Peanut...Downturn :(

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petlover

petlover

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jan 23, 2008
Messages
277
Location
Northeast UK
I posted this earlier on the last thread...

Peanut has took a big Downfall Yesterday we noticed that he wouldn't come to the cage door to welcome us and was quite listless, When we took him out for some outtime he just wandered away slowly and laid down. His water intake was minimal even when we gave him a drink by hand (Which he normally loves) he took very little before moving away He did eat some small piecess of apple and Green Salad but as the evening drew on even this slowed down, It was very hot here in the UK so i had 3 fans going in the room to keep the boys cool .....This morning we took him to our local Vets....She was very supportive but could not offer us any real hope feeling his body she was unable to check his kidneys and only back answered our information about what we considered his Diagnosis ( Diabetes/Kidney Failure) with the stock answers for treatment ( Hydration, Blood Test, Urine test at the Vets and see what happens ) But she was looking more towards PTS...We decided to treat at home with a Hydration solution and Baytril, She gave him a Very high dosage of Baytril via injection (Im sure it was 10ml as she said she could use 5 or 10 and that she would use highest poss) He is sleeping now and we will try to keep fluids going every hour.

We know we may only be putting off the enevitable but we think if he is going to pass then rather it be in his own home with his brother Fudge beside him, He dosent seem to be in any pain just very Lethargic...Its upsetting to see him this way as just a short while ago he was leaping up the cage for his suppertime treat
 
Have you searched on here for information about PT? Lilspaz68 has posted a few posts with photographs and symptoms, and also medication that she and her vet have used.
Does your vet have a lot of experience with rats? The vets i have seen have only ever experienced Mites and URI with rats and i would be VERY surprised if they would be able to diagnose anything like PT properly.

It was SERIOUSLY hot today.. I spent the day in West Aukland (Bishop) and jeeeeeeeeeeez we couldnt stay outside for more than half an hour.

I hope it is something that can be easily treated or manageable and wont cause him any pain or stress
 
Peanut is still with us ...allthough not much improvement :(
We have kept up regular Hydration and he has taken between 200 and 400ml of solution via syringe feed each time
we are going to keep up this routine through the night...He has taken food from out fingers and off a spoon (His favourite Vannilla Custard) We thought becouse he had such a high dosage of Baytril injected that we would start his Oral doses in the morning...When put on the floor with his brother Fudge he seemed alert and actually wandered through to the next room at quite a pace for a sick rattie :) It was wonderfull to see and brought tears to our eyes.

We know we may be setting ourselves up for a big fall but whilst he still wants to be with us we will make him as comfortable as possible.

We are in awe of people who can go through this pain again and again as it is tearing our hearts apart ...but we only have to look across the room at our other boys to understand the LOVE & JOY our possie has given us.

We keep reminding ourselves that Fudge his brother and cagemate needs as much attention from us during this time so please send your love to 2 wonderfull loving brothers

togehter.jpg
 
Sorry Ryelle was writting the last msg when i saw your reply
No we havent looked into PT too deply as his symptoms seemed more toward Diabetes/Kidney failure
but will look through later...Thank you
No our Vet has very little knowledge of Rats as when we took our old boy Alfie to have a tumour removed it was the first she had ever delt with at the practice so it seems to be with a wide number of Vets in the area :(
I Understand how hot it has been today as i live only 5 miles from West auckland (We live in Aycliffe ... Small world)
but we have 3 fans going all day to help keep boys cool

I dont think this is going to be easily treated as we think if he pulls through he may be on treatment for the rest of his days...we can only hope he has meny
 
Peanut is making such a wonderfull progress (Im tempted to say recovery but early days yet) Through the night he was taking his hydration solution and was picking at his salad greens and chicken and this morning he bounced out to his cage door to greet us, definatly a 100% difference :) We still have to wait untill monday to try and have Blood /urine tests done to get to the bottom of the overall problem, but at least we have given him the chance to make it. To be honest we never thought he would make it through the night... It goes to show our Ratties are tough little fighters when they want to be :)
He absolutly hates taking the Baytril Oraly...is there anything i could do to make this easier? can i disguise the taste or put it in soft food or is it a case of "OK we know its nasty but get it over with fast and you can have a treet"

Im sure the healing Vibes have helped ... thanks all from Peanut n Da Boyz
 
That's good news! Hopefully he will continue to feel better. If it is kidney disease, keep his protein extremely low. High protein will simply continue to stress out the kidneys. The hydration will work wonders if it's kidney disease as well but will have to be continued forever. The best you can hope for with kidney disease is that it stops progressing but you can never reverse the damage.
Stay strong Peanut!!!
 
Thanks Jo :)
We understand that whatever treatment he is going to need will probably be long term, but as yet we still have no confirmed diagnosis The hydration and Baytril have done wonders and we will keep it up as long as he needs. Still not drinking from his bottle yet but is taking water from his little glass he has allways used :)

Do you have any suggestions for a Low protein treat?
Here is a pic of him taken 10 mins ago...not a great one (He's usually such a poser) lol
peanut-1.jpg
 
A low protein treat would be anything veggie and fruit. No nuts, no meat, no cheese.
If you want low protein but high fat if he's losing too much weight then you can give him avocado, coconut milk, olive oil in baby food...
 
Peanut Update:

I'm happy to tell you that peanut is recovering fairly well at the moment. He is thriving with his food again and seems to be taking fluids quite freely now although we still have to monitor his water and prompt him at times.
We took a urine sample down to the vets yesterday and was told that his glucose levels are high, protein was found and a trace of blood however she didnt make any diagnosis because Peanut has been on hydrating fluid which may be a cause for his glucose levels so we now have him on normal water and have to do another urine test on thursday for a more accurate assessment.
We have always spoilt the boys with lots of treats but Peanut has been a learning curve for us and made us realise that the boys diet needed to be reassessed. We have cut out all sugary treats the boys loved i.e biscuits etc.. and instead give them banana chips, dried apricots Peapods and other healthier choices. They love it !!
seeing peanut so ill lastweek ripped our hearts out, we really didn't expect him to last the weekend, We were preparing for the worst but he is a little fighter and is slowly pulling through.
Thank you all for your advice and support. We feel this forum is a lifeline to us of which we have learnt so much from.
 
Hurray for peanut. Glad to hear the good news. I'm sure every member felt your pain.
Keep up the good work doctor :)
 
Well Peanut is still with us... :) :) :)
He is still a frail, skinny rattie but he has a good quality of life..lots of hugs and snuggles...couldnt get urine test into Vets but will do when open again this week...The Vet says she has to do more research, so even then may not have the answer for a while.

People ask us why we persist in pouring money to the Vets on a sick Rat...Simple... He needs us!
as the poem goes (Found on a Rattie forum)

You Are My World

My small life is in your hands.
Every drop of water I drink, each morsel of food I consume, every
word and touch is delivered by you.
(You are the sun in my sky)

My daily safety is in your hands.
It is you who provides my companions, controls my environment,
determines the quality of my care.
(You are the moon above me)

My entire destiny is in your hands.
I offer in return loyalty, love, companionship, and my complete trust.
It is all I have to give.
(You are the stars that shine down)

I think it is very apt and love the sentiment...Peanut deserves the best chance he can get as do all out ratties for the love and happinness they bring us in their short but wonderfull lifes (The Stars that shine twice brightly last only half as long)

Thanx for all your messages...we will keep in touch
 

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