# Rat Seems Healthy, But Continuous Sneezing



## watthemath (Jun 15, 2012)

Hi there! We have two male rats. We got them about a month ago when they were already a few weeks old. I have done research on sneezing, including reading the thread on this forum. Their coat seems sleek and healthy, not really fluffed up. Although, the fur seems to be slightly raised on one rat's back constantly. I've listened to their breathing and I have never heard a thing. I have also never seen fluids coming out of / around their nose or eyes. Like I said, they seem completely healthy. I've been constantly watching them, checking for the appearance of respiratory infection symptoms, but still have seen none at all.
I really only notice them sneezing when we first pick them up and put them on the bed to get some free-roam time. I dont wear perfume, and we never have anything strong smelling in the room. I suppose it could be my shampoo or body soap. The room isn't air conditioned, sadly. But we pretty much live in this room with the rats. It's in the mid-high seventies, I'm sure. No cold draft, and decent humidity. Their cage is very well ventilated and the bedding we have now is called SunSeed. It's paper bedding, and it is slightly dusty when I add new bedding.
But as I said, the sneezing isn't necessarily constant. It seems to just be when they first interact with me after being left in their cage for a while. When I get them out and running around on the bed, they don't seem to sneeze much. I can't tell if it's the excitement or if it has to do with some smell that I put off. Because they don't show any signs of any type of infection... What do you guys think?


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## Imaginary Evil (Jul 7, 2012)

It could be any number of things. I personally wouldn't use that bedding as it's far too dusty and can cause rats to have allergies. My boys are spoiled with blankets (made of old t-shirts, and washed and changed daily!), and the floor is covered in cardboard instead of litter - it's nice and absorbent, kind to their little feet, and no dust. And I also wipe up the pee and poo twice a day because the ammonia given off can be harmful to their respiratory systems.

The trouble is with rats (and of course there are very few downsides) is that they will hide an illness very well, they are very stoic little creatures. An infection can be pretty advanced before they show signs of it, and sometimes, sadly, it's too late to treat it properly then.

Please forgive me if I'm scaring you, I don't mean to, but I really think it would be a good idea to have a vet check them over and give them a course of antibiotics if necessary. Not the cheapest thing in the world but absolutely worth it for your peace of mind and for their health.


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## petratts (Feb 14, 2012)

hey, i agree with what imaginary evil says. do you live near a wal mart, wal mart has a lot of cheap stuff i think could help your rats. 

this will help if inside air pollution is the problem: 
one thing is a box fan filter. get a box fan, and a allergy quality air filter, and duct tape. place the filter agaisnt the back of the fan so the air is pulled through the filter, make sure the filter is on the right side for proper air flow. the filter has a arrow that explains this, duck tape all the of sides of the filter to the fan for a air tight seal. u have to buy a filter that fits the box fan as cutting the filter to fit is a bad idea. but the most box fans and air filters are the same size really.

also at wal mart you can get a giant roll of brown paper. it is in the paint section for about $7. and you get like 100 feet of brown paper. you can use it to line the cage. and can rip up some for bedding. it is safe and cheap. just like brown paper bags.


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## Rat Daddy (Sep 25, 2011)

I've actually seen this before, with ratties only a few weeks old, you buy a rattie that's perfectly healthy and before you even get it home it starts sneezing, especially when handled. It usually lasts about two weeks, and it's gone forever. I will add that my 6 year old daughter pretty much handles anew rattie about 16 hours a day and it's feet rarely touch the ground. The store told me it's normal. Oddly enough, we just got our first 3 week old baby rattie that didn't sneeze... and I consider that not normal. On the other hand it finished trust training before we got it home and was toddling along behind us within 24 hours of hitting the front door. This one is coming along way to easy.

Keep handling the ratties a lot ( at least a few hours in your hands or on your shoulder every day) and if the sneezing doesn't go away in a week or so then you might have something to worry about.


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