PSA: Chronic Kidney Disease

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Vocabulary

Glomeruli ~ a bunch of tiny capillaries located at the end of the kidney, responsible for filtering waste from blood

Capillaries ~ blood veins/vessels

D-limonene ~ chemical found in citrus peels and juice

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Overview

Your rats are born with a set number of glomeruli which are destroyed regularly from inflammation, scaring, etc. This is normal, as rats are born with more than they need. However, when more than 75% of the glomeruli are destroyed, we start to see something known as chronic kidney disease. The disease is, unfortunately, fatal.

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Symptoms

Lethargy

Urinary Problems

Weight Loss

Seizures

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Treatment

Currently, chronic kidney disease has no cure and is fatal. You can get medication from your vet to treat the symptoms, however. Keep your rat on a very nutritious diet, avoid foods high in fat and sugar to keep them from becoming obese.

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Prevention

Avoid giving your rat excessive protein, especially when they're over 6 months old and not pregnant. A healthy diet, preventing obesity, will also prevent kidney disease. Avoid feeding cirtis fruits (or juice) to male rats. This is because the chemical d-limonene binds with the proteins found in male rats kidneys which then becomes cancerous. These proteins that bind to d-limonene are not found in females, hence why they can have citrus and males can't. Sometimes the disease is hereditary and can't be prevented.

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Misconceptions

Chronic kidney disease is the third most common rat disease, right after respitory infections and tumors. Kidney disease goes by a wide variety of names including Chronic nephrosis and PGN (Progressive Glomerulonephrosis. When taking your rat to the vet, they'll have to run a urine test on your rat to diagnose them with kidney disease. Usually, they'll find an excessive amount of protein in your rats urine.

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