What if you were trying to introduce two new ratties to your existing mischief and two of them got into a horrendous fight leaving one of them with a nasty bite to the tail? Or what if one of your little ones began to wheeze uncontrollably? Or what if one of your ratties ends up getting its foot caught resulting in a ripped off toe nail? If these types of emergencies reared their ugly heads, would you be prepared to care for your ratties at home.
I have learned over the years of being owned by rats that it is VERY IMPORTANT to keep a Rattie First Aid Kit stocked in your home at all times. Most of the items that should be included can be purchased at a local pharmacy, grocery store, pet store, or health food store; other items you will need to get from your vet.
"So what should be included?" you ask. (I will break the list into things you can purchase from a pharmacy,grocery store, pet store, health food store, and vet.)
Before you can begin to purchase all the items for your first aid kit, you need somewhere to store it all. I prefer to keep it all in a small cabinet in my rat room so it is easily accessible. You can also keep it in a plastic type storage container, but no matter how you choose to store it, it should ALWAYS be readily available to you in case the need to use something from it arises!
| Nolvosan | Wound Cleaning (for you or rattie) / General cleaning |
| Vet Wrap | "Casts" / Cover surgery/ wound sites |
| Lactated Ringers Solution | Hydration |
| Sterile Saline | Cleaning / Flushing wounds |
| Baytril | Antibiotic |
| Dexamthasone | Anti-inflammatory |
| Lasix* | Diuretic |
| Aminophyline | Bronchodilator |
| Albuterol | Bronchodilator |
| Cefadroxil | Antibiotic |
| Doxycycline | Antibiotic |
| Zithromax | Antibiotic |
| Activated Charcoal | Poisoning |
| Baby Aspirin | Pain relief / Swelling |
| Bag Balm | Salve for scratches and cuts |
| Children's Benadryl | Allergy relief / Helps relieve problem breathing |
| Betadine | Cleaning out wounds / scratches |
| Q-Tips | Cleaning out wounds / hard to reach places |
| Epsom Salt | Swelling / Anti-itch |
| First Aid Tape | To hold on rattie bandages |
| Gauze | To make rattie bandages / Cover wounds / Stop bleeding |
| Hydrogen Peroxide | Cleaning wounds |
| Children's Nail Clippers | Cut long or broken toe nails |
| Skin Glue | Close up large wounds that do not need stitches |
| Scissors | Cut off bandages |
| Tweezers | Remove foreign objects from rat |
| Anti-biotic Ointment | Infected wounds |
| Syringes of various sizes | To administer medicines / Flush out wounds / ears / eyes |
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