Sneezing or breathing difficulty

Upper respiratory  tract infection/inflammation

Lower respirtatory tract infection/inflammation

Tumors

Skin problems

Nails

Who has bitten those ears ?

Pregnancy

Heart trouble

Dragging hind legs

Strokes and neurological problems

Toxicity of household plants and other edibles

**Please note that this information applies to pedigreed and unpedigreed rats**

Sneezing or breathing difficulty

Rats are prone to problems with both their upper and lower respiratory tracts because of a bacteria called Mycoplasma pulmonis that is found in pedigreed and unpedigreed rats.

Symptoms vary from case to case (depending on where the infection is localised).The most common symptoms by location are :

Upper respiratory tract

May be no noticeable signs except for a red excretion around the eyes and/or nostrils (Porphyrin).  May be signs of sneezing and the sound of a blocked nose.

Lower respirtatory tract

This means that the bacteria has moved towards the lungs.    The condition has reached critical and must be monitored thoroughly for rapid worsening.  Rats have a much faster metabolic rate than ours and so the disease can spread quickly.  Symptoms include “bedraggled” looking fur, a hunched back and weight loss.  Breathing at this stage of the disease becomes visibly laboured.

At this stage of the disease, antibiotics must be administered or you will run the risk of the death of your rattie.

For more in-depth information on Myco and a guide for medications to use see www.ratguide.com or for local homeopathic remedies see www.ecovet.co.za

BREATHING DIFFICULTY SUMMARY

Always ensure that you are not using a sawdust product containing pine and/or cedar as these products cause severe problems with rat’s breathing and are basically toxic to rats.   Bedding and litter should be changed at least once every seven days so that the smell of ammonia cannot agitate the rat’s throat.  Cobtech amaizing bio pet bedding or Cobtech amaizing bio cat litter is free of toxins and dust and is readily available at your local supermarket or pet shop.  These products both reduce the smell of ammonia and the Cobtech amaizing bio cat litter is a super absorbent product if you have many rats.

Tumors

Tumors occur most frequently in female rats around the area of their mammary glands.  These tumors are normally benign however, they grow rapidly and so should be removed by a suitably qualified vet via surgery before they start to encroach on internal organs.  Anaaesthetic in rats is a very specialised field so make sure that your vet is aware of the risks involved in anaesthetising a rattie.  The recommended anaesthetic agent is Isoflurane that is a bit more expensive bt it is safer for the rat.

Skin problems

An itchy rat can mean that your rattie may have picked up fleas.  Do not use dog/cat insecticides on your rattie as these are in all likelyhood unsuitable for the physiology of the rat and may therefore cause them illness or even death.   Rather bath your rattie in a mild tea-tree shampoo and then comb the hair through.  If the rattie’s skin is broken from scratching you might want to apply some bio-sil colloidal silver get to soothe and aid healing.  Try not to apply toxic substances to the wounds as the rattie will almost certainly lick the substance off.  Non-toxic herbal solutions are recommended.

Your rat may be itchy because of something in his/her diet.  A balanced diet should ensure a healthy coat (see diet compliments of Paula).   Rats are not strictly meat eaters (as some people would have you believe).  Too much protein can cause skin irritation (meat and dairy).  Be careful of dried corn food products as they sometimes contain mould spores.

Nails

Rat’s nails can become very long and sharp after some time.  If you decide to cut your rat’s nails, be sure just to nip the very end of the nail off (not too much or you will cut into the quick).

Sometimes, it can happen that your rat’s nail gets caught sometwhere and gets pulled out.  Don’t panic, it will bleed a lot but try and keep some Lennon’s Staaldruppels or cayenne pepper handy to stop the bleeding.

Sarcotopes (who has bitten those ears ?)

Sometimes (particularly in pet shops) you will see rats with what looks like bite marks around the outside of the ear (the ears look shredded) and in severe infestations, a type of horn forms on the nose..  No, it’s not that “the rats have bitten each other”  The truth is that they are infected with a mite called murine sarcotopes  These mites can easily be cleared up with an application or two of Ivermectin that most vets can apply.  Do not allow any vet to put a dog or cat insecticide like Frontline on your rat as this can be fatal.  The mites are not contagious to humans.  Contact us to find out more information.  See pictures of mite infestation below :





Note how the ears look "bitten"


Mites can affect the whole body's skin


Note that the mites can even spread to the tail
Special thanks to San-Mari and her boys for allowing us to use these pictures :)

Pregnancy

Rats become fertile at a very young age (see life cycle table under general information) .  Unfortunately, pet shop owners continue to keep male and female rats together (because they are viewed as a cheap source of “exotic” pet food).  Sometimes, one might buy a rat from a pet shop as a pet and then she turns out to be pregnant.  Don’t panic – if you can’t keep the babies, we’ll help you find rat-loving homes for them.

Even very young female rats make very competent mothers and very little intervention is required from you.  Just in case there are problems with the birthing, it is highly recommended that you have the number of a rat-friendly vet handy.  Generally, rats are pregnant for 21 days.  

Heart trouble

Sometimes what may seem like a Mycoplasm infection could be an indication of chronic heart failure (like rattling breathing and/or shortness of breath).  If your rat has completed a course of antibiotic for mycoplasm (like Baytril and Doxycycline) and still shows signs of respiratory disease, it may be a strong indication of heart disease.  Rats with heart trouble may exhibit symptoms like weight loss, gasping for air, running around and hanging over things to make it easier to breathe. They normally also not want to be held or to stay in one place (they may seem to be panicing).  These symptoms may sometimes be mistaken for choking.

A qualified veterinarian should be able to recommend a treatment regime (which will give your rat quality of life). Changes to the rat's environment to facilitate less stress on the heart may need to be considered (like building ramps instead of ladders for example)

Dragging hind legs

Spinal nerve root degeneration is most commonly found in older rats. The hind legs get progressively weaker until the rat effectively ends up with dragging of the hind legs.  If you should notice any sort of weakness in your older rat’s hind legs, you can ask your vet to recommend a vitamin B liquid which will slow the progression of disability.  The vet should ensure that the rat is getting a dose of 6 mcg of B12 once a day or once every other day

If however your rat is not very old and has suddenly lost the use of his or her hind legs, he or she has probably sustained an injury through being dropped or has experienced a stroke.  


Toxicity of household plants and items

By their very nature, rats will be drawn to your indoor plants and other interesting things if they have free roam of your house.  Be especially careful to keep all medications out of your rat's reach.  Even animal medicines can be poisonous to your rat.  For a list of hazardous plants and other potentally hazardous edibles refer to the HAZARD list

Some of the symptoms of possible poisoning are :

Shortness of breath, wheezing chest, difficulty breathing
Very fast or very slow heartbeat
Depression
Trembling or shivering
Anorexia (rapid weight loss)
Diarrhoea
Staggering, muscular twitching or spasms
Excessive drooling (salivation)
Reduced or excessive urinaation
Blood in urine or faeces
These symptoms should be treated as critical and you rat should immediately be seen by a veterinarian.

Strokes and neurological problems

Strokes most frequently occur in the older rat (18 months +).  There are several other conditions that may lead you to believe that your rat has had a stroke so it is important to recognise whether he/she became paralysed quickly or over a period of time.  If the paralysis occurred quickly, it is likely that the rat has suffered a stroke (or has been dropped or squashed).  Signs may include, paralysis (unable to use hand or hands or hind legs), ataxia (loss of co-ordination or staggering) and head tilt (head tilted to one side), although head tilt can be the symptom of an inner ear infection if no other symptoms are seen..

© 2006-2008 K.J. Price