Rats Sneezing
Hello there.
I just brought home two young baby male rats about 3 days ago. I've noticed they've been sneezing and I'm not sure if it's okay or not. They don't have any discharge comming out of their eyes, ears, or nose...whatsoever. They're perky and from what I can tell, very happy with their new home. I'm currently using the bedding carefresh...(It was reccommended by a rat breeder). They're not sneezing constantly...but just enough for me to be able to notice. The first night I had them, I used a different bedding. I'm not sure if maybe they got allergies from that particular brand (it looked kinda like hay)...so obviously that's when I changed the bedding and bought the carefresh. Should I be worried?
Answers:No, there is no need to be worried right now, just keep an eye on them. If anything takes a turn for the worse, get a hold of me.
Are you using the colored Carefresh bedding? Is it the colored product or the plain product? Does it have a scent to it or is it scentless? Carefresh in general has been reported by other rat-keepers as to cause the most sneezing in rats, because it is dustier then other beddings.
If it is scented then that could be the reason why your rats are sneezing. If you like paper-product beddings try Yesterday's News cat litter.
http://www.yesterdaysnews.com/?d=307314&...
Most young rats do sneeze when you first bring them home. It's a reaction to trying to settle into your home. The stress of being separated from what was familiar, the location of the cage, the lighting in your home, what you use as cleaners, drafts, dust, humidity, a different type of bedding then what the store used, are all factors.