My Flower has a Runny Nose

Hello there,
Today I bought a sweet little girl rat, Flower, from a pet store. She was originally a feeder rat, but I wanted to play rescuer and so I bought her up. I inspected her eyes and ears, as well as her feet and coat for any signs of illness, and at the time she didn't seem to be weezing at all, so I didn't suspect any respiratory problems. When I got her settled in, I noticed she was wiping her nose with her paws a lot. I took a closer look and noticed a clear mucus bubble popping out of her nostril. She isn't showing any signs of labored breathing and her eyes are very clear. She doesn't seem to be sneezing or coughing, so I was wondering what this could possibly be. If possible, I was wondering if there were any home remedies for a rat's runny nose.

Thanks a bunch,
Lauren

hello Lauren and welcome
Congratulations on your new family member
Many times when a rattie is moved and brought home, the stress from this can bring on some sneezing and a runny nose. This should only last a couple of days and resolve itself. I do recommend you keep a close eye on how Flower's symptoms are progressing or regressing. If you notice any redness ( looks like red tears or staining) from the eyes or nose, labored breathing or open mouthed breathing, sneezing or running nose becoming more persistant or frequent, I'd say a vet trip would be in order then.
I am not well versed on herbal remedies, for anthing medical I always consult the vet or make an appointment. Maybe another member on the forum is knowledgable on holistic treatments. Even so, my best advice would be a vet appointment if your flower is showing any of those bad symptoms.
The best thing for her now since she is new it to keep things quiet. No hussle and bustle around her cage and keep things as quiet as you can. Introduce her to the normal day to day activity in your household slowly. She needs to get accustomed and acclimated to her new home and family.
How is Flower doing today?

Flower seems very tired this morning, it could just be her adjusting as you said earlier. I'm pretty sure she is still eating and drinking, because I provided her with a bowl of rat blocks, seeds and cooked corn that was gone this morning (although it could have been her friend Juno, who is also going through quarentine right now), and when I picked her up to listen to her breathing, she pooped on me, and it didn't look unhealthy to me. Lucky for Flower, Juno is a very caring rat and has been sitting with her and giving her baths to try and comfort her. Thanks for your help, I'll keep you updated if she has a major change.

-Lauren

-----

I set up a video camera while I was in class, she's eating and drinking a lot when I'm not looking, so I think she's doing okay... I'll keep monitoring her though.

Hey Lauren,

Congrats on the rattie! To chime in here, I totally agree with what Rachel posted. What concerns me is the speed at which really nasty infections can set in. Although "snot bubbles" do seem to sound more like a cold and not a respiratory infection, my advise would be to get to the vet if she has not improved by weeks end. Yes, a trip to the vet may be quite unsettling for her, but I think such a precautionary measure would be best. I certainly do not mean to sound like an alarmist, however, I had a rat several years ago who one day was a bit congested and the very next day had full blown pneumonia and passed that night. Rats are such tough little critters, from what i have observed, they never really seem sick, until they are REALLY sick.

I tried giving my girls echinacia tincture to prevent respiratory infections. I never followed through with it. I was giving them children's echinacia b/c it has no alcholol in it, but the stuff tasted gross to me, and my girls did not care for it, even mixed in yummy baby food. May be worth a shot though. You can get it at the Co-op or even Wegmans.

I love the idea of the video camera on the rat cage!!! Too fun!

Take care of your newest addition to your family

christine

Thanks for the advice. I did finally gets some antibiotics, because all of my ratties got sick. The vet was nice enough to just give me the pills without a visitation, which probably saved me a ton of money. I am currently battling four unwilling ratties to take liquid antibiotics. My hands look like I shoved them into a paper shredder, but already my boys are beginning to improve and the sniffles and sneezes are slowing down on all my little ones.

-Lauren


-------
Took everyone to the vet's yesterday... we now have two forms of antibiotics and a check-up next week. I'm just hoping they get better.

Lauren,

Have you tried mixing the liquid antibiotics with babyfood? In the past my rats have been eager to lick a spoonful of banana baby food in which I mixed their meds. I would spoon out some babyfood and then squirt the prescribed dose onto the spoon and blend it in using my finger. They loved it! No fights, no scratching, just more yummy treats. I hear some rats like jelly and some mashed up avacado in which to hide the meds.

christine

Lauren,
How many other ratties have gotten sick? Did the vet mention what type of infection this may be? Viral or bacterial? Maybe caused by Mycoplasmosis? This did seem to spread easily and quickly... how are their eyes looking? I hope they haven't caught anything like Sendai.
Is everyone improving? Are they any better?
My thoughts and well wishes are with all your ratties.
Thank you Christine for the great suggestions on medicine giving.

Everyone is on Vibramycin for another two days. Bartlbey, Loki and Flower have all recovered from their sneezing, running noses, porphyrin and coughs. Juno on the other hand is on Vibramycin and Baytril and hasn't been improving. The vet wants to see her again, but unfortunately I'm rather poor and I have spent over $300 on all four rats just this month. Juno still has a week and a half left of her treatment so if all goes well she will improve; she is quarentined with a bad sneeze, cough and porphyrin coming out of her nose.

-Lauren

Hey Lauren,

Hang in there! I so hear you on being poor and having massive vet bills!!! Although I have no advice, I wanted to share a story...

My soul mate, the love of my life was named Helix. The best rattie girl ever! She got so sick, so sick she was very close to death. 2 weeks on a Baytril mix cured her and she lived on. Although Helix has sinced passed, I think of her daily. Her meds allowed her to live to old age. I allowed her to sleep in bed with me at night, and she would fall asleep stretched across my neck. Too cute and cozy!!!

You and your ratlets are in my thoughts. Please keep us updated on Juno and the other ratlets.

christine

Thank you everyone for you support! I'll keep you all posted.

-Lauren

Juno is doing a ton better... or so my boyfriend says.
I had them all in my dorm room, but then someone ratted me out (no pun intended) and so now all my kid's are at my boyfriend's apartment. He says her coughing has stopped and is only sneezing a little bit. I visit them at least every other day and she does seem a great deal improved. Hooray for medicine, boo for vet bills!

Thank you everyone for all your support and help,
-Lauren

Lauren,

Glad you wrote, I was just thinking about you and Juno and the other ratties today. Is Juno still on meds? Ooooo - you must miss her, with her being at your boyfriend's house and all.

I remember looking at student housing at UB law, and first, it was WAY too expensive, and second they did not allow any pets. Booo! Now I live in a cute little apt. on the West Side and have a great landlord who brings her daughter over to see my rats. This came about one day when her daughter said, "I am a rodent lover!" Good for her!

You and yours are in my thoughts... Thanks for keeping us updated!

christine

that is fantastic news, I am so glad to hear it. Sounds like Juno will be 100 percent in no time,