Norry my sick guy, deciding when its' time last post

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Petunia

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http://youtu.be/FwwL75T1B94


plz watch video to the very end

this is Norry just a few minutes ago

his penis did go back in, but it's never ever been hanging out like that, is that "normal"??
he appears to be extremely uncomfortable "down there",possibly in pain, but I'm reluctant to give him ibu because it may rat guide says it can cause kidney issues

he sure seems to have kidney issues even though his vet says no

grrrrrrrrrr

I have no idea what to do for this poor guy.
 
It's called paraphimosis. It can be caused by a host of issues - penis plugs, UTIs, tumours, stones (?). Put some lube on it, give him some ibuprofen and keep an eye on it for now...
 
Have you been checking for penis plugs? I would check now, and then lube him and give him a good dose of ibu like Victoria said.

In this video I am seeing much more definitive signs of PT.
 
I check him several times a day for penis plugs

he hasn't had any for awhile now, not since he's been eating all those fruits and veggies. I did lube him up with KY jelly.

He looks so sore and raw down there, all along the back/underside of him.

what is causing this???
I've never had a rat get like this before.

I have to find a way to get more liquid into him, he is dehydrated and he's not been peeing as much in the past 6 hrs as he was earlier in the day.
what little urine I've seen has been clear and it was barely a few drops.

ok can you please refresh my memory on dose of Ibu?
it's infants 50mg/1.25mL and he's around 500grams
 
Have you been checking for penis plugs? I would check now, and then lube him and give him a good dose of ibu like Victoria said.

In this video I am seeing much more definitive signs of PT.

I'm also seeing neuro signs but I'm not sure if it's PT or a result of kidney disease. I would try treating with Bromo if that's an option to see if he improves. Watch the dose closely, my renal failure girl did very poorly on Bromo until I lowered the dose by a lot. The way he's walking, he looks like whatever's going on is causing him a fair amount of pain.

Start with a mid-range dose of ibu (.19 cc) and give more (up to .38 cc) as needed, up to 4x per day.
 
I'm uploading another two videos that show him eating (his penis is back in place)

he does pull a bit to the left while eating but still seems to be able to eat whatever he picks up

he's got some balance issues, the vet said that she thought he was weak from the low protein diet he'd been on and said i should give him more protein, like scrambled eggs, which i did yesterday

and she said that him falling asleep was probably because he was fainting from his supposedly super high heart rate (which she said was 350 bpm)

I'll edit this post when the videos are up
 
Victoria, what neuro symptoms could we see with kidney disease?

I'm also seeing neuro signs but I'm not sure if it's PT or a result of kidney disease. I would try treating with Bromo if that's an option to see if he improves. Watch the dose closely, my renal failure girl did very poorly on Bromo until I lowered the dose by a lot. The way he's walking, he looks like whatever's going on is causing him a fair amount of pain.

Start with a mid-range dose of ibu (.19 cc) and give more (up to .38 cc) as needed, up to 4x per day.
 
not Victoria, but i've seen nuero issues in my renal failure cats

here's what can happen with people, I imagine it's going to be the same for animals:

hmm the info I copied and pasted didnt' come thru

let me try that again!

http://www.medlink.com/medlinkcontent.asp

Key points • Chronic renal failure causes a variety of neurologic disorders affecting the central nervous system and the peripheral nervous system.
• These complications include diffuse encephalopathy, seizures, stroke, movement disorders, sleep alterations, polyneuropathy, mononeuropathies, and myopathy.


Features of uremic encephalopathy are characteristic of a metabolic encephalopathy and may include sluggishness, easy fatigability, daytime drowsiness and insomnia, itchiness, inability to sustain attention or to perform complex cognitive tasks, slurred speech, anorexia, nausea and vomiting, restlessness, poor memory, diminished sexual interest, emotional lability, confusion, convulsions, stupor, and preterminal coma (Lockwood 1989; Lacerda et al 2010). The coexistence of features suggestive of depression of neural activity together with those of neural excitation (ie, twitching, agitation, myoclonus, asterixis, seizures) is somewhat distinctive to uremic encephalopathy (Raskin and


He has been very itchy, he's had what looked like mini seizures, he's been confused, he's had those jerky movements that could be myoclonus.....


I've really thought all along that it's his kidneys
 
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My rat Squid had kidney masses/failure and there were definite neuro signs. Most noticeable was the wild "head swinging" and his inability to eat properly.
 
sorry guys I was too tired to get the videos up last night or post any more
I'm trying to find ways to get liquids into Norry, I think his kidneys are shutting down, there's not been much peeing, but then, stupid me, I got more of the "high protein" foods when I went shopping instead of the juicy fruits and veggies I've been giving him, so it's been hard finding foods with enough moisture that he can eat
he's having trouble with things are completely or mostly liquid like baby cereals and ensure
 
I never did get last night's two videos uploaded to YOu tube

but here's one from today that I took after his bath and pain meds

he looks a bit more comfortable now

I cant bear it when he looks like he's in pain and am far too distracted and upset to video tape it usually.

http://youtu.be/aftP_14ADrw
 
OK I just got off the phone with his vet.

I told her flat out, I think his kidneys are shot.

this time she said, that's possible (grrr) since she's never diagnosed a rat with kidney failure, she admits she winging it.

she said if he passes away from the heart problem he'll probably go fairly peacefully at home.

but with the kidneys, I'll probably have to decide when to let him go.

My only point of reference is cats, and with cats two things happen, they are throwing up a lot and they stop eating. It's somewhat easier to assess their quality of life.

With Norry, I just don't know. He perks up after he's eaten some juicy foods, and he perks up after a bath, but each day he looks a bit rougher.

The vet still does not want me to give him subQ fluids, she thinks it will mess things up with his heart.
I have another vet who says this is not true, but this other vet has never seen Norry,
and his diagnosis is not confirmed by any kind of tests. So maybe my vet is being ultra conservative and saying no to fluids because she really does not know what is wrong with my boy......?

Ack
I hate not having any clear path to follow.
 
Petunia:

I just watched Norry's video -- he is such a handsome boy !:kisses:
So sorry you are going thru this. I know how you feel. They consume all your thought energy as you are trying to think of everything/anything you can possibly do to help ease the situation.
If he cannot take in any liquids or enough to keep him hydrated then I would think SQ fluids would be a no brainer for a vet to recommend. It may allow him a bit more time with you.
My girl got SQ fluids & it only ended up giving her another week. But she had gotten to a point where she would take nothing my mouth. After a day she got her appetite back ( for baby foods/cereals ) and passed peacefully a few short days later. Maybe I should have had her pts - but I just could not do it.
Best of wishes for you & Norry :rathugz: It's just so hard sometimes....
 
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My browser crashed when I was replying to your other thread last night...

I think he does have PT and kidney failure. If you try a low dose of Bromo, you may see an improvement and buy him some time. I wouldn't give fluids if he has a heart issue either - often they won't absorb them when they're a metabolic issue and they pool near the heart and lungs, putting more strain on the organs.
 
My browser crashed when I was replying to your other thread last night...

I think he does have PT and kidney failure. If you try a low dose of Bromo, you may see an improvement and buy him some time. I wouldn't give fluids if he has a heart issue either - often they won't absorb them when they're a metabolic issue and they pool near the heart and lungs, putting more strain on the organs.

my vet uses a very very low dose of pred for PT rats. I doubt she's ever heard of using bromo.

I got him to eat a bit and he finally peed a little. he's having trouble pooping, his stool is hard and dry and small.
Just a little while ago his penis got stuck out again, and at the same time he pooped out a small hard raisin.
I don't know, I think straining to poop is what made his penis pop out.

he is eating tiny bits of food and falling asleep face down while he eats.
he startles if I touch him, and sometimes something will wake him up and he jumps up in the air like he was shot out of something.
It's distressing to see him going thru this.
I'm giving him the ibu but I can't help but think that it's either not enough, or he needs something else
 
Maybe there's a tumour of some sort? If he were a bigger species an enema may be good (hydrate + help with the hard poops) but for a rat it's a bit complicated...
 
I did enemas on a rat before, Smidgen, she had a huge tumor near her butt.
it was just a tiny tiny bit of KY jelly mainly to help things along, plus some massage

Norry seem to have a lot of pain in that area, I would be afraid of causing him more
 
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