Ear infection?

[Emmabeeee1996]

I’ve been posting so much on here, hope I’m not being annoying! Maybe I’m just paranoid since I’m not very lucky with my rats health lately but I kissed my bald rats head a little while ago and noticed he was a bit stinky! It kinda just smelt like his rat food so maybe I’m overthinking it but I know that a smelly ear is a sign of infection and I’m just wondering to anyone who has a rat with an ear infection, what did it smell like? He also has runny eyes that I took him to the vet for and she gave me drops for it which he reacted bad to, but I tried again and he doesn’t react anymore. But maybe his runny eyes are from an ear infection and I always noticed that if I pet his ear he’ll scratch it or shake his head ( maybe he just doesn’t like his ears to be touched though) let me know what you think!

 

[jorats]

What kind of drops?
His eye discharge is most likely porphyrin and rats will get this when they are stressed. I would go back to the vet and ask for enrofloxacin/baytril for his ear.

 

[Emmabeeee1996]

What kind of drops?
His eye discharge is most likely porphyrin and rats will get this when they are stressed. I would go back to the vet and ask for enrofloxacin/baytril for his ear.

It is porphyrin. The vet said that because he’s a bald rat his eyes turn inwards a little bit and this causes his eyes to run so she gave me eye lubricant for him to help with irritation and to get gunk out that is trapped. Not sure if he has an ear infection still as he’s just a bit stinky otherwise he doesn’t have a head tilt or is dizzy. I’ll keep checking on him and hopefully I’m just being paranoid! I’ll probably bring him when I bring my other ratty who’s having seizures to the vet and just get them both checked out.

 

[Emmabeeee1996]

It’s hard not to feel like a bat rat mom when they are both sick but I’m doing my very best for them! Thank you for the reply! I don’t know what an ear infection would smell like! It kinda just smells like his rat blocks... but those don’t smell very good

 

[lilspaz68]

any bacterial infection really smells foul, not like the lab blocks so that's likely what you are smelling. You can test for inner ear infection by closing your eyes and sniffing over one ear then to the other and see if they smell the same. Inner ear infections usually only happen in one ear.

 

[Emmabeeee1996]

Seems to me like I’m just overthinking it! He doesn’t smell that bad. I think it’s just cause he’s a bald rat and all my fluffy rats smell different than him probably because they have fur and he just has skin, I’ll give him a little wipe down with a cloth hahah. The thing that’s making me suspicious is that he has always shook his head more than my other rats (reminds me of a dog shaking off water) he’ll just kinda do that every once and awhile. Maybe it’s just something he likes to do? I know it’s normal for them to groom and fidget often enough but he just has a tendency to do it more. Hahah I think I’m just worrying.

 

[lilspaz68]

Nakies have less protection for their eyes and ears, so its more likely debris can get in and irritate. If he's an older rat he might have a wax buildup unable to stick that hind claw in there and clean up. As rats age they get more feeble and less flexible for this maneuver. If all this is true, you can rub his ears with your fingers to help him out with any itchies.

 

[Emmabeeee1996]

Nakies have less protection for their eyes and ears, so its more likely debris can get in and irritate. If he's an older rat he might have a wax buildup unable to stick that hind claw in there and clean up. As rats age they get more feeble and less flexible for this maneuver. If all this is true, you can rub his ears with your fingers to help him out with any itchies.

I squished his ears around and he really liked it! He’s young and I always laugh when he sticks his back leg in his ears. It looks so funny I’ll keep an eye on it in case. Thanks everyone!