Baytril/Doxy combo

Question
Hey Sandra I am sorry to bother you because I know how busy you must be, but my two ratties, Coffee and Snuffy, recently started sneezing a lot and Snuffy had porphyrin stains around her eyes and nose.  I read up a lot about this and we got them into a vet within 3 days after we started seeing symptoms.  They were put on baytril by our vet who seemed to be pretty up to date with small animal health.  Yesterday was day 4 of the baytril with no real signs of improvement so the vet suggested we try a doxy/baytril mix next.  I picked up the doxy tonight and found it wasnt mixed with baytril.  I guess we are supposed to mix them together ourselves (at least thats what the vet tech said when I just called).  Does this sound normal or should we have gotten it pre-mixed already? Also, what would be a good snack to mix these meds with for our babies because we tried giving it to them orally and failed miserably.
Besides the meds is there any other way we can speed up their recovery?  Not to ask one million questions but, do you know what the recovery rate of URI in rats is? Will our babies be able to get over this and live long healthy lives (Snuffy is only 1 year and Coffee is 6 months)and we could not bare to lose them yet.

Thanks so much for your time
Sincerely,
Kristen
Utica, NY

Answer
Dont mix them together, just simply give them the baytril first, doxy second.  You can mix the baytril with yogurt or ice cream etc....and the doxy with strawberry syrup thinned out by a dab of water and try giving it to them that way. It should mask the bitter taste.

As for the recovery rate, if this is the first time with a URI, they should be medicated for at least 30 full days.  Should they relapse, they should be given the proper medication daily for life.  This is according to newest studies on rats and mycplamosis pulmonis.  This is in order to prevent scarring, blistering and even collapse of the lungs that occur after chronic infections.

They should feel better in about 3 to 4 days if the meds are the right meds and the right dose. If they do not get to feeling better or get worse in that time frame, new medication must be given.  Do not ever let a vet just say the only meds rats can  take are doxy and baytril. They can take just about every single drug humans can take safely.