Kidney Degeneration

In my experience this is one of the most common cause of typical ‘old age’ symptoms in rats.  It is caused by the gradual wearing out of the kidneys.  The kidneys are incredibly important organs with multiple functions including; filtering out the waste into urea and ensuring any good stuff (proteins and amino acids) that have been missed so far are captured. They also act with the lungs to keep the bodies PH balanced and stable by managing the bicarbonate and hydrogen levels in the blood, acting as a Blood pressure management system, controlling urine concentration as well as salt, excreting hormones that trigger the production of red blood cells as well as Calcitriol (Activated vitamin D) which controls calcium and phosphorous absorption and renin which controls potassium and salt absorption as well as being critical to managing blood pressure. 

Unfortunately these are a weak link in rats and often one of the first major organs to begin failing.  Generally the kidney function will have dropped significantly by the time you notice the symptoms.  Symptoms of kidney failure are (note not all of these occur or are obvious in all cases);

• Increased drinking, sometimes leading to very dilute urine
• Increased protein in the urine (measurable via urine dipstick, well worth keeping some in if you own bucks particularly)
• Teeth appearing translucent or paler than normal (where calcium intake is insufficient to meet increased requirement)
• Thinning fur, hairs appearing more sparse or softer / thinner
• Loss of weight and body tone on the same diet
• Reduction in the amount they eat, or disliking foods, linked with nausea

If your rat is exhibiting these symptoms make sure that you take them to the vet to be tested as medication that can help is available (typically a diuretic).  Dietary support is also incredibly valuable both in delaying the onset of kidney failure and supporting it once it is there.

Specific Dietary Assistance – Kidney Failure

In addition to the protection diet listed here;

• Ipaktine or another phosphate binder such as calcium carbonate (found in many indigestion tablets) can help reduce the amount of phosphorous getting through to the kidneys.  Ipaktine also contains an anti-nausea medicine which makes it the more effective of the two.  You can get Ipaktine from online pharmacies without a prescription, though it is worth telling your vet you are planning to use it as it may impact other treatments.
• Rubinol can be added to wet mix regularly (a few times a week), this is a rhubarb extract and often has good results for rats with kidney issues. It is a herbal supplement sold in several online pet stores and pharmacies.
• Oils high in omega 3 such as linseed and mixed omega oils have been shown to significantly improve a rat with kidney failure.  Feeding a small amount daily on a piece of bread or in a wet meal can help a lot
• Keep a close eye on their weight, kidney failure often leads to a rat beginning to drop weight rapidly, if so begin introducing wet meals to support them and help them maintain a healthy weight.  In the later stages a rat may be fully reliant of wet meals, but as long as they are happy this isn’t an issue.  Of course too much weight can put extra load on the organs so don’t start adding in extra meals until they need them.
• When relying on regular wet meals change the flavours regularly, rats with kidney failure can often feel nauseous, it is normal for them to associate this with whatever they have just eaten (a survival trait from the wild) and so they can go off foods regularly, by alternating flavours you encourage them to keep eating and help prevent them going off certain foods.
• Dandelion leaf can act as a diuretic, use with vetinary consultation if your rat is on medicinal diuretic, but may be worth adding to the diet if not.