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AmeliaJ013

Member
Joined
May 3, 2020
Messages
5
Location
United Kingdom
Hi!
I'm still a first time rat owner but would like some advice, as I know vets can be quite limited with knowledge when it comes to rats. I have three rat boys, all from a bad breeder (a mistake I will not repeat). They were kept in bad conditions from birth so two out of three of them have exhibited constant chronic respiratory infections since I can remember. I've tried a number of things, metacam, baytril and doxycycline together, loxicom, nebulizer with F10, humidifier and bisolvon. Not all together obviously, on different courses. When administrating medicine that can be eaten I would mix it in with yoghurt and some sugar to encourage them to eat it. I've always kept a close eye on them and tried more medicine if they seemed to be getting worse (although they don't seem to get better so I don't know if they actually get worse either).

Admittedly my vet tried to be very helpful but she still was not an expert with them. Also, to be totally honest there were times when I did miss doses and extended the course to make up for the missed doses. I know antibiotics can be funny in this way, could I have not seen a response to them because of the few times I missed doses in the various courses I've tried?

My two boys have been side sucking for as long as I can remember. Porphyrin when they wake up around their noses is common. Sometimes (multiple times a day with one of the two) they will make wheezing/honking sounds. The other one seems completely unfazed and I've never seen him have respiratory problems, perhaps is just a bit sneezy. I can't even tell you if there's been any difference following anything I've tried, if there was it was minor. The vets have listened to their lungs and said they can't hear any problems with their lungs so they assume it's just an issue with their upper respiratory systems and it just hasn't progressed further yet? I'd rather nip it in the bud though and not be constantly in fear they'll get leukaemia if I can. I'm constantly worrying over them and the sickest rat has a tendency for choking on food so it's obvious there's a restriction to breathing somewhere. Everytime I hear them making sounds when breathing it pains me.

Could it be another problem? Like a heart issue? The vet listened to their heart and couldn't hear any problems either, and their lungs aren't wheezy so they should be able to hear their heartbeat clearly. Has anyone had a similar experience or could it just have been the occasional times I missed a dose then extended the course to make up for it that would have stopped the medicine from working? Surely even with some missed doses I should have seen some improvement?

They are happy it seems in every other way. Granted the one that is the sickest of the three is a bit more lethargic (they are two y/o now as well so are slowing down somewhat) and always has been. But they all still want to eat and interact with me and will run around when I get them out and interact with toys I leave out for them even if it's just for five minutes then they sit for the rest of the time. The one who is not sick runs around and plays almost non stop unless he's in the cage. I try to keep their cage regularly cleaned and my room is not particularly dusty either. I use dust free bedding and litter and wash their hammocks twice a week.

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you!
 
Hi!
I'm still a first time rat owner but would like some advice, as I know vets can be quite limited with knowledge when it comes to rats. I have three rat boys, all from a bad breeder (a mistake I will not repeat). They were kept in bad conditions from birth so two out of three of them have exhibited constant chronic respiratory infections since I can remember. I've tried a number of things, metacam, baytril and doxycycline together, loxicom, nebulizer with F10, humidifier and bisolvon. Not all together obviously, on different courses. When administrating medicine that can be eaten I would mix it in with yoghurt and some sugar to encourage them to eat it. I've always kept a close eye on them and tried more medicine if they seemed to be getting worse (although they don't seem to get better so I don't know if they actually get worse either).

Admittedly my vet tried to be very helpful but she still was not an expert with them. Also, to be totally honest there were times when I did miss doses and extended the course to make up for the missed doses. I know antibiotics can be funny in this way, could I have not seen a response to them because of the few times I missed doses in the various courses I've tried?

My two boys have been side sucking for as long as I can remember. Porphyrin when they wake up around their noses is common. Sometimes (multiple times a day with one of the two) they will make wheezing/honking sounds. The other one seems completely unfazed and I've never seen him have respiratory problems, perhaps is just a bit sneezy. I can't even tell you if there's been any difference following anything I've tried, if there was it was minor. The vets have listened to their lungs and said they can't hear any problems with their lungs so they assume it's just an issue with their upper respiratory systems and it just hasn't progressed further yet? I'd rather nip it in the bud though and not be constantly in fear they'll get leukaemia if I can. I'm constantly worrying over them and the sickest rat has a tendency for choking on food so it's obvious there's a restriction to breathing somewhere. Everytime I hear them making sounds when breathing it pains me.

Could it be another problem? Like a heart issue? The vet listened to their heart and couldn't hear any problems either, and their lungs aren't wheezy so they should be able to hear their heartbeat clearly. Has anyone had a similar experience or could it just have been the occasional times I missed a dose then extended the course to make up for it that would have stopped the medicine from working? Surely even with some missed doses I should have seen some improvement?

They are happy it seems in every other way. Granted the one that is the sickest of the three is a bit more lethargic (they are two y/o now as well so are slowing down somewhat) and always has been. But they all still want to eat and interact with me and will run around when I get them out and interact with toys I leave out for them even if it's just for five minutes then they sit for the rest of the time. The one who is not sick runs around and plays almost non stop unless he's in the cage. I try to keep their cage regularly cleaned and my room is not particularly dusty either. I use dust free bedding and litter and wash their hammocks twice a week.

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you!
Correction, I wash their hammocks once every two weeks. I don't notice any odour so have found fortnightly to be enough personally
 
ok lets start with what you see/hear..

When you hold your sick lads sides to your ears and listen to their breathing, wait til they stop wiggling...what do you hear? Are any stuffed nose or popping sounds?

Do they have nipped in waists compared to Mr. Healthy? When you squeeze their chest do they seem harder than Mr. Healthy?

Do they have cool or colder feet, or tails? Do they seem pale in their extremities or have darker nailbeds than Mr. Healthy?
 
ok lets start with what you see/hear..

When you hold your sick lads sides to your ears and listen to their breathing, wait til they stop wiggling...what do you hear? Are any stuffed nose or popping sounds?

Do they have nipped in waists compared to Mr. Healthy? When you squeeze their chest do they seem harder than Mr. Healthy?

Do they have cool or colder feet, or tails? Do they seem pale in their extremities or have darker nailbeds than Mr. Healthy?
Thank you, I'll check when they free range tonight
 
ok lets start with what you see/hear..

When you hold your sick lads sides to your ears and listen to their breathing, wait til they stop wiggling...what do you hear? Are any stuffed nose or popping sounds?

Do they have nipped in waists compared to Mr. Healthy? When you squeeze their chest do they seem harder than Mr. Healthy?

Do they have cool or colder feet, or tails? Do they seem pale in their extremities or have darker nailbeds than Mr. Healthy?
Hello,

Okay so I have checked, it's tough as all my boys wiggle a lot. I can't hear anything additional when I hold their sides to my ear. I can only hear noises from their noses when they breath (multiple times a day with the sickest one, rarely with my less sick one and almost never with the healthy one) The sounds range from wheezing, to popping, to honking/squeaking.

I also cannot notice any difference in nail beds and my boys all have cold feet most of the time unless they have been running around. When they were babies it was less common so maybe this is part of them growing older. My sick boys seem to have harder chests than my healthy one.

Their waists both nip in significantly when they breathe in, which I assume is side sucking?

I think it's possible all three of them have problems with breathing, as I have noticed my healthy one making noises occasionally, it's just much less significant in him and his breathing is never as heavy. All of them sneeze lots.

Thank you.
 
So with your rats, what exact symptoms do you see/hear? Are they still active, eating and drinking normally? Just Yes, they are happy and active most of the time. They are getting tired as they get older and running around less but still want to explore and interact for ten/twenty minutes a day. Drinking and eating okay, my sickest rat chokes on food more than the others probably due to blocked airways.
Yes they are happy and active most of the time. They are slowing down with age but will still happily explore for ten/twenty minutes a day by running around. They eat and drink normally. My sickest rat does choke more than the others on food and I assume this is due to blocked airways.

Sometimes when my poorly one is having a bit of a wheeze he does look worn out and tries to clear his airways when this happens. His sides will heave quite a lot during this time and he starts looking poorly then but otherwise he is okay. He has always been lazier than the others though.
 
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