Mycoplasma, help me understand this

[Riana]

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?

 

[jorats]

So mycoplasma is a bacteria that lives in all living beings. For some reason, it gets out of hand in rats and other small animals.
Weak immune system, dirty habitat, poor diet and stress will bring on a myco flare up so the bacteria starts to grow fast. This makes the rat even weaker and more susceptible to other infections which can come from anywhere, mainly other rats.
There can be different strains of myco which is why bringing in rats from different sources can cause a lot of problems.

If you want to beat myco which is near impossible you would need to adopt baby rats from one source and never bring in another rat and don't come in contact with other rats as well. Keep their habitat clean and big too as to allow lots of exercise. The more a rat exercise the more they strengthen their lungs. A healthy diet is important as well.
Stress is caused by so many things, even loud noise, new smell, a tremor... anything can cause the body to become weak and be susceptible to a flare up.

So it's pretty much impossible to keep your rats living without myco flare ups.

 

[Squeak]

Mycoplasma is quite common in rats.

Basically, what is most commonly used to treat sick rats with either mycoplasma or mycoplasmosis (mycoplama pulmonis) is Baytril or Doxycycline. (For more information on the medications, click on the following links. Baytril: http://ratguide.com/meds/antimicrobial_ ... aytril.php Doxycycline: http://ratguide.com/meds/antimicrobial_ ... ycline.php).

Jo already said what it's caused by and how to prevent it.

How you know if your rat has it: laboured breathing, discharge from eyes or nose, lethargic, sneezing/wheezing, head tilt, squinting.

If the disease does begin to get worse it may cause bronchopneamonia (and other similar diseases). One of my rats once had it, and it was unable to be cured, only controlled. He died a week after he was diagnosed with it.

So my advice, if one of your rats ever ger one of these symptoms, act immediately, before it is too late and you lose a precious rattie.

 

[user 78]

All rats, except those born in certain lab environments [not all] are born with mycoplasmosis. Since very few people will ever have access to those rats, they're not even really a statistic in the general scheme of things. Myco continually weakens the immune system, which makes them more prone to contracting secondary infections. The more often they get sick, the more inclined they will be to develop serious respiratory problems down the line. There's no 'curing' myco or preventing it from happening. It's already there, and it's not going anywhere. My vet made a very good comparison to myco as a serious infection such as AIDS is to a human. It's not the disease itself, but the infections the weakened immune system is prone to that eventually kill them. Keeping your rats in good conditions, feeding them good foods, and keeping up with vet care are the only way to keep flare ups to a minimum. Even then, it's all in the hands of their genetics and how weak their systems are to begin with.

As Jo said, there's really nothing you can do other than what you are doing. If Rose is continuing to have symptoms while under treatment, you need a different treatment. Baytril/Doxy and Baytril/Zithromax are two of the most favored treatments for resp. infections. Make sure you're doing treatment for atleast a week after all symptoms have stopped, to ensure you've killed off all the bacteria causing the infection.

 

[Vanessa]

Myco in humans is commonly called 'Walking Pneumonia'. If you have ever been unlucky enough to have it, like me, you can sympathize with what the rats go through.
I got it the same way that rats do. I was already down with a cold, I was working long hours and not being very kind to myself and my immune system was compromised. It's the same deal with them.
I was put on Zithromax (azithromyacin), another treatment that many find successful for rats, and I was feeling loads better within two doses.
Catching it early and treating it aggressively is the answer - with rats and humans.

 

[jorats]

I've had it once before... and now that you put it that way Vanessa, god, those poor rats. It hurt so much.

 

[Riana]

I'm finding that the zithromax that Rose is on now isn't doing nearly as good a job as the baytril/doxy... I'm wondering if I should change meds, or just go through the course the vet suggested and see what happens. But he's still making the noises (not as badly though). :sad3: I don't know what to do!

 

[jorats]

I've noticed with mine as well that when the zithro is not quite as effective, the baytril/doxy does the the job.
I'd do what the vet recommended, then stopped for a bit and then start up with the doxy/baytril.