Expert: Sandra Todd - 6/21/2008

Question
Hello.  We ahve had 2 female rats for about 10 months.  Recently one of them passed away, from what seems to be mycoplasma (?).  The other one is still fine, but seems a bit lonely.  I am not sure what to do.  Will she be fine by herself?  With everything I have read about putting two together, I would hate to do that now and have one end up dead. I may be misinformed.  Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated!  Thank you.

Answer
i Michelle

I am sorry your rat passed away. Mycoplasma alone did not kill her since it isnt deadly on its own, but the secondary infection it causes probably did.  What kind of treatment did the first rat have?
More info on mycoplasmosis here on my website:

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


Anyhow, you should get your rat a new friend for sure or she will become very lonely and this can be stressful. Stress can cause the rats immune system to crash and this can cause illness.

When you bring new rats into the house you should always quarantine no matter what so you will be able to tell if any of them are sick within this time frame.

Here is more info I wrote on my site about proper quarantine:

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

Hope this helps