OMG!! No one told me about De-Gloving!!!

Oh my god!!! I was hysterical and had tears running down my face after it happened. I still feel queasy.... :tears:

I thought it was perfectly fine to pick rats up by the tail! :confused: One of my females is completely evil and will bite you if you even get close to her. Even if she's out of the cage running around the rat/snake room she'll come right up to you and bite your feet! :O So I've just always picked her up by the tail when I transport her during cage cleanings. Well tonight she started going crazy and spinning, I stopped her and then she started spinning and fell to the floor....but I was still holding something! It was about 2 inches of TAIL SKIN! :O My little sister was here, 13 year old, and was laughing at me for being so upset and looked up information on it. Apparently it's some sort of defense mechanism and it's called de-gloving. Oh my god. It was horrible! I was hysterical, screaming and crying. I feel so bad, it's so gross, and I still feel sick.....


Please tell me other people pick their rats up by the tail!!!

I forgot to mention that I have a weak heart :( I almost fainted the first time I feed a live rat pup to the snakes. I saw the blood heard it screaming and had to leave the room..... I know I'm pretty pathetic! I've also fainted every time I've donated blood!

...actually, you are never supposed to pick them up by the tail for that very reason. :oops: It's why I refuse to have any 'psycho' rats in my house - since you can't pick them up via the tail and if you try the normal way you get bitten. As one who got nailed on the NECK by a psycho rat as a youngster (and yes, I still loved them as pets but I was always careful to make sure they were calm) I stick to that rule like glue!

A great way I would use to move mean rats was to 'coax' them into a long box, then move them in the box to a holding tub/cage.

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Originally Posted by Argentra

...actually, you are never supposed to pick them up by the tail for that very reason. :oops: It's why I refuse to have any 'psycho' rats in my house - since you can't pick them up via the tail and if you try the normal way you get bitten. As one who got nailed on the NECK by a psycho rat as a youngster (and yes, I still loved them as pets but I was always careful to make sure they were calm) I stick to that rule like glue!

A great way I would use to move mean rats was to 'coax' them into a long box, then move them in the box to a holding tub/cage.

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Oh my goodness I can't believe that! I swear I had read that it was ok to pick them up like that! :O I would really like to get rid of her....there's no doubt about that.

(I've had rats for three years so I'm definitely not new to owning rats)

EDIT and I just went and flipped through my "PET RAT" care book and it does say it's ok to pick them up by the tail, the nape of the neck, and of course under the belly. Although I should have known better than to listen to that book because I picked up my pet rat by the neck one day and she bit me for it, not enough to draw blood but enough to tell it that hurt!

I have always heard that it is ok to pick up rats and mice by the very BASE of the tail. Never by the end of the tail or by limbs.

You could also try wearing leather gloves if you have a rat that's really keen on biting. :)

Do you have the rat being treated? If not, you may want to euthanize it. The tail now is a open wound, with exposed bones, prone to terribly infections.
Sorry it happened, there was a vet show that showed them treating a pet rat where that happened. A little boy who was told not to, did exactly what you describe. They amputated the tail, since you can't cure it without skin.

Ugh....I'm sorry. I know that had to be traumatic. I would be hysterical too. There is a picture online of a rat that somehow degloved her front foot...that gave me nightmares.

I will admit, I pick mine up my the tails when I'm in a hurry cleaning. I quickly pick them up by the base and put them in another tub less than a few inches away. I do this with the mice too. I usually put my other hand, or a random object if they are being grumpy, under their belly to support them so they feel more secure.

I had it happen once with my first male rat and I too wanted to vomit and faint. He lived to be a ripe old age (2 1/2) with a stubby tail. Other than it being gross he didn't seem to have any trouble. I didn't use any antibiotics on him but I made sure his cage was always very clean.

I had a really nasty female once who DID NOT ACCEPT BEING TAKEN OUT OF THE CAGE O-O She absolutely FREAKED every time I tried, neverevereverever did I ever do anything to make her hate being taken out (I'm very gentle to all of my rats, even feeders), she just wasn't okay with it.

One day I just give up trying to do it the nice way and grabbed her by the tail and hauled her out. It was by the base of the tail, with it firmly gripped so no injury would ensue. The same goes for mice, grab as close to the base as possible and have a firm, but not squeezing, grip.

But yeah...I've picked up rats by the tail. My gloves love to hide whenever there needed x)

I pick all of my rats up by their tail... you just have to know how close to the end of the tail is too close... also if you have a rat that likes to spin... you better just drop it or else it'll break its tail skin and deglove itself...