Reptile & Amphibian Forums

All of the sudden some of my pinkys have wet tail. I have about 14 tubs and in 6-7 of them there are pinkys with wet tail. I keep my mice clean and well fed. What could be causing this and is there any way to get rid of it?...besides killing off all the pinks with wet tail. None of the adults are showing signs of wet tail, only the pinks and fuzzys.
Thanks guys
Ryan

Wet tail is usually a stress related affliction, although it's rare to see it happen so early in pinkies and fuzzies (at least I've never seen it so, doesn't mean it won't happen).

Anyway, I'll try to throw out some suggestions to help:

Wet tail symptoms, on average, start 7 days after the initial problem starts. More often than not from their environment. If you have many litters in the cage, separate the batches and their moms, or if you have another nursing mother-put her in there to help the other moms care for them (rats are great in this respect). Babies will be stressed if they have a lot of competition for milk.

Clean the cage thoroughly ever 2 days. Diluted bleach solution hot water, or antibacterial dishwashing soap. Rinse really well.

Go to your local pet store and get some "Dri-Tail" or 'Wet-Tail". Both come in a powder or liquid form that can be mixed with their water. The mothers will ingest it and pass it along in the milk. I don't recommend using a stopper to distribute it individually to the babies because it will just stress them out more.

Add a bit of pedialyte to the fluids as well.

Keep the colony far from any other colonies you may have.

If they don't show any improvement within a week, you may have a larger problem. Other illnesses such as e. coli present themselves in the same manner as wet-tail. In which case, you should consult a veterinarian.