Can my rat be depressed?

Question

i have a had my rat Lola for about four monthes now. she is about 51/2 monthes old and she is acting very strange. i have her with her "sister" Nellie [[another rat a bought a few monthes later]] they are about 2monthes apart but i have had them together for almost a month now and they have been getting along great this whole time! For the past few days Lola seems like she doesnt want to come out and play! [[i take them out everyday to play]] i know its not me because when she is in her cage and i go to pick her up she scoots back but if i pet her [[on her head like she loves]] she just sits there calmly. i have gave a ton of attention to her and she has a friend and toys..idk whats wrong! i made her come out today hoping she would cheer up but she just sat on my shoulder or bellie and let me pet her [[she is mommas girl in the 1st place but still likes to run around with Nellie]] she hasnt been doing anything latly..at least while im awake and can see her. idk what to do!!please help!

Answer 1

I heard that some animals don't have feelings...but I don't believe that.  I know it doesn't seem like it, but maybe your rat IS sick.  Or else it could be depressed.  If nothing changes or it seems to get worse, I think you should bring your rat to the vet or whatever.  It may seem like its not that big of a deal, but it could be and I think you should just make sure.  Hope your rat gets better!!!

Answer 2

yes

Answer 3

I think she's more likely just having some bad days. Remember that they sitting calmly is different from sitting frozen. They will freeze without moving, and will move back away from your hand if they are scared or nervous. They freeze to sort of camoflauge.

This always happens to my rats time to time. One day, a dog will spook one of them, and the next couple days the rat will behave a bit more cuatious than usual. It isn't something bad necessarily. You may have startled her by having loud music, or even making a sudden movement she didn't like. It isn't your fault, they are just scaredy sometimes :)

If you know she is not just scared, then is she the shyer one? Rats have a pecking order, so one is always shyer than the other. If she is shy, the other girl is swattling all the attention, in which case taking them out seperatly might be a good idea for a while. Still allow them to play together plenty, but for a few minutes sit with Lola, and act with her as you normally would. And give her some treats she likes :)

If she still isn't coming around, I'm afraid that she probably is sick, or going to be with something. So taking her to a vet might be the best thing after all that.

Answer 4

Bring her to the vet

Answer 5

i think any animal can be depressed... if u used to play with it a lot and then forgot about it for a while he might miss his attention.

Answer 6

i dont really know wants wrong with her but u should check her up at the vet. Did you feed her something unusual? Maybe you should give new toys.

Answer 7

yes, animas have feelings. yes, animals have emotions, so yeah she could be depressed. or she might just not feel good. just like humans. she might just not feel that good. if this continues for another weekor two, take it to the vet. something could be wrong.

Answer 8

aw give her a few days. maybe she is just a little tired... also rats are more active at night...  try checking on her in the middle of the night she could very well be just sleeping during the day and being her playful self at night

Answer 9

Animals have feelings?

Answer 10

It's a rat..

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a rat...

Answer 11

Of course they can get depressed, but their concepts are different to that of humans, but yes..Rats get depressed, & like any species they have their own society based lifestyles...Every animal based life form has feelings!