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Pet Forum / Mammals / Rats / April 2004Swollen rat!
My sister called me in a panic yesterday, telling me that one of her three female rat was all swollen! She says everything is swollen -- head, body, feet, everything except the tail! The rat is also very lethargic. I asked her what she fed her recently, and she said nothing out of the ordinary (some special rat mix they've always had as their staple diet.) The other two rats are doing well... I've looked all over the web and in my rat books, and can't find anything that refers to a rat being all swollen like that! I've owned rats all my life, and none of my rats has ever had anything close to that either. Has this ever happened to anyone, and what could be the cause? Can anything be done? :( Oh, she says her three rats also have scabs. I know she's not feeding them much high-protein food though. Don't know if this may be related to the swelling or not... Thanks in advance for any info or help.  SignatureCarole ____________ ____ ___ __ __ _ _ I would suggest a trip to the Vets. It could be an allergic reaction to an insect bite perhaps..? Good luck. Kate Signaturehttp://community.webshots.com/user/ollieogg > My sister called me in a panic yesterday, telling me that one of her > three female rat was all swollen! She says everything is swollen -- [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] > > Thanks in advance for any info or help. > I would suggest a trip to the Vets. It could be an allergic reaction > to an insect bite perhaps..? Good luck. > > Kate Has she had any houseplants or drugs nibbled? SignatureRegards, Dave dave_ryman@hotmailNOSPAM.com http://welcome.to/daves.website http://travel.to/formula.one > I've looked all over the web and in my rat books, and can't find > anything that refers to a rat being all swollen like that! I've owned [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > them much high-protein food though. Don't know if this may be related > to the swelling or not... Heya Carole, .... Trip to the vet TOMORROW if it's still not gone down. Vet will probably scratch head - as we are doing - but we can't prescribe antihistamines or steroids in case of an allergy - vet can! :-) .... 9 times out of 10, scabs are mites. Mites cause much more severe irritation than dietary scabs (notice, I don't say protein!) so sort that out first for your rat's comfort. ... So-called Protein scabs are usually mites... or in less common cases, FAT overdose. Most animals including rats can metabolise excess protein into carbohydrates, and very high protein levels don't *always* cause scabs in rats. Mites do.... and also high fat levels. Give them a mite treatment (it will not hurt and will also get rid of other parasites such as any pinworms and lice) and look into the diet later. ... many vets and experienced rat owners consider that rats might always have a few mites around. (Some rats who live isolated from other rats, have nothing but treated processed food & bedding, and whose owner/s live 50 miles from anyone else who keeps rats, still get mites?). That's not the only reasoning in the argument, though. Many rats who get laid low by infections or whose immune systems fail suddenly also get mites. They may be in a communal cage of 10+ and be the only rat to get scabs. It's not unreasonable to take on the theory that mites are around, and when struck low by strss or illness, the mites multiply and the rat's system cannot cope. Too much fat in the diet may alter the skin chemistry and also predispose towards a mite outbreak. Whatever. The cure is really to try treating for mites first with a reliable antiparasitic treatment such as Ivermectin... Only if after a full course do the scabs persist, consider dietary imbalance and/or intolerance of food and/or allergy. /End rant. Hope you might have learned something - and if you haven't, started to think beyond the boundaries :) Sue ---------------------------- pendragon fancy rats Portsmouth, England, UK www.pendragonrats.co.uk First established 1981 > > I've looked all over the web and in my rat books, and can't find > > anything that refers to a rat being all swollen like that! I've owned [quoted text clipped - 53 lines] > www.pendragonrats.co.uk > First established 1981 That makes a lot of sense. My vet has always told me that rats live with mites all the time but in times of stress will be too much for them to handle. Sue, if you have any reference link, I would appreciate it... your "rant" is something to keep on hand because it makes complete sense. SignatureJoanne Mom to 12 rats http://community.webshots.com/user/joanneb70 j-s.b@nospamsympatico.ca remove "no spam" > That makes a lot of sense. My vet has always told me that rats live with > mites all the time but in times of stress will be too much for them to > handle. Sue, if you have any reference link, I would appreciate it... your > "rant" is something to keep on hand because it makes complete sense. Unfortunately I have no links - I don't think *anyone* has ever done any tests on this. But it is a theory I have susbcribed to for a lo-o-o-ng time - as well as many other people, and many vets (like yours) believe it, too. It just makes sense, when I have read about mite flareups in rats that live alone, never have contact with other rats, are kept on paper or textile, and basically just don't contact anything that could "carry" mites. A friend's vet, who is very well clued-up about rats, includes a dose of Ivomec (Ivermectin) in his treatment of all respiratory problems in rats, believing that it's a vicious circle - rat gets ill, mites flare up, rat feels even worse.... you get the picture! I just wish I lived within reasonable distance of this particular vet... from what I know about him, he's one of the most rat-savvy vets in the UK. (He's near London, by the way). If and when I ever write my rat book (which probably won't be till my dotage!) I'd love to have him do all the vet stuff in it. Sue ---------------------------- pendragon fancy rats & rare breed rabbits Portsmouth, England, UK www.pendragonrats.co.uk > My sister called me in a panic yesterday, telling me that one of her > three female rat was all swollen! She says everything is swollen -- [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > Carole > ____________ ____ ___ __ __ _ _ Sounds like an allergic reaction to something. Your sister needs to take her rat to see the vet, if the swelling hasn't already gone down. Please keep us updated on how rattie's doing. Tracey : My sister called me in a panic yesterday, telling me that one of her : three female rat was all swollen! She says everything is swollen -- [quoted text clipped - 16 lines] : : Thanks in advance for any info or help. They could have caught something from wild rodents, take them to the vets....also if it is from wild rats it could be almost anything as they carry a lot of diseases - they are immune to most of them but your's are not. |
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