Mycoplasma pulmonis + bp

ok so my bp is in shed and wouldnt take the rat I had for her last thursday. Ive been feeding and keeping the rat waiting for her to finish shedding. Only problem is i noticed the rat acting funny, i happened to stumble accross the symptoms for Mycoplasma pulmonis and have concluded i think the rat has it. Now my question is, is the rat still safe to feed to the snake? :snake:

Mycoplasma pulmonis: a commensal species specific organism carried by nearly all pet rats, and which colonizes the luminal surface of the respiratory epithelium. from : http://ratguide.com/health/bacteria/...oplasmosis.php


So it sounds like they all have it to some degree:)

yes but is safe to feed?

It depends what the rat is infected with and if that specific bacteria/virus is transmissible to reptiles. For example: Mycoplasma pulmonis is a bacteria that lives naturally in the respiratory systems of rats and mice, however, when individuals become stressed the Mycoplasma overpopulate causing an upper respiratory infection. Mycoplasma pulmonis is specific to rats and mice -- rabbits, humans, snakes, etc. are not affected. So if a snake ate a rat with a Mycoplasma infection the snake would not get sick.

That doesn't mean that feeding sick rodents to reptiles is an acceptable practice. Remember, you are what you eat. I could eat a rotten apple and the apple wouldn't give me any diseases, however, that doesn't mean that I'm receiving good nutrition.:snake:

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Originally Posted by Repti-Rob

That doesn't mean that feeding sick rodents to reptiles is an acceptable practice. Remember, you are what you eat. I could eat a rotten apple and the apple wouldn't give me any diseases, however, that doesn't mean that I'm receiving good nutrition.:snake:

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:O in no means would i feed a sickly animal to my snakes, this rat has the sniffles/cough and is very inactive. Other than that looks mighty healthy, eating fine, and is clean.

Sorry didn't mean you! But as long as the rat is not half dead with gange-green and looks healthy enough I would say Down the Hatch!:)

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Originally Posted by Repti-Rob

Sorry didn't mean you! But as long as the rat is not half dead with gange-green and looks healthy enough I would say Down the Hatch!:)

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lol my bad i thought you were trying to call me out on feeding a sick rat. I know what you mean tho. :D

no sweat:) "meant as a disclaimer C>Y>A> cover your a#*"
I could see a kid telling me I told him to feed his snake dead diseased rats lol!:):rolleye2:

hahaha wait.... I should feed my snake diseased rotting rats??? j/k

Survival of the fittest. Do you think a snake feeds on the biggest healthiest rats he can find? Why are rats so good at hiding illness until it is really bad? Survival of the fittest.

Your snake will not get any disease from it's food. Some people still debate on whether or not they can receive internal parasites from their food. (I dont believe that)

It is a safe assumption that any feeder rat will cary Mycoplasma. There are concentrated efforts by rat breeders with closed colonies that may have rats free from Myco or resistant to it's effects. Those breeders would never sell you a rat.

Some have more severe symptoms than others, but you can still feed it off. Myco likes to make an appearance when the immune system has been jeopardized by other illnesses and stress.

If this is a colony you are breeding yourself, keep that rat away from the others. Make sure it has access to fresh water daily, a near dustless substrate, some food (I also like to give them table scraps) and give it more heat. I give the rats a thermal gradient with a human heating pad taped to one side of the cage.
If and when you decide to feed it off, don't worry about the effects the rat will have on your snake. I think the worst a rat could do to a snake is bite it.

I do have a question though, in my experience, the younger the rat, the less likely they are to show the effects of Myco. How old is the rat your feeding off?

i dont know the age but its about 150grams it was sold to me as a medium rat if that helps.

A little on the large side, but not bad.

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Originally Posted by littleindiangirl

A little on the large side, but not bad.

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large?? it was the smallest medium they had lol

AH! what the heck happened with my response? lol oh well. Like I said, I know what your talking about, I often went to a local store asking for a weaner, and they would show me a hefty 5 week old rat.