Rat keeps scratching and re-opening a wound (Picture)

Hi, everyone. I'm having an issue with one of my new girls. A couple weeks ago she got a scratch somehow (possibly during a play squabble--they don't really fight). Since then, she's been scratching it constantly, making it bleed over and over again. There have been a couple times when it almost healed only for her to scratch it right up again.

I'm attaching a picture of what it looks like currently. It doesn't seem to be deep but is pretty wide for a little rat. There was some dead skin, which her sister nibbled off before we separated them out of concern they might scuffle again and make it worse. Of course, being separated is just making Cream stressed, which I'm sure isn't helping anything.

The vet prescribed a topical antibiotic (which has gotten into her eye more than once in the struggles) and told us to dose her with baby Benadryl to help with itching. It hasn't done anything.

How can we help her? I'm starting to get worried it could get infected.

Thanks

It's difficult to tell from the picture but it definitely looks very open. My advice would be to stop putting the ointment on there. Applying ointment can cause the skin to heal too quickly and then there will be an underlying abscess caused. It needs to heal from the inside out. I would also consider putting her back in with her cage mate. The stress of separation is probably causing her to mutilate herself more. These kinds of wounds usually heal up very quickly with no aid whatsoever.

I love her nakedness btw.

She and her sister Cookie are both patchworks! Their fur patterns are really interesting to watch.

I have read that they usually heal quickly ... The issue, I think, is that she keeps scratching it so it doesn't get the chance to heal.

We put her in with one of her cagemates last night. My husband won't keep her with her sister because she is really aggressive about grooming and keeps licking/nibbling at the wound. Cream seemed happier, Cookie not so much.

In any case, the wound is freshly open again this morning. Sorry I can't get a better picture -- she is a real fighter, even the vet couldn't get a great look at it.

edit: He put Cookie in the cage... she immediately started grooming the wound. Ack. Maybe I'm just not experienced enough with rats but I just don't see how it can heal if it's constantly getting licked and whatnot.

Could she/they have mites or something thats making them itchier than normal?

That's a thought. Maybe there could be parasites?

I definitely would keep her from her sister until it heals.

The wound may benefit from a 3 times daily saline flush just to keep it clean.

Great that you put her back in with at least one of her friends because she needs to be in with her friends.
As was already mentioned, your rats may need to be treated for mites (with revolution), and using ointment will make it worse. If she needs an antibiotic then she needs to take it orally.
If she is that itchy, pain medication such as metacam might help.

hope she is feeling better soon

Thanks, all. We actually did get them all dosed with Revolution when we took her to the vet, so that's a start anyway.

I never really thought about the ointment making it worse. I have some sterile saline solution from a first aid kit, I can try to use that for her.

This info may help http://ratguide.com/health/trauma/wounds.php
http://www.ratshackforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11310

If she is scratching it because it is bothering her, pain meds may help

hope she is soon feeling better

So, Cream is getting worse.
In addition to this cut she now has a (smaller) scratch on her other shoulder.
We tried making this and she wiggled out in about a minute. She is on oral antibiotics.

At this point I think she might be self-mutilating from the stress. She has always been neurotic. We've had the girls for about a month and a half now, and they have both been difficult to handle, but Cream especially so - poor little thing still poops in fear every time anyone picks her up, even for a minute. She also doesn't seem to be very social with the other two rats.

We're trying I'm not sure how much more I can afford in vet bills.
Sorry for blurry pic. It's the best I could grab.

If you think it's neuroses then she may need to be placed on an SSRI medication to stop the obsessive behaviors.

What about prednisone? That might help. Or even metacam.... could she be scratching the area because it's painful or uncomfortable? Did you see any change with the benadryl?

It almost looked like it was starting to heal, and then she went and scratched it open all over again!

Benadryl seems to not do much except to make her sleepy... and, weirdly, she won't take her antibiotic unless it's mixed with the Benadryl. We tried infant ibuprofen as well and that didn't help.

I'm willing to try the things you guys recommended -- my vet is worse than useless (he recommended we put a band-aid on it!). But the only other rat vet I know of in my city has a 3-week waiting list.

Useless definitely he sounds like it. No rat can deal with a three week waiting list. When I feel like she really needs is a stronger pain medication. Even if you alternated ibuprofen and Tylenol that would be giving medicine every three hours and it's a bit excessive for you to have to do that every 3 hours. I'd like to see her have tramadol ordered by her vet. If he is willing to order it for her you can give it every 8 to 12 hours and it is a very strong pain medicine.

How is this little girl doing now?

Perhaps it might be a good idea to dab some 3% hydrogen peroxide on the wounds to keep them disinfected and prevent any potential infections. It absorbs and dissipates quickly, so there won't be a chance of the rattie to lick/smear it off like with an ointment. You may need to re-apply it throughout the day, until it eventually heals.

Additionally, after the hydrogen peroxide dissipates, you could also try, very lightly, smearing a tiny bit of Calendula oil on the wounds - this can also help to heal the wounds and also has antibacterial/antimicrobial properties.

Hydrogen peroxide is very painful on open wounds and has very little effect on healing time. I would not use that on any rat.

Sheldon said:

Hydrogen peroxide is very painful on open wounds and has very little effect on healing time. I would not use that on any rat.

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I've used 3% dilution on my rats with no problems at all, and in fact they don't even notice it. You are probably thinking of 10% or greater. It helps with healing because it destroys pathogenic bacteria topically, which eases the burden on the immune system and allows it to repair tissue faster. If there is any concern, even 3% can be diluted further just by adding more water to it. With the correct dilution, it is one of the best ways to sanitize a wound.

Hydrogen peroxide is good on bacteria but it can't distinguish between healthy cells and it will destroy the healthy cells so NOT a good idea to use.

Thank you for asking. I managed to find another rat vet in the city... she's more expensive, but she also seems to be great with rats, so I'm more than happy to pony up the extra change.

She put Cream on Baytril and buprenorphine. She also switched their mite treatments to ivermectin (right after I'd ordered some Revolution online lol).

I will say that the buprenorphine seems to help a lot, and her scratching is way down. The cuts are definitely healing. But sometimes she still scratches herself raw again (I just checked her out before making this post and yep, raw). So the struggle is definitely not over.

Aww. Bless her heart. I'm super happy the meds are helping, though.