Sid again - Update 12/05 (pg.4)

[ryelle]

Sid is having his free-roam time on my bed, and I was watching and laughing at him barbering his belly (as if it isn't bald enough!! :doh: ) and I caught a glimpse of something that looked red. My boyfriend had a few minutes spare so I asked him to hold Sid for me so I could take a look without him wriggling around in my lap. My boyfriend says it's a sore, but it looks scabbed and i'm not too sure what it is. Sorry about the vulgarity of the photo lol! It's not in the most pleasant place!

They are the best pics I could get. Anybody know what it could be? Is there anything I can or should do for it or to prevent another one?

My boyfriend commented on the amount of little scabs Sid has on his tummy and said "I think he's got lice". Obviously the Ivermectin isn't working so I think I might have to make a vet appointment I've checked him over and can't see any visible lice. I'm taking a stack of rat beds over to my other house to take over the freezer some time this weekend

 

[Godmother]

Poor Sid! I don't know what it is, but I see that there are lots of little red marks. Normally mites bother the shoulder area the most but, if he is barbering and has little red marks and a sore, I can't help but wonder if he has some kind of parasite.

Let's hope that a few of the experienced people who've seen zillions of ratty skin problems will come & have a look. Shelagh has certainly seen her share of skin problems in rats.

 

[lj]

It looks like a blister that has popped. I'd give him sitz baths and treat it like an abcess. I'm not sure if you can put anything on it like neosporin or anything. Wait for the big guns to come out and answer this for you.

 

[Alicemcmallis]

Does he have the little tiny scabs all over his body or just on his belly? I too would think mites - can you get Revolution from your vet?

What are you bedding him on?

That one spot is strange - it does look like a blister that's popped doesn't it? Or maybe a small, surfacey abscess that's resolving itself?

 

[ryelle]

He did have tiny scabs all over, and i've been treating both my boys for mites with Ivermectin, but the ones on their backs seem to be clearing up - with maybe a very slight few still there. I didn't even notice the one's on his underbelly until we sat him up. He squirms and scratches and freaks out if u pick him up so I generally just leave him be.

Hm, I trimmed his claws last week, and I had to sit him up on my lap so I could do them, and I dont recall noticing anything on his under belly - especially a big orange/red scab like the one in the picture (it might not look small on the pic cus he's stretched out, but when he's sat up it looks big :? ).

They have paper based cat litter in their litter trays, and the bottom tray of the cage, but the rest is all fleeced. He had bumblefoot before I started using the fleece and it's pretty much completely cleared up now.


I posted this:
http://www.jorats.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=8947
on January 16th about scabs that were near his tail, and nobody was sure what it would be. They mostly cleared up, but there is STILL some in the same spot. Only a few though.

Could it all be related??? He had none on his underneath when I found the ones near his tail. I checked him all over for similar ones at the time

 

[jorats]

That one near his groin looks like an older abscess... try and keep it flushed and clean for a big and hopefully it will heal right up.
Are you done with the treatments? If the scabs are still there, then he might need another go.

 

[ryelle]

He has one more treatment next week :? He was living with Patrick when I started the treatments, and Patrick is fine now. He doesn't itch and doesn't have any scabs - and Patrick is the one i first noticed them on because he had the tell tale scabs on his neck and shoulders. Is it normal for one to get rid of them and the other not to if your treating them at the same time with the same stuff? :?

How do I clean the abscess? Ive never had to treat one. Would holding a saline-soaked cotton wool ball over the scab work? or do I need to sit him in the water for a bit?

I check him for lumps and bumps all the time and I missed this one Poor guy. He always gets really funny about me checking him over around his tail and stuff around that general area

 

[jorats]

It's very normal for one rat to heal faster than the other. It's also normal to find scabs on only one rat while the others don't have any at all but yet still are infected.

You can treat the abscess like you mentioned. Or just use a regular face cloth to soak the abscess.

 

[ryelle]

Good job i've still been treating Patrick aswell ^^ I hope Sid's little scabs clear up soon. I gave them one treatment as the box recommended, but then Shelagh said it was wrong (it said one treatment worked for 4 weeks) and to do weekly treatments for 3 weeks. This is the second week of the RIGHT treatment. I only have one more treatment left and then it will have to be a Vet job.

I will use cotton balls, otherwise i'd have to wash a face cloth. Think it'd be more hygenic with the cotton balls lol. My brother is a mechanic so nothings ever really clean when he gets in from work. I have all the rat bedding on a 60°C wash at the minute then i'm carting it all over to the other house to freeze.

 

[Debbie]

Is sid an older boy? If so, do you notice that he might look a little wet down there, at times? Sometimes when they are older, they can get a bit urine soaked. If so, you do need to keep them clean (a warm wet wash cloth can do the trick), or they can get urine scald.

If that was abscess, it does look to be on the road to healing. I would personally put a thin layer of neosporin on it, regardless. Just give Sid a cookie or something to divert his attention from the neo while it soaks in.

 

[ryelle]

I'll have to find somewhere to get Neosporin from :?

And yes, Sid is an older boy.

So i need to:
Find Neosporing
Soak the scab area in saline solution till it heals completely
Continue with the Ivermectin
Wash his belly on a daily basis

He's getting a lot of TLC lately lol. Changed his diet, changed his cage, his toe-nails seem to be growin at super speed so they are getting clipped a lot, im having to clean out his ears a lot lol. Im sure he is loving it all. All this extra attention and good food

 

[Debbie]

You should be able to pick up a tube of neosporin from any Walgreens, Target or even grocery store. I would just use a very thin layer too. You might just do a bit of saline before, then put the neo on.

If you notice his fur is wet around his penis, I would try a damp warm wash cloth on that area when you see the wetness, so you can get the urine off his skin.

Something else to consider, which is not pleasant for either of you...but definitely something to be concerned about (and is all too common with old males) is they tend to build up a penis plug. It's something to watch for, but it is definitely in a delicate area and you have to be careful when helping them. I have two old men right now that have to be helped on a daily basis.

here is an article on penis plugs:
http://www.ratballs.com/RatTails/Tails095.html

This might not even be Sid's problem...but something to keep in mind with the old men, who don't seem to clean themselves on their own anymore.

 

[Moon]

Debbie, there aren't any Walgreens or Target stores where Ryelle lives LOL

It has always been recommended to me to NOT use neosporin/polysporin on abscesses as they need to drain properly.

 

[Debbie]

oops, I'm a dork. Sorry about not paying attention to ryelle location. :doh:

On the neosporin. If it's just a sore left behind from an old abscess, it would be ok. If it's a recently opened abscess (where a hole is left behind) we always flush the wound with a diluted Chlorohexidine wash, then pack the hole with neosporin or a silver sulfadizine cream.
You are right in that you don't want it to seal over, if there is a hole left behind. But to get it to heal from the inside out, you should pack it with either of the above. We've healed many an abscess here, with packed neosporin.

 

[ryelle]

I did a google search and im sure i can get Neosporin in the UK, but i've searched Tesco, Boots, and all the local pharmacy website's and i can't find any anywhere. Is there anything similar to it that i could get in the UK?

Off to the supermarket to pick up some cotton wool and some more rock salt

I read the post about Penis Plugs within a week of joining i think. I haven't checked yet. but i think i will take him into the bathroom later to check him over. give him some privacy lol

 

[jorats]

I personally wouldn't put any ointment on it... you need it to heal inside out and not outside in.

 

[ryelle]

I couldnt find anything anyways, and i can't really afford to buy anything atm.. so good ole' Saline it is. I got a massive wod of cotton wool, and we will be wiping his whole tummy down, and then soaking the scabbed area My boyfriend is going to hold him and we have some plain biscuits to give him while we work our magic

 

[ryelle]

So it's 11 days later.
The scab on his underbelly is still red and scabbed. It's not as bad as it was when i first noticed it, but i dont feel like its healing as quick as it should :? I keep checking it, and it doesn't feel like there is anything under the skin - like an abscess or anything. Sid isnt too amused about me touching it. Poor Guy.

But........ ugh

The left side of his body:

The right side of his body:

His tail:

His tail is swollen a bit all the way around with scabs on it.
His side's the other day looked like they had a red rash all over them. Hes very itchy, and hes obviously barbering the fur where the scabs are. He has large patches of these scabs on his sides, with smaller ones going down his spine that he can't reach, and then small patches on both sides of his body near the tail (just above his goolies). His face, chin and neck are fine though. He lies with his head rested on the palm of my hand while i rub his sides and his back and he licks my hands non stop until i finish. He had little lumps on his right side last week, and i was wondering if it was an in-grown hair or something because he's barbering. My mum came up and i soaked his sides with saline and my mum managed to get some puss out of the lumps. Sid just laid there and licked us both.

Apart from his barbering he's had no skin issues at all. Hes not as greasy as he used to be. But it just seems like all of this has appeared out of nowhere

Think its time for a vet trip? Im planning on calling and taking Patrick in for a check up cus he sounds congested to me when hes running around. should i call up and make it a double appointment?

 

[ryelle]

Sorry about the pics btw, its hard to photograph him while he squirms in my lap and im trying to hold him still. I hope you can see everything clearly though

 

[lindsayfawn]

It kinda looks like bite marks from like mites or lice or something to me anyways.