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Oct 15, 2019 12:31
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| # ¿ Apr 20, 2024 04:22 |
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Had to have another one put to sleep today. One rat remaining, of the original four.
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Oct 25, 2019 17:43
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My rat wound up on the floor last night. Not sure whether deliberate or accidental, I guess we'll find out if he does it again, but my Little Monster trap worked! I used to drink a lot of Monster energy drinks so I've been using the boxes they came in as disposable rat houses for some time. After some early accidental falls and the difficulty of getting them out from behind wherever they'd hidden, I took one of these boxes and left it on the floor in a discreet but accessible location. When I couldn't find him in the cage this morning I checked the box, and yep, there he was. Just picked up the box with him in it, put him back in the cage, and put the box back. Much easier.
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Nov 2, 2019 15:19
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I've only had one go through surgery but they used internal sutures to reduce the risk of it. Apparently they use x ray film to make cones if necessary, but it's not ideal. Another option people apparently do is snug bandage wraps, but they're all fabric chewers and wriggle kings so it's always going to be a struggle.
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Nov 9, 2019 09:07
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Jack Trades posted:
Since the death of 3 out of 4 of my rats I've been working hard to bond more with the remaining one who doesn't trust me much. Today was the first time he chose to nap on my hand. For 5 hours.
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Dec 9, 2019 19:54
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ThreeStep posted:4 weeks. The amount of time I handle them everyday has been inconsistent though. Some days work has me dead and all I have time for is a few minutes. Working on that though. I was perhaps too hands off with my boys, but I would suggest not pushing their boundaries too hard too fast. Just gently ramping things up as they get comfortable with where they are with you already.
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Dec 15, 2019 19:04
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Jack Trades posted:One of my rats has some mystery sickness that I can't figure out. How's the humidity in their room? You've had rats before, right? So I'm assuming you've got your bedding and hygiene routines sorted already. I've definitely had rats who've had ongoing myco nonsense for months/years.
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Dec 19, 2019 15:10
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Jack Trades posted:Yeah I did have rats before. I just never seen them be so sneezy. Fair enough. Check out your humidity levels, anything under 50%RH I've found messes with the sinuses of my fellas, and the winter can be particularly bad for it.
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Dec 19, 2019 15:35
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Jack Trades posted:You might be right. I didn't even think about low humidity but the room they were in was definitely too dry. I don't want to sub in for an actual exotic vet but if that doesn't work you can also nebulise them with saline/F10 solution which apparently helps their sinuses and kills bugs without antibiotics, respectively. If that doesn't work then Doxycycline orally, if that doesn't work then ciprofloxacin orally, if that doesn't work then combine all of the above. At least, that's the process we went through with some of my chronic myco boys. Have they been producing much porphyrin?
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Dec 22, 2019 00:14
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Good news: rat is off antibiotics now Bad news: new growth in his armpit OK news: probably not a recurrence of his previous malignant tumour, probably a benign mammary thing Will monitor and intervene if necessary.
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Dec 23, 2019 12:12
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biker rats from mars
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Dec 23, 2019 21:08
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The ongoing bonding with my last rat is going well, I'm happy  Animal-Mother posted:What's most worrisome is that she appears confused. Lost. She hardly reacts to her sister or the young ones. I'm sorry to hear that  Has she been doing anything like walking in circles?
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Jan 2, 2020 23:10
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Well that's a blessing at least. My lot couldn't resist carrot-based baby foods if that's on the menu for you.
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Jan 3, 2020 00:55
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Having rats has been good exposure therapy for one of the electricians. One of his big fears is unexpectedly finding rats while up in an attic somewhere, so it was nice for him to be able to see one in a controlled environment.
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Jan 5, 2020 11:57
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Jack Trades posted:"they're very cute but I don't like their tail." Which seems to be a very common opinion, I've noticed. That's my mother's stance, yes.
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Jan 5, 2020 16:29
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Same, even with UK branded ones.
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Jan 6, 2020 14:38
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What's the cage smell like? Any ammonia?
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Jan 10, 2020 16:31
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Jan 10, 2020 17:42
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Ratthew is out of surgery and apparently recovering well. Hopefully he doesn't aspirate and give himself a life-threatening chest infection this time.ThreeStep posted:Good news: the rats are comfortable enough that they'll crawl into my hoodie and hang out. One of them will find a sleeve, crawl through and come back like it's some kind of ride. Mine used to do that with my pant legs when I had my feet up on the table
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Jan 13, 2020 15:29
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snoo posted:our wonderful vet was able to see finky this morning and took some samples, and she thinks it's vaginitis. so we got her on yucky baytril AND metacam "this [metacam] is honey flavoured so there'll be no trouble getting him to take it", says the vet nurse "I see you've not tried with this rat", thought I.
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Jan 13, 2020 19:58
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the poor rat hates me so much right now
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Chin Strap posted:Yeah you learn quick that the trick is they only really have front teeth to guard their mouth so you sneak in from the side of the mouth. I don't know how universal this is, but when I have to give meds directly (rare because usually I can hide it in carrot baby food), I hold the syringe in front of his face for long enough and he'll eventually bite it, at which point push that plunger. snoo posted:
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Jan 15, 2020 16:04
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Ratthew has recovered well from his surgery and is back to his normal self.
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Jan 26, 2020 01:14
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I think my boy's on his way out. Quite laboured breathing and not really moving around much. Still eating and drinking but not super reactive. This is just old age, right? He's just over 2 years old and already on antibiotics.
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Feb 2, 2020 22:28
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Jaded Burnout posted:I think my boy's on his way out. Quite laboured breathing and not really moving around much. Still eating and drinking but not super reactive. Unfortunately despite being rushed to the vet for a few hours, we had to put him to sleep. Thus concludes my 2 year adventure with rats. It was lovely, but, as we all know, too short.
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Feb 3, 2020 19:11
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ThreeStep posted:Any recommendations for a carrier for 2 rats? I have this and when I wasn't looking they chewed a decent-sized hole in the mesh. I was thinking the Living World Hagen carrier, but even the large seems a little small? I had plenty of luck with buying a small hamster cage and a velcro strap
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Mar 26, 2020 18:18
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redcheval posted:I need a gut check on what to do about one of my rats The mucus / gagging is how they vomit. They can't vomit like we do, so if they can't swallow something they do that. It's very distressing for them and us but all you can really do is wait. Given she won't eat much, is getting stuff stuck, and is losing weight, sure sounds like some kind of issue with swallowing or similar, but that's about as far as I'd be willing to speculate.
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Mar 26, 2020 18:23
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thehoodie posted:We got these two babies because we had to put down one of our other rats and the remaining one needed company. Adorbs. God I miss my rats.
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Mar 30, 2020 21:29
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I think if I got new ones I'd need to 1. Rethink their housing so it's easier to clean, more modular, and more portable 2. Work from the start to make them more travel friendly, at least around the house, while still keeping their attachment to a home base so escape isn't a concern 3. Stagger their purchase so they don't all reach end of life at the same time, and basically assume I'll be taking on new ones forever 4. Put aside ~£1000/rat for end of life heathcare 5. Find a couple of reliable pet sitters who can stop by when I'm away, and/or some solution for automatic food/water/toilet refills
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Mar 30, 2020 21:51
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Falstaff posted:It's world rat day today! And I am still, sadly, ratless... I miss my little goofballs a lot in these days of self-isolation. Yeah. I'm strongly considering putting some plans in place for new critters.
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Apr 4, 2020 21:49
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Chin Strap posted:God I couldn't trust my girls like that. I feel like they'd just bolt. And we've socialized them pretty well. Part of my thinking for any future rats is to have part of their home portable, so when they're taken to a new environment they still have their safe place to run to, rather than running randomly. I left the cage doors open for mine for a year and never had a problem, because why would they leave their home?
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Apr 7, 2020 16:42
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If you're worried about them peeing on it, perhaps something with removable covers that you can throw in the wash.
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May 1, 2020 10:22
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As long as they're not actually eating it
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May 9, 2020 06:12
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ThreeStep posted:Don't think they're swallowing any of it, but I've been keeping an eye just in case. Just didn't think their teeth were that sharp but every time I think that they find a new way to surprise me. Yeah they take a real liking to anything rubberised.
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May 9, 2020 19:31
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snoo posted:I just wondered if not being spayed might contribute to hormonal stuff or being in heat (making that area uncomfortable for her). is she drawing blood? No more help from me, I'm afraid. Similar experiences to yours, but all boys. They were particularly sensitive to being touched further down their back, though.
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May 19, 2020 08:52
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phasmid posted:Hello again, Rat Crew. That's great to hear 
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Jun 4, 2020 10:24
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ThreeStep posted:One of my girls just ruined a second set of speakers then aggressively groomed my hand. Nice try but I'm still mad. Yeah I moved mine under the desk. They love chomping at the diaphragms.
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Jul 19, 2020 08:18
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One of my guys had pretty bad skin basically his entire life, and there didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason for it. Vet said it wasn't mites, and his 3 brothers were fine. I did give him a bath which helped for a while, I think he was having a build up of buck grease (his skin was yellow, but not jaundiced) which is I guess unlikely for female rats.
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Aug 28, 2020 00:29
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I'm so glad
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Sep 13, 2020 21:58
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I still miss my rats most every day.
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Oct 8, 2020 19:18
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| # ¿ Apr 20, 2024 04:22 |
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Very Good
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Oct 8, 2020 20:21
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