Hematuria ...caused by enterococcus faecalis.

[jorats]

She told me over the phone what she thought of the report, what it meant in terms of our rats and the sickness. She didn't have time to sit down with me and go through the report. She has posted on her exotic vet forum. There are members there that are vets to huge colonies of rats, she's hoping they have seen something like this.

I could copy the whole report here if anyone is interested?

 

[Godmother]

Yes, it would be interesting to see the whole thing.

 

[jorats]

I came home tonight to find my Radar has left me. Hematuria again... I feel sick.

 

[lilspaz68]

Start thinking back...what has changed recently...new bag of food? Bug spray? etc?

I am sooo sorry Jo. :cry3:

 

[jorats]

Nothing... nothing new. My dad played with him at 2pm, he was hard at 11:15pm. WTF is going on? I just removed all their toys from the cage, anything from the dollar store. Do I remove their food? I don't know what to do.

 

[lilspaz68]

Nothing... nothing new. My dad played with him at 2pm, he was hard at 11:15pm. WTF is going on? I just removed all their toys from the cage, anything from the dollar store. Do I remove their food? I don't know what to do.

If it makes you feel safer, open a different bag of HT (thats a new addition). But I doubt it because no one else's rats are having issues. How much blood was there with Radar?

 

[user 78]

Oh, Jo, I'm so sorry!!

You got in on the HT run, right? So I wouldn't think ti was the new food since no one else seems to be having a problem. Opening another bag and tossing what's in their bowls couldn't hurt, though.

 

[jorats]

I've just done that, I'm throwing out all the food I had from before and opened a new bag.
One thing I just thought of, one of the bags was stored in our shed, we have wild rodents living in there. Although, they were in a sealed container. I'm thinking Hantavirus but I don't think it's even common here in Ontario.

 

[Godmother]

Oh, no. I am so sorry. This is very frightening.

Although hantavirus might be possible, I can't help thinking you're on the right track with Dollar Store toys. After all the kids toys and toothpaste with poison, I became very suspicious. Do the wooden blocks come from China?

The real puzzle is that only a few rats have been affected. I wonder if they are the ones who chew certain things the most? All of mine chew paper & wood, most chew cloth, but not all of them chew plastic. So the things that only a few of them chew would be the prime suspects.

I am so sorry to hear this. It is bad enough having to worry about all the illnesses rats can get, but the possibility of poison is really terrifying.

 

[Dahlas]

Oh no Jo not Radar to.....OMG what is going on. I just gave my babies wooden blocks cause I saw others on here with them....I will get them out right now. This is so scarey. Was Rad sick at all before this? What a nightmare.

 

[Dewi]

I'm so sorry Jo! Did Radar seem sick at all?

 

[jorats]

Radar didn't seem sick at all. He had slowed down some since Isabelle left but I figured he just missed her, plus he was getting quite old. But he was his same happy licky self. My sister remembers playing with him on Friday, after cage cleaning. My dad petted him at 2pm, he seemed quite well there. It must have been sudden? It's like it's getting quicker and quicker. He hardly bled out as well, just like Boo, unlike the others that survived, they bled a lot, like a ton.
One thing I did notice in the last little while, the rats would stash the harlan and not eat it. They would put it all away and just eat the Oxbow, but not Radar, I'd see him go find the hidden Harlan and eat it. But then, in the other cage, Prue and the gang, mostly only eat the Harlan. I'm at a loss.
Can a virus attack every two weeks. Boo died 2 weeks ago... I thought we were in the clear. :sad3:

 

[Dewi]

Well a virus can have an incubation period of 2 weeks before symptoms appear. So basically you get infected with the virus, the virus starts incubating (multiplying during this time) and then the symptoms appear. If you're worried about the food, could you cut out all the commercially prepared lab blocks (say for 3 weeks) and just feed them human food during that time and see if things improve.

I wish there was more information on rat viruses, most of the information I find is about people becoming infected with viruses from rats and in these cases the virus doesn't make the rat itself sick. Maybe your vet knows of viruses out there that affect rats (especially ones that cause haemorrhaging) and test for these. I had a rabbit that caught the rabbit calicivirus and she bleed internally. Unfortunately she didn't survive. There could be a rat equivalent?

 

[mamarat2]

Unfortunately Dewi is right, viruses can incubate for 2 weeks before symptoms appear. If you think of people HIV can sometimes take 6 months to be detected after you are exposed.

Damn Jo, I'm really sorry. I'm borderline thinking it could be their toys too?? Sounds like food or toys.

Like Shelagh said, anything changed? Dish soap, laundry soap, dishasher soap? Dunno, at a loss.

I'm very sorry to hear about Radar.

Jen

 

[Moon]

Gah, found this after the goodbye thread. Was really hoping it was not the same thing.

So scary... I'm SO sorry Jo. There has to be an answer.

 

[jorats]

It seems like it's just the one cage. Prue and her girls have out time with the big (shrinking) colony but they are not allowed in their cage, Sebbie, Sophie and Nessie won't let them in. Maybe it's something in the cage? Prue and her girls have no symptoms, nothing. I'm going to strip down that cage to nothing.
Dewi, I had a postmortem done on Boo, Radar will get one too and tissues are being sent away.
Jen, nothing is new, not a single thing.

...Treat is now bleeding, I've started him on Baytril, keeping him hydraded and fed. :sad3:

I'm so devastated.

 

[Moon]

Oh god, rip apart that cage all together..... not Treat too! Drink lots and it well Treat! I need to keep reading your blog entries buddy!

 

[Godmother]

I haven't felt this sad & worried since the time one of our Forum members lost most of her colony to something brought in by new rats. It's an awful helplessness... so much we don't know.

I hope that Treat will be OK. Kisses and healing vibes to him.

 

[jorats]

Treat is bleeding a lot of blood, which I think is a good thing, kind of like a lavage.
He's in good spirits, eating, active and warm. So far so good.

 

[Moon]

Glad to hear it.