Possible mites or fleas

Question
QUESTION: Our female rat is about 1.5 years old. She lives in a wire bird cage with shavings on the floor and one shelf. In her litter box we have unscented cat litter. She recently started scratching and kept getting worse. We had just before, babysat a dog which was loaded with fleas. I treated my two cats and my own dog with Advantage flee drops from my vet. I thought the fleas got to the rat. We treated her twice with 8 in 1, UltraCare Flea & Tick Spray for small animals. The first time it seemed to help but not the second treatment.

We saw on line information on mites and lice. So we tried the Ivermectin Paste. It has been one week and she seems to be scratching less but has more scabs on her (around her neck, all in her black fur, not the white). Also, it may be my imagination, but every time I get near her cage to give her a treat, in my hair I get itchy. My daughter noticed this too. Could we just be agitating the mites? Do they jump? If they do, one of my cats is getting a bald spot on his lower belly. Can cats get mites? I don't get how mites can come in on the bedding if they only live 2 weeks without a host. I'm starting to think it's fleas.
We were also feeding a lot of dog food,(10 pieces a day) we have stopped because I'm afraid she might be getting to much protein. Is this a possibility?




ANSWER: Mites that rats get are species specific so they are for rats only. The stuff your using just is not really good, even the ivermectin paste.  What they need is revolution from the vet. Also, the dog food: it depends on the brand and the amount of protein in it. Rats should have between 15% and 18% of protein daily. As for the mites living for just 2 weeks, dont forget, they lay eggs. The adults die, eggs hatch, new mites begin. Its a vicious cycle. Freeze the bedding for at least 24 hours to kill any eggs as well as live mites and use the kitten strength revolution and this should make a huge difference.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Not really a question, just an "FYI". I brought our rat to the vet to get the revolution you suggested. The vet did a skin scrape and found mites and saw what looked like flee dirt. She may have both. She gave the revolution right there and sent home an antibiotic for a week.
Thanks for your help.
Michele

Answer
Good job :)   What I would do is dispose of any wooden objects in the cage. Mites and fleas alike will burrow into wooden objects and live since they dont live on your pet, they just jump on them to "feed" from them. Wash any bedding like hammocks etc...and like I said before, freeze the bedding before using it.  With the revolution they should be showing signs of improvement in about a week.