Ok, my foster mama (Pixie) who had the babies (who are now about 6 weeks) is getting a bigger belly day by day. Honestly, I'm worried. I don't feel any lumps, her stomach is *slightly* firmer than my other females, but pudgier. There's next to NO way she could have gotten pregnant. I seperated the males/females from her litter at 5 weeks and she has NOT been around ANY males since, so the chance of pregnancy is slim to none, which makes me think possibly a tumor. Is there any chance that she's just regaining weight since she finally weaned her litter or? I've attached some pictures...Oh and her real mommy is on the forum too...if you see this i'm emailing you but thought i'd ask the experience ones here.


Belly Shot


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Blurry Belly

I think i'm going to give it a few days/week and then possibly take her. I'm also going to stop feeding some of my other ones their ensurfe around her. She does run on the wheel so i'm hoping it's just post-weaning weight gain. I really don't see how she could be pregnant though since i seperated them by 5 weeks. Uggh. Her real mommy is tking her back next weekend though.

Wouldn't it have affected her before now? She appears to be about 6-8 months old.

Whats a pyometra, and I don't know that much about megacolon, only have seen pictures, and in ratguide it affected some older rats to. I don't know about it though.

My concern is Pyometra. Now to determine whether me (her foster mommy) or her real mommy will take her to the vet. Do you think it could wait a few days to see if she slims down or is it urgent as in first thing tomorrow she needs to get in?

I'm less concerned about MegaColon as from what i've read, it's fairly rare ESPECIALLY in adults...

The worry with pyometra is that if it bursts you will likely lose her very quickly.

However, I'm no expert, so I'm not certain how close she might be or how worrisome it is.  I'm sorry. 

How is her behavior and appearance, other than the big belly? Is she still very active? Does she eat normally? Or is she suddenly lethargic and has lost interest in things she would normally enjoy? Is she bright eyed? Are her eyes clean and clear? Any discharge from her eyes? Any discharge from her nose?

If she is otherwise completely healthy, no discharge, no symptoms of anything, just completely normal behavior and appearance other than a bigger belly, then I would say it is probably just weight gain. Keep in mind that if she's no longer nursing the babies, or at least not nursing as many or as often, then the resources she consumes are going to her body alone, not to milk production (as much as before) and not ultimately to the babies. Some girls also are just heavier than others. My Godiva was always a big girl. Even before she was bred she looked pregnant. Once she actually was pregnant, she looked REALLY pregnant. And after she had the babies she still looked pregnant. And even now, about a month or so after the babies are weaned, guess what? She still looks pregnant. Depending on how old Pixie is and what condition she was in originally, it's possible this might actually be her natural build and tendency, it just wasn't so obvious before when she was caring for the babies.

Now if you see any symptoms at all, besides the big belly, then there could be something more serious than just weight gain. And by any means, if you are concerned, take her to the vet. At best you'll be told she's fine. At worst you'll have caught the problem while it's still in the early stages, and hopefully be able to treat it quickly.

It is highly possible for 5 week old to make your girl prego.

My concern would be a closed pyometra, which wouldn't exhibit any outward signs other than the swollen belly...  Do you have a rat experienced vet who would be able to feel her abdomen and tell if something felt weird?  If not, an x-ray should help to determine if it's a mass (like a pus-filled uterus) or something else (like babies, although that's extremely unlikely, given that the 5 week separation only happened a few days ago, if I'm reading this correctly, and she'd not be showing a pregnancy that soon, IMO). 

The ultimate concern with even a closed pyometra is that her uterus will burst, causing the infection to spread all over her abdomen, which is, essentially, a death sentence.  And there is no way to predict if or when that would happen.  I, being the overly paranoid rat mommy that I am, especially since my experience with Seras and Pita, would get her to a vet, sooner, rather than later.  If it winds up being nothing, at least you have peace of mind, but if it winds up being a pyo, then an early visit just might save her life.

thanks everyone, just waiting to here from her mama whether she wants to take her or if she'd rather me take her my experienced vet. Uggh. She seems fine other than the swollen belly.

That behavior is what really concerns me. she does appear *smaller* today and her belly is softer. She has a vet appointment for friday. If anything changes she'll go to the e-vet though.

it very well could be that she just is putting on weight after having a bunch of babies sucking her dry, i've seen pregger moms of multiple species gain weight DRASTICALLY after their babies were weaned, or she could even be reaching an age where her metabolism slows or something...i had a girl who just magically gained density for no reaosn and she's healthy in every way...if you can afford the x-rays, i'd reccomend it to be safe, but you said she's getting smaller and if there's no change in ehr behavior, odds are she's ok