Rats on Tylan for sneezing experience

I just got my rat colony started with about 15 rats of different ages. They are being kept on my screened in porch while the weather is nice.

We had a very unexpected cold snap one night where it got down into the 50's (I would have brought them in had I known) and the sneezing (myco flair up) started the next day. Previously, there was no sneezing.

I went to Tractor Supply Store and bought the Tylan 50 (50 is the small bottle, wish I would have gotten the larger one) needle and syringe and started oral treatment. 2 tsp (I will get back with you for the ml amount) per 1 gallon of water mixed with a little sugar to take the bitterness out and changed daily.

http://www.rmca.org/Articles/dchart.htm

It has been a little over a week since I started treating and most if not all the sneezing has gone away. I will continue treatment for the next 3 weeks as recommended.

I listened to their lungs and did not hear a rattle in their lungs and I also believe I caught it and started treatment soon enough. I do not believe someone will have the same luck with rats that are not treated quickly or are seriously ill, or it may take more time and a different medication to fix.


Just a little more information to what you can expect with the liquid Tylan.

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Originally Posted by aldebono

I just got my rat colony started with about 15 rats of different ages. They are being kept on my screened in porch while the weather is nice.

We had a very unexpected cold snap one night where it got down into the 50's (I would have brought them in had I known) and the sneezing (myco flair up) started the next day. Previously, there was no sneezing.

I went to Tractor Supply Store and bought the Tylan 50 (50 is the small bottle, wish I would have gotten the larger one) needle and syringe and started oral treatment. 2 tsp (I will get back with you for the ml amount) per 1 gallon of water mixed with a little sugar to take the bitterness out and changed daily.

http://www.rmca.org/Articles/dchart.htm

It has been a little over a week since I started treating and most if not all the sneezing has gone away. I will continue treatment for the next 3 weeks as recommended.

I listened to their lungs and did not hear a rattle in their lungs and I also believe I caught it and started treatment soon enough. I do not believe someone will have the same luck with rats that are not treated quickly or are seriously ill, or it may take more time and a different medication to fix.


Just a little more information to what you can expect with the liquid Tylan.

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I've used both water bottle and oral treatment. The oral treatment is highly effective (so Ive found) but it is harsher. I would cut your treatment short by a week if you are actively breeding. Tylan does affect fetal development. Rats treated for two weeks or longer seem to loose fetal weight and drop a smaller number of pinks. Some are effected more so than others by Tylan. I had one female drop 15 with no issues and another who lost fetal weight and dropped 4.

Good post. Thanks for sharing your experience. Do you think it was the quick drop in temp? Mine are in 50's almost always in the evenings since they stay in my garage and I've never had any issues.

Regards,

B

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Originally Posted by bokuza

I've used both water bottle and oral treatment. The oral treatment is highly effective (so Ive found) but it is harsher. I would cut your treatment short by a week if you are actively breeding. Tylan does affect fetal development. Rats treated for two weeks or longer seem to loose fetal weight and drop a smaller number of pinks. Some are effected more so than others by Tylan. I had one female drop 15 with no issues and another who lost fetal weight and dropped 4.

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OK thank you I will do that. I just know it is not good to cut antibiotic short of its recommended dose because there is a possibility to create a more resistant strain. This is true in humans at least and I would imagine animals as well. I guess because we are not going to get rid of the myco, it can be cut short.

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Originally Posted by Simple Man

Good post. Thanks for sharing your experience. Do you think it was the quick drop in temp? Mine are in 50's almost always in the evenings since they stay in my garage and I've never had any issues.

Regards,

B

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I think it was a combination between (stress=lowered immune system) being moved to my house, not in a rack so I am stacking and restacking to feed every day, a dog who just wants to watch, and then the cold snap. When they are settled in, I shouldn't have a problem.

Thanks you guys. I just wanted to make a good searchable account of the Tylan use.

Sorry to bring up an ended thread but may I ask this forum a question?

In your opinion and experience which works better, Tyaln 50 or Doxycycline?

Update on rats.

They have been on the Tylan for a little less than 2.5 weeks. I haven't been breeding long so I couldn't tell you how it impacted (if at all) pinks.

Sneezing has stopped completely. It takes the Tylan about a week to see any progress.

Where can you get Doxycycline? TSC? I may pick up a bottle to try just in case this comes around again.

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Originally Posted by aldebono

Update on rats.

They have been on the Tylan for a little less than 2.5 weeks. I haven't been breeding long so I couldn't tell you how it impacted (if at all) pinks.

Sneezing has stopped completely. It takes the Tylan about a week to see any progress.

Where can you get Doxycycline? TSC? I may pick up a bottle to try just in case this comes around again.

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Nice! Glad to hear it.

Doxy is a prescription drug in 100mg capsules for rats. Theratshop.com has them for sale. Not worth it if you have a large group to medicate.

I don't have much experience with it. Im trying it for the first time. Since I just started I cant say anything. Im just wondering how Tylan compares.

We can definitely compare notes.

I haven't heard sneezing in over a week. All the rats took really well to it and there were no adverse reactions to it. I added a little sugar to the water and kept a gallon jug of it in the refrigerator and did 100% water bottle changes every day.

I have had a few rats die and a litter eaten but this was due to old age and a first time mom who I didn't separate in time.

Any other questions just ask. Hopefully this will be a good record for people needing to start their rats on an antibiotic.

Just googled it and 1 US teaspoon = 4.92892159 ml. I just eyeballed it and said it was 4ml = 1 tsp per half gallon and so 2 tsp=8ml per one gallon. I was under dosing them but not by much.

Tylan 50/200 or Doxycycline are basically going to do the same for the rats. It just depends on how advanced the infection is where one will not work over the other.

Do each of them fight different strains of infection?

Their just effective towards Myco in different ways.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

Tylan 50/200 or Doxycycline are basically going to do the same for the rats. It just depends on how advanced the infection is where one will not work over the other.

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Which one would that be?

have to try treatment with one and see. If it dont clear up in a week then switch.

Given is proper dosages they wont harm the animal one bit. But Baytril and Tylan seems to work the best for Myco and RIs in rats.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

have to try treatment with one and see. If it dont clear up in a week then switch.

Given is proper dosages they wont harm the animal one bit. But Baytril and Tylan seems to work the best for Myco and RIs in rats.

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Hmm Alright. ive got one 1.2 im treating with Doxy just to see what happens. If a week goes by and they havent stopped sneezing I'll switch to Tylan again. This is a fun experiment though!

While treating, be sure each cleaning day, the tubs/cage sides are cleaned with disinfectant to get the germs off.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

While treating, be sure each cleaning day, the tubs/cage sides are cleaned with disinfectant to get the germs off.

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Thanks. I always use a bleach water cleaner lol. Cleaning day is in roughly a week too.

I wouldnt use bleach as its a strong cleaner. And rats have great noses, that im sure Bleach even diluted will irritate em.

I clean my rodents every 3 days casue i have a lot of em. And i spray the tubs with Cholorohexidine.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

I wouldnt use bleach as its a strong cleaner. And rats have great noses, that im sure Bleach even diluted will irritate em.

I clean my rodents every 3 days casue i have a lot of em. And i spray the tubs with Cholorohexidine.

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Thanks for the tip! Where can that be picked up?

Amazon for about $12 for a gallon.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

Amazon for about $12 for a gallon.

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I went ahead and placed an order.

I brought home a Tylan 50 bottle and switched. It's day 5 and I'm not seeing improvement from the Doxycycline. I'm too impatient to wait or to find them even worse than before. During my major sanitizing spree I lost an entire hold back litter. Long story short my dog began to freak out, I ran back to the room and he was laying by the momma tub. All of the babies were killed and a stow away male I just received was inside eating them. The poor momma was in shock, curled into herself against the wall. The other soon to be momma leaped out of the tub when I took the lid completely off. It looks to me that he chewed through his metal tank lid and then managed to pop one of the tub click sides. In all my years of raising rats I have never seen this.

Should I kill of the stinking baby killer or accept it as nature? I know males will eat babies that arent theirs but this is digusting. I had a beautiful self siamese dumbo rex female with amazingly dark even points killed by him today. :rage:

If its a male that did all the damage, yes replace him. But Females might be traumatized from it all and might not breed again.

I have females that beat up on my one male, rather replace just females i gassed them all as he was very skittish with ears pulled back. And thats a dangerous situation when dealing with a scared rat.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

If its a male that did all the damage, yes replace him. But Females might be traumatized from it all and might not breed again.

I have females that beat up on my one male, rather replace just females i gassed them all as he was very skittish with ears pulled back. And thats a dangerous situation when dealing with a scared rat.

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The male was covered in the blood pouncing on the bodies. Pretty certain it was him. The girls were facing away from it all. This male is quite docile but i'm going to get rid of him based on your feedback. I don't want any offspring from a baby eater. Too risky for my blood!

I've put the girls together in a QT tub. Just going to wait it out because both girls could make wonderful pets. :/ I feel horrible for them. I gave them extra paper towels and they are nervously busying themselves by building a massive nest/hide out. Is there anything else I can do?

Yes, Take a Fuzzy rat or couple from another female and give it to them. Keep them busy and spoil them. When its time , raise up one of the fuzzies thats a male with them to replace the old male. This way the male wont attack the babies.

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Originally Posted by RichsBallPythons

Yes, Take a Fuzzy rat or couple from another female and give it to them. Keep them busy and spoil them. When its time , raise up one of the fuzzies thats a male with them to replace the old male. This way the male wont attack the babies.

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I dont have any pups right now. I sold out. I have plenty of toys and items to keep them busy though. Mom 2 is due any day now and hopefully both the girls will be happy sharing the pups. They get along great.

I'll keep a few boys from this litter. I've never had this problem. The father of this litter is affectionate towards any pups, even ones that arent his. He gets playtime with the weaned males. :/

I lost two rats earlier this week and came home today and found two dead in different tubs. I also noticed several rats making a sneezing noise which I have never heard before. I have heard a few sneezes from one rat but not so many from several. I'm going to pick up Tylan tomorrow and start dosing them.

TSC has two available. One says Tylan 50 (100ml) and the other says Tylan 200 (250ml). Which one should I get for the rats? What is the mix (water/Tylan) for each and how much sugar do you put in? I read 2 tsp. per gallon above.

I'm going to buy water bottles there also to put the mix in and take them off of the auto water system.

The rack that I'm having a problem with is on one side of the basement and the other racks are on the other side. Should I give Tylan to all of the rats in all of the racks or only the rack with the problem?

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

John,

2 tsp per gallon is the Tylan dose amount which equals approximately 9ml per gallon. I believe the Tylan 200 is just the bigger one. I got the Tylan 50. Make sure you get a needle and syringe because its not a screw top bottle.

I mixed... Eh I don't know, 2 tbsp of sugar in? Doesn't matter too much, it just makes them want to drink it with the meds in.

I would say only the rats with the sneezing. Sanitize all the bins on cleaning day.

What do you think caused these rats to start sneezing? Might want to find the source of the problem.

Good luck dosing!

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Originally Posted by aldebono

John,

2 tsp per gallon is the Tylan dose amount which equals approximately 9ml per gallon. I believe the Tylan 200 is just the bigger one. I got the Tylan 50. Make sure you get a needle and syringe because its not a screw top bottle.

I mixed... Eh I don't know, 2 tbsp of sugar in? Doesn't matter too much, it just makes them want to drink it with the meds in.

I would say only the rats with the sneezing. Sanitize all the bins on cleaning day.

What do you think caused these rats to start sneezing? Might want to find the source of the problem.

Good luck dosing!

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Vanilla extract is easier in my opinion. I use it to keep down smell too.

I picked up the Tylan 200. It was a bigger bottle. The 200 is 4 times stronger than the 50 so instead of 10cc in a gallon of water I put in 2.5cc.

I disconnected the water lines and put 8oz bottles in each tub. Hopefully I won't lose any more rats but I'm not sure how quickly Tylan works. I see some red noses so I am worried.

They are drinking the water. I'm just not sure if all of them are drinking and how much they're getting each.

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Originally Posted by JohnNJ

I picked up the Tylan 200. It was a bigger bottle. The 200 is 4 times stronger than the 50 so instead of 10cc in a gallon of water I put in 2.5cc.

I disconnected the water lines and put 8oz bottles in each tub. Hopefully I won't lose any more rats but I'm not sure how quickly Tylan works. I see some red noses so I am worried.

They are drinking the water. I'm just not sure if all of them are drinking and how much they're getting each.

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Can take about a week to two weeks to show improvement pending severity. Three weeks is recommended treatment time. Be sure to change your water every three days! If you don't it seems to make the URIs much worse immediately.

I will be changing it daily because I added sugar. There's a lot of drinking going on. I hope it helps enough that I don't lose anymore.

Is it OK to take all of the water bottles to the sink at once and rinse them out? Since they're all getting the meds does it matter if the bottles get moved around? I wasn't going to wash the bottles every day, just rinse them out.

Thanks.

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Originally Posted by JohnNJ

Is it OK to take all of the water bottles to the sink at once and rinse them out? Since they're all getting the meds does it matter if the bottles get moved around? I wasn't going to wash the bottles every day, just rinse them out.

Thanks.

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Some would say that might be contaminative but if your washing them well (including the tips) then it doesn't matter my eyes.

I wanted to mention a good organic imitation vanilla might be better to use because your going to waste more medication using sugar. With vanilla you can keep the bottles for three days.

That's my point. I was not going to wash the bottles, only rinse the sugar out. Should I be worried about contamination if they are all getting the meds? Should I keep the same bottle for each tub?

If it's critical I will wash each bottle every time I change the water.

How much vanilla do you add to a gallon of water?

BTW, this sucks big time. Thanks.

I rinsed the bottles out each day and only did a hot water dip after about a week. I wasn't very diligent in keeping the bottles separate. Probably not ideal, but owell. My guys weren't too sick to begin with so I don't think it mattered too much.

Good luck, they will get better.


ALSO good to know about the Tylan 500 :gj: I will be getting that next time and saving moneyl Thanks!

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Originally Posted by JohnNJ

That's my point. I was not going to wash the bottles, only rinse the sugar out. Should I be worried about contamination if they are all getting the meds? Should I keep the same bottle for each tub?

If it's critical I will wash each bottle every time I change the water.

How much vanilla do you add to a gallon of water?

BTW, this sucks big time. Thanks.

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It might not be a big deal but with deaths involded I would wash them well.

I add 1-2 drops of organic vanilla in an 8oz. There's 128oz in a galling right? I fail at math.

Im sorry and I feel your pain. My hold back silver blue is getting worse and worse. On top of that my only 6 preggos are at high risk. I wish you luck man. :((

Well, nature decided how I was going to handle the water bottles. We had big hit of snow with lots of downed trees and broken branches. Wires fell and I lost power.

So, in the dark, I rinsed each water bottle and refilled it with just the meds added to the water. No sugar, no vanilla. I kept each bottle in the same tub so no cross contamination. Now that the power is back I will wash all of the bottles again with soap to get out any of the sugar.

The rats are all drinking and the sneezing has almost completely stopped after 2 days. I can still hear the occassional sneeze but much less than before the Tylan. I can still hear congestion in some of them and they are sleeping more but I think it's moving in the right direction. No deaths since I started Tylan.

As to the source of the problem, I don't know. It did start to get cooler and I had the windows open with the fans running. I took in two new rats that I kept in quarantine for a week and they showed no signs of illness but one did die shortly thereafter. The other is still around. I'm open to suggestions as to the cause and how I can prevent a relapse.

Thanks

I think I stated this before but- I know the reason most all of mine got sick was because I just got them (stress) plus we had an extremely cold night come out of nowhere (compromised immune system) and the next day they were noticeably sick.

I keep them on my porch still but now when we are going to have colder nights I make sure to give them PLENTY of newspaper to shed and nest, plus some towels over the tubs, and a plastic sheet over the lot of them. Just remember to remove in the morning.

I am glad your guys are getting noticeably better!

Just wanted to update.
Tylan 50 is working but the environment is combating. I can't seem to keep the room from being a drafty cold. I notice on very cold nights it gets worse. Been giving them boxes and paper to make warm nests out of. Sorta of helps. Im moving soon and the home has heating maybe that will help out.