Does my rat have a tumor and what should I do?

Hi, I haven't been on the forums for ages now, but my last thread was about my bitey rat Well she doesn't bite anymore

But, down to the topic. My rat (Rue) who is a year and 2 months or so old has developed a small lump just underneath her arm which I noticed a few hours ago Now, this is my first experience with things like this, but I think it is a tumor :thud:

I have no idea what to do though :/ Should I go to the vets soon? I have read that you can either have it removed, or let it grow and have her put down when it stops her from moving or eating ect. She is not spayed either. I love her, and money is not too much of an issue, I just don't want to spend tons of money for no reason.

Thanks a lot
-Rage

Well, a vet check to determine exactly what the lump is (benign or malignant tumor, abscess, cyst, other) is always a good idea so that you know exactly what you are dealing with in order to best treat it properly. A vet who works with rodents will be able to make an educated guess for starters, but might suggest a fine needle aspiration to see what kind of cells and/or infection comes out of the lump.

Some people choose to remove the lump if the rat is healthy overall. Some people choose to treat it with meds such as tamoxifen, or bromocriptine, or steroids, or with natural products that may/may not always work depending upon the rat's particular type of lump; things like coriollus versicolor mushroom, flax seed and cottage cheese blended, tumeric, etc.).

Some people will have the lump removed, and then use any or a combination of the above afterwards to try and prevent them from coming back, or at least slowing the growth of any new lumps.

And others choose to just try to treat the rat with meds or holistics without surgery in order to try and shrink/stabilize the tumor and just let the rat live as comfortably as possible until the lump removes quality of life.

I know that most rats can go a long time with benign tumors. If it feels loose/wiggly under the skin and can be moved around easily, it is most likely benign, although some benign can also feel more firm/attached.

I'd say get her checked out by a vet, for your peace of mind and knowing exactly what you are dealing with, then decide your options from there.

Thanks Carol, I will make a vet appointment ASAP. And I will also check to see if the lump moves under the skin.

Thanks again

If you get your tumour removed, I highly recommend getting her spayed at the same time. This will lessen her chances of tumour recurrence which can be quite high, specially since she's already developing them at 14 months old.

Will getting her spayed cost loads? Considering the tumor removal will probably be ~£100. I might do that, really not sure as there is also the risk of her dying in the surgery

If you have a good vet, risk is not so high anymore, not more so than cats or dogs. I've have well over 200 rats go through neuters and spays and only lost one, but it was due to his heart.
Your vet might be able to give you a good deal if he's doing it at the same time of removal.

Ok, thanks. I'll definitely think about it. Do you know the rough cost?

Well, we booked an appointment at the vets to get it checked out. As long as the cost isn't super expensive we will get the tumor removed and spayed.

Good luck with your sweetie.

Thanks^

Hey, this is just an updated post if anyone is interested She went into surgery today (after being checked on Saturday) and she got her tumor removed (not spayed which costs loads :/ ). She is fine and is eating and the wound where they operated is quite nasty, but the fur will grow back and all. There are stitches by the way. Now, we have antibiotics and painkillers. I have to give her I think it's 1/2 a ml of painkiller (Liquid) and antibiotic every morning (I'll go check after this post) and I think this might be a problem. The liquid obviously needs to be consumed but I have no idea how. Apparently you're supposed to put her mouth and syringe it in, but knowing Rue she won't have it. Any ideas on how to get her to consume it would be really appreciated.

Thanks

:heart: :cuddle: Healing vibes from all of us :cuddle: :heart:

Put the meds into a small dish. add a couple of drops of strawberry quik, add a couple of drops of water and then thicken with a tiny amount of baby cereal (the kind hat says add milk) and mix it up.
My rats love eating their meds when mixed up like this. They think it is a treat.

I'm glad she's doing better!
I always syringe my rats their meds but that's because my rats think it tastes good. Or you could put the meds on a spoon, draw it out with the syringe, add to spoon and add some yummy food to mask it.

Thanks again, this morning before I read these I got some yogurt on a spoon and mixed the liquide meds in with it and Rue ate it well enough, the 2nd dose (painkiller) she probably didn't like as much and left a tiny amount. I might carry on but if she starts refusing to eat the yogurt then I might do what SQ said but would it work with liquid medicine?

Thanks again.

I mix the liquid med in baby cereal in a spoon. SQ's method will work too, just add more cereal if you don't want it too runny.

I use that method with liquid meds ...
the sweet srawberry taste hides the horibe taste of the meds,
The few drops of water dilute the thickness of meds
and the baby ceral thickens it so it isn't runny.

I've been using this method for many years but I can't take credit for it.
I think Godmother came up with it