3"x5" card - tape to box lid card with your name, address, phone#;    name & phone# of someone to contact, in an emergency; your rat's names, name and phone no. of your vet.  Also tape another card containing a list of common medications, their general uses and the specific dosages for your rats.

Activated Charcoal - You suspect that your rat has consumed something toxic, including rat poison. Use half a capsule mixed in a teaspoon of Raspberry Jam. Let the rat eat as much as it wants.

Baby Aspirin - For the immediate relief of pain and swelling. Use 1/8 to 1/4 of an aspirin, crushed and mixed with a little Karo syrup.

Bag Balm - One of the best antibiotic ointments on the market for minor wounds. Good for people too!

Baking Chips - Chocolate, Yogurt, or Carob. Lots of treats will be needed during a treatment of first-aid. Can be used as a gauge to see how sick your rat is. Chocolate has been known to help breathing in wheezing attacks. Yogurt just tastes good. Carob can help with constipation.

Baking Soda, Corn Starch, or White Flour - To stop minor bleeding, can be stored in a spare film canister or zip lock sandwich bag.

Benadryl for Infants - An antihistamine for the relief from allergies, respiratory ailments, and insect bites. Give 1 to 2 drops orally.

Bene-Bac - It is good after administration of oral antibiotics to prevent diarrhea by replacing beneficial stomach bacteria.

Betadine Scrub - A mild iodine germicidal soap to use when cleaning wounds and abscesses.

Bird Collar - An Elizabethan collar small enough for a rat.  To make your own:  http://www.ratballs.com/RatTails/Tails84.html or http://www.petalert.com.au/faid/faa5.php

Blue Kote - Spray or liquid, used for treatment of minor wounds. A germicidal/fungicidal spray used for bumblefoot and ringworm.

Compact Makeup Sponge - For body/facial cleansing. Reusable

Cotton Balls - Cleaning out wounds.

Cotton Makeup Pads - Tiny ratty facecloths – disposable

Cotton Swabs - Buy the Q-tip brand, I have found the swab end comes off really easy on the cheaper brands. Use to clean wounds and remove specks from around eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.

Epsom Salt - Used for it's drawing out and anti-itch properties.

Eye Dropper - For flushing wounds/abscesses. Also good for force feeding and giving oral medication.

Face Cloth -To use for moist heat. Dampen and wrap around the self-activated heat pad.

Fingernail Clippers - Ideal for trimming toenails, clipping off torn nails, and trimming over-grown teeth.

First-Aid Tape - Use only if your rat will tolerate bandages. Buy the "ouchless" kind. Used to secure Gauze squares to the coat or skin

Flea Comb  - A very fine-toothed comb for the coat.  Use for to remove lice eggs.

Gatorade - For quick rehydration, dilute by half with water. Not suitable for long-term illness: Gatorade information. Or, make your own electrolyte solution.

Gauze Roll - 1" - Buy only if your rat will tolerate bandages used to secure gauze squares or poultices in place

Gauze Squares - 1" and 2" - Buy only if your rat will tolerate bandages. Used to apply pressure to stop bleeding and to cover wounds

Hand Towel - To wrap injured rat in.

Hospital Cage - An injured rat may have to be kept separated from it's cage mates.

Humidifier - Puts moist warm heat back into the rat room when the air is too dry; used sometimes with respitory illness is present.

Hydrogen Peroxide - The old stand-by for flushing/cleaning minor wounds. Ideal to have on hand for treating your own scrapes and scratches obtained while playing with your critters.

Ivermectin - Diluted 1–10 in a solution of propylene glycol. Use as a topical treatment for internal/external parasites. A horse wormer used to treat mites and other coat/skin pests. Use a dose the size of 1/2 of an uncooked grain of white rice. Mix with a favorite food. Give once a week for 3 weeks.

Keyhole Saw - No kidding, you may have to cut the bars of your cage to free a trapped rat.

Laxatone - If your rat swallows fibers or hair. Give about 1/4 teaspoon.

Light Corn Syrup (Karo) - To sweeten meds to make them more palatable.

Linatone - An essential fatty acid supplement you can use as a lubricant on dry skin or tails.

Magnifying glass - he better to see close up.

Mason Jar (with a tight-fitting lid) - Make a "Cold Buddy" with ice; Make a "Warm Buddy" with hot water

Mini Flashlight - To put some light on the situation.

Natural Tears - To flush out the eyes of irritants.

Nolvosan  - A gentle wound cleanser that helps prevent infection.

Nursing Scissors - Good general purpose scissors, can be used for clipping nails, and fur from around a wound or abscess.

Paper Towel (white only) -  Initially to be used as the only bedding in the hospital cage of an injured/sick rat, to detect and determine abnormalities in bowel or bladder, bleeding, etc. Particularly useful when treating infected wounds and abscesses as a table covering or to soak up liquids as it can be destroyed after us .

Petroleum Jelly - Tryiong to free a trapped rat, among other uses

Pet-Tinic - An Iron/Vit B tonic to help prevent "Fading Syndrome" in both rittens and Adult rats.

Pieces of Fleec Fabric - Fleece is fairly cheap to buy from fabric shops and can be cut up to make blankets for wrapping sick or shocked rats in to keep them warm.

Rehydration Salts - For replacing lost fluids in sick or shocked rats. Follow the instructions on the packet for the correct dilution. Get them from: Veterinary surgery (usually large packets designed for horses) Pharmacist (smaller sachets for babies and children are good, flavored or plain e.g. Dioralyte). Alternative – make your own with sugar and salt dissolved in warm boiled water. 1 liter cooled boiled water, 1 level teaspoon salt, 8 level teaspoons sugar. OR 1/2 liter cooled boiled water, 1.75 grams salt, 20 grams sugar. (Lactated Ringers Solution)

Rubbing Alcohol - Used for cleaning/sterilizing equipment and minor injuries.

Scalpel with sterile blades - Opening and draining abscesses.

Scissors - Small, sharp ones are best. I prefer tiny toenail scissors. Good for clipping fur away from wounds. To cut gauzes, tape, and hair.

Self-activated Chemical Cold Pack - To reduce swelling.

Self-activated Chemical Heat Pack  - To relieve aches and pains.

Skin Glue or a good substitute like Krazy Glue Gel - For bigger wounds that don't require stitches

Small Syringes - For flushing out wounds and abscess cavities . Also for administering liquid medicines and dehydration fluids. Get them from. Veterinary Surgery.

Small Towels - These can be used for wrapping a rat if it is struggling during treatment or for drying a rat after washing.

Sponge-tipped Envelope Moistener - Can be found in office supply stores. Liquids can be put it and dabbed on the rat's body.

Sterilized Water - Sterilize a mason jar as you would for canning. Boil water and let it cool. Pour the water into the jar and seal tightly. Doesn't have to be stored in the fridge. Use for flushing out wounds.

Stethoscope - Your vet can teach you how to listen for any abnormalities of your rat's lungs and heart.

Styptic Powder - Stops bleeding from superficial wounds and broken nails (Quik-Stop)

Syringe, no needle - For flushing wounds/abscesses. Also good for force feeding and giving oral medication.

Syring w/ needle - Lance abscesses

Terramycin Ointment - Comes in a small tube, good for treatment of minor eye irritation.

Thermometer - Both oral and rectal thermometers can be used rectally to check rat's temperature

Toothbrush - A rat-sized brush. Could make ratty feel good during a first-aid procedure, or a way to find out about it's coat condition.

Toothpicks (flat) - Used administer small amounts of paste medicine, ie. Ivermectin.

Towel - A small cotton towel (a dish towel works great) can be a life saver. It’s great to use when handling injured and frightened animals, to staunch blood, and as a warm, absorbent, temporary nest.

Triple Antibiotic Ointment - For those wounds that might get infected (Neosporin)

Tube or Tin of Concentrated Food - For rats that have poor appetites who need to gain weight and strength. Also Hill's A/D is fine enough consistency that it can be used for syringe feeding rats, either straight from the tin or watered down. It can also be frozen in smaller amounts from the tin, so no wastage and always some in the freezer for emergencies. (Nutrical)

Tube Socks - Men's for Large Male Rats. Ladies' for Smaller Female Rats. Baby's for pups and slip over the head

Tweezers - It is worth buying good quality ones as they work much better. Used for removing foreign objects. To remove foreign bodies from the body or mouth.

Tylan Powder - One-eighth to one-quarter teaspoon per 8 oz. water. Used for treatment of minor or chronic respiratory problems.

Vet Rx - Makes breathing easier, relieves nose and head congestion. Apply a drop directly to the top of the nose or in the bedding.

Vet Wrap - Wide enough to make a full body cast. Stretchy and sticks to itself. May prevent the rat from irritating itchy spots, large wounds, etc. on it's body. (Also called sports wrap in WalMart)

Vick’s Vapo-Rub, Vanilla Extract, Etc. - Strong smelling substances. Used when introducing unfamiliar animals to each other.

Wire Cutters - Rats can become trapped in wire cages and half chewed igloos and may need to be cut out, always keep them handy.

Choking

Choking is not terribly common with rats. In fact, due to the arrangement of the rat's throat, true choking is rare, but it does occasionally happen and can be an extremely harrowing experience for the rat owner, not to mention the rat. For the most part, a rat who gets something caught in his throat will work it out given time. However, in rare instances, veterinary intervention is necessary to clear the obstruction.

Most often, when a rat has something caught in his throat, he is still able to breathe, and what you will witness will be the rat drooling and pulling his head back in a gagging motion (chin to throat), flattening his ears. Most people don't recognize this as choking right away and panic. But, once you recognize the symptoms, you can normally stay calm and try to assist your rat in clearing the obstruction, if he can't clear it himself. The first thing to do is to make sure the rat can breathe. As long as he can, your best option is to leave the rat alone and let him work it out himself, checking on him periodically to be sure the condition has not worsened.

If the rat cannot breathe, it is imperative that you assist quickly. You can try the Heimlich maneuver, pressing sharply up and in underneath the rat's ribcage in an attempt to dislodge whatever is stuck in the throat, but I believe this to be dangerous if performed by someone who does not know exactly what he is doing. Another method, which Debbie Ducommun of the Rat Fan Club calls "The Fling" uses centrifugal force. This, too, can be dangerous, and should be done very carefully. Debbie's method is as follows:

"Hold your rat firmly around the neck with one hand, and by the base of the tail with the other to hold her securely. Make sure there are no objects within an arm's length. Lift the rat overhead and bring her down in a rapid arc, so that at the end of the path she's tail up and head down. This can be repeated three to four times, then give the rat a rest, check her breathing, and see if anything is visible in the mouth. This is extremely effective in dislodging objects in the throat. However, do NOT use this procedure if your rat can breathe, or you might make it worse."

If your rat can breathe and you're patiently waiting for the rat to clear the obstruction on his own - stay calm. It may take several hours for him to be able to accomplish this. Most rats will clear the obstruction without assistance within one to four hours. My cutoff time for allowing the rat to do it on his own is at about 12 hours. After 12 hours I took him to the vet who promptly anesthetized him and cleared the obstruction by placing a tube down his throat. Big Mac was fine and I was able to take him home immediately. Chances are very good that you will never have to do this, but you should be prepared ahead of time just in case.

Think carefully about what you feed your rat. Although I have heard of rats choking on things such as pizza and bread. The most common culprit is peanut butter, but anything that is thick and gooey, or things that can get very sticky are a threat. We all know how much rats love peanut butter, so if you plan to give your rat some as a treat now and then, either spread it very thinly on a cracker so that they do not get a glob of it in the mouth, or mix it up with some jam or jelly which will thin it out. I've found that my rats really love it this way, and I know that Diane Newburg even uses this method to get her rats to take a Baytril dose!  

http://www.rmca.org/Articles/choking.htm

For more information on Rattie Express or any of our animals, please email me (Tara) at rattie.express@comcast.net.