Enema

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hal :)

Member
Joined
Apr 17, 2022
Messages
8
Location
USA
Does anyone have any advice on giving an enema? I’ve read a few forums on how to do so and im confident in doing one. my girl is 5 months old and i just took her to the vet and they couldn’t see anything wrong according to her x-rays. Her belly is swollen and has a lump on one side and I believe she has a large impacted stool right at the anus opening and i can see it protruding but it’s too big to push out. Im starting to worry about it because she hasn’t pooped, and the vet prescribed a motility drug but it would only cause more problems if she is not able to release anything. Here is a small video of her area.
 

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Im located in Texas currently. I went to an exotic and avian vet, none of the doctors there had seen what her x-ray showed in rats and had no idea what is could be, but knew for a fact something is built up in there as you cannot make out any of her organs. The breeder i got her from also said that an enema wouldn’t hurt to try, but also i can’t get off of work to get to a vet tomorrow and she still hasn’t pooped so I am conflicted . this was her x-ray compared to a healthy rat
where are you located? you need a good vet, that is clearly abnormal
I wouldn't do anything without seeing a vet to find out what is going on
maybe megacolon, or a tumor, I don't know, but that needs medical attention as far as I can see

@lilspaz68 any suggestions?
I thought it was megacolon as well from research, but she wasn’t sure. my biggest concern currently is that she can’t poop, and the medicine prescribed could kill her if there’s a blockage, which i clearly believe there is, but the vet said they couldn’t see a blockage with x-ray or ultra sound
 
Im not s
how much experience with rats does the exotics vet have? in some areas of the country, ppl are more likely to take their expensive birds to a vet, as opposed to taking their relatively inexpensive, sometimes free, pet rats...
so being an exotics vet does not mean they have a lot of experience with rats. I found this out the hard way- went to an avian/exotics vet who was clueless on rats because mostly he saw birds and rabbits.


there's clearly something wrong with her, if there was someone to get a second opinion that would be your best bet


I don't know to read xrays but geez, those look freaky compared to any others I've seen of rats

I can't give you any advice, I'm not a vet or tech or anything like that but I will try to contact others on this forum who don't come here often any more and see if they have seen anything like this ok?

Did the vet see any stool in her rectum or lower colon? that should show up on xray

To me, those xrays look like she's got a lot of inflammation and swelling thru out all her organs. The closest I've seen to that is what my lungs looked like after pneumonia, they called it post infection inflammation

but I'm not a rat, your rat's problem isn't resp and I have no idea how to help you.
im not sure exactly how much experience she has with rats, but I do believe she’s had some from the visit. She asked other doctors as well in the office and they didn’t know. She did say that she could be very inflamed in her intestines and it could be food that was not able to pass, but she couldn’t make out any actual stool in the x-ray. the x-rays are kinda scary especially not being able to read them; seeing how different they look to a healthy rat.

Im gonna try to get to another vet but im not financially capable of going to multiple vets at this time unfortunately
 
I think we posted at the same time

The vets you saw should have suggested another vet to get a second opinion from, they may not have because possibly they don't know of anyone else in the area who would be able to help.....
that's very frustrating.

It's my understanding that vet care for pet rats is hard to find in your area

what medicine did they give you?

I'd reach out to any rescues in your area, chances are they will know a vet who can help and they may have good advice as well
the one i went to suggested having the x-rays sent to a specialist i think, but she said it was expensive so I declined.

she prescribed metoclopramide
 
[email protected]

I dont know if they even exist any more but that's the email for the rescue I mentioned
thank you
ok I am familiar with that, it's reglan, I had to use that for a diabetic cat

It seems you may have read this:
Megacolon – Rat Guide

is that correct? you have read it?

does your breeder have a policy where they take back their rats?
that is one option.

Also surrendering your rat to a rescue is an option, assuming they have openings, they will provide care, which in this case may be euthanasia

I'll be honest with you, it does not look for your little girl- but you can try this Facebook group, they may have seen this before and may have some ideas. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1684383241815171

without proper treatment she will die a terrible death and even with treatment, it's hard to say how she will do.

personally I would not try to give that rat an enema
I would not try to introduce anything into her rectum it's just too swollen.


the vet you saw seems honest and reliable, I would call them again and ask them if there's any chance that giving those meds will harm your girl (they said they did not see a blockage, and I would believe them about that)

tell them you are nervous, you think it might hurt her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~JUST now seeing your reply

OK as far as the warm water, all I did was fill a shallow bowl with warm water, check to be sure it's not too hot and I sat her down in it
she did try to get out once but then she seemed to like the feel of the water and stayed there

She stuck poop came out followed by more soft stool

but again she had a TUMOR for sure, we knew this.

PLEASE DO NOT TRY TO Push or put any pressure on her anus. You could really hurt her and cause bleeding and pain and injury.

Your rat does not appear to have a tumor, she seems to have something else going on, Kaia and I are thinking it is megacolon and that is not easy to treat
Many rats with megacolon have much shorter lives than normal

your rat seems like an esp bad case to us, I am sorry to say

But if you post in the Real Rat Lovers Want to Know forum with your photos and the full history, they may see something we are not.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
vets in your area:




(Dallas Metro) East Dallas Vet Clinic – Dr. Shannon Holland 214-328-9935 eastdallasvetclinic.com 8541 Ferguson Rd, Dallas 75228 North Tollway Pet Hospital – Dr. Duane Maxwell 972-733-3340 totalpetcare.net 4727 Frankford Rd, Dallas 75287 Summertree Animal & Bird Clinic – Dr. Cuffman & Dr. Brazelton 972-387-4168 summertreevet.com 12300 Inwood Rd #108, Dallas 75244 Family Friends Veterinary Hospital – Dr. Elizabeth Rogers 469-225-5885 familyfriendsvets.com 3245 Main St #265, Frisco 75034 North Texas Emergency Pet Clinic – Fowler 972-323-1310 ntepc.com 1712 West Frankford Road #108, Carrollton 75007 Parker Animal & Bird Clinic – Dr. Whetstone 972-985-0036 parkeranimalbird.com 2129 W. Parker Rd Ste A, Plano 75023 Animal Medical Center – Dr. Hickman 972-542-8675 amcmckinney.com 201 Jordan Rd, McKinney 75070 Twin Lakes Pet & Bird Clinic – Dr. DeRusha 972-347-9799 twinlakespetandbirdclinic.com 26810 US-380, Aubrey 76227 (Fort Worth Metro) Ridglea West Animal Hospital 817-763-0261 rwah.vet 4404 Southwest Blvd, Fort Worth 76116 Boat Club Road Animal Hospital – Dr. Louisa Martin 817-236-2000 bcrah.com 9635 Boat Club Road, Fort Worth 76179 VCA Deer Creek Animal Hospital – Dr. Denton 817-297-6939 vcahospitals.com 813 E Highway 1187, Crowley 76036 (DFW Mid-Cities) Green Oaks North Pet Hospital – Dr. Amber Ducote 817-860-3087 greenoaksnorthvets.com 1890 NE Green Oaks Blvd, Arlington 76006 City Vet Mid-cities – Dr. Austin Neely 817-554-7000 cityvet.com/mid-cities/ 3748 Cheek Sparger Rd, Bedford 76021

thank you for helping me i appreciate it. Yes that is the guide i was referring too, the vet also ended up sending. me the same forum after the visit as she was trying to figure out what it could be as well.

She doesn’t look good to me and her belly i feel is getting bigger and she’s been doing this stretching and pushing type movement and curling in which the vet also said could be a pain response. I just feel so bad for my baby because i feel like it doing end well and i don’t want her to be in pain.

But yea the vet doesn’t believe she has a tumor and that it’s something else going on. I haven’t asked my breeder on any policy on taking back rats, i’ve been in contact with her about the situation and that’s about it.

My baby has been acting normal, eating, and exploring during free roam, but idk how much longer it’s gonna last as im very scared since she’s still eating but can’t pass anything out

im gonna try the warm soak and see if that helps. Do you think i should continue to give the medication? the vet did say it was a possibility it could cause her intestines to basically explode if there’s a blockage. i was also giving a stool softener the breeder recommended and the vet said to continue with that and the prescription from the visit on Friday.
 
yesterday you told me that the breeder will take her back, and that was what you were going to do. *
now you say you've not even asked? I'm confused and a bit annoyed as I'm trying to help your girl and you don't seem to be taking this seriously.
Feeling bad isn't going to help your girl, you have to take action. This is an emergency situation, most rat owners would have their rat at an ER vet right now with these symptoms


(*I can copy and paste that message if you'd like)

You have described a rat that is in extreme pain. Rats are prey animals and will hide their pain as much as they can to avoid predation but if she's curling in, stretching and pushing, those are signs of severe pain. The fact that the vet witnessed this behavior at all means the rat is in too much pain to be able to hide it all the time.


You are unable/unwilling to pay for further diagnostics, her xrays are a very abnormal, and she has a high chance of suffering from megacolon which is difficult to treat, even when caught early. Even rats who are successfully treated often do not live a normal lifespan.

her chances of survival are very slim at this point esp given the circumstances of having not passed stool all this time.

I don't know rat genetics very well but there is a chance that the breeder screwed up, and bred a rat with high white in it's genes, she's a black eyed girl, I can't tell her color from the photos but she may very well be high white, which should not be bred at all, because they are prone to megacolon.


Regardless of that, You need to get her to someone who can end her suffering please!
humane euthanasia is not typically expensive.
You could take her to a rescue, in her condition they would likely want to help her out of her misery if at all possible.

but please do not let her suffer any more.
 
yesterday you told me that the breeder will take her back, and that was what you were going to do. *
now you say you've not even asked? I'm confused and a bit annoyed as I'm trying to help your girl and you don't seem to be taking this seriously.
Feeling bad isn't going to help your girl, you have to take action. This is an emergency situation, most rat owners would have their rat at an ER vet right now with these symptoms


(*I can copy and paste that message if you'd like)

You have described a rat that is in extreme pain. Rats are prey animals and will hide their pain as much as they can to avoid predation but if she's curling in, stretching and pushing, those are signs of severe pain. The fact that the vet witnessed this behavior at all means the rat is in too much pain to be able to hide it all the time.


You are unable/unwilling to pay for further diagnostics, her xrays are a very abnormal, and she has a high chance of suffering from megacolon which is difficult to treat, even when caught early. Even rats who are successfully treated often do not live a normal lifespan.

her chances of survival are very slim at this point esp given the circumstances of having not passed stool all this time.

I don't know rat genetics very well but there is a chance that the breeder screwed up, and bred a rat with high white in it's genes, she's a black eyed girl, I can't tell her color from the photos but she may very well be high white, which should not be bred at all, because they are prone to megacolon.


Regardless of that, You need to get her to someone who can end her suffering please!
humane euthanasia is not typically expensive.
You could take her to a rescue, in her condition they would likely want to help her out of her misery if at all possible.

but please do not let her suffer any more.
i think you got confused because it was 2 separate convos i believe but at first i hadn’t asked until you mentioned it, so then i replied with what i agreed on with the breeder. None of the breeder’s litters have ever had megacolon so it would
be strange for it to all of a sudden appear in a 9th gen rat, but still ig not impossible. The vet didn’t believe it was mega colon from the x-rays. The breeder is also a rescue so that’s where i took her. she’s in good hands…
 
I am also glad to see the breeder will take her back. Rat pedigree tracking is virtually useless - 50/50 at best - as it can be 20 generations before a recessive/genetic health issue appears in the line. It just needs the right combination of factors, and sometimes there are just anomalies as Petunia mentioned. It's hard to get registered as a breeder for this reason (among others).

I hope she is okay, megacolon (if that is what it is) can be very dangerous and very painful - but it can also be managed. I'm keeping fingers crossed for the little one.
 
OK I see the time stamps now, sorry. I checked this thread several times and I got notice of the private message many hours before the post showed up, no idea why that would happen but must be a glitch in the notifications.


I'm glad the breeder was able to take your girl back. I hope she's getting good vet care.

I don't know enough about rat genetics but very few breeders are registered with the main rat associations/societies so basically the vast majority are back yard breeders with a wide range of knowledge and experience.
I don't think that tracking back 8 generations means a whole lot, rats breed incredibly fast. Were these rats bred from a registered line? probably not, those are very hard to find. And afaik high white can occur at any time, but as I said, I have little knowledge about it. Apparently megacolon can also occur randomly in other rats. This article gives more info and links to better sources: What Every Rat Owner Should Know About High White and Megacolon



what is the name of the rescue? we keep a list of all registered rescues to help others who need may want to adopt or may need to surrender a rat.
Yea i figured the time stamps or try the order you read them in was the confusion, it’s alright.

The breeder actually ended up giving her an enema because the morning of the day i took her, she actually passed a peice of the blockage on her own and it was pretty big, poor baby. The breeder was able to help her pass the rest of the big peices and is working on getting the smaller ones, which has brought her stomach down a lot so she’s doing good. The only thing she’s gotta fund out is why she developed the blockage and decide how to move forward with her
 
I am also glad to see the breeder will take her back. Rat pedigree tracking is virtually useless - 50/50 at best - as it can be 20 generations before a recessive/genetic health issue appears in the line. It just needs the right combination of factors, and sometimes there are just anomalies as Petunia mentioned. It's hard to get registered as a breeder for this reason (among others).

I hope she is okay, megacolon (if that is what it is) can be very dangerous and very painful - but it can also be managed. I'm keeping fingers crossed for the little one.
Yes, she received and enema and was able to pass the bigger pieces and her stomach had gone down, so she is doing better. the only thing is to determine what caused the blockage
 
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