# Why is my hairless getting back to back URIs



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

My little hairless baby has been on antibiotics the entire time I've had her, with maybe a week or two in between courses. As soon as she finishes her meds about a week or so later she's visibly sick again. I've taken her to the vet multiple times but this is getting very expensive and very out of hand. I just want her to be healthy. She was on doxy before, and most recently she was on amox. She finished her course yesterday and has already started having sneezing fits, and you can hear the congestion in her nose when she breathes. It's like a clicking type of noise. Why does she keep getting sick?? I know that hairless have weaker immune systems and what not but I really feel like she should not be this unhealthy. I don't want her to spend the rest of her hopefully long life on antibiotics.


----------



## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

I wish I could help you, but I wanted to tell you I am in the same boat with my hairless. I'm also looking for answers. My little hairless is my heart rat. I literally tear up thinking about losing her one day. I just want her to beat this. 

I hope someone can shed some light on some other options her so we can get our nakie girls all better!


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

My little peach is definitely my heart rat as well. I don't mind spending the money to get her healthy again but I wish it was actually working for her. It seems to have like a band aid effect on her. She clears up while she's on them but as soon as she stops or even if I give a dose an hour late she's so sickly all over again. I just wish my baby could catch a break /:


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

It's good to know I'm not the only one struggling with this. I wish people would be more picky about their hairless lines instead of just breeding to produce more.


----------



## Finnebon (Jul 15, 2013)

My hairless is technically a double rex, but she is completely naked except for some peach fuzz on her wrists, ankles, and around her nose. She has also had chronic URI issues since she was just a few months old. But she is still alive today and is my oldest rat I've ever had. She's 3 years and 3 months old  She has had chronic nasal congestion which occasionally flares up and sounds even worse than normal which is when she gets put on antibiotics. But she's been off and on antibiotic treatments her whole life, and she's finishing up a 45 day course right now even. Her longest course was 90 days. 

You might want to try different combinations of antibiotics for her. If she's young, zithromycin seems to be more helpful in young rats, but I've had zithro help some of my older rats too. That's a good one to use in combination with another antibiotic. But not all antibiotics are compatible, and some combinations can even be harmful if used together. Use Ratguide.com to look up meds and combinations and what's safe to use with what other antibiotics. It's a very helpful medical reference site that you can print out a page and bring to the vet with you to ask for those specific meds.

Another big help I've used over the years is liquid childrens sudafed (dosage reccomendations on ratguide also) once per day when needed if shes really congested. You can also use liquid children's benedryl (again, check ratguide for dose). Have you ever considered it might be partially due to allergies? This helps my girl sometimes too, but not always. I think she does get allergies occasionally. I'm just afraid to use it too often bc I don't want to make her groggy since that's what those meds side effects do.

I also invested in a nebulizer which seems to help her a lot. She gets a saline solution with amakacin (I think it's called that, it's a type of antibiotic) and for the initial treatment she got 30 mins (5 mL) twice per day for a week, and now she gets it once per day as needed when she gets congested. It seems to have really helped her, and is helpful for loostening up the mucous that's causing the congestion. You should ask your vet about getting a prescription for that too. I'm sorry, I know it's a lot of money and very stressful when your baby is sick or has chronic issues.. But at least if you dump the money in now for some tools and the sudafed, you likely will have it all for the rest of her life and for future rats to use when needed. 

I've also bought a high quality air purifier, and a humidifier.. I've tried a lot for my girl haha. 

What litter do you use by the way? You should try using fleece that you can wash and reuse so there's no dust. They will rip up the fleece, but you can get some on sale pretty often and you can almost always reuse the fleece multiple times before it gets too holey and has to be thrown out. Is she sick and seems to not feel well, or is she just noisey and snuffly? Does she still eat excitedly and play and seems to feel normal? My girl has almost never had the infection or issue/noise spread into her lungs, it's always been in her nose.


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Hairless rats were first designed in lab to have virtually no immune system. Breeders have cross-bred them in a way to keep the hairless gene, but at the same time to make their immune system a little better...some strains of hairless have better immune system than others, but overall their immune system is weaker than the immune system of the other rats. There is nothing you can do about that- it is genetics. What you can do is to keep your hairless cage extra clean and ammonia free. Ammonia from the urine is what makes rats more likely to get sick with a respiratory infection. What bedding are you using? Fleece is the worst for ammonia control and urine cling to its fibers very strongly making it difficult to wash properly. I love Aspen, great for ammonia control, BUT for a hairless it could be too dusty as you don't want that with their eyes...maybe something like Eco Bedding would be best and it is 100% dust free.


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

I guess I should specify that she's not true hairless either. She's double Rex with an extremely small amount of peach fuzz on the tip of her nose and on her paws. I use care fresh. I have tried fleece bedding with my older girls before I got the hairless but they were sleeping under neath it and they smelled terrible, not just the cage but the actual rats as well. I guess I'll have to stock up on antibiotics before the new law goes into affect. How can I tell the difference between allergies and true sickness? I usually hold off on the antibiotics until her sneezing gets excessive or I can tell its getting too much for her body to handle. She's very lively and she's actually my most active rat so for the most part it doesn't seem to bother her. I have seen this baby on the brink of death and I never want to see her that way again. I'll have to try the nebulizer and maybe some other antibiotics. I have not tried Baytril, do you think it would help keep it under control and stop it from progressing past the sniffles in the future?


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

You could try allergy meds and if the symptoms go away in less than 24 hours, than it is allergies. Allergy meds work usually within hours. You aren't using anything scented AT ALL around her? No fan or air draft? No smoking, air freshener...?


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Baytril is an excellent antibiotics to have on hands, but I can't predict how well it will work on your girl- very likely at least as well as doxy or better If you are scared about breathing distress, you can get an O2 concentrator but those are expensive- just putting the idea out there


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

There's a major draft in my room. If I turned off the air conditioner my boyfriend would probably cut off my hands, as well as 3 other small fans in the room. I have a candle as well but that's about as far as scented things go. I do have fleece liners in my cage so I suppose the laundry detergent could be causing the sneezies. I have made my boyfriend stop using body spray in the bedroom and I have stopped using perfume in the room as well. That helped a bit but I'm not sure how much since she was already on antibiotics when the change was made.


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

Gribouilli said:


> Baytril is an excellent antibiotics to have on hands, but I can't predict how well it will work on your girl- very likely at least as well as doxy or better
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Is that the same thing as a nebulizer?


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

What kind of nebulizer would be used for a rat? I'm picturing the one I had to use when I was younger but with an itty bitty little mask :joy::joy: I do not smoke around the rats. I used to bring my two older girls out with me while I smoked and they've never had health issues but when I experienced by first uri I went into ultra protective mom mode and stopped doing that and started washing my hands between smoking and handling them as well.


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Ladylazerstar702 said:


> Is that the same thing as a nebulizer?


 an oxygen concentrator is a device which concentrates the oxygen from a gas supply (typically ambient air) to supply an oxygen-enriched gas stream. I just mention it because there were talks about nebulizers...when a rat get into respiratory distress (breathing by the mouth) putting him in an oxygen tank can save his life and give time for the antibiotics to work. Just an idea, it is expensive. Just letting people know that it is an option, either at home or at the vet.


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Ladylazerstar702 said:


> There's a major draft in my room. If I turned off the air conditioner my boyfriend would probably cut off my hands, as well as 3 other small fans in the room. I have a candle as well but that's about as far as scented things go. I do have fleece liners in my cage so I suppose the laundry detergent could be causing the sneezies. I have made my boyfriend stop using body spray in the bedroom and I have stopped using perfume in the room as well. That helped a bit but I'm not sure how much since she was already on antibiotics when the change was made.


The air draft is really not good. Could you move the cage so it is as far away from AC vents as possible? Or maybe use air deflectors? Make sure no fans blow directly toward your rats. The candles are bad too: the scent per se, and the soot Between the air drafts, fans, and candles I'm not surprised your rat is often sick use scent free detergent for their hammocks and other stuff you wash.


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

I've moved their cage into my closet so they're out of any direct drafts. There's nothing I can do to move them further out of them. I make sure the fans are never directed at them and I don't personally use the candle so I'm not sure how often it is used but I'll talk to my boyfriend about not using it as much/ at all.


----------



## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

How do you know if your rat is hairless or double rex? I thought they were the same thing. Olive has no hair except the tiniest bit of peach fuzz on her nose and curly whiskers. 

I don't use bedding for Olive. She lives on my bed full time. She has a table next to the bed with a litterbox where she pees and poos. She is the only rat I own that will exclusively pee in the litter box so she's earned the right to be out all the time. Plus she has a permanent hole in her neck so she can't really be in with other rats. 

Because she is out all the time with no dusty bedding, I don't think it is allergies in my case. UNLESS she is allergic to the dog. Huh...

I'm going to try Sudafed. Fingers crossed!


----------



## Finnebon (Jul 15, 2013)

For the nebulizer, I needed a prescription to get one from a human pharmacy. I think they're typical for children because it came with lots of stickers to decorate the machine and the mask lol. I got the actual attachment from the vet because it uses a finer particle than the one that comes with the machine for humans. It's not as effective because the human one's particles are larger, but it should still help if your vet doesn't know how nebulizers work for rats and doesn't give you the smaller particle one (you can read articles about it again on Ratguide.com for nebulizer info).

To nebulize a rat, you can buy a "critter keeper" or use your carry crate, whatever it is that you use to take your girl to the vet. It shouldn't be too big, but not too small either. To nebulize my girl, I use a small wire one that sits an a shallow cardboard box so the top of the cage still sticks out. I covered the cage in a garbage bag with a reinforced hole cut out to stick the nozzle in, then covered that with a blanket to keep the bag from puffing out as it fills with the meds. There's enough oxygen in the mix with the meds and in the cage already that for 30 mins it's ok to have her all wrapped up in the container since she's still getting air through the machine. So she just sits in the crate with some treats and breathes in the steam for about 30 mins and then I take her out.


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

Grotesque said:


> How do you know if your rat is hairless or double rex? I thought they were the same thing. Olive has no hair except the tiniest bit of peach fuzz on her nose and curly whiskers.
> 
> I don't use bedding for Olive. She lives on my bed full time. She has a table next to the bed with a litterbox where she pees and poos. She is the only rat I own that will exclusively pee in the litter box so she's earned the right to be out all the time. Plus she has a permanent hole in her neck so she can't really be in with other rats.
> 
> ...


Honestly the whole difference thing based on appearance confuses me to no end so I'm not sure. But what I've read is truly hairless don't have any hair on their body, not even whiskers. But I've also read they can have a little on their nose and have whiskers? I don't really know how to tell the difference based on looking at them lol. But genetically they're quite different. I know my baby is double Rex because one of her brothers, little Alphonse, rest in peace little buddy, was patchwork. 
What's the hole on her neck from? I've never heard of something like that and it sounds a little scary looking Lol


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

I'll have to look into the nebulizer thing. It sounds like it could really help her.


----------



## Gribouilli (Dec 25, 2015)

Ladylazerstar702 said:


> I've moved their cage into my closet so they're out of any direct drafts. There's nothing I can do to move them further out of them. I make sure the fans are never directed at them and I don't personally use the candle so I'm not sure how often it is used but I'll talk to my boyfriend about not using it as much/ at all.


Ok. Leave the doors wide open so they get enough air or the ammonia will build up. Another thing you could do is put a better AC air filter and make sure it stays put so the air is actually going through it and not around it. It made a difference for my rats when I play with them outside their cage


----------



## Grotesque (Mar 19, 2014)

Ladylazerstar702 - The hole in her neck is from a really bad abscess that burst. It nearly killed her but she pulled through. The infection is gone but takes daily care. Her jawbone is partially exposed.


----------



## Asteria (Jul 6, 2016)

If you go to any exotics vet/avian vet, I guarantee they have a neubulizer you can use. It's $10 per 10 minutes at my vet and in _some _cases it can really help with treating respiratory issues. Generally you don't need a consultation fee, just explain to a vet the situation and ask what solution they neubulize with for rats.


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

Grotesque said:


> Ladylazerstar702 - The hole in her neck is from a really bad abscess that burst. It nearly killed her but she pulled through. The infection is gone but takes daily care. Her jawbone is partially exposed.


Oh god that sounds not pleasant at all but I'm glad to hear she pulled through it. How long ago was that?


----------



## Ladylazerstar702 (Sep 15, 2016)

Asteria said:


> If you go to any exotics vet/avian vet, I guarantee they have a neubulizer you can use. It's $10 per 10 minutes at my vet and in _some _cases it can really help with treating respiratory issues. Generally you don't need a consultation fee, just explain to a vet the situation and ask what solution they neubulize with for rats.


Oh that sounds like a great idea! I'll have to call our vet in the morning and see if they have one.


----------



## Finnebon (Jul 15, 2013)

Ladylazerstar702 said:


> Oh that sounds like a great idea! I'll have to call our vet in the morning and see if they have one.


That would be a great idea to try! You can at least have a trial run first a few times and see if she improves on it before investing in the actual machine. I think it was around $100. Not cheap, but not horrible either. That would be only like 3 full sessions if I spent the same money for the same amount of time if I were to pay for a vet to do it. In long run for me it was worth the investment of buying the machine myself. But if you have the option to try it first, definitely do that and see if it helps!


----------

