I just discovered fleas on my rats! How do I get rid of them?

Question

I'm not sure. There's eggs all over their fur and I've seen a couple little brown things moving around. Maybe it's lice??

Answer 1

If you don't have the budget to go to the vet i suggest just going to a pet store and get an anti flea and mite spray

good luck!

Answer 2

Sounds more like lice. Have a read through this site, it should tell you everyhting you need to know: http://www.rmca.org/Articles/bugs.htm

The lice most likely originated from their bedding. especially if it is wood. Lice burry themselves in wood and lay eggs. So either switch to a different kind, or freeze it for two days to kill off anything thriving in there. Then it will be safe.

You could get the medicine from a vet.

Answer 3

The best thing is ivermectin, given orally.  You can get this from your vet.

For rats, oral ivermectin is better than the injectable version, because they are less likely to overdose.  Some vets insist on giving the injectable version.  Personally, I don't think it is worth the risk, but it's up to you whether or not you want to risk it.  If you do decide to go with an injectable, you will need to watch very carefully over the next 24 hours for signs of an overdose.  This site goes into the things to look for:

http://ratguide.com/meds/antiinfectives/...

Do not use a flea spray or a commercial flea treatment.  Most of these are deadly to rats.  Ivermectin will treat both lice and mites, so it really doesn't matter which one your rat has.

Parasites like mites and fleas usually come in on food & bedding.  To prevent these in the future, you can:

1.  Make sure you are buying your food/bedding from a reputable source.  If you see a lot of bugs in the store, or expired foods, go to a different store.

2.   Change your bedding to a different type.  I switched to Care Fresh because it is less likely to have this issue.  However, this won't help if your store has a serious infestation.

3.  Freeze all food and bedding that comes into your house.  This will kill any parasites.  Freeze it immediately after buying, don't let it sit next to the rat cage.  Make sure you take it out of the freezer at least 24 hours before giving it to your rat, so that it has a chance to warm up to room temperature.

Answer 4

Are you sure they are fleas and not mites?  My rats had mites and I brought them to the vet.  The vet gave them a shot to kill all of the mites.