Yuki's feet are bleeding

[Elliriyanna]

I was playing with Yuki and put him back in his cage for a minute to go grab something and when I picked him back up I noticed his feet were bleeding it looks like he cut a couple of his toes. There is nothing sharp in his cage at all no I have no idea how it happened but I definitely dont want it to get infected what can i do? it doesnt seem to be hurting him as much this morning I couldnt get to a computer last night.

 

[lilspaz68]

I was playing with Yuki and put him back in his cage for a minute to go grab something and when I picked him back up I noticed his feet were bleeding it looks like he cut a couple of his toes. There is nothing sharp in his cage at all no I have no idea how it happened but I definitely dont want it to get infected what can i do? it doesnt seem to be hurting him as much this morning I couldnt get to a computer last night.

toe cuts bleed a lot but are generally harmless. Toe bites (from another rat) can bleed like the rat is dying but they don't LOL. toes, tails, ears and tongue all bleed copious amounts but once the rat has recovered, they are just fine and you rarely find the wound. Feel around his cage or where he's been out to see if you can find the sharp bits. No other animal was near his cage were they?

 

[Elliriyanna]

No my kitten does not mess with my rats or hamsters and can not reach his cage


And I felt it ... the only thing remotely sharp are the zip ties I used to attach the ramps and I cut those as short as I could I will go back in with scissors tonight and see if I missed anything.

When he is out he just lays on me and as far as I know I am not sharp lol

Sorry as you know I am new to rats and with him bleeding I wanted to be sure its not serious. His toes look sore but other than that he's fine

He does seem sad though He just lays in his hut doesnt even eat much. But thats most likely the result of being a lone rat right? Both of my boys do this.

 

[fenshae]

Any chance he might have gotten his nails caught in something, and it's a torn nail that's causing the bleeding?

 

[TorachiKatashi]

When Vin's toenail was torn out, there was so much blood that it looked like someone had been murdered in that cage - there is a lot of blow flowing through the feet. It looks a whole lot worse than it is, though. I held him and scratched behind his ears while my mom held his foot in a cold, wet facecloth for five minutes or so and the bleeding stopped easily. If the bleeding hasn't stopped, do that. If it has, just keep an eye out for infection (if it's red and swollen after a few days, and/or if it smells funky) in which case get him to the vet so you can nip it in the bud. Some people will start abs anyways "just in case," but I don't recommend it as that's just building immunity to the medication and it won't be as effective when he really needs it.

If it seems like he's REALLY in pain, you can give him a very small amount of infant ibuprofen, though another forum member would have to give you the dosage info on that. For a toe injury, though, I doubt it's necessary. Odds are, you're a lot more upset and frazzled about this than he is.

Welcome to the world of rat ownership; I'm pretty sure these guys pay awake at night thinking of new ways to scare the snot out of us!

As a side note, Vin's toe grew back within a few weeks!

 

[M0onkist]

It might be the sharp end of the zip ties, if you cut them short - I usually just leave them full-length, and if the Pips chew them, they never actually eat them (it's more just something fun and novel to chew).

I'm sure the bleeding's stopped by now, but if you ever need to stop bleeding from toes or whatever, use styptic powder (sold both in pharmacies for men who cut themselves shaving, and at pet stores near the nail clippers), or a bit of flour.

 

[Elliriyanna]

it stopped bleeding after just a few minutes And yeah he doesnt seem bothered by it ... one toe looks a little swollen but injuries get a little inflamed anyway if it doesnt go away I will go to the rescue she keeps the stuff needed stocked up for her crew.