Being Able To Tell A Sick Rat By It's Fur?

Question

Here's my old rat, Cuddles. He died about 2-3 months ago.

This is when I first got him-

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g88/GutterxSlut_x/Cuddlesx3/cuddles037.jpg

This is him about 4 months old-

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g88/GutterxSlut_x/Cuddlesx3/cuddles3.jpg

and here's him about 7 months old-

http://i54.photobucket.com/albums/g88/GutterxSlut_x/Cuddlesx3/c018.jpg

As you see, in the first picture was when I first got him, and he was always fluffy.

but in the second one, you see he started to get even more fluffy.

and in the last one he was really fluffy, and scruffy.

I thought that was just the type of rat he was, but I heard that if a rats hair is fluffy, it could mean they're sick.

now he did die when he wasn't even a year old.

and my vet could never figure out what it was. he had breathing problems since he was about 4 months old.

and I think it's because there's mold in the walls of my room.

we didn't find this out until after he died, and I was thinking mayb that's why he died.

as breathing in mold can mess up your lungs, making it hard to breath. and well, he had breathing problems.

so in the second picture, where you see he got more fluffy then the first one,

he was starting to get sick. and in the last one, where he's one big fluff ball, he was realllyy sick.

I wanted to know if the puffed up fluffy fur was just the type of rat, the way it was bred.

or could it have been because he was sick?

I'd really like to know, because I loved how he was fluffy,

and was plan on getting another one. but I don't want to get a fluffy one if that means that they'd be sick. :/

it'd mean alot to me if anyone knew anything.

that rat did, and still does mean the world to me. and I'd like to know if his fur meant he was sick.

Thank you.

Answer 1

He doesn't look sick to me. I don't know if he's a Rex (can't tell from the pics), but they have fluffy textured hair. Yes, if you noticed one day that his hair looked unusually fluffed-up, it would be an indication that he wasn't feeling well - but it sounds like there was no sudden change, that he's always had the fluffy texture. Now, obviously there was something wrong - he died very young. I just don't think the condition of his fur had anything to do with it. I've had rodents die suddenly before; more often than not they live to a ripe old age and die of tumors or other aliments, but a in a few cases there was no attributable cause of death. You mentioned breathing problems - maybe it was myco that killed him, I don't know. I had a rat live for 3 years with breathing problems - several rounds of antibiotics, change of bedding, moved the cage, nothing helped much; she died of a tumor at 3.5 years old. So it's kind of a luck of the draw, it's hard to say.

Answer 2

I have a rat shes 2 years old and she is fluffy. If i had to guess what is was i would have to say the mold. If i was u i would check the mold thing out and get another rat.