Help - Advice needed for injured baby

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If it was internal bleeding I am sure he would have died by now.....they get progressivly worse and die.....so I would go for the metacam......
It sounds like he is doing better........
 
Oh Jen, that's good news, I think he's on the mend.
The gnawing on the edible shack is perfectly normal...no pain there, just pure enjoyment. I meant gnawing on objects that are not usually gnawed.
If your gut tells you that he's ok with his buddies then I'd go with that, you've been watching him and feeling his energy, you would know more than us at this point. :thumbup:

There is also another concern and that's the bruising of the kidneys... it can become quite inflamed and can take quite a few weeks for it to shut down.
Personally, I'd go with metacam.
 
"There is also another concern and that's the bruising of the kidneys... it can become quite inflamed and can take quite a few weeks for it to shut down.
Personally, I'd go with metacam."

Say no more, Jo - I will DEFINITELY take him in to the vet & have an appt this afternoon for the metacam. I so appreciate you mentioning this and it's exactly what I'm nervous about. He is doing soooooooo well - he has more energy than the others right now & I'm not sure if it's the tylenol masking symptoms or just that he was feeling so bad before that he's appreciating feeling good & making the most of it. He keeps wanting to climb up the cage walls and I keep trying to keep him settled, but he's happy, kissing, bruxing, grooming, and generally looking very good. But in we go for the metacam. And thank you for your sensitivity to my daughter and her feelings. While I am a first time rat owner, I am an animal lover with an extensive history of all kinds of critters. The animals are always supervised with the children. They never open the cage without asking and are very good listeners. I'm not excusing what happened, but it was completely an accident & can happen even under the care of responsible adults. As one of the posters said, it has been a good lesson and reminder for all of us to not only be extra gentle, but to appreciate the time we have with our beloved animals. The time is way to short, I can already see that so we are going to appreciate every day and give them all the love in the world. My daughter is now overly hesitant, so at this point, I have some work to do to rebuild her confidence. She was really crippled emotionally over what happened. I am just grateful Lukie is doing so well and he has obviously forgiven her as seen by the multitude of kisses he has given her late yesterday & today. But again, I so appreciate all of the people who took the time to post advice and comments during this awful time. I'm exhausted & need a good cry (relief that he's doing so well)...Thank you all again. I so appreciate this board!
 
Yes, it is very easy for accidents to happen, especially when children are involved.
That is why it is so important to take extra precautions ... rats are very fragile and can be easily injured.
viewtopic.php?f=21&t=14577

So glad that your injured rattie is doing better ... hoping that both Lukie and your daughter soon recover.
 
Well, I have some great news to report! I took Lukie (and his brother, Ben to keep him company) to see the vet and she said he looks really good! She observed him grooming, twisting, climbing, moving in ways that he wouldn't be moving if he had a fracture or brake. She thinks he was just in shock and sore. She told me as a precaution, to watch for blood in the urine or stool (which he hasn't had) and she didn't even send me home with anything (no metacam). She wants me to wean him off the tylenol (no more today and only one dose tomorrow morning) and if he seems to be uncomfortable, I can give him a little, etc. But she said he felt good on the exam and she couldn't hear any fluid in the lungs or anything unusual. :joy: So he's taking a nap now and we are all relieved.

SQ, thank you for giving me the phone #, again. I so appreciated that! And I did see the post about young children & the dangers with small animals. My heart breaks for the family who lost their baby. There is a big difference in development between a 3 yr old and a 6 yr old. Therefore, it is much less excuseable in our situation. By age 6, children are much more in control of their body, but I admit, my daughter is unusually clumsy and not as coordinated as her twin sister, so I agree that an individual assessment of each child, rather than setting an age limit & assuming all will be well, should be required before handling. This was a big wake up call, though, for me to take extra precautions with any children who come to our house. In the past, if we allow the rats to be played with, we insisted the children sit in the bathtub and stay seated, etc. They are completely supervised at all times. We certainly are being more careful now, so I'm glad something good came out of something so scary. I also wonder if Luke was older and bigger, if he wouldn't have been affected as much by the handling. Luke is only 2.5 months old and a 1/2 lb. I'm grateful he was just bruised and not something more serious, though of course, I wish none of this happened.

But again - thank you to everyone who lent a hand on the keyboard to get us through this. I will keep a close eye on him, but so far, so good. All those prayers and good vibes helped :)
 

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