http://www.ratwaysanctuary.org/

Rat Way Sanctuary, Portland, OR (2025)

11/13/2025

Poor Zim is at the vet today for an emergency visit. We noticed last night that she was feeling a little off and reached out to the clinic for guidance. She's been treated for ongoing respiratory disease symptoms, and we figured she may have developed a resistance to her current antibiotics, but she was otherwise bright and active. This morning her breathing was labored and she's very poofy and uncomfortable, so we rushed her in.

Her emergency visit today will run $150 and they will likely want rads for another $275, plus any treatments she may need today. We were SO CLOSE to getting our medical fund back to zero, but the universe seems to be conspiring to make sure that doesn't happen. Any and all donations are SO appreciated!

✨How to help✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/12/2025

The sudden passing of Shadow last night left an open surgical slot this morning, so Chowder subbed in to get his neuter. He was a bit too spicy when meeting the other rats, and we are hoping that the snip will mellow him out a touch so he can live with other rats again.

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/12/2025

I can tell Mira is starting to feel better because after over a week of being placid and cuddly, she was more feisty and nipped me. 😆

Rafe, Ari, and Uni are off to their new home! We will miss them, but I'm so excited for their new life.

Sadly, despite positive signs for a few days, Shadow's eye got worse, and she will go in for surgery tomorrow. They will need to get new skull rads first to see what we might be in for, which run $275, plus the surgical costs. Over the last few days, all your donations have brought us back to within $200 of zero!! Shadow will cost us quite a bit tomorrow, but we are so grateful for all your assistance getting her and the others the care they need. Thank you!!

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/09/2025

Rafe, Ari, and Uni are headed off on the journey to their new adopters!

I am so excited for these sweet boys to have their very own family and get all the love and attention they deserve. But before they go, I had to get a video of Rafe's newest trick - opening the cage door all on his own. 😆

This is why the door lock on the Prevue 528 is so important!! For all the cages that are missing the original lock, we use water bottle spring clips to hold the door shut.

Best of luck on your next adventure! We will miss you boys so, so much. 🥹

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/08/2025

Sprite had her mass removal yesterday. The procedure went well, and thankfully the lump they thought might be a second mass was just an enlarged periurethral gland, so it did not need to be removed. She had a little tougher time with recovery later in the day and she had some blood seeping from the incision, but some extra vitamin k and pressure got it under control and she's feeling much better today.

Sprite's procedure came in at $855. When we started the day yesterday our medical fund was at just over -$1400. This morning, after adding Sprite's bill from last night, we are only under by $965!! Not only were we able to cover her surgical expenses, but you helped us knock a big chunk off our debt, too. We are so grateful!! We still have a ways to go, and we are still bracing for Shadow's recheck and potential surgery next week, but we are honored by all the support we have been given to help these babies get the best care imaginable.

✨How to help✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/08/2025

Since Mira's PT symptoms started, she's been my little buddy. I really didn't expect her to ever solicit attention from me, but we have been spending a lot more time together the last few days, and it's not just that she's feeling poorly and doesn't have the energy to resist, it's that she is choosing to interact and trust when it would be just as easy not to.

When we have her out with us, she will frequently return to me to tuck herself in under my arm or climb on me. She will take her meds from the spoon while I'm holding her. That is something plenty of the very social rats won't do because the excitement of being handled makes the spoon less interesting, and many of the shyer rats won't do because the handling is stressful and they don't feel secure enough.

Her condition has been really steady since starting the PT treatment. She's not 100% normal, but she is better than she was when we saw the first symptoms and isn't declining. She'll get her second dose of cabergoline tonight, and we can expect to see some changes over the next 1-2 weeks if her tumor responds.

I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who donated over the past couple days for Shadow, Sprite, and the rest of the rats. We've been operating at a deficit for a while now, and while we won't stop providing any of our residents the care they need, our ongoing ability to help as many rats as we do is because of the support you give us. I haven't tallied the donations that have come in after yesterday evening yet, but I do know that even after Sprite's mass removal, we are closer to a zero dollar balance than we have been in weeks. Thank you 💚

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/07/2025

To top off another rough week of sanctuary work, Celeste isn't doing very well. She came to us in April at only 10 months old. Her previous owner had moved her into a small tank alone over three months prior when she noticed Celeste was sick. Over those three months, they had been giving her random over the counter antibiotics. By the time she arrived at the sanctuary, she had advanced, treatment resistant respiratory disease and one of the worst lice infestations we have seen. Slowly, we got her respiratory symptoms managed, and she was doing pretty well. In early September, our vet felt she was finally in a good position to be spayed. Unfortunately, when she was sedated, her oxygenation plummeted and her breathing became irregular, so we had to change course.

Although her lungs sounded good, we took rads to see why she tolerated sedation so poorly. Sadly, she had a very enlarged heart, and she was diagnosed with heart failure. She responded well to treatment until the last few days. We are making all the adjustments to her meds that we can to keep her comfortable, but her time is short.

She's not even one and a half. It's not fair. If her respiratory infection had been treated appropriately when it started, she would likely get to live a full life. Instead, she spent a significant portion of her life isolated and sick, and the last six months recovering from it. It's so frustrating to see rats and other small animals treated as disposable and undeserving of care. They deserve much better.

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/07/2025

Poor Shadow has had a really rough couple weeks. She was first seen for cloudiness in her left eye on October 21st. At that appointment her eye was stained, but there was no sign of an injury, and they started her on antibacterial/steroid drops. Unfortunately, the eye became worse instead of better, and we were advised to switch to a different eye drop and add an oral antibiotic and pain control. She returned to the vet for an emergency appointment on Oct 24th. The vet was concerned about a possible mass behind the eye, but rads didn't find any sign of a mass or abnormalities in the bone. We were advised to continue all of her meds and warm compress the area as much as she would tolerate. Over the next few days, her third eyelid became more prominent as her eye worsened, and a small amount of pus began to drain from the corner of her eye.

On November 4th, a small scab appeared on the bridge of her nose. The vet was able to open up the wound and drain a significant amount of pus from the hole. Additionally, she could identify changes to the bone indicating the infection had progressed. They prescribed her a new antibiotic since the infection was spreading rapidly despite her meds.

After her visit on 11/4, the wound opened further, allowing even more pus to drain. Since then, the wound has started healing, and very little pus has been produced. Her third eyelid has receded quite a bit exposing more of her eye. If she continues to trend in a positive direction, she may avoid surgery; however, if her symptoms worsen again, she will likely require surgical wound cleaning and potentially enucleation. It's unclear if she will be able to regain any function in her eye, but we are so pleased to see positive changes in her condition. She has her next appointment on the 12th to assess her progress.

Continued in comments..

11/06/2025

Introducing Mira!

Mira has actually been with us for a little while, but we wanted to make sure we were adhering to all local and state laws before announcing her existence. A couple months ago, we were contacted by a professional cleaner doing a move-out clean on an apartment in Salem. She had found a small, filthy cage left behind in a bedroom containing a single rat. She reached out to us saying she found a blind rat and asked if we could take her. We agreed, sight unseen, and she drove her up to us in Portland. We were anticipating a pink eyed white rat since PEWs are so often mistaken for blind due to their swaying behavior. We were not expecting Mira.

Mira is a roof rat - rattus rattus - a separate species from domestic rats, which are descended from the brown rat, rattus norvegicus. She is also a senior with large cataracts, so she is functionally blind, although you'd never know it seeing her climb and run. Thankfully, she was otherwise in great health. She is almost certainly wild born, but she was clearly raised by humans and had been kept as a pet for likely her whole life. She was fearful at first to be in a new environment with new people, but she settled in well and has gotten much more comfortable.

Now for the bad. Last weekend she became suddenly disoriented, ataxic, and started circling to the right when she moved. Our vet had us start treatment for a pituitary tumor immediately. We were able to give her a steroid injection right away, which did help with her mentation, though she is still circling. We received her cabergoline yesterday, so she has had her first dose, and we should know in the next couple weeks if it is working. It's unfortunate that her introduction post also has to be a sad medical update, but we are happy to be able to share her with you at all.The medication for treating a PT is expensive, so this week she has amassed over $300 for her emergency exam and meds. If you would like to contribute to her care, please see below.

✨How to help✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/05/2025

Sprite is scheduled for a mass removal on FRIDAY! We found the beginning of a mammary mass on her on Sunday, and it has grown significantly in just a few short days, so we need it gone fast. Unfortunately this will send us even more into the negative, but we don't have the time to wait on this one. We ask that if you have anything to spare, please consider donating for her care. Our medical fund is already over $1400 in the hole after yesterday's five vet appointments, and we are desperate. Every tiny bit helps!

✨How to help✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

11/05/2025

Forgive me for turning November into more October, but I have some very cute Halloween pics and videos to share, like this video of the handsome Julian. He's such a beautiful little teddy bear of a rat, though he uses his teeth more than most teddy bears 🧛

We've got a lot going on with the sanctuary rats right now, and we are in desperate need of donations! You can read more about it on many of our other recent posts, but any and all donations are so appreciated!

✨We are always in need of funds✨

V3NM0:
P4yPal: [email protected]

More donation options and shop at www.ratwaysanctuary.org

Rat Way Sanctuary

11/13/2025

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