Help with Acetaminophen and Liquid Diet Dosage

Hi all,
I am new. Here's the rundown:
My 2.5yr old female rat Nibbler is at the end of her rope with a facial tumor, among other things (obvious uterine cancer with bleeding of vulva, multiple mammary tumors, one of which SHE CHEWED OFF HERSELF and had healed). We've taken her to a vet to get it cleaned out initially thinking it was an abscess, but it was confirmed afterward that it is indeed a tumor.

Needless to say, there's not much more to do for her than to make her comfortable. She is still happy and has a big appetite, so I can't bring myself to just put her down just yet. The tumor growth negates the antibiotics. It's like her little face is rotting off. It's awful.

ANYWAY, I am trying to figure out how much of this infants' acetaminophen liquid suspension to give for general relief, if possible, as well as what kind of schedule I should adhere to in regards to a liquid diet. I've actually been boiling some water to soften Oxbow Regal Rat pellets and have begun to blend that with a little bit of almond milk and a soy protein powder. I administer this with a syringe and she happily drinks it up, maybe 5mL 2x a day. She is still losing weight. Should I just feed her as often as possible?

She was last weighed at 298gm, (so 0.66lbs, or 0.3kg, give or take...). The brand of acetaminophen I have says it's 160mg/5mL, So 32mg/mL? I'm terrible with math, it just doesn't seem right when I calculate it. I've read that a rat weighing 200-300g should have about .5mL? I just wanted to be sure. Any advice would be great...

Poor girl. I would get metacam from the vet for her pain. And feed her as often as she wants it. I would also offer ensure. Is she able to drink? If so I would leaver her with some sort of soft food in a dish 24/7.

Oh boy. I just caught her trying to eat her own poop. I guess I am definitely not feeding her enough. TT-TT I feel so bad... She does have a dish of softened pellets 24/7, but is less and less unwilling to get up and feed herself. Yet she still finds the energy to be curious as ever and beg for affection. Crazy little girl.

Sounds like metacam from the vet is definitely what she needs. She also sounds like she's not doing too could - helping them cross the bridge is the last loving thing you can do for them.

Your poor baby. It might be time to make that decision for her. Hugs!

Croaky said:

Oh boy. I just caught her trying to eat her own poop. I guess I am definitely not feeding her enough. TT-TT I feel so bad... She does have a dish of softened pellets 24/7, but is less and less unwilling to get up and feed herself. Yet she still finds the energy to be curious as ever and beg for affection. Crazy little girl.

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Rats, as prey animals will hide any pain and sickness as long as they can, as a wild animal, this makes you a target for predators...but they are feeling it.

The rotting face sounds like a zymbal's gland tumour which is terminal, and causes severe pain as the tumour grows in and out causing jaw shift etc. Once they are at this point you have to decide for them, it sucks because they seem bright, but they will linger on and on, and not die at home like you want. They will become sickly, skin and bones and keep breathing. Please look into a humane euthanasia for your beloved girl.

Oh no, she is definitely getting worse. I've scheduled with our vet. I can't stand seeing her like this anymore. Thanks all!

And I've just noticed, lilspaz, Nibbler's sister was named Twiggy before we had to put her down. Great name.

Rats by nature eat their own poop. That's how they recycle their nutrients so it's all ok, no worries. But, I do want to stress that older rats should have very limited protein. The Oxbow alone is good enough, no need for almond milk and soy protein. I would free feed the oxbow. What ever she takes.

Definitely give her as much food as she will eat, even if it seems like a lot. I'm glad that you went to see the vet, because letting them suffer is very heartbreaking and sad.

However, if you are sure that she is still all right to live on for a while, or if the vet says so, then do look into getting her pain killers(such as metacam), giving her food and such as much as she wants, and humane euthanasia for the future. Make sure you find a vet that first uses gas anesthesia to sedate the rat completely, and only then injects the euthanasia agent into the heart or somewhere. Many other euthanasias suitable for other pets are not for rats, because they are so small.