[crackerkorean]

Ok we adopted two rats this past saturday and have them in a seperate room. I know you are supposed to change cloths and wash when you handle them. To what extent should one wash and change when dealing with either rats.

If I go and feed one rat some treats should I change all my clothes before I head into give treats to the other rats? Or should I change and what not even if I just go into the same room?

What my wife and I have been doing is keeping buddy (behind the couch in the living room) in his cage. Later in the evening we will go and spend some out of cage time with Jimi and Freddy. After that we usually shower and then go back into the living room and let buddy out of his cage and let him run around for a while.

Is this adequite or no?

And I was reading another thread about sendai or SDA and was given a link. In there it showed a picture of a rat with one of the two and one swollen eye. It looked similar to Buddies eyes and I am a little worried. Granted they dont always look like that. Here are a couple of pictues and the first one he has the weird eyes, but I havent really noticed his eyes being like this all the time.

http://ratforum.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=2707.html

 

[RatCrazy]

his eyes look fine there just the way the camera caught them I have seen that happen in pictures alot. Is it getting worse? Is there any neck swelling? You can have the tests done though i hear they are quite expensive.

You are doing a great job on quarantine as far as I am concerned but you shoud definitely wash your hands and change your clothes every time you enter or exit that room or handle one rat or the other. Are you keeping the door shut between the rooms??

If you suspect it is SDA or Sendai I would wait until every symptom is gone and then quarantine for another three weeks.

 

[crackerkorean]

Ok no his eyes are find and there is no swelling. I was just paniced when I saw that one picture.

I am not keeping the doors closed (all the same HVAC system).

I have to change cloths when I go in there?? Yikes thats my library/bill paying place.

I do wash my hands and what not if I do touch. Ok well I guess I will be doing more laundry LOL

 

[renay]

the easiest way to do quarantine would be to do everything you intend to do with your rattys with the ones you had first, you already know that they aren't diseased (i'm assuming this anyway), so you could handle them and then go and handle your new rats without having to change clothes, but if you want to go back and handle your resident ratties you should change your clothes, wash etc..

 

[crackerkorean]

We have had buddy (got him first) for 4 weeks. First two weeks he had a URI but hes over it now.

Ok thats what gets me, the rats that we adpoted were quarantied at the rescue with 8 other rats in the same home. They were put with the foster parents general population and everything was ok.

So my question is we have had our guy for 4 weeks and the other rats were quarantined so why the quarantine at our place?

Can rats be carriers of things but not get it themselves? Is that the reason and the 3 week period is for that stuff. If so wouldnt have already gone since they were quarintined at the previous locals?

 

[renay]

I think its more because for all you know the very last day your new rat was where it was previously housed it could have came down with something, and the 3 week period is how long illnesses generally incubate within a rats body, of course I could be wrong, but thats what makes sense to me. Just follow through with the quarantine, and before you know it you should be able to play with all of your little ratties at the same time

 

[crackerkorean]

Ok that works for me, I havent been given a clear answer as to why.

I hate it for buddy hes all alone in a smallish cage.

The two new guys are in a 4 cubic foot and right now its ok since they are still pretty small.

So when I get my martin in who do I put in there first? Buddys cage is a bit small for him. And I could do intros in the tub or something.

And then how would moving them into the matin work?

 

[renay]

Maybe you could keep them all in the cages their in now... do the intro in the tub... and then put them in the martin cage together? I've really never had any problems with intros.. but then again i've dealt mostly with females who in my opinion are a bit less aggressive.