witnessabbie
Member
First let me say that I realize how terrible this is and am disgusted with myself for the fact this happened.
I have three rats. The middle girl, Mina, who turns a year old this month, is albino (therefore near-enough to blind, as most of you probably know) and skittish. She was free ranging and was starting to go somewhere I typically have blocked off but didn't yesterday. I moved to stop her, she changed direction at the last minute, and I felt her nose crunch under my foot.
I screamed, she fled, I found her, and my sister and I rushed her to -- well, first we tried to take her to the local emergency vet, but they said their doctor wouldn't see her because she was an exotic and their exotic doctor wouldn't be around until the next day (today). So we drove her to the large er an hour and a half away. They also said no one on their staff was an exotic specialist (which kills me) but agreed to see her.
While on the way to the vet, her breathing was slightly labored and her nose was clicking as she breathed. She sneezed blood and porphyrin and had porphyrin discharge from her nose.
The vet said that there was clearly some trauma to the nose and swelling. She said she wouldn't do a radiography because she didn't think we'd see anything due to the swelling and it would potentially cause further trauma to force her to be still. They gave her an anti-inflammatory and antibiotics and suggested we take her to our local vet today.
She was calmer on the way home and wasn't lethargic or dull, simply tired. She spent the whole ride home on my shoulder pressed against my face -- I felt, since she was willing to sit there and stay still, it was better than trying to force her into my lap.
This morning, after giving her scrambled egg and a cup of water last night, my sister, who had stayed up with her, said she hadn't seen her eat or drink. That greatly concerned me, so I gave her a syringe of water along with her meds, and got her to eat some of her egg. My sister continued to monitor her (I had to go to work, it's a new job and was only my fourth day there, or else I would've stayed with her) and later sent me a video of Mina drinking.
The vet who said they would be able to see her today claimed, upon calling, that they couldn't and didn't know when they'd have an available appointment. I still wanted to get a radiography because her nose is slightly upturned and it seems her upper teeth are crooked and protruding a bit. Another vet in our area said they couldn't see her until Monday; I went ahead and made an appointment with them.
She's been eating and drinking but she hasn't pooped (also concerning, though she hasn't eaten a ton of food). I'm not sure if she's peed. She is eating -- I've been giving her soft foods, such as baby food, baby cereal, and peanut butter mixed so she gets protein but it's easy for her to consume. She doesn't seem lethargic, just very tired; her breathing isn't labored, but it is wheezing through her nose. She has a heating pad in her cage and seems, mostly, to want to just curl up in the back of the cage.
I KNOW THIS IS LONG. I'm sorry; I just wanted to present all the information. Because this is the thing -- no matter how much googling I did, I couldn't find information on a rat with a crushed nose, a broken nose, and/or their quality of life after such injuries. If anyone out there has experience, PLEASE let me know. I'll do anything I can to help her; my sister keeps saying she thinks Mina will be fine but she's my kid and I'm worried. If there's anything I can do to make Mina's injury easier for her or something I need to relate to the vet on Monday -- I NEED TO END THIS POST BUT JUST ANYTHING.
I can't get over the fact that I did this to her. I just want her to be okay.
I have three rats. The middle girl, Mina, who turns a year old this month, is albino (therefore near-enough to blind, as most of you probably know) and skittish. She was free ranging and was starting to go somewhere I typically have blocked off but didn't yesterday. I moved to stop her, she changed direction at the last minute, and I felt her nose crunch under my foot.
I screamed, she fled, I found her, and my sister and I rushed her to -- well, first we tried to take her to the local emergency vet, but they said their doctor wouldn't see her because she was an exotic and their exotic doctor wouldn't be around until the next day (today). So we drove her to the large er an hour and a half away. They also said no one on their staff was an exotic specialist (which kills me) but agreed to see her.
While on the way to the vet, her breathing was slightly labored and her nose was clicking as she breathed. She sneezed blood and porphyrin and had porphyrin discharge from her nose.
The vet said that there was clearly some trauma to the nose and swelling. She said she wouldn't do a radiography because she didn't think we'd see anything due to the swelling and it would potentially cause further trauma to force her to be still. They gave her an anti-inflammatory and antibiotics and suggested we take her to our local vet today.
She was calmer on the way home and wasn't lethargic or dull, simply tired. She spent the whole ride home on my shoulder pressed against my face -- I felt, since she was willing to sit there and stay still, it was better than trying to force her into my lap.
This morning, after giving her scrambled egg and a cup of water last night, my sister, who had stayed up with her, said she hadn't seen her eat or drink. That greatly concerned me, so I gave her a syringe of water along with her meds, and got her to eat some of her egg. My sister continued to monitor her (I had to go to work, it's a new job and was only my fourth day there, or else I would've stayed with her) and later sent me a video of Mina drinking.
The vet who said they would be able to see her today claimed, upon calling, that they couldn't and didn't know when they'd have an available appointment. I still wanted to get a radiography because her nose is slightly upturned and it seems her upper teeth are crooked and protruding a bit. Another vet in our area said they couldn't see her until Monday; I went ahead and made an appointment with them.
She's been eating and drinking but she hasn't pooped (also concerning, though she hasn't eaten a ton of food). I'm not sure if she's peed. She is eating -- I've been giving her soft foods, such as baby food, baby cereal, and peanut butter mixed so she gets protein but it's easy for her to consume. She doesn't seem lethargic, just very tired; her breathing isn't labored, but it is wheezing through her nose. She has a heating pad in her cage and seems, mostly, to want to just curl up in the back of the cage.
I KNOW THIS IS LONG. I'm sorry; I just wanted to present all the information. Because this is the thing -- no matter how much googling I did, I couldn't find information on a rat with a crushed nose, a broken nose, and/or their quality of life after such injuries. If anyone out there has experience, PLEASE let me know. I'll do anything I can to help her; my sister keeps saying she thinks Mina will be fine but she's my kid and I'm worried. If there's anything I can do to make Mina's injury easier for her or something I need to relate to the vet on Monday -- I NEED TO END THIS POST BUT JUST ANYTHING.
I can't get over the fact that I did this to her. I just want her to be okay.
