From day one my rat has bee making these nasty diahriahs. also she is starting to bleed from her private like every 30 mins. The bleeding just started today this afternoon. I have been told many times that rats cant have periods. like... bleeding periods at least... Should i keep her or take her back? Is she healthy?
Answers:
Get her to the vet first thing in the morning. The diarrhea alone can kill her if not treated properly. Her poop should be soft but firm and brown in color.
Female hamsters don't have menstrual cycles but once or twice in their life they may suffer from a small amount of vaginal bleeding. This bleeding is only very minor "spotting" and occurs for only a day or two. The cause for this is not known but it does not seem to be due to any illness.
Excessive or prolonged vaginal bleeding can be due to a uterine infection or other problem and should be investigated by a vet.
How long have you had her and how long has she had the diarrhea and bleeding? She should have been taken to the vet for a well check up within a day or two after buying her. Many pet stores require this as part of the warrenty on the animal, but don't tell you, it may be in the small print of the paperwork they should have given you..
Many animals that come from pet stores are sick with respiratory infections or allergies caused by the wood litters many house them in. We got a pair of rats (our fist ever) and took them to the vet only to find out the female had an allergic reaction to the pine the pet store used. At home we only use Care Fresh for all our small animals and have never had any allergies to it or any respiratory problems from using this litter. Yes, it's a bit more then the wood litters, but isn't the health of your pet more important then the cost of it? Mine are.
Also did the pet store tell you that you'll need a very large cage by adulthood? Our oldest male is in a 30"x18"x18" cage for now, but is getting a 40.5"x18"x20" cage in the next week when the shippment comes in. Actually I'm getting in 6 of these for all the rats and our 2 rabbits. The iguana my get one since she's out growing her present cage (same size as the rats). We keep at least 2 per cage for companionship except for our oldest male, he attacked the other males. A cage for a ferret is also perfect for them, just make sure the head can't get through the bars (3/4"-1" is the largest spread in the wires for an adult rat)
Ps. You may want to consider a same sex companion for her, because the need lots of attention and this way if your not home, she won't get bored. We had housed a female alone after she weaned her babies and she chewed out of her cage. We don't use tanks with most of our small animals except for the mice due to their small size and escaping.
she is very unhealthy! she may have a uterine infection or cancer. take her to the vet, or if you purchased her very recently (within last two weeks, depending on where you bought her) take her back to the store. in rats bleeding is NEVER normal. the diarrhea can also be serious.
for future reference rats kept alone have far more problems than rats kept with another, although it sounds like she was already very sick.
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