Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have noticed in my colony of rats lately that a few animals here and there and today a whole tub of 1.4 rats with the same condition. They start losing weight till they eventually get emaciated to the point of death. They get sluggish like they cant move and they have a strange gunk around the eyes and lower body orifices.
Has anyone else experienced this? Know any treatment or prevention?
Thanks.

Sounds like "wet tail"!

Thanks. Any idea on treatment?

In my opinion I am guessing you have been breeding this group for a while. Rats do not breed for ever. I have noticed some of my females that have had over 4 litters will look pretty bad and will start to have some weight issues. I have never had any sickness in any of my animals so I can't tell you if they are sick. They just sound over bred to me.

Bill Rubin
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1.0 Spider Albino
2.1 Tripple Het Caramel, Orange Ghost, Genetic Stripe
1.0 Honeybee
1.1 Het Lavenders
0.1 Het Caramel Albino
0.1 Spider Het Albino
0.1 Pastel Het for Orange Ghost
1.1 Albino
0.1 Spinner Het for Albino
1.0 Super Pastel
1.0 Pied 50 percent White
1.1 Kids (9) and (16)
0.1 Spouse (22 Years Married)
1.0 Chocolate Lab

Good point, However I have been making sure to switch out my breeders after a few weeks or months of breeding. Also, this just happened to a group of 1.4 I had in a tub that was approaching breeding age that had never breed yet, as they were sub adults. So that should clear up that possibility! haha Anything else?

Did anyone answer this? I know there are oral antibiotics you can get from the Vet. Not sure if they would give you a supply large enough for the colony. The best option is alwasys prevention. Keeping food and water away from infected feces and cleaning often.
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Lincoln, NE
Ball Pythons - 0.1 Pastel, 1.0 Pastel het Pied, 0.1 Pied, 0.1 Cinn, 1.0 Black Pewter, 1.0 Woma (hidden gene?), 0.1 Yellowbelly
2.1 Normals
Kingsnakes - 1.0 L. m. thayeri, 0.1 L. m. thayeri X L. alterna, 1.0 L. g. californiae
Other - 0.1 Whitesided P. catenifer sayi, 1.0 H. nascicus, ?.? Chrysemys picta, 0.1 crazy cat, 1.0 husband

Nobody answered that yet. Thanks.

Get new rats. Get rats from someone who breeds in their backyard, not sanitary lab rats that can't tolerate your environment. They might also be too old as someone mentioned. I'm constantly rotating breeders.

this may be a stretch...

Are these Lab Rats???

Do they originate from lab surplus? Are they white?

If that is the case they could be pathogen free rats that live in a perfect sterile environment. When we get them and introduce them into our colonies they get nailed with the pathogens from our "civilian" rodents.

Otherwise, coccidia.

SATAN

>>I have noticed in my colony of rats lately that a few animals here and there and today a whole tub of 1.4 rats with the same condition. They start losing weight till they eventually get emaciated to the point of death. They get sluggish like they cant move and they have a strange gunk around the eyes and lower body orifices.
>>Has anyone else experienced this? Know any treatment or prevention?
>>Thanks.
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"Satan™" is a registered trademark of NERD, Inc. Any copyright infringement is punishable by ETERNAL DAMNATION and some other terrible stuff.

sounds feasable...I know it happens with mice for me all the time...I cannot get mice anywhere but house bred dirty people....LOL...you know what I mean...I have a guy that puts out thousands and thousands a week...noone in the building, air supply, cleans everything , every week.....large heaters , industrial air conditioners.....and his mice are beautiful....bring them here in my celler....and in 4 weeks it starts.....bam....thin and dying....I buy them and feed them...I don't breed them into mine at all anymore....can't...

so it can be the same with rats as Kevin said.....

.......
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........JY

Yes, I went through this years ago before I relied on what I breed as my stock. I was getting other people's rats and many times they would just get sickly and die. If I got ANY of the lab stock that was a FAIL for sure. It just goes to show you that these animals are used to certain ambient pathogens and when they get introduced to a new set you can kill them.
Like the common cold killing people in a South American rain forest.

It does not pay to keep getting rodents from many sources and best to find a source and stick with it! Otherwise we get those "snivelie" rodents that just sit there and suffer.....

SATAN

>>sounds feasable...I know it happens with mice for me all the time...I cannot get mice anywhere but house bred dirty people....LOL...you know what I mean...I have a guy that puts out thousands and thousands a week...noone in the building, air supply, cleans everything , every week.....large heaters , industrial air conditioners.....and his mice are beautiful....bring them here in my celler....and in 4 weeks it starts.....bam....thin and dying....I buy them and feed them...I don't breed them into mine at all anymore....can't...
>>
>>so it can be the same with rats as Kevin said.....
>>
>>.......
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>>........JY
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"Satan™" is a registered trademark of NERD, Inc. Any copyright infringement is punishable by ETERNAL DAMNATION and some other terrible stuff.

These are white, brown, chocolate, tan, and grey and every other color that you can think of. I have had this group a while but I've never had this happen. However I do have some wild mince climbing up onto my rack and snagging some food for themselves. Is this something like where you are going? Thanks.

check the water supply....first...maybe they aren't getting any?...

..age?

.....air.?

food?
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........JY

Thanks, for your posts of info guys. I always keep fresh food, water, and air in my building. The age as I said earlier cant get old, as I switch them around often to keep only the young, healthy, fertile ones. So Im still stunned on this one!

Good call......that's the first thing I was thinking....that maybe they weren't getting any water, that maybe something was wrong withe the nozzle......

Brandon Boeke
Priceless Pythons