Sick hairless

[ironpython]

One of my hairless boys is sneezing so I seperated him from the colony and have him in the house. What if any would be a treatment for this?

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[wolfy-hound]

Usually best is to get some meds from the vet.

If you're determined to not have vet costs, I had decent results using meds meant for livestock, bought at Tractor Supply. You mix it into the water. It's in a bright yellow bag(about the size of a pack of ramen noodles) but OF COURSE< I can't find the one I've got here to tell you exactly what it's called.

Other than meds, I usually try to give them some Ensure soaked rat food, so the energy stays high, and some Pedilyte fluids if they look like they aren't drinking enough. The Pedilyte stuff is only supposed o last 48 hours after opening the bottle, but someone was smart and suggested getting the PEdilyte "pops" that you freeze. That way you can open one small pop and not waste a whole bottle.

Make sure they have warmth, since the naked ones get chilled easily.

[satomi325]

Sounds like a respiratory infection.

You can use Tetracycline antibiotics from the petstore. (Most big box pet stores have it)
Its found in the fish section in a box of 10 packets and runs about $12-15 depending on the store. (Feed stores have a similar antibiotic)
The dosage is 1 pack for a 16oz water bottle. Mix water in and offer it to the rat ad-lib.
Change water daily for the first week. Then after that, you can change it every other day or so. If it's minor to intermediate, RI/illness will go away in about 7-14 days. If it's in advanced stage RI, it may not help.

Water can be substituted for Pedialyte.


I get this one and was actually advised to me by a vet friend of mine.

[ironpython]

Thankyou its not that I refuse to visit a vet but as a breeder It would be better that I know how to treat common ailments myself. I have successfully treated RI in reptiles already with antibiotics and f10

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[ironpython]

He doesnt apear sick just some sneezing but I wanted to be proactive in the treatment to keep it from getting bad

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[KING JAMES]

Sounds like a respiratory infection.

You can use Tetracycline antibiotics from the petstore. (Most big box pet stores have it)
Its found in the fish section in a box of 10 packets and runs about $12-15 depending on the store. (Feed stores have a similar antibiotic)
The dosage is 1 pack for a 16oz water bottle. Mix water in and offer it to the rat ad-lib.
Change water daily for the first week. Then after that, you can change it every other day or so. If it's minor to intermediate, RI/illness will go away in about 7-14 days. If it's in advanced stage RI, it may not help.

Water can be substituted for Pedialyte.


I get this one and was actually advised to me by a vet friend of mine.

I had not heard of using that. Thank you very much for posting that. I will try that next time I have a RI in a rat...normally just feed them off, but that really hurts when it is one of your good rats.

OP I will be honest, I got a bunch of hairless when I started trying to sell rats as pets instead of 100% feeders...they are weak compared to the standard rat. Every time I turned around one of them was sick, not taking care of litters, being antisocial, etc. If you are raising to sell as pets understand they will take a little more care..if you are breeding for feeders.....

[ironpython]

I breed feeders but enjoy breeding them so I like to breed for pets too. My breeder hairless female is being a good mother to her new babies.

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[kc261]

Tetracycline is light sensitive, so if you mix it in their water bottle you need to do something cover it up to prevent the light getting to it. Also, when people take tetracycline, their skin becomes very sun sensitive, so this might be a concern with a hairless rat too.

I have also read that rodents can benefit from echinacea to boost their immune system just like humans can. When I started breeding mice many years ago, the first batch I got got very sneezy and I could even hear rattling when they were breathing on some of them. The worst I fed off, and I treated the rest with tetracycline and echinacea and I no longer remember how many survived, but I know I eventually ended up with a healthy mouse colony so I must have had some success. I got the echinacea from a health food store. It came in a little dropper bottle.

Just to be safe, I would not feed off any animals that have been treated with meds.

[satomi325]

Yes, Tetracycline is light sensitive, which is why you need to change out the water daily or every other day at the max and make a new batch. It's good for at least that amount of time before the effects fully degrade.

[Rhasputin]

Yes, Tetracycline is light sensitive, which is why you need to change out the water daily or every other day at the max and make a new batch. It's good for at least that amount of time before the effects fully degrade.

i used to put a sock over my water bottles when they had antibiotics in them to block out some light. no idea how much it helped.