Just wanted to post a little update on the thread I started about what I thought were some kind of hairless soft furred rats, the original post is here: http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=68455
I watched these rats pretty closely and really didn't see a lot of overgrooming or sickly behavior, but instead I noticed that their fur seemed to fill in more and more as the days went by. For a while the hair was shorter than normal but the same density as all the others. Then I went out of town for 4 days and when I got back I couldn't tell them apart from their siblings that had normal fur the whole time. I did not use any medications to treat them, I didn't separate them, I didn't do anything differently with them. I would take some after photos, but I don't know which are which anymore... haha, sorry!
It could have been something beyond my understanding or it could also have been demodectic mange like Becky suggested.
By the way Becky, I looked in the veterinary exotic formulary book for ivermectin treatment of demodectic mange in rats. You can use it as a topical and apply it behind the ear at 0.4mg/kg every 5 to 7 days.