Rat Diarrhea Issue

Question
Dear Sandra,

My dumbo rat, Lixa, is about 1 year 10 months old. We recently moved from Pennsylvania to Las Vegas, about 2 months ago. His best friend died two days before we moved, and I have not found him a new buddy yet as I am unable to find a suitable male companion.  About 2 weeks ago I noticed his stool was more watery than usual and took him to the vet last Wednesday. After 2 xrays and a stool sample, he has been declared free of respiratory infections, tumors, and parasites. Since we began medicating him, his stool has turned in to diarrhea. The first three days of treatment I was putting his meds in to baby food to give it to him, something that has worked in the past. Now I am feeding it to him directly, I have thrown away his old food and begun using a fresh bag of mix (Reggie Rat with the corn taken out- I cannot find lab block- Nevada is not as rat friendly as PA), and for the last two days I have also been giving him a small amount of yogurt to keep the gut flora happy. His condition is not improving, in fact today his stool is the worst it has been. He does not show signs of dehydration or shock. I did contact my vet about this, and she suggested I bring him back in to check for viruses. My question is, exactly what can be done to help him if he does have a virus? My understanding is that viruses do not respond well to medication, and usually rats are treated with antibiotics to help prevent secondary infections. My mother, a psychologist with experience with lab rats, suggested brown rice to help "plug him up". I'm also going to begin giving him pedialyte, even though I do not think he is dehydrated, I want to cover my bases. Could all the changes I am introducing to him be causing further stress, exasperating the condition more than helping it? His current meds are .05ml of Baytril twice a day for 12 days, and once a day .2ml of Flagyl for seven days, the last of which is today.  

Answer
Mom is right...try giving him puffed rice and oatmeal flakes.

Also, I would say that the flagyl is the culprit for the loose stools.

I am confused though, why is the rat on antibiotics?

Is he acting normal other wise?  

I would say that stress would be the reason for the loose stools. He lost his cage mate and you also have moved him to a new area. Rats are easily stressed and giving that he has had a double dose of new changes, one event being very hard on a rat (which is the loss of a cagemate) its no wonder he has runny stools. I would stop the meds if he isnt acting sick. It will only make things worse.