Flea is gone

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jorats

Loving rats since 2002.
Joined
Jul 20, 2007
Messages
45,196
Location
Northeastern Ontario
A couple of weeks ago, my sweet lovely Flea has been acting off. All it was, she stopped coming out as fast as she used to. But I figured, she's 30 months old, who can blame her. She stopped eating her veggies with gusto, she just wasn't her Flea self.
Today... I found out why. My Flea is leaving me. She has a pituitary tumour and her symptoms are aggressive. From one day to the next, she is wobbly, she slouches, she can't hold her food and is becoming increasingly lethargic.

At first, I didn't want to take pics, I really don't want to remember this little girl this way but then I figured maybe it may help others identify this quiet killer. I also took a video.

Typically, pt symptoms are knuckling, inability to hold food, confusion, rolling, turning in circles and trouble eating.

smFleaPT3.jpg


smFleaPT.jpg


smFleaPT2.jpg


Here she is trying to eat a cheerio, the video is a little dark but you can see her actions.



I really don't know how long I have with her. I don't know if I'll have to bring her in to be pts... I'll have to take each day, each hour, each minute at a time. :(
 
This is heartbreaking! :cry: I'm dealing with PT as well. My Burma's PT is a lot less aggressive. But everyday I can feel Burma's frustrations with her disabilities.

I'm so sorry, Jo. :sad4:
 
Sweet Flea. Sadly I have dealt with many pt's in the past. It's good you are willing to share her experiences at least so others will know what to look for.

((((hugs)))))) to both you and Flea
 
Oh, Jo, I'm so sorry! She looks like such a sweet little thing. Lots of hugs to you both.

Have you tried any meds? I know it's all totally inevitable, but Shelagh's had some luck of making them more comfortable with pred or dex, I believe.
 
I've thought about it. But to be honest, I'd rather the pt take her fast than prolong it. And it doesn't help that my vet is out of town till the end of this month. :(
 
So very sorry for you and Flea ... :(
Her pt looks very aggressive and very advanced.
I hope that the two of you are able to share some special moments in the time Flea has left.

Godmother, Edith and Corrie visited this past week for a few days ... Edith and esp. Corrie are starting to show signs of pt :(
 
javakittie said:
Have you tried any meds? I know it's all totally inevitable, but Shelagh's had some luck of making them more comfortable with pred or dex, I believe.

I've had a lot of success using dex in rats with PTs ... one of my girls actually had an extra 5 happy months of excellent quality life with us thanks to dex!

I've also had some luck using galastop where dex hasn't initiated a response.

I will also say that I do always try meds in potential PT cases, as there are some problems which mimic the symptoms of a PT very closely, and some of those are curable, so I always try just in case it's not actually a PT I'm seeing.

I am sorry you and Flea are going through this though Jo, I know it's awful when you're in this position, sympathies XX
 
Sadly Jo is a real expert on true PT, as she and her vet have done a lot of necropsies and found it afterwards.

I am sorry Jo about sweet Flea. I see that PT pushback in one of the photos. :( There is only one small good thing about PT. It never seems to be painful or horribly distressing to them, much more to us. Unless they get a secondary infection like URI, they often quietly go at home with us. Still horribly sad though. :sad-p:

Cuddles to your lovely girl.

And yes its incredibly hard taking those pics and videos, but if it can help one person recognize the symptoms in their own rat, then it was worth it.

((hugs))
 
lilspaz68 said:
Sadly Jo is a real expert on true PT, as she and her vet have done a lot of necropsies and found it afterwards.

Please don't think I'm starting an arguement here, I'm not. In my previous post (which was in no way intened to be a critism of Jo) I mentioned using treatment anyway because I know that some things can mimic a PT so closely it's hard to believe ... but I've seen them do it. While I do always expect that it is a PT, and that is always at the top of my list for a diagnosis these being far and away the most common cause of the symptoms, I do feel it's important not to assume that it is a PT immediately ... but only because I have seen cases where the cause wasn't a PT.

Again, I wasn't critisising Jo for her choices, I was merely providing my own take on things and giving information based on my own experiences.

Jo I apologise to you if I have caused you any offence here, it was not intended.
 
No offense taken whatsoever.
Everyone's input is totally welcome.

Vic, what were the other ailments? I know it can sometimes be ear infections but unaware of what else.

Lilspaz has used Dex with success on her pt sufferers, so I know it's an option, but I didn't realize it can give 5 good months. That's a lot of extra time.

Is Dex better given when caught early? or does it matter? with my vet out of town till the end of October, I doubt very much I can get it.
 
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