My rat is very poorly?

Question

he isn't eating much and well he has been poorly for a while but my mum couldn't afford to take him to the vet and now my mum says that it's too late to take him now because they will just put him to sleep please help me make him more comfortable(he has got scabs and I think he's got mite so I put special drops on him but they don't seem to work

Answer 1

How old is he? I had a little girl that suffered close to as you have described. She had sores, scabs and discharge from her nose and eyes, and nothing worked despite everything that I had done to help her. But I don't think she suffered from mites because my other two rats never had any issues. She was close to being three years old and just after she became immobile, I decided to put her down myself because I could not afford to take her to a vet to have it done.

I believe after two years of age, rats are seniors. My best rat died at two and a half years, If he is younger than two, then I'd say do everything you can to help him. but if he is older than two and is suffering immensely, you may want to think about what may be best for him, especially if you cannot get him to a vet.

Have you tried giving him a warm bath to help with the scabs? use a shampoo low in HP, like kitten shampoo or baby shampoo and dry him throughly with a soft towel and see how he does. Also try hand feeding him baby food and soft bread and see if he'll eat that?

If his health is still digressing after a week or so, you may want to think about putting him to sleep. And personally, http://www.alysion.org/euthanasia/  shows you exactly how using every day household items. But please follow instructions carefully and read it through before you do anything. But it works so great as this allows them to pass on in their sleep, without suffering, right in your own home where the surroundings won't frighten them. I used this technique on all of my  rats that needed to be put to sleep (due to old age and other health issues)

Best wishes to you, and thank you for wanting to do your best in taking care of God's creatures!

Answer 2

it takes a while for the mites antibiotics to work, and they would NOT put an animal down because of mites!

Answer 3

Scabs can also be an indication of too much protein in the diet. Some rats are more sensitive to it than others.

Remove all protein from the diet for a week and see if he gets any better, then slowly re-introduce it until you find a level that suits. Also, wheat bread soaked in a bit of sunflower or olive oil can help with the coat, making it soft and smooth which may help.

What exactly do you feed him though? Nuts and seeds can upset the stomach which could be why hes not eating. Use dried corn in moderation too.