult out as normal. This is known as being “stuck in moult”.
When judging your rats coat condition first of all give them a quick stroke, this tidies up the fur a little bit and gives a more reliable look than whatever mischief the rat has recently been up to. The stroking can also be used to get a feel of the rats fur, smooth and shiny fur feels like stroking silk (even in a coarser buck your hand still glides well), a rat that is excessively greasy feels sticky, a dry coat feels fluffy or rough. Once you’ve felt have a good luck, both from above and a side profile, paying particular attention to the fur over the rump.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here
The Tail
The tail offers a good opportunity to get a snap shot of the rats muscle tone and hydration levels. Generally a rats tail seems to be one of the last areas to receive important nutrients such as protein, given it is an extremity and whilst useful to a rat, not in constant motion like the legs this makes sense. The fact the tail is also not covered in a thick layer of fur means that its overall shape and condition is easier to spot than say the hind quarters which can also be an early warning sign for muscle tone. The lack of fur also means that you can get a good general indication of skin health and condition as well as the tail skin health itself.
When assessing your rats tail condition try running your fingers over it lightly, to get a feel of the skin quality, if its dry, or behaving normally. You can also feel irregular scales, lumps and bumps. Then have a look at it over all, starting at the base, where square tail is normally most evident, moving to the tip where damage, kinks etc. are more likely. Pay particular attention to the top of the tail, as this is where square edging is most obvious.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here
When assessing your rats tail condition try running your fingers over it lightly, to get a feel of the skin quality, if its dry, or behaving normally. You can also feel irregular scales, lumps and bumps. Then have a look at it over all, starting at the base, where square tail is normally most evident, moving to the tip where damage, kinks etc. are more likely. Pay particular attention to the top of the tail, as this is where square edging is most obvious.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here
The Body
The rat’s body gives us lots of information about its fitness as well as whether it is a good weight. This is particularly important to the long term health of the rat and as it changes much more slowly than the tail or fur, it can creep up on us as owners. This is where getting second opinions is particularly useful, be that from entering in pets at a show, or asking an experienced rat owner for an opinion. This can help you develop a good “feel” for your rat’s condition. In reality describing the feel of a rat is even harder than describing the look of it. This is an area where experience is by far the best teacher, and the words below will only be of limited use.
Assessing the body’s condition is much more about touch than the previous two areas, with look playing a secondary role. When judging your rats body condition first stroke them all over, much like you would when checking for lumps, bumps etc. in a health check. Then feel around their abdomen a chest area. It can then be useful to feel how baggy the skin is by feeling the skin between the front and back legs on each side. Finally have a good look top down when the rat is well stretched out.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here
Assessing the body’s condition is much more about touch than the previous two areas, with look playing a secondary role. When judging your rats body condition first stroke them all over, much like you would when checking for lumps, bumps etc. in a health check. Then feel around their abdomen a chest area. It can then be useful to feel how baggy the skin is by feeling the skin between the front and back legs on each side. Finally have a good look top down when the rat is well stretched out.
For information on the Positive, Negative signs and other issues please click here