The Pet Rats Glossary
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- Megan_groce_
- Tekkdavi
- QuartzNH
- jillian_eaton
- Nishthacailin
- Cheetah88
- Cheetah88
- Spoons70
- 2ColorPurples
- 2ColorPurples
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» Megan_groce_ - Possible sick young female rat
Hi Karen, I am very concerned about the female rat we got 3 days ago. She has been sneezing ever since we got her. I'm not sure of her age but she is young. (small) I thought this was a normal noise that rats make but everything I have read says its not. It sneezes about every 15 seconds. At least it sounds like a sneeze to me. It appears to have a runny nose but eyes look fine.It is eating and drinking and is active. This sneezing really concerns me after everything I have read. I have changed her bedding to Aspen. I have put Vitasol (vitamins) in her drinking water. The pet store said to put a heating pad on a low setting under a portion of her cage. Also I have bought a Hamster and Gerbil Antibiotic drinking solution-active ingredient Sulfadimethoxine 33.5mg jper fluid ounce. I have not used this and won't until I hear from you. I very concerned. Should we be handling her. Or just letting her rest. She does'nt act sick aside from the sneezing and slight runny nose. She seem s to be a little jumpy and jerky with her motions but that may be normal. Can you give me some advice please? Should I take her back and get a rat that is not sneezing or can this one be helped? Everything I read sounds like she is doomed. What kind of things can I do? Thanks Stacy-- posted by Megan_groce_
» Tekkdavi - Probably myco...
Hi Stacy,It's possible your girl has an allergy to something (perfume, cleaning solution, detergent, etc.), but it's much more likely that she has myco. Unfortunately myco is very common in the pet rat population, but she's not doomed, really. Her lung function will never be normal, but she should live a normal, happy life. If she seems energetic and active (jumpy and jerky are normal for young rats!), it's okay to play with her, etc. However, it would be a good idea to have her checked out by a vet -- generic antibiotics aren't that good at beating back myco, but in the meantime, you can give them a try to see if they help any.
Myco flare-ups are best treated with antibiotics. To prevent flare-ups, try using something to support her immune system, like echinacea. Children's fruit-flavored liquid is best -- use 1-2 drops/oz in her water bottle, four days on four days off. Increase it to 3-4 drops/oz when she shows symptoms. Here are some really good sites on myco and echinacea:
http://hometown.aol.com/MMCart3475/Myco....
http://www.rmca.org/Articles/myco.htm
http://www.rmca.org/Articles/herbal.htm
Good luck,
-- posted by Tekkdavi
» QuartzNH - Sneezing
I don't know if this helps at all or not..but all of the rats that I've gotten have all sneezed the first few days I got them. My guess that they aren't used to the new enviorment..they have to take time to get used to the air. I never wore purfume or anything like that..and they are usually fine with in a few days.Erica
<3((()))~
-- posted by QuartzNH
» jillian_eaton - Help!! My rat is sick!!
Hi,I got a tame rat from a local pet store, and about seven months later he seems deathly ill! First, he got little pimple-like scabs all over his back and shoulders, though these didn't seem to affect him very much. Then, about a month after, he started bleeding out of his eyes (primarily the left one) and a little bit out of his nose. Finally, (this is the stage he is in now), he seems to be paralyzed on his left side and can't walk very well without rolling over and being unable to get back up!! I am VERY worried as I love my rat very much. Is there anything I can do for him? Or would it be better just to put him down?
-jillian
(e-mail me at jillian_eaton@hotmail.com
-- posted by jillian_eaton
» Nishthacailin - Re: Help!! My rat is sick!!
In response to message posted by jillian_eaton:Jillian,
I have owned many pets since I was a kid and I hate to break it to you but bleeding from body cavities is never a good sign, especially the eyes. In addition, paralysis usually indicates a malfunction in the brain. It's possible your rat has an aneurism. I'm no vet so if you want a professional opinion you should consult a DVM but personally I think it would be a waste of time and money to be told that your rat cannot be saved. If it were me, I'd make sure he was comfortable, had food and water and let nature take it's course. He may recover if given some time and space but he may also be on his way to the big running wheel in the sky.
-- posted by Nishthacailin
Hope your rattie gets better!!!
» Spoons70 - Does anyone know what's happening?
Hi everyone,I've had my 1st rat (Dirty) for about a year now and everything has been great, until now.
I noticed the other day, he was cleaning himself and fell over, I thought it was funny and made a joke about it, unfortunately he has done it about a dozen times since.
Then I noticed a red substance around his eyes, blood, I'm not sure, but obviously not good.
Also his food bowl isn't going down at all and there is no mess on the bottom of the cage (saves me cleaning the cage I guess) but I'd rather be doing that than losing my Little Dirty Rat. He is getting very thin, so it's obvious he's not eating. I gave him a crushed water soaked Weetbix and he scoffed it down, but not his regular Rat Food.
Also his stools are runny and he can't even clean himself (I've been doing it for him. The things we do!)
I think he's dying, can anyone shed some light on this, is it a common illness in rats?
I can't get to the vets till the weekend, I just hope he makes it until then.
Thanks heaps for taking the time to read all of this, sorry if I've gone on abit. I just don't want to lose him.
Paul
-- posted by Spoons70
» 2ColorPurples - My Rat Seems Sick, Please Help
Hello,I have a 2 month old rat who's been sneezing frequently since I got her. I took her to the vet right away to make sure everything was okay and the vet put her on some antibiotics just in case. Well she's been on the antibiotics for 7 days now and she's still sneezing. Today she has also been making a wheezing/squeaking sound when she breathes. She's eating and drinking fine and seems to be pretty active but I'm still worried. Does anyone know what this might be or what I can do for her? Any feedback would be appreciated. Thank You.
Melyssa
-- posted by 2ColorPurples
» 2ColorPurples - Re: Does anyone know what's happening?
In response to message posted by Spoons70:Hi Paul,
That sounds just like what my last rat Buttercup had. She had all the sympstoms that you are describing and couldn't walk because of slight paralysis. We took her to the vet and the vet said that she had severe pneumonia probably brought on by stress and active myco. He put her on Batryl (a common antibiotic) and told us to feed her baby food through a syringe. Preferably a meat kind of baby food. Unfortunately, though we did all these things Buttercup died two weeks later. My advice would be to take Dirty to a vet (preferably an exotics specialist) as soon as you possibly can. Active myco comes on really fast and can kill within a matter of hours. Hope this helped and I hope Dirty feels better soon. :o)
Melyssa
-- posted by 2ColorPurples
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