Oh Dear... PT again?

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Oh I'm so sorry! I avoided this thread because of my horrible experience with PT but now I wish I hadn't.

When Lizzie had PT I used yogurt container lids but they did not work well because she would end up rolling in the food and pulling out her gunk covered fur when it dried. When her sister started having trouble eating (not PT) I found the ergonomic feeding bowls from Living World and they worked well. I don't know that they would work for advanced cases but it is something to consider.

You may also want to ask your vet about Deslorelin implants for mammary tumors. My vet is participating in a clinical trial to test their effectiveness as an alternative to surgery and he said there would likely be a similar trial in Guelph, probably at the faculty. The implants themselves have long been tested on rats for toxicity before being used on other animals, so they are safe but it is unknown if they are effective. I have 2 girls with implants at the moment and it seems to have stopped the tumor growth, which is great, but the implants *may* also help prevent PT. Research is in the early stages and the cause of PT is not fully understood, but it is definitely something to keep in mind. (It's probably too late to think about the implants for Eve but it's something to ask about when there's an inoperable mammary tumor.)
 
Thanks everyone!

She eats the food off of the end of the syringe really well! She has never figured out how to properly lick food off of the spoon - she tries to eat the spoon. I have one of the living world ergonomic bowls for her water and have had one from the beginning but even the lowest ledge of that it too high now so I will definitely try the yogurt lids. If she gets super dirty ill take her for a quick bath (she doesn't mind). She seems ok today, still needs to have food in a syringe for large quantities, but she can lap up a bit of food for a short period of time. She was walking around her cage a lot last night - I never fell into deep sleep, just shallow so I could hear pretty much every move.

My last bout with PT was a whole lot tamer then this... But I have plenty of support (from friends mostly - my dad says to just hit her over the head with a frying pan ugh, Ill hit him!). Hopefully she will improve a bit!
 
I spoke with the vet today. He said he didn't think that it was a stroke and that it was just the tumor pressing on her brain stem. I think he is probably right. She has had a good day today though. She had a bunch of food this morning, this afternoon and tonight from the end of a syringe. AND when I woke up this morning all her food in her dish was gone! So looks like we have a bit of improvement and she is eating by herself :D. She is walking around (slowly but still walking) and she curls up in my lap and sleeps (once she finds a comfortable spot).

She also does this strange thing. If you scratch her lower back/top of bum (lightly of course) she will reach back and start nibble grooming where you were scratching. Cute, but not sure whats happening there... probably something neurological...
 
I hope she stays bright. I've got 3 with PT right now :( Hope I'm not hijacking your thread, it's not the first I've dealt with it but it's not any easier.
 
Rachael said:
I hope she stays bright. I've got 3 with PT right now :( Hope I'm not hijacking your thread, it's not the first I've dealt with it but it's not any easier.
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THREE?!?!?!?

That sucks! This is the only "real" illness I have ever dealt with (excluding mild URI's) - so it is an interesting introduction to the world of rat sickness. The only rattie I have had die on me had PT. How are your ratties doing then? When did they start showing symptoms? Are they responding well to treatments?

I hate how interesting the whole thing is. I am intrigued, but saddened. I guess that what happens when you are in line to be a neuroscientist... I watch her and wonder/know what is actually happening. I guess what parts of the brain are being effected and tie that into symptoms. I did this for family members too when they went through neurological illnesses *shrugs* coping mechanism I guess...



Edited: to fix a sentence that didn't make sense then again to add this blurb about editing it
 
jorats said:
The reaching back to scratch is a typical behaviour when they reach this point.

I hope she has more good days.
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That's what I thought, but thought that I would mention something anyway.

I hope she has some more good days too! We will see what happens. She doesn't look good today, but Ill get some food into her (I got some banana flavoured stuff) and hopefully, on a full stomach she will be good :). Life is always better when there is food in your tummy :nod:
 
crumbilina said:
Rachael said:
I hope she stays bright. I've got 3 with PT right now :( Hope I'm not hijacking your thread, it's not the first I've dealt with it but it's not any easier.
Click to expand...

THREE?!?!?!?

That sucks! This is the only "real" illness I have ever dealt with (excluding mild URI's) - so it is an interesting introduction to the world of rat sickness. The only rattie I have had die on me had PT. How are your ratties doing then? When did they start showing symptoms? Are they responding well to treatments?
Click to expand...

It's now 4. Theodore, Binky, Charlotte, Victor.

Binky and Charlotte we have just noticed symptoms. Just started their prednisalone tonight, I really hope we get more time. Both are extremely special to me.

Theodore is fairly bright, bit quiet today.

Victor has had symptoms about a month now - and he is doing amazing!! :D

Come on Eve, feel better with some food :heart:
 
WOW a whole month! That's great! It really sucks that youa re now up to four. Its such a hard thing to watch, and to watch four... *sigh* I would be so worried always. Hopefully your 3 will respond as well as Theodore!

She has perked up - turns out she really likes banana! haha

Ill give her some more a bit later. I have a special treat for her. Low sugar grape... drink (I don't think its right to say juice) that I will give her in a bit. She can have about 1 mL and thats all... as a treat, for being such a champ with her meds :)

I hope she'll like it... The things I do for my ratties lol!
 
Eve seems well today - well actually about the same as she always has - I see that as an improvement solely because she has not gone downhill :).

One problem though. I did the fur dehydration test, and it looks like she is a tad bit dehydrated. I'm not sure what to do. She ALWAYS has access to water in both bowl and bottle dispensers so it is there if she wants to get it. So far I have offered her plain water in a syringe. Once she wouldn't take that I put a bit of sugar in it to see if she would take it. Still wouldn't. So I tapped into my emergency re-hydration formula from the drug store - grape flavoured. She still wouldn't take that. I really don't want to force it on her (I do fear she would choke but I would be VERY careful) so instead of forcing it I thought that I would ask for advice here.

She has been eating baby cereal mixed with Ensure, so she is getting some liquids, I just don't think that it is enough. I really don't know what to do. I may be jumping the gun here, but I really want to make sure she is as comfortable as possible.

Any advice?
 
Dont know if this would be considered a hijack or not, but i have one girl with a PT right now and its causing her to lactate. her motor coordination is good still, with only a slight widening of stance in her back legs, but it took us from march until the end of april to figure out why she was lactating (it was just swelling directly under her lower few sets of nipples, no fluid actually coming out as it got too thick). annnnyway. turns out that that can be the first sign of a PT in some rats. she is doing great now and has been on prednisone for almost 3 weeks :)
 
mccauleywent 73005 said:
Dont know if this would be considered a hijack or not, but i have one girl with a PT right now and its causing her to lactate. her motor coordination is good still, with only a slight widening of stance in her back legs, but it took us from march until the end of april to figure out why she was lactating (it was just swelling directly under her lower few sets of nipples, no fluid actually coming out as it got too thick). annnnyway. turns out that that can be the first sign of a PT in some rats. she is doing great now and has been on prednisone for almost 3 weeks :)
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That's great to hear that she is still doing great after 3 weeks! I have never experienced the lactating thing - but I have only had 2 rats with PT. Its so hard to watch BUT it makes it a bit better when they Brux and Boggle for you :heart:


I didn't try mixing the rehydration formula in with anything. I will try that. I was SUPER patient and was able to get a syringe full of water into her yesterday. It took about an hour, but finally got it (more on her then in her probably -she could use the bath anyway). I don't know i it helped, but every little bit...

I think I will try the grape stuff again before I give her food tonight. That way she will have the water and less of the food (that she licks off the plate at night anyway...).

Poor girl is sitting in her house... Maybe if she looks good tonight I will get some pics up. But only flattering ones...
 
Any new piccies?

We lost one of our boys (Theodore) but it looked like it was peaceful. I'm just off to give Charlotte her meds, Victor and Binky take theirs in food. *sigh*
 
No, No pictures right now. She just had a bath because she was covered in old baby food - she wasn't at her best... but after her bath, I will have to get some :D

Sorry to hear about Theodore :( Its good that it was peaceful though.

Hopefully your other 3 are doing well though.
 

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