Ear Infection, Tumor, Stroke? HELP!!

Hi All,
So one of my babies has developed this severe head tilt, she is unstable when walking causing her to roll over, she is able to lift her self back up but it takes her some effort. She Also is unable to drink (from what I can tell) when she licks babyfood off of my finger its a weak response. She cannot hold food, but slides across the ground to gather food and eat it however her mouth doesn't seem to be working all the well and she seems to bite pieces off and then they fall on the ground. She is willing to eat it just takes quite a bit of time on both are parts to make sure shes getting a decent amount. This all came on in the matter of a day, she was fine the night before and the next morning she was very hard to wake up, then by that evening we had to move her to get her up and that is when she started this rolling/tilting. So we rushed her to the emergency vet thinking it was a grave situation, they unfortunately are not well versed in small animals and exotics so they weren't 100% sure what was causing this; however they did some research and told us it could be 1 of three things ( but they couldn't be sure). They said that it could be a deep ear infection/virus that could have been in her system since a surgery she had to remove a mammary tumor in the summer. Or could be stroke or a tumor of sorts. The vet gave her an anti-inflammatory shot and some sub-Q fluids, and sent us home with baytril 0.1ml every 12 hrs ( 25mg/ml in flav syrup).
She has 2 cage mates, 1 of which who has a fast growing tumor ( which cant be removed due to her age) but she is right as rain considering there is a large mass on her. The other is completely healthy ( from what i can tell).
She started treatment on Friday, and aside from her moving around a bit more ( i think), she doesn't seem to be getting better, shes not getting worse but there hasn't really been an improvement.

I will be making an appointment with a small animal Vet next week ( availability permitting), so I guess what I was wondering is: 1) Is there anything else I can do 2) should I request a more aggressive treatment option, if so, what? 3) Because it was so sudden do you think it's probably not an ear infection and more to do with a tumor or stroke?
Videos: Here are some videos, keep in mind prior to this if i touched her when she was sleeping she would jump right up, same with if she even heard the treat bag, let alone smell a treat in her cage, there would be no hesitation...now not so much
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/04o6crzin9tdyez/AAB6cD9L4a2MikuuPNZP6AQHa?dl=0

Unfortunately, if it is/was an ear infection, often the tilt never goes away, even once the infection is cured.

Thanks for the reply. I'm not so worried about her head tilt ( we can live with that), as I am with her current state. She was a very hyper rat, who wasn't a huge fan of being handled, and now she's just a slow very lathargic looking thing. I'm not sure if it's even an infection at this point and I'm not sure what to do.
Here are some videos, keep in mind prior to this if i touched her when she was sleeping she would jump right up, same with if she even heard the treat bag, let alone smell a treat in her cage, there would be no hesitation...now not so much
VIDEO's:there are two right now
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/04o6crzin9tdyez/AAB6cD9L4a2MikuuPNZP6AQHa?dl=0

Sounds more like PT with her not being about to hold food. I had a PT boy that also had the tilt and would circle. Its possible its a bad ear infection, but I would think past that and consider immediately starting bromo and dexamethosone. However, you cannot start the dex or even pred if you are giving metacam for pain until that has stopped for a minimum of 48 hours.

Thanks for the reply. What will the bromo and dexamethosone do for her, will it allow her to eat on her own /drink on her own? If she has PT, how long can she live with it, comfortably? The vet didn't give us any metacam to take home so the last dose she would have had ( presuming that's what they gave her) would have been on Friday.

Do you think treating with Cabergoline would be more effective than bromo and dexamethosone? I was doing some research and that came up as a viable treatment option, then I remembered the vet who did her surgery before had written the same thing down, as a possible treatment option for growths in the future. He said I could get it from my Pharmacy. What do you think?

I am seeing PT with your lovely old girl, clubbing, confusion, she migh thave inner ear infection as well but her main issue IS PT.

I have personally only used bromocriptine as its the one IN my budget and only mildly less effective than Cabergoline which is a lot more expensive and/or hard to get.

I normally do a dex injection and start them on bromo, and by day 3 or so, the dex is wearing off but the bromo is kicking in...this is of course IF the tumour is a pituitary prolactinoma (most common PT there is) as some aren't and then the bromo/caber won't work. For these you can put them just on steroid therapy and see if they respond. Its not as good but they also might get a reprieve for awhile.

Thanks for your reply. Yeah, the more I look into it I see now that she has PT. Her condition has worsened since I took those videos...she can barely lift her head properly and is constantly on her side now, she still has strength to push her self around slightly..but nowhere near of how she was earlier. It's literally tearing my hear apart. Do you think she's in any pain? I'm not sure if I should wait to get into a vet tommorow or rush her in and get the vet to give her a shot now? Do you think this is worth trying to treat now with her condition deitrioting in hours? I'm so distraught I don't know what the humane course of action is now.

If you put/keep her on a steroid like dex or pred, she will also need to be on an antibiotic. Your baytril dose may be too low depending upon her weight.
I believe dex injections are given once a day so she might benefit from an injection today if she has not had dex since Friday (or Sat).
Depending on the antibiotic (or combo) given, this will fight any possible inner ear infection as well as hopefully decreasing pressure in her head by decreasing swelling.
So a steroid and antibiotic (s) will heal an inner ear infection and may temporarily relieve symptoms of pt - possibly giving a rat with a brain tumour days or months of good quality time, depending on the type of brain tumour and how fast it is growing.

Bromocriptine and Cabergoline may stop a tumour from growing or even shrink it.
Cabergoline is supposed to be a bit more effective, easier for rats to tolerate, and it is much more expensive.

Some people have found that bromocriptine has helped give their rats several months of good quality time. Others have found that it had no benefit.
Many rats are not able to tolerate the side effects and will refuse to take it after trying it a few times.

This may help, signs of pain in rats http://www.ratshackforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=14736

If you decide to have her put to sleep, make sure the vet knows how to do it humanely as most don't.
Best if you can be with her too.
Here is some info re things to discuss with the vet: http://www.ratshackforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7652

hope this helps

very sorry that this is happening to both of you

Thanks for the reply, and all the info. Definitely helps.

With PT they can regress sooo fast (as you are seeing)...if you can get a vet to give her a dex injection you'll be able to see if she improves or not. Dex is very fast acting (sometimes hours)

Thanks everyone for your help I really do appreciate it.
Sadly, my poor baby Tesla passed tonight.:tearful:

Sometimes pt worsens so fast that there is nothing you can do but comfort them, be with them, and try to make sure they do not suffer

I am so very for your loss.

I am so very sorry :-(

I'm so sorry your old lady has left for the Bridge. These fast declines are harder for us, but perhaps a blessing for our babies.
RIP Tesla, play hard and rest easy...

I'm so sorry. RIP sweet Tesla. You will be missed.

I'm sorry you lost your little one. Having experienced PT in quite a few myself, I know how heart-wrenching it is to see them go through this. Your little girl plays well at the Bridge and her love is with you always.

:redbud: RIP Tesla!

Thanks everyone for the kind regards. I never thought a rat would hold such a strong place in my heart, and the sadness now that she's gone is unbearable. And now to know that my other baby with the tumor is not far from the same fate is heart wrenching. That leaves one baby with us, and she's going to be so alone