my baby rat sneezes all the time

Question
Hello, my name is shayla and i have a rat that i bought on the 26th of february this year and she was pretty little when i bought her. i brought her home and i let her get to know her cage she and she was fine at first i thought the sneezing was just becuase she was new to her surroundings but she wont stop.
i read a question that someone had and she pretty much summed it up in terms of what was going on, and i noticed that you asked her some questions so i decided to help you out i would answer those questions.





First of all, how long have you had her?
- about 10 days.
How old is she?
- im not sure she was really little when i bought her about 4 or 5 inches long, excluding the tale.
Where did you get her from?
- pet country.

Does she live alone?
- yes but she loves to play with my brothers baby twin rats
What type of housing does she have?
- for the moment its a ten gallon glass tank, she has the wheel, hut, water, ect.
What type of bedding do you  use for her?
- aspen bedding
What kind of diet do you feed her?
- just a simple rat mix from the pet shop. im not sure we have mice and i was afraid they'd get into the bag so i put it in a jar
Does she have porphryin discharge from her eyes, nose or both? Porphyrin is a red mucus that comes from stress and is found around the eyes and nose. It often makes the rat owner think the rat is bleeding, but it is not blood.
- im not quit sure. i saw a little red at the end of her nose and i thought it was just becuase she scratches it alot. but i suppose this could be the reason.
Is she eating and drinking ok?
- yes she eats and drinks all the time. she is healthy
Does she have normal stools or are they loose?
- they seem to be normal stools
Is she shy?
- not at all she loves all kinds of contact



any advice at this moment would be greatly appriciated. thank you very much.

Answer
Thanks for answering all of those questions!  it saved me time thats for sure!


Sounds like she is fine to be honest, and alot of times, new rats will sneeze when excited. Their histamine levels rise when they are excited and so they sneeze...but when the stimuli is removed, sneezing eases up.

Does she sneeze more when she is out playing?

Also, it could be the tank she is in.  She needs to be in a larger home other than a 10gal tank. If she is tiny, the cage bars should be spaced close together so she cant squeeze through.   Glass tanks trap air and there is no circulation. No matter what litter is used, the ammonia from their urine irritates their respiratory tract and can cause problems such as flaring up mycoplasmosis.

If your not aware of myco, please check out my website and the page on myco.  Also, her diet needs addressed as well.  The seed mixes are not good for rats and in fact, once you change her diet, go ahead and feed the wild mice that are around, they would appreciate it.  :)

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/mycoplasmosispage.htm

Here is the URL on proper diet.  Your rat needs low protein and low fat diet to avoid putting too much stress on kidneys.  Rats have delicate lungs and fragile kidneys and these two organs are most affected by disease as they age.  Taking care of them now while young is the best way to ensure they have the longest life possible.

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/ratsandahealthydiet.htm