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Stdeviation posted:Hi, Here's all information you could want on treating the most common type of respiratory infection in rats. https://ratguide.com/health/bacteria/mycoplasma_mycoplasmosis.php Written mostly for other vets and compiled from various research papers. Very useful website. Does your vet have prior expertise in dealing with rats? Because what you're describing sounds bad but definitely treatable and I highly suggest just following the treatment directions. In my experience URI symptoms in rats clear up within a week, if not a couple of days, when treated with a correct dosage of Baytril + Doxycycline. Good luck with your rattos.
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Sep 19, 2021 09:40
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The trick to URI is finding the correct dosage. I've had to go through a lot of trial and error to get to that point in the past, though only in a couple cases did I feel the symptoms were severe enough that it was cruel to continue trying to get the symptoms under control (severely inactive, eating very little, labored and difficult breathing, etc.)
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Sep 19, 2021 11:20
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recently welcomed two rats into my home. please enjoy this blurry and out of focus pic of peppermint and chamomile
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Sep 19, 2021 16:11
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Jack Trades posted:Here's all information you could want on treating the most common type of respiratory infection in rats. I agree with Jack. Myco is a bitch to treat, but if you feel that the rats currently have an adequate quality of life, it can be treated. Find a vet that specializes in small animals or exotics and plan an aggressive treatment procedure, and give it a couple of months. If the rats don't show any improvement, then reassess whether euthanasia might be appropriate. Years ago, one of my favorite rats suffered a severe bout of myco, but intramuscular baytril along with doxy and a nebulizer for 4-6 weeks got her through. She needed hand-feeding of baby food and Ensure and a lot of care including daily injections, but she recovered to maybe 80% of her former stamina. We kept her on a maintenance dose of baytril with a daily B vitamin complex injection, and she had a pretty full life afterwards. However, I will say it wasn't cheap, but I was fortunate to have enough spare income at the time to devote to her care. It can be a tough decision when vet bills start mounting up though. Good luck to you and your rats. Pics would be appreciated!
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Sep 20, 2021 23:14
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yeah actually they will posted:recently welcomed two rats into my home. please enjoy this blurry and out of focus pic of peppermint and chamomile 
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Sep 21, 2021 05:40
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Hey guys, thanks for the words of encouragement and information. The rats are in alot better shape today, so vet asked to see them again in another month. She didn't recommend using Doxycycline because she felt it was more hassle than worth. She said something about not being commonly used in Denmark in treatment of rats. Hope to one day post some pictures of the rats - they're totes adorbs. How do you do it again? Haven't really posted on SA even though I've been lurking alot longer than my reg date  So a funny story to share about Thanquol, the adventurous one. He stood on my brothers feet last week and he was like, wtf does he want? So I told him Thanquol probably wanted to be held, and so my bro does and then puts Thanquol down and walks to the kitchen. Thanquol, sniffs the air and looks around, then goes and follows my brother to the kitchen and stands on his feet again 
Stdeviation fucked around with this message at 14:52 on Sep 21, 2021 |
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Sep 21, 2021 14:49
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Stdeviation posted:She didn't recommend using Doxycycline because she felt it was more hassle than worth. She said something about not being commonly used in Denmark in treatment of rats. That is really strange, I reckon the vet in question doesn't have any rat experience because afaik Doxycycline is the go to treatment for Mycoplasma Pulmonis, the bacteria that all rats carry in them throughout their lives, which causes most of the URIs. You should mention that next time probably. Stdeviation posted:So a funny story to share about Thanquol, the adventurous one. He stood on my brothers feet last week and he was like, wtf does he want? So I told him Thanquol probably wanted to be held, and so my bro does and then puts Thanquol down and walks to the kitchen. Thanquol, sniffs the air and looks around, then goes and follows my brother to the kitchen and stands on his feet again That's cute. One of my boys used to pull on my pant leg when he wanted to be carried around. Jack Trades fucked around with this message at 16:52 on Sep 21, 2021 |
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Sep 21, 2021 14:55
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Yeah Doxy is like step 0 for rat URI.
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Sep 21, 2021 16:29
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Ok lets give it the old college try Thanquols greatest shots    Shadow shares the limelight   And all three, with boneripper finally making an appearence  Edit: bonus pic of boneripper eating  Stdeviation fucked around with this message at 20:34 on Sep 21, 2021 |
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Sep 21, 2021 20:26
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Very cute babies. I have that same cage. It's very good volume for money value but is a total bitch to clean.
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Sep 21, 2021 20:33
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Is that a roan rat I see? Very jealous, they're impossible to find around here.
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Sep 22, 2021 12:58
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https://i.imgur.com/b7YwjWP.gifv
ShiroTheSniper fucked around with this message at 14:22 on Sep 22, 2021 |
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Sep 22, 2021 14:18
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What a goober 
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Sep 22, 2021 14:35
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Sep 22, 2021 18:48
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They expect yogurt for breakfast these days. They both have small tumors again. Doc can't see them until early November. Hope they don't grow! 
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Sep 23, 2021 23:15
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Litter tray training day 1. They immediately flipped over the litter tray and then pooped in the space where it was. Not great for me but I have to respect the bit
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Oct 6, 2021 13:40
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yeah actually they will posted:Litter tray training day 1. They immediately flipped over the litter tray and then pooped in the space where it was. Not great for me but I have to respect the bit My lot used to do this by accident from standing on the edge, so I got either plastic ones that clipped in, or cut up cardboard boxes where one of the lips could be tucked between the bars.
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Oct 6, 2021 13:53
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Oct 6, 2021 13:55
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aww
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Oct 6, 2021 13:57
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Two boys on the left became best friends. Milk, the one on the bottom is old and slow grandpa while Captain, the one on the top, is a shy adopted rescue that got bullied before. They cuddle together a lot now.
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Oct 6, 2021 15:05
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Jaded Burnout posted:My lot used to do this by accident from standing on the edge, so I got either plastic ones that clipped in, or cut up cardboard boxes where one of the lips could be tucked between the bars. Same, and the clip-on litter tray was the solution for me.
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Oct 6, 2021 15:29
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Falstaff posted:Same, and the clip-on litter tray was the solution for me. I used both at the same time, because while the plastic ones were alright to clean and worked well, they were expensive and large, so the cardboard boxes I used in other corners so there was good coverage of shittin' spots, and they could just be binned after a week of use.
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Oct 6, 2021 16:04
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Ghost's health has deteriorated pretty sharply in the last couple weeks. Doc says it's probably not just from the tumor. Infection, possibly. To quote Mr. Starbuck on the fate of Queequeg, "I have seen this before, lad. One day, they know they're going to die. They give away all their possessions, they say their goodbyes... and then they just die." We've got her on Sulfa and Meloxicam. 
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Oct 20, 2021 00:25
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Ghost Bear has gone on to the great cage in the sky. Her health deteriorated very rapidly just in the last few days. Wouldn't eat, could barely walk, trouble breathing, distended belly. The vet could tell right away that it was time to pay the boatman and cross the river. She was the sweetest of our rats. She was about two years and a month old. Only her sister remains. I don't think I can handle getting her some little buddies. Maybe I'll get a dog, they live for a good while. Rest in peace, Ghosteño. 
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Oct 22, 2021 02:01
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I'm sorry to hear that. I'm glad she had a good life. I've not had the heart to get more either. Hope you're doing OK.
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Oct 22, 2021 09:43
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Yeah, sometimes you just need a break from the emotional roller-coaster that is being a rat owner. For some, that break becomes indefinite in duration.
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Oct 22, 2021 11:18
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I’m sorry. I like your setup in the photo to honor your girl. I’m in the same situation, had to take one of ours in on Monday and I’m still devastated and feeling so guilty even though it was the right time. They go so quickly and there’s no time to prepare emotionally. They’re amazing pets but I don’t think I can handle having them again.
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Oct 22, 2021 13:55
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The worst part is that Smokey is all alone now. Her older cousins passed and now her sister too. She's never slept alone in her life until now. I can tell she's still very upset. She stopped looking around for Ghost, she's accepted she's gone. I don't know if we'll get more little ones. I can't do this every year and a half. But, at the same time, I would like Smoke to have some little buddies. I don't know. Maybe we'll discuss it after her surgery.
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Oct 24, 2021 00:11
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Animal-Mother posted:The worst part is that Smokey is all alone now. Her older cousins passed and now her sister too. She's never slept alone in her life until now. I can tell she's still very upset. She stopped looking around for Ghost, she's accepted she's gone. I know its the hardest thing in the world, when you lose them. Adoption is the only way my heart could handle the loss. If you are adopting/rescuing, then any happiness you can bring in the short time you have is worth it. See if there is a rescue with rats about the same age and try an introduction after quarantine. Slidje fucked around with this message at 06:41 on Oct 24, 2021 |
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Oct 24, 2021 06:37
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If it helps (and I suspect it may not) I found the loss of the last rat far more crushing than any of the others. I pine for the loss of rats in general more than an individual.
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Oct 24, 2021 20:21
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That's why I fill every rat shaped holes in my heart with even more rats. Eventually there'll be just rat-shaped scar tissue there.
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Oct 24, 2021 22:04
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Jaded Burnout posted:I found the loss of the last rat far more crushing than any of the others. I pine for the loss of rats in general more than an individual. I think I know what you mean. The utter finality of death is probably its most powerful weapon.
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Oct 25, 2021 02:03
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Also not having other rats to transfer your affection/attention to.
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Oct 25, 2021 04:07
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Long-time rodent owner here, but contemplating rats for the first time. My wife and I have had several chinchillas over the years, mostly rescues, and lost our last one last week. RIP Chester, he was a good boy. We're not ready to commit to the lifespan of another chinchilla, so we're considering getting some rats. I was wondering how much of our chinchilla stuff we could re-use. Our main cage is the double-size Ferret Nation one; we have the third floor extension too, so it's a ton of space. The gap between the bars is just under one inch (probably about 15/16ths of an inch). Is that too large of a gap for rats? We have a second cage with smaller gaps that we could use, but I'd rather use the larger cage if we can.
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Oct 25, 2021 20:58
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I've witnessed fully grown rats squeezing through a one inch gap, they're extremely squishy. You'll definitely need a different cage.
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Oct 26, 2021 02:12
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Capn Jobe posted:We're not ready to commit to the lifespan of another chinchilla, so we're considering getting some rats. Rats live 2-3 years and believe me, it's long enough to get attached a lot to these little angels  Be prepared to have many mourning But seeing them like that? worth it:  ("Commandant du Popotin" and "Lieutenant de la Frimousse"... translated by "Commander Butt" and "Lieutenant Little Face" Edit: Try to find this kind of gaps between bars. You will be okay, even with baby rats.
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Oct 26, 2021 13:46
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Luckily my last remaining girl seems happy to be a single rat. She was getting frustrated with her cagemate in her final days, always nipping and shoving her and stealing her food. Now she gets all the treats and attention to herself. Harsh, but that’s the way of the rat.
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Oct 26, 2021 15:03
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Capn Jobe posted:Our main cage is the double-size Ferret Nation one; we have the third floor extension too, so it's a ton of space. The gap between the bars is just under one inch (probably about 15/16ths of an inch). Is that too large of a gap for rats? If you're afraid of the gaps being too large you can always wrap your cage in some chicken wire.
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Oct 26, 2021 16:36
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Hello. I was surprised to see this thread is still around. I had to very suddenly disappear from SA some years ago due to an incident involving a creepy stalking goon. But it's been a while so I'm back. Please let me know if you want me to edit anything in the FAQ. I'm pretty busy lately but will try to get to it when I can. I no longer have rats. My last group passed away around 3 years ago. I went to the dark side and got ferrets instead. I miss my rats though, they were all such great pets.
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Oct 31, 2021 05:51
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Ferrets eat rats! Boooo! And not in the fun spooky Halloween sense! Booooo! I'm just kidding, ferrets are fun pets. So, we decided to get some little friends for Smoke. Searched shelters around here. We thought, based on the info on their website, that this shelter had three babies. Turns out it's a mama and her two daughters. Some guy was cleaning out his garage and discovered them, realized they were definitely not wild rats, caught them and took them to the shelter. They don't have much rat experience, I think, because they placed them in three separate cages. They were overjoyed to be reunited. I don't know if mama is a runaway pet or an escaped feeder or what, but she's not quite acclimated to human contact. The babies are little sweethearts, but mom will need extra time before she can really interact with us or with Smoke.  All clean now, but it was a heavily bleeding mess last night. Little mama has strong jaws and sharp teeth.
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Nov 1, 2021 00:08
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