I'm looking for help on Zymbals Gland Tumors

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Kimby22

Member
Joined
Mar 31, 2009
Messages
41
Location
Cleveland, Ohio USA
Hello Everyone,
My name is Kim and I have an old boy named Tooey that I just rescued on Jan 14th. He was dumped at a pet store with a note that the owner had lost his job and couldn't afford to care for him anymore. The manager was going to make him a feeder until (appalled by the suggestion) I asked if I could take him home. Thankfully I left with my supplies and my new friend.

Since I had rescued many other species of animals but never a rat, I went online to get all my care information and found so much help. I set my little Tooey up with all the proper digs, diet, and playthings and immediately fell in love.

Yesterday morning I awoke to find that Tooey had the starting bump of what I learned later to more than likely be a ZG tumor. After the initial shock I poured over the internet for help and came across Debbie's account of Sadie's plight in this forum. It was so sad and at the same time somewhat comforting to not be out here alone with this new problem.

I am interested in arming myself with as much information as possible to take with me to my vet to make sure that I can get the proper supportive care for Tooey, and when the time comes, a proper and dignified ....well, you know.

If anyone can offer any information on treatments, meds, or diets that they know of I would greatly appreciate your help. Tooey's bump is the size of a small marble, and as soon as I figure out how to do it, I will post a picture.

Thank you in advance. This little guys has captured my heart in a way I would've never imagined so I want to do whatever it takes to keep him comfortable.

PS. Does anyone know if I should add heat to his cage? I have non light emitting ceramic heat lamps I can put over his cage, or heating pads I can place under part of his cage.
Thanks,
Kim & Tooey in Ohio
 
ZG tumours are not that common, and I wouldn't consider it the first diagnosis by any means. It could be an abscess (facial or tooth or even eye), it could be cancer of the tissues of the mouth. I guess its best if we see where its located. Most ZG tumours end up open and raw...

I am sure you have found this already but just in case
http://ratguide.com/health/neoplasia/zy ... _tumor.php

Can you smell his mouth or his ears to see if they have a faint foul odor?
 
Can you post pics of his lump? A long time ago, my boy Lex developed a lump in exactly the location of a ZG tumor but I tried Baytril on him and after two weeks it completely disappeared which leads me to believe it was most likely an infection of the salivary glands or some type of abscess.

I'm so sorry your little love is going through this. :(
 
Thank you for your suggestions. I have set a vet appointment for Saturday to get him in and have it examined. I remain optimistic. I will let you know what happens. If this works, I just took some pics so I'll post them in a bit.
 
Below are pics I just took of Tooey's lump. I don't get any odor but it looks like there's a little laceration and maybe some kind of draining going on. I'm going to check it out when he wakes up. We were just playing so I could take the pics.







 
There looks to me to be two scabs, quite close together. one below the ear, and one just on the ear ... or am i seeing things? Its hard to tell. i hope its just an abscess, and can be treated easily. *Fingers crossed*
 
It does look like two little scabs. He has no other cagemates, he's my first and only rat so far. Do you think he could have gotten infected from a scratch he gave himself?
 
i was hoping two little scabs would have meant a bite/nip from a cage mate, but if he's on his own then its pretty much impossible for it to be a bite. It could be a scratch though.


People with more knowledge: can you soak a face abscess like any normal abscess? Would it be worth Kimby trying it?
 
That's exactly where my old boy Axel had his abcess, it was from a scratch, and needed to be lanced but came back worse because the vet didn't give me enough baytril and I didn't know any better, but here's hoping your boy just has an abcess-they're much easier to deal with when you know how.

Edit- it would definately be worth a try, soaking it with a warm wet cloth to see if anything lifts :nods:
 
You can take a face cloth, dip it in very warm water and hold it on the lump, do this several times a day... it might pop on it's own.
 
I would try the warm wash cloth and see how it goes. But I wouldn't mess with it too much. If it is a tumor, you really don't want to mess with it too much.

It's too bad you can't get him on antibiotics right away, because if it's an abscess, he'll need them anyway. Cefadroxil is faster acting and more effectient than Baytril...but a lot of vets still haven't started using it. Baytril will still work, but if you are already going to your vet armed with info from us, you might ask about the Cefa if you can.

All paws crossed here for Tooey....who is simply adorable by the way. :heart:
 
OK, I did some warm wet compresses for a while and it looks as though the two scratches were inflicted after the lump, almost as if it itched and he scratched it, they are very superficial.

*Gross content below*

So I saw what looked like a little puss in the ear so I gently swabbed it with some warm wet qtips and the first few swabs came out with what I think looks like a little puss mixed with ear wax but having never seen either in a rat I can't be sure. Anyway, the next couple swabs were clean. I honestly can't tell if there was a little draining and then it stopped , or if I was just getting extra ear wax in reaction to the lump. There's still no odor at all and he doesn't seem to mind if I rub or touch it. It just feels like a solid mass is in there but that is my non expert opinion. I know some abscesses can feel solid so who knows. He's very cuddly :cuddle:
 
He is quite a sweet little guy. I will continue the gentle compresses and try to see if an earlier appointment is available, and I am going to ask for the cef if antibiotics are needed. Thanks again everyone, I will keep updating.
 
I just want to believe it's not a ZG...but if it is, him scratching at it isn't uncommon. This is where the metacam and tramadol could help. If it were just an abscess, you might see a lot of gunk come out and it WOULD be stinky. Abscess goo is kind of a milky greenish color. Typically, when an abscess starts to open, you'll see it really "blow" eventually. :gaah:

I'm worried about you saying that it was like puss and earwax. That chalky earwaxy substance is what I found, when Sadie's tumor opened up. :sad3: It was a very thick subtance. It's actually cystic material. I hope that's not what you saw on Tooey.

Any chance you can get us another pic?
 

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