Case history and photos. If a rat over-grooms itself this is called ‘barbering’ and it results in hair loss in very precise places, as the barbering is a behavioural thing, very much a habit and can be for comfort or because the rat it bored. What is Barbering? There are two main causes of bald spots in rats. The most common is barbering, a behavior where a rat obsessively grooms itself or another rat to the point of nibbling off the hair. Barbering in rats may be similar to “whisker chewers” in mice. There are many reasons a rat may barber himself or a cage-mate. Barbering is a characteristic social interaction among C57BL/6 and C57BL-related mice (C57BL/10, C57BR, C57L, C58, and C57BL congenic strains). Seen below in the photos, she has groomed a significant area of her abdomen resulting in a “clean shaven” appearance. Occasionally, rats and mice self-barber, chewing off their own hair. The dominant rat or mice chews the hair of the submissive rat or mice very close to its skin, giving it the appearance of being clean shaven. This generally leaves bald patches on the face, head, neck or shoulders. This is where usually one mouse in a cage full of mice will suddenly start to chew off all the whiskers of its cagemates. You can also consider providing them with a heat pack but bear in mind that rats like to nibble; therefore, supervision is required! It is an expression of dominance. Barber: Excessive grooming in which the fur is nibbled off. Bresnahan 1983). Barbering. What Causes A rat To Barber? Rats may barber each other, in which case frequent areas of barbering and subsequent bald spots on other rats are the head, face, neck and shoulders.Dominant rats may barber subordinates (e.g. This is the reason the condition is called barbering. If your rat lives outside, consider bringing it inside, especially during the cold winter months, as cold weather can exacerbate respiratory disease. This is Ruckus, a rat with an infection in the end of his tail that was successfully treated with amoxicillin. Barbering and fighting are manifestations of social dominance, a form of behavior relating to the social rank and dominance status of an individual mouse in a group. Barbering, where a “barber” mouse plucks hair from its cagemates or itself, is both a spontaneously occurring abnormal behavior in mice and a well validated model of Trichotillomania (TTM). Irma seen here is approximately 6 months old, and is a self barber. N-Acetylcysteine, (NAC) a cysteine derived food additive, is remarkably effective in treating TTM patients, but its mechanism of action is unknown. Rats start barbering for a number of reasons, however there is a lot of evidence for a genetic link as barbering is often found in family groups and related rats. Barbering refers to the excessive and compulsive cleaning in which the fur is actually nibbled off or pulled right out of the skin. Figure 1: Self barbering in 6-month-old female rat (Irma). Rats in a cage with a cage-mate may barber each other leaving bald spots on the other rats fur. The dominant mice physically nibble or pluck fur and whiskers from their cage mates. Barbering is a unique condition seen in group-housed mice in which the dominant mouse nibbles off the whiskers and hair around the muzzle, eyes, or other body parts of cagemates. Hair Loss.
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