Feeding problems- allergic to rodents.

[Selkielass]

I've started having allergy problems when feeding Abby and Ziva pinky rats.
I've always had problems with allergies to rodents. (Gerbils, mice, rats, guinea pigs rabbits.) But I never had problems handling frozen and thawed rodents until I got this most recent batch.
Past three or four times I've thawed their rats under trickling water in the bathroom, then drained and fed them in the same dish, I've had a mild to medium Asthma attack.
Not life threatening, but not pleasant.

I'm trying to think of ways to minimize this problem- wearing vinyl gloves, washing the rats in soapy water etc, or switching back to mice and seeing if they are less trouble for me.

The rats they are eating are the size of my thumb. Similar sized mice would be fully furred out- could the fur cause problems?

I'd just feed fish and worms, but Ziva has digestive problems, and the smell from rodents is a fraction of that produced when she eats fish. (Truly epic stink that smells up the whole house versus smell mostly confined to the room with the vivarium.

Suggestions anyone?

[EasternGirl]

I would get some of those medical masks that people wear when they are sick...the white ones. You can buy them at pharmacies in packs. I would wear them whenever you are handling the mice. I would think that fur would add to the problem...I have asthma too and I know that animal dander is a big trigger. I believe the allergens on dander stick in fur and on animal skin...and can come from animal saliva as well. I think a mask and gloves should eliminate most of the problem. As long as you aren't breathing allergens in the air and you do not touch yourself and transfer anything on your hands to your person, you should get some relief. Also...taking an over the counter allergy medication like Zyrtec, which is effective against animal allergies, on a regular basis may help.

[Light of Dae]

Hmm that would suck... I'd say don't use soapy water but maybe use gloves and or hold the rats with a bag. I almost bought fuzzies because the store had been out of pinkies for a while, I was going to lol shave the fur off! I don't know if that would work for you or not. I have heard other people on here (cannot recall whom) say they feed fuzzies... But I don't know, that sucks... maybe wear a dust mask?

[Selkielass]

I hadn't thought of the dust mask... I'll have to give that a try.
I thought of washing the frozen rats because that is sometimes recommended when scenting rodents with worms or fish to reduce the rodent odor. I have plain homemade soap with no added fragrance or chemicals that should be pretty much gone after thawing in running water, but I have used plain dish detergent in the past. (For clean-scenting, not for reducing dander.)

Please keep the Ideas coming!

[chris-uk]

Thaw them in a bowl of still water to minimise aerosols coming off the rats, even a trickle of water can cause aerosols. You could also cut down handling and use tongs to transfer the rodents to/from the water.
If you're suffering consistently a pre-emptive blast of salbutamol would help.

My asthma isn't so bad, but I have a bunch of allergies to dust, smoke, fur (yes, the cat doesn't help)... So I'm on daily nasal spray and antihistamine tablets. Keeps my nose from running constantly.