Riana
Well-Known Member
I just want to be clear in my understanding of the whole myco condition in rats. I hope you guys can explain it to me better.
I know that virtually all rats are born with the mycoplasma bacteria in their lungs, and that that is something that can never go away. But from what I understand (atleast, I think so), it's flare-ups that cause the rats to get ill. Is it the case that the flare-up is caused from an outside source (poor living conditions, stress, etc), or is it caused by an infection that spurs it on? I know I asked this before, but I'm still not clear when one says that it's caused by a secondary infection. Where does the secondary infection come from?
Mainly I'm curious on why I can't seem to get on top of this with my rats. I clean their cage daily, the room is (atleast, IMO) well ventilated and clean, they're on great good, they have yesterday's news bedding, etc. I don't understand why they are still getting sick, except that I have never really knocked this bout out before and it keeps coming back. I'm sure that's what happened.
I talked to the vet today and she said she's certainly willing to give me medication for Rose again (since he's the only one who's sick right now), and to try to keep him on it for a while. It won't happen until sometime next week (they have to order the doxy monday), so I'm hoping that he'll be okay on just baytril until then. She's also willing to try a different combo if the baytril/doxy doesn't work.
But, yeah, can someone give me more information on the actual myco, and more specifically, the flare-ups?
I know that virtually all rats are born with the mycoplasma bacteria in their lungs, and that that is something that can never go away. But from what I understand (atleast, I think so), it's flare-ups that cause the rats to get ill. Is it the case that the flare-up is caused from an outside source (poor living conditions, stress, etc), or is it caused by an infection that spurs it on? I know I asked this before, but I'm still not clear when one says that it's caused by a secondary infection. Where does the secondary infection come from?
Mainly I'm curious on why I can't seem to get on top of this with my rats. I clean their cage daily, the room is (atleast, IMO) well ventilated and clean, they're on great good, they have yesterday's news bedding, etc. I don't understand why they are still getting sick, except that I have never really knocked this bout out before and it keeps coming back. I'm sure that's what happened.
I talked to the vet today and she said she's certainly willing to give me medication for Rose again (since he's the only one who's sick right now), and to try to keep him on it for a while. It won't happen until sometime next week (they have to order the doxy monday), so I'm hoping that he'll be okay on just baytril until then. She's also willing to try a different combo if the baytril/doxy doesn't work.
But, yeah, can someone give me more information on the actual myco, and more specifically, the flare-ups?