My pet rat has a wound from a fight. How do I know if it's infected?

Just make sure to keep an eye on it and try to clean it very gently at least once a day with warm water and a mild soap, you can use a gauze pad to do this. Dry it carefully and then apply your topical treatment. However, if this stresses him out too much, just continue as you have been doing. Make sure his toes stay pink and warm and he keeps getting better. If anything at all changes for the worse, swelling, weeping wound, loss of appetite or activity level, if his toes change color or get cold, get him back in to see your vet right away. It sounds like you're doing a good job caring for his injury.

The main stay of treatment is to keep the wound clean and dry. Make sure the bedding is cleaned regularly. With rodents, I recommend a dust free bedding called Carefresh. Rodents are very sensitive to dust in the environment. Also make sure that you are feeding a balanced diet approved for rodents and supplementing with healthy fruits and vegetables. Especially the leafy greens. Most healthy animals will be able to heal wounds on their own. Watch it every day for redness, swelling or discharge. If your mouse begins to lick at it too much, you may need to create a small cone to keep her from doing that. This is not generally a problem however. If it gets infected, there are veterinarians who treat rodents and this will generally resolve with antibiotics. I hope this is helpful and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hello. I do not think this requires a veterinary visit. Clean this once or twice a day with a skin antiseptic like Hibiclens ( available in all pharmacies ) & dab the wound with just a tiny bit of triple antibiotic. If this does not heal in 10-14 days, do see your vet. Rats are prone to developing tumors, so you should have a non-healing wound looked at. But if it appears to be healing with this treatment, it is very unlikely to be worrisome. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach with your question. It does not look infected to me, and it looks like it’s healing. I’d keep an eye on it for now. If you see swelling, warmth to the touch, extreme redness, and pus, have him seen by a vet. Should it not get better or gets bigger, also have him seen by a vet. Keep the area clean and dry. I hope this helps.

I think it looks like it is healing OK. Neosporin is not the best topical antibiotic for snakes but the scab looks fine, it does not look red or swollen. I would just keep doing what you are doing. If it starts to look worse, swollen, he is not eating, etc then you should have him to a vet for an exam.

That digit appears to be broken. The best option is to have your vet look at it. If the bone inside the toe is broken it may never heal and it may get infected. Rats don't tolerate topical medication well as they will usually lick it off as soon as you apply it. You can use this wound spray gel if you'd like as if he does ingest it, it is not toxic. I am very concerned this will not heal up without veterinary intervention.

Keep the wound clean, you can clean it with regular water at least twice a day, i would recommend applying antibiotic cream after you finish cleaning the wound 2 times a day. bear in mind it might still end up infected like most bite wounds and will require systemic antibiotics as well.