Omfg little white maggoty worm things

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Jherek

Well-Known Member
Joined
Sep 22, 2008
Messages
216
Location
KW Ontario
My poor little Sushi stopped eating. I was holding her against my chest as we tried to find a emerg. vet clinic when I saw that my clothes where she was laying were now COVERED in the tiny, tiny little maggoty worm things. Well let's just say I had no idea I could undress that quickly. They're all over her. They're white, some with a bit of red in them. Within half an hour she started holding her legs funny and it looked like her lower abdomen just collapsed. Someone is on their way to pick me up but in the meantime I'm hoping someone can help me figure out wtf is going on. :sad3:
 
something similar happened to a dog of mine. A fly laid eggs in her intestinal tract, I have no idea if this is possible to happen to rats, and its the wrong time of year for flies. I hope you figure it out soon, I know how distrubing the whole thing is!
 
That would be possible seeing as how my sister owns a horse and they get horse flies out there. But my sister doesn't come in contact with them (they're in my room) and I never let them outside. Sushi just passed away minutes ago. She didn't come out to see me with the rest of the girls this morning, and when i picked her up from her hammock she was acting out of it. She felt a bit lighter, although not much... I tried to get her to eat and drink and she didn't even seem to notice it. It was literally as if her body was breaking down before my eyes. What I'm even more worried about now is about the rest of my pets or even us getting whatever it is.

I got this strange rash on my hand two weeks ago. It started as a bump, and it multiplied into a cluster of bumps the size of a quarter that were INCREDIBLY itchy and painful. It still hasn't heal. I have no allergies and have been trying to figure out what it is and I'm wondering if maybe these two are related..?
 
Could the rash on your hand be ring-worm?? I know humans can contract it from animals and it makes a red rash on your skin. Your doctor will be able to give you cream for it if it is, or could you maybe go see a pharmacist?

Are you having an autopsy thing done on Sushi?? It'll be the only way to know what was going on and if your other girls are in danger.

Im sorry you lost her Jherek. That is a scary situation!
 
It sounds as if the bugs were lice they will usually attack a sick or dying rat, the other were red because they were engourged with blood. I believe a dose of Revolution on the rest of your rats will take care of that but you have to get it from a vet so they can give you the proper doage for each.

The rash you have sounds like ring worm(fungus). You need to us an antifungal on your self. dpn't scratch it or you will spread it, wear long sleves when playing with your rats, and when you sleep and watch to make sure your rats don't get the rash. If you have been around horses. dogs, cats or any other animal that goes outside that is probably where you got it from. I get it at least once in the spring and again in the summer from my dogs. :gaah:
 
I actually had a very similar rash around Christmas. I actually thought that one might be ringworm. It was identical, including the symptoms, but a bit darker around the outside making it appear like ringworm... but it never hallowed out and after a few weeks it went away on its own. I have an appointment with my doctor on Tuesday (would have been last week but she had the week off -.-). This rash isn't hallow at all, doesn't have a ring or anything... I was thinking it might be scabies, but it hasn't spread and no one else in my family has gotten it. Likewise the larvae would be under the skin, not crawling around on her.

I will see about having an autopsy done... I don't know if I'll be able to though. We just had an emergency with my one shih tzu two weeks ago. Cost nearly $300 to get some blood work done and to pay for her medications (she, out of the blue, developed epilepsy) and it's going to cost another $80 this week to get more blood work done.

Pets, amiright! :[
 
Oh god, I would have been feeling real icky too.
That poor little thing. Where there any other symptoms prior to finding her with the worms?
 
There weren't at all. Sushi has always been a ball of chub and she was the kissiest rat I've ever seen. When I went to bed last night, I remember seeing her out with the rest of the girls like usual. When I got up this morning and called them to give them food, Sushi didn't come. She was so weak all of a sudden and refusing to eat/drink. She had dropped a bit of weight but, given her size before, was pretty much a normal weight. She walked a bit for just a few minutes and then I picked her up and she just curled right up into my hand and pretty much didn't move at all for the next half hour until she just stopped breathing. I'm just noticing now that her eyes have gone milky grey - is that normal?
 
Poor little Sushi. I'm so sorry for your loss.

I think it was lice. A few years I got a rescue boy and the same thing happened to me. I was holding him against my black sweater and after I put him down I realized I was covered in little white buggys. Even after taking a shower I felt icky for days.

Here is some info (from the PetEducation website):

Lice

Cause and transmission: An infestation with lice is called "pediculosis." Lice affecting rats are Polyplax spinulosa, and those affecting mice are P. serrata. Lice are transmitted by direct contact or infested bedding. Lice are insects that can be seen with the naked eye. They are flattened and possess no wings. The eggs may be seen attached to the hairs. Lice are very host-specific and do not tend to leave their preferred animal: the lice of mice will generally not affect rats, and the lice of rats do not affect mice. Neither can be transmitted to people.

Signs: Polyplax lice suck blood, so in addition to pruritus, hair thinning, and self-trauma, affected mice or rats may develop anemia and become weak and lethargic. Lice can transmit blood diseases: eperythrozoonosis in mice, and haemobartonellosis in rats. Rickettsia typhi, the cause of typhoid fever, can be transmitted by lice. These blood parasites can be more deadly to your pet than the lice.
 
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