# moved the babies/mom, now shes sneezing?



## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

I read that after the babies get a little older, you should move them out of the birth environment and into a wire cage so they can build muscle. i did this recently, and the mom has been sneezing ever since. i moved them into a different room and now they have newspaper bedding rather than paper towels. could this just be the cause or should i get her to the vet asap? also, could she just be sneezing because of stress? she sneezes about once every 5-10 minutes but isnt lethargic or unhappy.


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

Isn't there something known as new home sneezes?


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## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

ya, but i didnt know if that held true if they were still technically in the same house lol


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

Hmm I'm not sure lol, don't know if it means different cage/room too. No air fresheners or anything like that?


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## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

nope. my own rats are in a different cage on the other side of the room and dont seem to have a problem. oh well, i guess i'll give it another day or two to see if its just new home sneezes.


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## Indigo_Paradox (Jul 10, 2008)

Is there different bedding in the two cages?

-Rozaylia


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## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

the cage the mom is in has newspaper bedding and the other cage has yesterday's news bedding.


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

I had to go back & read your other thread.... really should stick to the same thread in order to keep all the details on one thread...

but anyway... the babies are about 2 weeks & a couple days old... right?

You say you are keeping them on newspaper... how often are you cleaning the cage.

If you have a Mother & a bunch of pop machines.. I mean babies... all together in one cage & they are being housed on newspaper you may need to clean the cage daily because of the build up of waste. That build up of waste can & will cause sneezing

Try cleaning more often & maybe start introducing the litter they will eventually be kept on full time. Is it your preference to use YN & not the actually owner of these rats? You should use the litter that she will be using once she returns & takes over with rat-duty.

just put in small amounts at first, they are going to want to taste it & they will determine it is yucky to eat & stop after a few days.


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## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

since newspaper is cheaper and ive been cleaning the cage 1-2 times each day to keep it decent i had just decided to use that instead of yesterdays news. i'll switch over though if the yesterdays news will help her little nose. im not sure what jess uses, i think she has carefresh or something.


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## A1APassion (Jul 29, 2007)

don't do a complete switch

& if you do a switch you should use the bedding that will be used when they are returned to their human caretaker.

Just an FYI
Standard accepted practice when you take on the temporary care (pet-sit) someone's pet..they should give you all the supplies you would need during that time they are in your care. They either give you all supplies they anticipate you will need, they provide you with funds to purchase the supplies or they agree to repay you for supplies that you need to purchase specifically for the care of their pets (you save receipts, buy separate from your own supplies & hand over all unused portions to owner upon payment for expenditures & services if you are being paid for the service)

Keep that in mind for next time, not much you can do about it now

But since you are dealing with it now, you really need to provide for them in a proper manner & if that means you have to buy some bedding that will be appropriate, then you really should & then take up the expense of the purchase with your friend when they return. 

We are talking about their heath & well being.

As a secondary thought to the situation.... did you say you moved the mother & the babies to another area of the house or room than where they were originally being kept up until now?

If so, the sneezing could have been brought on by that. New cage, new space, new environemnt, new smells, new wind flows/drafts..... new home sneezy effect.

It could be as simple as that. Be sure Mom is getting a good diet & look for any sickly signs such as the red discharge around eyes & nose or her hair looking unkempt. Sneezing alone is not a sign of anything bad other than mild irritation or allergy to something she is exposed to.


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## Volkl (Feb 14, 2008)

well, i mean, stuff like this happens when you pet sit for someone irresponsible. i called her 6 days ago and still never heard back even though she was only supposed to be out of town from the 1st to the 14th... the problem with the bedding is that i dont know what she usually uses. i had her on paper towels so the babies would strangle themselves and so i could see if there was any blood at the beginning. now i put her on newspaper since i change it so often. i bought carefresh this morning, i guess i'll just have to assume thats what jessica uses since she brought the mom here in a cat carrier with some carefresh in it. it sucks, but right now im starting to make a backup plan for if i get left with all the babies and she wont take them back or something. i keep getting weird stories that make no sense from her room mate so i dont know whats even going on. all i can do is try to take care of them the best i can.


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