# Hives



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

Does anybody else get hives from little rattie toenail scratches?


----------



## twitch (Jan 4, 2007)

the scratches irrate a bit but i don't get hives. sounds like an allergic reaction. i remember seeing an article on alleriges and what you can do to help you cope with them and still keep the rats but i can't for life of me remember where now. do a search through google and i'm sure you'll find it though. good luck


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

Oh, there's no question of us getting rid of our rats - we love them too much 

The best I have come up with so far is to take an antihistamine and put some Benadryl cream on it. It's a pain, but it works. Long sleeved t-shirts help some, but I could do with something a little heavier to protect my forearms. I refuse to stop playing with/petting our rats!

Any suggestions would be most welcome, of course :lol: Ooh, and I'll Google for that article, too - thanks!


----------



## twitch (Jan 4, 2007)

have you tried wearing a good thick hoodie and a dickie (the neck of a turtle neck but its made that way)? that should cut down on their abilty to scratch you.


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

Yes, that works quite well for the younger one - not quite so well for our full grown one.


----------



## fallinstar (Nov 26, 2006)

mine get infected sometimes but never hives ask your doctor if there is anything you can use to prevent it! hope its ok


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

Thanks. I'm going with layers - a long sleeved tee under a thick hoodie, kept near the rat's cage for play times. Benedyrl clears me up pretty quickly, but I can only take that at night because it knocks me out. I'll keep on keeping on... maybe, eventually, I'll build up a resistance to it.


----------



## LiLmissJ_01 (Apr 25, 2007)

i break out in hives after playin with my ratties and also after cleaning their cages. nothing too serious, just enough to make me itch a lil. I need to go and buy some benadryl cream because the pills also knock me out.

Jenn


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

I've actually built up a bit of a resistance to our youngest rat, since this post. I still get hives from her, but nowhere near as bad or as frequent.

I don't play with the older one quite as much (long story about her being unpredictable and biting - I'm still working on her), but when I do, if she catches me, I get really bad hives from her.

The best I found was as I posted before, really. Scrub with soap and hot water, then stick some Benadryl cream on it. I also take Benadryl before I go to bed on the days that I get hives. I am good as new the next day, then.


----------



## LiLmissJ_01 (Apr 25, 2007)

Im glad Im not the only one. LOL....Ill have to invest in the benadryl cream but Im already on allergy meds so I cant take the benadryl pills anymore. But I know the scrubbin with soap and water does help. What we do for a lil rattie love  LOL. Im new to the site. I like what I see so far and I know, I know....Ill get pictures of my girls and boys soon. Im in the process of adding new decorations to my girls new cage...im gonna make hammocks and such....Thank you for the added advice. 

Jenn


----------



## 2manyrats (Apr 10, 2007)

I like the 24-hr generic Claritin. It helps me a lot. I'm pretty allergic to mine, too, and had to stop sleeping in the same room with them.


----------



## Sky14 (Aug 18, 2006)

My mom gets'em but only from velvet the dumbo....


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

2manyrats said:


> I like the 24-hr generic Claritin. It helps me a lot. I'm pretty allergic to mine, too, and had to stop sleeping in the same room with them.


Claritin helps me with my sniffle allergies to the rats, but not the hives. Benadryl is the only thing that will shift those, for me. I'm super sensitive, you know! :lol:


----------



## lostbutnotforgot (Apr 19, 2007)

Try rubbing tea tree oil on your arms (diluted). It works for my horse who is allergic to fly bites and breaks out in hives. I typically use it on myself for just scratches, but it should work for hives on people too.


----------



## 2manyrats (Apr 10, 2007)

You could also try wiping your rats down with a damp washcloth before you play with them, to remove the residual pee that they so love to dribble all over each other. If I wipe mine down regularly, my skin only gets red w/ a few hives, instead of breaking out into about five trillion.

Also, I'd work on reducing the scratchiness of their nails so your skin doesn't get broken.


----------



## Ikamuni (Feb 11, 2007)

What do these 'hives' look like? I handle my rats all the time but I never get allergic reactions. If I'm the only one who doesn't get these 'hives' then does that mean I'm a barbarian with a tough hide? :x Or maybe just really lucky! 8)


----------



## Stephanie (Mar 25, 2007)

LoL Ikamuni I don't get anyt allergic reactions to my ratties either. But then again I am really not allergic to anything *knock on wood*


----------



## OnlyOno (Apr 4, 2007)

i get itchy and red on the back of my neck when it gets clawed a lot, but not usually hives. hives are like a rash. consider yourself lucky ikamuni.


----------



## 2manyrats (Apr 10, 2007)

That's what they look like. Lots of bumpy red things.

Also, not everyone is allergic to rats. Some people are very lucky.  However, rat allergies can intensify or develop over time - the neuroscientist at my school who does rat research has had his allergy intensify over the years, so now he has to wear gloves when handling the rats. Also, some people don't get hives as easily on their hands because the hands have thicker skin.


----------



## Ikamuni (Feb 11, 2007)

Lucky me, thick skin!


----------



## mislis787 (Apr 25, 2007)

Neosporin works wonders on my rat scratches, just rub a little on it before it starts to scab and dry out and when it heals you'll hardly even know it was there.


----------



## IceLore (May 13, 2007)

My boyfriend gets them really, really bad. :/ Just the tiniest scratches gives him tons of itchy red bumps. He prefers to hold those rats that trim their nails. lol


----------



## RatMom (May 23, 2007)

I break out in red itchy welts all the time it sucks, but I can't stay away from my ratties. I use a homemade salve I make that works great and homemade pine tar soap works wonders for me. Gold bond makes a itch ointment that works good, but it's pricy.


----------



## crapola (Feb 12, 2007)

i must have tough skin too... no hives on me, just the scratches where the ratties have been!


----------



## ratvocate (May 15, 2007)

Glad to see these posts! I was getting really sad as I have been having some allergy issues with my ratties too. I get hives on my arms, neck, back of the head , face, etc, after playing with the girls. I was beginning to get nervous that I would not be able to keep rats. I feel it has gotten better this week, so I too am hoping I will build an immunity to them? 
One thing I did do that has helped A TON, is I found a nice rock and put it under the food dish. The food dish is a ferret dish that attaches to the side of the cage. They have to climb on the rock to get to the food, which has helped their nails get trimmed wonderfully. I recommend this to any one who wants to keep the nails trimmed up.


----------



## DonnaK (Feb 8, 2007)

ratvocate said:


> Glad to see these posts! I was getting really sad as I have been having some allergy issues with my ratties too. I get hives on my arms, neck, back of the head , face, etc, after playing with the girls. I was beginning to get nervous that I would not be able to keep rats. I feel it has gotten better this week, so I too am hoping I will build an immunity to them?
> One thing I did do that has helped A TON, is I found a nice rock and put it under the food dish. The food dish is a ferret dish that attaches to the side of the cage. They have to climb on the rock to get to the food, which has helped their nails get trimmed wonderfully. I recommend this to any one who wants to keep the nails trimmed up.


Yes, I've found that a combination of blunting things in the cage, me wearing a hooded sweatshirt and helping the rats climb rather than letting them claw their way up me has helped no end. I rarely get hives, now, and when I do they're only one or two that are easily cured with hot soapy water, followed by a bit of Benadryl cream. I get more hives from insect bites than I do our rats, now


----------

