Rat with Cancer?

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user 18141

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Hello all. I caught this rat in my garage and relocated him however now I am wondering if this is something contagious I should be worried about.
 

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Awww poor little guy. Looks like he has a botfly larvae infestation. :(

Arthropoda
  • Cuterebra (rodent bot fly), a larval stage endoparasite, is of the family Oestridae. The species affecting rodents is tenebrosa. It is an obligate parasite of mammals, and tends to be host specific passing part of its stage in the subcutaneous tissue of its host.
    Cuterebriasis becomes apparent when the larvae create warbles (seen as a swelling) in the tissue. The depositing of ova by the female bot fly does not occur directly to the skin, but rather the ova are deposited on fomites, developing into small larvae, where they then transfer to the rat entering either through ingestion, through the nose, or penetrating through any small wound or abrasion in the skin. They then migrate through the body (roughly a week) burrowing under the skin to create a warble (lump seen under the skin of the rat). A warble pore (to the outside of the skin) is made by the larvae’s pointed mouth hooks through which respiration and excretion of fluid occurs. While within the warble the larvae derive their nutrition from the blood of their host.
    Larval development to maturity may last from two weeks to a month where they then exit through the warble pore falling to the ground where it burrows into soil to pupate and emerge as an adult fly. Adult flies do not feed and only survive a few days.
    Rats rarely die from myiasis ( bot fly infestation & infection), but effects from the larvae may cause debilitation. Infected warbles, on occasion, may ooze blood or serum as a result of the larvae keeping the warble pore open. Pruritis (itching) may occur at the site of the warble or irritation may occur as the larvae migrate to the chosen site. Secondary bacterial infection may occur. Also it is a possibility that if larvae are not removed intact any remaining pieces may set up an anaphylactic response, or result in an abscess developing at the site of the warble.
    The rodent botfly is rarely encountered in the pet rat housed indoors, but may infest those that are housed outside in warm areas, or in those rodents living in the wild.
 
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Hello all. I caught this rat in my garage and relocated him however now I am wondering if this is something contagious I should be worried about.
Hi all, I’m new here. My daughters rat has a big lump under his right ear that seems to have come up overnight. Upon researching it sounds unfortunately like it’s a ZGT... when we came across this info, my daughter (who’s 12) burst into tears. My heart breaks for her. If it is zgt is there anything that can be done?
 
Hi all, I’m new here. My daughters rat has a big lump under his right ear that seems to have come up overnight. Upon researching it sounds unfortunately like it’s a ZGT... when we came across this info, my daughter (who’s 12) burst into tears. My heart breaks for her. If it is zgt is there anything that can be done?
Please make your own post so this gets more attention and you don't take over someone else's-
 
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