Little scabs under Bella's chin

[emerson]

I noticed Bella has a few little scabs under her chin, neither Shiloh or Lily have any. :? So I am not thinking it is a sign of mites, but could it be something else? Or just scratches from playing maybe? I don't see any mites on them at all... She doesn't seem to scratch often at that area either... I am hoping it is not because of their crappy lab blocks. :sad3: It is nearly impossible to find rat food in my city (Kelowna, BC) even, let alone good stuff.

 

[Moon]

Well, the chin is a very common area to find mite scabs. And even if the entire colony has mites (which is typically what happens) often only one or two will show symptoms. Also, mites are not visible by the naked eye (lice are). So....... it is very possible, unfortunately!

 

[emerson]

You are totally right Moon, thank you! I just noticed little scabs on her shoulders when I took a closer look. Poor little girl. I've never dealt with mites before, does this require a trip to the vet or how do I treat it?

 

[Zooy]

Vet trip and get them to give you revolution. A little drop (with proper dosages as well) and it should clear up in a few days!

 

[Moon]

Mites most often get in through infested bedding. You want to wash any fleece or rat rags very well, and freeze your bedding for 48 hours. That, along with the revolution treatment, should take care of things All rats should be treated.

You can also use ivermectin paste, but it requires one dose a week for three weeks, and it doesn't seem quite as effective as revolution (but some people swear by it.) You would not need to go to a vet for that, but it can be hard to find. It is a horse dewormer.

If you have a good relationship with your vet, they may sell you just a single tube without requiring to see a rat. Vets have sold it to me just to have as a backup. Some vets might require that you bring one or all in, and may try to talk you into doing a skin scraping. Don't give in to that, the skin scrapings often throw false negatives.