revolution for mites

Question
Hello Sandra, I had talked to my vet about my old boy Mr White having mites and we gave him some revolution. I still have some left and was wanting to dose my other rats. I have one girl who visits him quite often( they are both really old and its supervised)(no mating:)and she is starting to scratch too. The only thing that I am worried about is that she has been diagnosed with liver cancer. I actually talked to you earlier about her possibly having pyometra or klebisella. We did an ultrasound and it came back with liver cancer and fluid on the kidneys. So I guess what I am asking is Revolution safe for a elderly rattie who has liver cancer and kidney problems? Also do you have any suggestions to lengthen her life with her medical problems?
thank you much, Mary  

Answer
I am very sorry to hear about this. I do remember this case too, as the nasty bacteria, klebisella, rings a bell.

I do not suggest using revolution on a sick rat. It may accelerate her problems. You can try something more natural though.  My readers have suggested using olive oil to rub on the fur to kill the mites by suffocation.   It sounds messy, but worth a try? She will probably lick alot of it off which is not going to hurt a bit, either. Also, you can use a flea comb and gently put it through her fur. It will trap the mites and you can tap the comb on a paper towel and crush the little suckers as they start to run. Using a white paper towel, we can often see the mites as they are engorged with the rats blood from feeding. When you smoosh one of the little suckers, they POP and leave a dot of blood....the rats blood they just got done feeding on. I loathe those things!!!

Other than that.... I dont feel comfortable suggesting she has any pesticide applied to her body as this can absorb into her system and I am sure this would not be good for a rat with a bad liver. Her body wont be able to filter it out properly.

I wish I had some magic to help her but there really isnt anything I can suggest to help her other than perhaps keep her comfortable and at this point, spoil her rotten. Give her whatever she wants to eat and I mean anything, from McDonalds french fries to ice cream. It wont hurt anything at this point.