lazy rat

Question
hi! i just adopted 4 rats from someone who couldnt take care of it any longer. the largest one seems to have about 10 tiny scabs over her body and she is very lazy and doesnt move around much. she is very nice, but i was wondering what could be wrong with her. i am a college student and i really dont want to take it to the vet because i probably couldnt afford books then, so is there anything else i could do for her? the other rats do not have any scabs, so i am hoping that is isnt mites. i know there are different personalities that can dictate if a rat is outgoing or lazy, but this one sleeps and lays down most of the day. the other thing she does that is weird is she runs in circles a moderate amount. she doesnt seem to have problems with balance. thanks so much!

Answer
Are the scabs just up by her head and neck or are they further down her body? It could be that the other rats are picking on her, but not necessarily -- if the scabbies are always up by her neck and face, it probably is mites. This is easily taken care of by purchasing Ivercare at your local feed store or tack shop (its a horse worming paste) and giving each rat the equivilant to a grain of rice, NO MORE. Re-treat in two weeks and you're mite free. That is the easy, least expensive way of doing it.

Clip toenails, also; so you can nip the scratching in the bud. Some ratties are more sensitive than others and some never react to mites, where others do.

As far as the running in circles.. as long as she's able to STOP and eat and drink just fine, I wouldn't worry too much; as whatever is causing that is probably an old issue and its there permanently -- if it was an injury at all and she isn't obsessive. Her laziness I'd say is probably just her also - although get those scabs figured out and you may have a whole different rat on your hands.