Crawling things! I'm soooo pissed

I took my little rat buddy, Monk over to my mothers house to let her see him while I went grocery shopping through her pantry. She asked if I'd go to the petstore to pick up some dog food for her and I took Monk with me. While at the store one my friends who works there was looking very closely at him and said he had fleas. Upon closer inspection we found out they might not be fleas as they do not move like fleas and don't look like fleas. The lady at the vet there (not sure if she was a vet or not) said she wasn't sure without looking at them under a microscope and the vet office was technically closed. She said to give him a warm bath and whatever they are might drown and then to take him to a vet asap. Well I work tomorrow and the vet is closed on Sundays so the soonest I could get him in would be Monday. I could possibly take some pictures of what he has but I prolly wont get a good pic because my camera sucks and he won't sit still. Oh and when I got home I looked at Kasper and Nibble and they both have it too.

Any advice? Monk is literally covered in these things and I'm really worried about him, and pissed at the store where I got him. While I did get him from a feeder bin, he shouldn't be covered in parasites. I plan on going there and saying something to the people that work there. They are nice guys and very helpful but I won't stand for parasite infested animals, even if they are feeders.

It sounds like Mites.

What can I do for mites? Would a bath work? I got some tick/flea spray for small mammals but he's so little I'm afraid to use any of it on him and the girls.

I'm with Nate. Sounds like mites. Unlike snake mites, rat mites can and will bite YOU! A lot like a mosquito bite, but worse I think.

You can treat the rat enclosures with Provent-A-Mite the same as you would for snakes. Also, you can get flea and tick spray for rodents. If its not available for rodents, get the stuff for birds (not quite as strong as the rodent stuff). Make sure it uses pyrethrins for the active ingredient. The one I use is UltraCare Flea & Tick Spray (8in1). The rodent spray has .06% Pyrethrins. Spray it directly on the animal. Between this and the Provent-A-Mite, you can get rid of the mites pretty quickly. Treat the bedding with PAM before each cage cleaning. A couple weeks should do it.

Mites can and will kill your rat! You need to get rid of them as quick as you can!

edit: just saw your post about what to do. I use this method with everything from adult rats to pinky mice with no ill effects (besides to the mites).

Steve

The babies are only two and half weeks old. Will the flea/tick spray hurt them? I don't have any PAM. Where could I find some. I've never seen it at the petstore.

The spray I have is 0.06% Pyrethrins

Yep Steve said it :gj:

Provent-a-Mite (PAM)

You can use frontline for cats, put a small small drop between their shoulder blades. I again cant remember the name of the other proven flea and tick spray. Michelle C said it in the other flea thread in feeders by Munding.

http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ad.php?t=61132

Darn! Somewhere I have a thing of Revolution but unfortunatly its for adult cats. :( I could stop by the vet and pick some up (its the only place I know of to go for that stuff) but its really expensive. Provent-a-Mite is a good idea but ordering it off line might take a while to get. I can go to the store where I bought them and see if they have any PAM there. If they do I'll get some from them (and they better do it for free too. :mad:)

Just make sure everything is completely dry before you put the rats back in, I wouldnt want them to get any flare ups in their respiratory system.

I remember reading here about using frontline on pinks and such. Since they are so young, you may be able to get away with using the adult cat stuff (not really sure), and dipping your finger in it rubbing your hands together and lightly going over their fur. Don't quote me on that.

edit: Found the thread! http://www.ball-pythons.net/forums/s...ine#post641437

I will have to look for the Revolution. It might be at my grandmother's house. I'll go take a look and see if I can find it. So a dab along the back of each of the babies and then dab my fingers in it and rub my fingers on the older rat (she's 6 weeks old)?

I found the Revolution. Its made for adult cats (5.1-15lbs). The thing says (selamectin). So would I use one drop per baby? and a little more for Kasper?

Is it the spray or drops? Drops I would think is a much higher concentration, so you should take that into account.
Well, I would do like slartibart fast did for her little ones with the spray, and rub a dab on their backs, and for the bigger one do just the same. They are so small, very little would be needed at all. I actually like the idea of lighting rubbing their fur.

I really have no clue what you should do if it were the adult cat drops... Maybe you should wait for someone like Becky or Jessica to answer about that.

It is in drop form. I'll try the spray tonight and post tomorrow if I see any improvement. If not we'll have to go with something else.

I had those once too with mice. I got some flea and tick spray for cats and gave each one a squirt. Killed the mites and didn't harm the rodents. But, I'm starting to wonder about this pet store. First they sold you baby rats that shouldn't have been removed from their mother yet, and they were covered in parasites to boot. All in all not a real good beginning.

Revolution drops are a completely different chemical (and concentration) than Frontline spray.

I have successfully used Frontline spray on baby rats whose eyes were not opened yet, as quoted above. I would be leary of using anything on animals that small that is concentrated for between-the-shoulders application. Revolution is designed to be absorbed through the skin and penetrate all tissues. It is very safe for cats, and I love it for that use, but I have not heard enough info yet to feel comfortable with it on small rodents.

The spray Frontline is a -much- lower concentration that the spot-on application.

Frontline spray is the -only- over-the-counter product I would personally use on very small fragile animals. I would avoid anything that contains permethrins/pyrethrins...I've seen way too many bad reactions.

Tangent: Do not ever use Frontline on rabbits. They metabolize it differently than rats and mice do, and it is quite dangerous to them.

So should I go find Frontline spray? Is it available in most petstores or do I have to get it online/from a vet?

Many vets should carry it and be able to sell it over the counter, but I would call ahead first. It's about $30 a bottle, and well worth it as you will only use a tiny amount at a time. Works on reptile mites too.

I will definatly be contacting my vet on Monday then (they are closed on Sundays). Anything I can do before Monday though. They are literally covered in them, little brown specs and I know they must be very irritating. Everyone is eating and drinking well. I have noticed however, that Kasper, the 6 week old albino female sleeps alot. She kind of crawls into a corner most of the time and sleeps while the babies play around her. I have not really kept adult or subadult rats for any real length of time so I don't know if this is normal or not. Any thoughts on this?

Petsmart or Petco, or your local ag supply store may carry it also.

Are they like little orange thingies? I saw some once on a feeder that I bought, awhile ago.
I wish you luck in eradicating the little boogers.

Darn, to late to go to a Petsmart now. I will try them tomorrow. They recommended this UltraCare Flea and Tick Spray. .06 pyrethrins. Its for small animals like mice. Would this be safe to spray on the babies? I need to do something to help them until I can get the Frontline spray.

And yes they are little orangy, brown things. Definatly not fleas but something crawly. I feel terrible because my little baby Monk is covered in them. His feet, his little hands, his bum and Nibble and Kasper are not much better.

I avoid pyrethrins period, especially on small stuff. I've just seen too many neurologic reactions.

You can give them a bath with a dapple of soap to break the water tension and drown the mites in the meantime.

Of course... as always I'm a little late posting this...