Rat Health

Tumors

This is most common in female rats. Females will often get a tumor when they are two or three. The most common is a mammary tumor. If you notice a small, round ball developing on your rat, you should contact a vet. The vet will probably need to remove it and this can be pricey. The bad thing is in most cases the tumor will grow back. If you notice your rat eating, more when it has a tumor do not be alarmed. Often the rat feels it can eat enough to support itself and the tumor. If you do not have the tumor removed it will grow bigger and bigger until it is almost as big as the rat itself. In many cases the only thing you can do is have your rat painlessly put to sleep. This can be a hard choice, but please think about your rat. If you think she is in pain, this would probably be the best decision to make.

Allergies

Some rats are allergic to certain types of foods. If your rat sneezes a lot or sounds congested it might have allergies. There are a few cures for this. You can try to determine if it is in there food. You try removing sunflower seeds and see if the allergies clear up. If not try something else. If this does not work, a rat vet could give you some medicine to help clear it up. To prevent your rats' allergies from coming back or getting worse, your rat's cage should not be near a vent. Also, if you are using pine or cedar bedding, use something different. These beddings often cause problems in rats.

Mites

Mites are not commonly found in rats but it is a possibility. If your rat scratches a lot or if small, sores appear your rat might have them. Usually a vet will do a skin scrapping and will be able to determine if she has mites. If she does, the vet will probably give you some Ivomec, which can be put on the skin of you rat or it, can be injected. Usually it will be given two or three times with about ten days in between each. Your rat should be back to its normal self soon.