Very bloated weanling rat! Whats Happening?!

Just noticed today that one of my little female weanlings that I was planning on holding back for future breeding is horribly bloated!
It feels squishly like a bunch of air. Her stomach is about the size of a ping pong ball. Her tail area is also a yellowish color and wet (as seen in the picture)
Does anyone know what this could be? Thanks for the help!

http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/DSC09342.jpg

http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/DSC09343.jpg

http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/DSC09345.jpg

it can happen if theyre stressed for any reason, Ive had it happen to several litters in the past and it happens with most rodents. My gerbils used to get it as well whenever id change from one type of bedding to another so i stopped and kept on using aspen, Maybe thats a reason why its happening to yours also maybe overcrowded. Rats tend to get over it and keep on living good lives where my gerbils didnt and died eventually

It is rather crowded among the weanlings and had planned to split up the sexes tomorrow to their own cages. Maybe she is just stressed being crowded...very possible.

i tend to keep about 15 rats per nursing mother and seperate the females and males so i know whos where but more than that i dont just so its not too stressful on the mother. but if theyre weaned then id put them in diff tubs without moms but im sure you know that already hehe...good luck

My guess is that your high-white rat has megacolon. Prognosis is not good.

High-white rats are more prone to megacolon. :( it probably wont make it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chimera Reptiles

My guess is that your high-white rat has megacolon. Prognosis is not good.

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Looks and sounds like Mega colon to me also.
This means the ones that made this kit are dominate trait blazes and should not be bred again either, not good either way I'm afraid :(

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Chimera Reptiles

My guess is that your high-white rat has megacolon. Prognosis is not good.

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sorry if i sound dumb but the rat is a high white? does that pertain to the white from her belly covering more area then a normal berkshire? Is that what a "high white" is?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by snakesRkewl

Looks and sounds like Mega colon to me also.
This means the ones that made this kit are dominate trait blazes and should not be bred again either, not good either way I'm afraid :(

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the father, and breeder of all my females is a blaze like this...
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/DSC09189.jpg

and the berkshire is the mother of this female baby...
http://i187.photobucket.com/albums/x...5/DSC09169.jpg

Are you saying just dont breed this male with the female again, or should I not have a blaze male to breed at all?
Im quite a beginner when it comes to rat genetics.
And is this weanling safe to feed off in her condition, or when/if she dies?

I had the same issue with a batch of babies. Megacolon.
The kept growing like that until they died...

I wiped out the colony that was causing them and replaced them, though you could just replace the male I suppose.

Honestly, you're best bet is to humanely kill the little one before it dies painfully. It's sad, but it is what it is...

http://ratguide.com/health/digestive/megacolon.php

Quote:

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Originally Posted by mues155

sorry if i sound dumb but the rat is a high white? does that pertain to the white from her belly covering more area then a normal berkshire? Is that what a "high white" is?

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You don't sound dumb in the least bit, I'd be concerned if you didn't ask questions.
But to answer your question, yes the higher white up the sides was a give away, same as the wedge on the rats face. But there are lots of high-white variations, have a look at the link below.
http://www.spoiledratten.com/highwhitecont.html

But what if Ive bred this male before and no babies have had any issues before this one?
Im worried now because I have 22 fuzzies and 6 pinkies from other females and this male rat.
Are rats safe to feed off with megacolon?
I had no idea high whites were like that...thank you for the wedsite info

It's safe to feed off that rat, but it will not live much longer. I'd cull it ASAP, that is almost certainly megacolon.

Just because you had megacolon in one rat, doesn't mean the rest will have it. IT almost always shows up at that age, and since you've had lots of success with that line breeding before with no issues, I'd just keep breeding and if you have any more issues, then cull them, and move on unless it starts becoming more common.

Just because one has doesn't mean they all have it, correct, but do you want to continue with these genes? Once a line has been proven high risk for megacolon, it's best to find new genetics. Especially since you didn't even breed the male to another high white. I'm not saying just because one popped up to get rid of the male, but honestly, if it was my colony, I would not breed him again. You can give it another shot and see if maybe this baby is just unhealthy and a once in a lifetime fluke, but I'd be cautious and pay attention to the others.

Remember, while most cases of megacolon appear before 6-8 weeks, there is late onset megacolon, which has been reported at 8 months.

Best bet is to euthanize the baby now, it only gets harder to watch. So sorry for this, I know how tough it can be to deal with megacolon babies. I ended up losing an entire blazed litter that I rescued from megacolon.