[kraftikins]

not sure if this is in the correct spot but anyway--

i love kraft, and when i get her out of her cage she loves to snuggle up right against my neck. but every once and a while she smells kinda... well, ratty. i keep the cage clean (it's a large cage and she's the only one in it, so i keep the bedding deep and clean it weekly) but she still gets smelly eventually.

is it ok to give her a bath? i have in the past given her one- just filled the tub with shallow, warm but not hot water and used just a tiny drop of my extremely mild dish soap, diluted even further on my hands on her back and tummy. (rinsing well, of course) she HATES it, but smells better.

is this ok for her? does anyone else bathe their rats? is there a better way to bathe her that she won't hate so much? (any recommended soaps?)

 

[twitch]

bathing rats is fine. i bathe mine from time to time and even share my own showers and baths with them even if they don't need one themselves. i've found that showering with them then give them a rinse down with johnson's baby shampoo is the best way. by the time i'm reading to wash them (after i've washed up myself) they've calmed down and don't seem to mind being washed as much themselves. though they're still not keen to rinsed off. but they handle better then giving them a bath on their own.

 

[Night]

A good way to get ratties really clean is to work olive oil into their skin, and then soap them up really well with dish soap. Most rats hate/tolerate baths, but they are necessary sometimes Also, you really need to get Kraft a friend. Rats cannot live alone.

P.S. - don't put Kraft in the shower, it's a terrible idea and the rat can get an ear infection, a myco flareup, and even aspiration pneumonia from inhaling some of the water. Bad, bad idea.

 

[twitch]

where do you get this information night? the shower is fine. i've done for a while now and have had no problems. i don't hold them under the water so their little heads get soaked and its nice and warm and they get thoroughly towel dried before they leave the room so they don't get cold. its certainly no worse then giving them a bath.

 

[Night]

With a bath, they can go to a more shallow part of the tub and get away from the water. And you can monitor them and make sure no water gets in their ears. AND you can be sure they don't inhale any water. There's no reason to take a shower with your rat. In fact, it's silly and unnecessary.

Just because you've wrongly done something for a while and nothing terrible has come of it, doesn't make it fine. I smoke cigarettes and I don't have cancer - doesn't mean it's fine. Some people choose to use pine/cedar because they, personally, have never had problems - doesn't mean it's okay.

If you want to clean up your rat, you give them a quick bath or wipe down with a damp cloth. The end.

 

[twitch]

and yet you refuse to cite where you get your information. please tell me where you learned that ear infections and aspiration pneumonia can be caused from showers.

 

[Night]

What, like there are articles out there on NOT showering with your rodent (or even a dog or cat)? It should be common knowledge.

If you don't believe me, go to a real rat forum and post about it. See what people respond with. Go here, post about showering with your rats, and we'll see what happens. That is the best and foremost rat forum on the internet. It has biologists, vet techs, veterinarians, animal communicators, rat owners of 30+ years, and more.

 

[nerdchick]

Chelsey, gotta agree with you. Even professionals groomers protect the eyes and ears of the cats and dogs. Twitch, you rat deserves the same protection. Rats have highly sensitive ears and water build up can lead to infection (bacteria love wet, dark, warm places). Also, what if you accidentally step on her or heaven forbid a bottle of shampoo or soap falls on her. That could kill your rat. And one more thing, a healthy pet has a responsible owner that takes precautions to keep their pet safe, putting your rat in a dangerous situation that could not only harm the respiratory system, the very sensitive ears and possibly cause death is irresponsible.

-Caty

 

[Night]

Oh sweet jesus, someone who agrees with me. *clings*

 

[fallinstar]

i didnt say i disagreed with you i just didnt like the way you are yelling it at ppl!

 

[Night]

Pft, I wasn't yelling at people When did I ever yell at someone?

Gotten fed up? Totally. Gotten frustrated? Most certainly. I've never yelled at anyone, though.