Educational reference only - it does not replace veterinary advice. Find your vet before you need one. Not every small-animal practice is comfortable with rats, and rat medicine has real specialisms: dosing, anaesthesia, respiratory management and soft-tissue surgery on a 400-gram animal. Ask a prospective practice: how many rats do you see a month? Do you have a vet with exotics or small-mammal experience? Do you perform rat surgery, including spays, neuters and lump removals, and what is your anaesthetic protocol? What are your out-of-hours arrangements, and are rats seen out of hours? Local rat clubs, rescues and breeders usually know exactly which practice and which named vet to ask for. That recommendation is worth more than a website. Register in advance, before there is an emergency - many practices will not see a new patient out of hours. Keep a card on the fridge with the practice number, the out-of-hours number, the address, and your rats' names, ages and weights. Keep a small fund or insurance if you can. Rat treatment is not expensive per visit compared with a dog, but respiratory cases, lumps and surgery add up across a group. Take notes to appointments: what you have seen, when it started, weights, and a video of any breathing or movement change. Rats often look fine in a consult room.