vibramycin for sneezing

Question
Hi Sandra.  You've given me excellent advice in the past.  This is the first time I've written to you about Nibbles.  
He is about six months old.  I got him three months ago when one of my two rats passed.  Like a lot of rats (maybe all) he sneezes.  From what I can tell, he doesn't do it all day.  He's with me now and hasn't sneezed once in two hours.  But, when he starts, he'll sneeze several times an hour for a couple hours, at least once a day, then stop.  
My vet put Nibbles on Baytil several weeks ago.  It seemed to help reduce the sneezing episodes for the first few weeks, but didn't make them go away completely.  She now wants to switch him to Vibramycin.  She's of the school of thought that no animal should stay on an antibiotic their entire lives, and, if one isn't working 100%, to take them off it after a few weeks.  
Do you think I should give Nibbles both antibiotics at the same time?
Do you think there is any down side to a rat being on the drugs for months at a time ... or even years?
I'd appreciate knowing your thoughts.  Thank you.  Mark.

Answer
Hi Mark

Check out my website, sandyscrittercity.com and go over the page on mycoplasmosis. You will get a better understanding about how I see things as compared to the way your vet is doing things. I have extensive training in rat care and alot of experience with the dreaded mycoplasmosis.  Sneezing isnt always a bad thing, but if its the start of myco, it needs treated properly before it starts to get worse and trust me, there is a point of no return once myco starts and isnt taken care of right.
Let me know what you think after you read it...and yes, they CAN be on antibiotics for the rest of their lives and it is recommended with chronic myco to avoid lung scarring in the future.  If you have a general vet that is not exotic certified (there are only 130 in the world, so chances are she probably isnt or she would not have a problem giving baytril for 6 full weeks) the chance that she is fully educated on rat ailments is pretty limited.