My rat has a hard stomach, whats wrong with her?

Question

Shes a female, and is about 5-6 weeks old. And she hasn't had much contact with any males.

Answer 1

i had a rat once and i bought her (not knowing she was already pregnant) when she was around 5 weeks old and i didn't realise she was pregnant until she actually gave birth.  But her atomach was quite soft when she was pregnant but she wasnt carrying allot of babies  i also had a rat who was in a cage with her sister and had a hard, bloated stomach, i didnt realise what it was until it was too late.  She had a urinary infection and was in allot of pain and had blood in her urine.  this can most likely be cured but only if you take them to the vet strait away.  just make sure you check for any other signs of abnormality e.g. whether she is eating properly, she is less active, high temperature, scruffy fur can also be a sign she is ill, but other than that she could very well be pregnant, maybe she is carrying alot of babies and she is still a baby herself so there wouldnt be as much room in her stomach as an adult.

it would be best to go to the vet just to be safe.

Answer 2

Rats can mate faster than you can notice they're trying.  If they've been within reach of each other and you looked away for five seconds, she could be pregnant.  Take her to a vet if you can afford it.

Are her nipples getting larger?  Is she nesting a lot?  She's young, but rats can get pregnant at 5 weeks of age.

Answer 3

If the males were left with the female at /all/ it's possible she's pregnant. It literally takes seconds for them to mate. It would be very bad for her to be pregnant this young.

Otherwise, she could have a number of things wrong with her and my advice would be to take her to a small animal vet to be checked out.

Answer 4

Much? has she had any contact? it doesn't take much time for them to mate. she might be pregnant! : ) my hamster had a hard tummy and she had babies.