rats with allergies?

[scanrat]

my three girls had mysterious porphy eyes, I took them to the vet and she couldn't find anything wrong but gave them baytril just in case. When I was giving them their meds one day I noticed that one of them had little scratches here and there on her neck, sides, rump, etc...nothing serious and I had to really search to find them, but I called the vet to ask about a mite treatment. She seemed pretty convinced that they were having allergy attacks not mites.

I changed the laundry detergent I had been using on their fleece to unscented hypoallergenic. I also switched from using "nature's miracle" to wipe down their cage and used vinegar instead. so far it seems to have made a huge difference. I also clipped their back nails down. no porphy so far since I made these changes! I dont see any new scratches but I'm still watching this situation.

has anyone ever had issues with nature's miracle or laundry detergent before? I probably should have eliminated one at a time to find the real culprit, but I just wanted the girls to feel better!

 

[jorats]

We've had rats react to some detergents here in the past but never three at the same time.
I would have thought mites too...

 

[scanrat]

I was skeptical too. Out of all three, two had the porphy and only one had scratches.... I'll keep an eye on it. This was the first time I took them to this vet. She takes care of my rabbits and does a great job, but I wasn't completely satisfied with her in terms of the rats. I get the feeling like they don't get rats very often there, although they told me that they did care for them.

If things continue to progress I will try another vet. I wish I hadn't wasted the $ on this one. sigh.

 

[lilratsy43]

Animal Ark in B'ville is my fav, its quite a hike from here but totally worth it!

Also Liverpool Village Animal Hospital isn't too bad, Dr. Lin is the best there for rats, Dr. Jordan sees rats but I was not impressed by her.

 

[scanrat]

i was just checking out reviews for animal ark and it looks great. I should have gone there in the first place since you recommended them lilratsy! I might also check them out for my bunnies too, since many of the reviews I found were related to rabbits.

I was a bit turned off last time taking my rats there. I had to wait for about 40 minutes although I got there on time, with my three rats in their carrier and big dogs coming in every few minutes and trying to get to them. there was no where out of reach I could keep them!

Although the vet was nice I still got the feeling from everyone else there that I was crazy bringing rats to a vet. I also asked them about special ordering oxbow but they never called me back. I also dont think the vet really new much about rats other than what I could diagnose myself using the internet.

although I liked them for my bunnies, i'm not too impressed right now. I'll give animal ark a call.

 

[lilratsy43]

The only issue I am having with Animal Ark right now is that Dr. Spindel has been out a lot and on business none the less, but I think he'll be back this week. I am probably going to make an appt as well, for my Teddy Bear.