Rat fell from high place !!!

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oasisandbambi

oasisandbambi

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 6, 2018
Messages
48
Location
Portugal
Hello, one of my rats fell from the top of his cage, I heard him hit the ground and when I looked he was, I think, seizing and gasping and bleeding a bit from his nose. I held him for a bit until he stopped, then placed him on my bed and he couldn't walk, he just flopped on his side. I thought he was going to die. I held him for a while longer and stroked him for a bit. He started looking more alert after a bit and now he can walk and eat even if his a bit wobbly. I was going to take for an emergency vet visit but I don't think they would admit him as he seems to be doing just fine now. I thought about taking him to the vets tomorrow to check if everything is okay but have to ride the train. I'm high risk and don't want to bring anything back to my family so I'm only traveling if absolutely need be. If he is acting completely normal in the morning should I still take him in? I probably will be calling the vet to see if they think is best I bring him in but still, are there any signs of concussion or any other trauma that I can look out for? Thank you in advance.
 
Last edited:
oasisandbambi said:
Hello, one of my rats fell from the top of his cage, I heard him hit the ground and when I looked he was, I think, seizing and gasping and bleeding a bit from his nose. I held him for a bit until he stopped, then placed him on my bed and he couldn't walk, he just flopped on his side. I thought he was going to die. I held him for a while longer and stroked him for a bit. He started looking more alert after a bit and now he can walk and eat even if his a bit wobbly. I was going to take for an emergency vet visit but I don't think they would admit him as he seems to be doing just fine now. I thought about taking him to the vets tomorrow to check if everything is okay but have to ride the train. I'm high risk and don't want to bring anything back to my family so I'm only traveling if absolutely need be. If he is acting completely normal in the morning should I still take him in? I probably will be calling the vet to see if they think is best I bring him in but still, are there any signs of concussion or any other trauma that I can look out for? Thank you in advance.
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Email I sent when she was six months old to who gave her to me at eleven weeks:
"You can't imagine how scared I am that last night I injured her. A few weeks ago my foot had started to step on her, when she wriggled I stopped putting weight on it, & she seemed okay. But last night I put the bottom tray of the Critter Nation back onto its rack & loaded it up with their curved-Y PVC pipe, 1.5 gallon pyrex soil/rocks bowl & big flower pot. Maybe 10 minutes later I heard what I thought was plastic clicking, went around to the side, there was her squished face & she started screaming for help.
I yanked it up, she kind of walked in circles, slow/uneven/jerky/clumsily as though she had internal damage & were too disoriented to know simply how to come out (as she normally would do so instantly).
And bobs her head when she chews.
Then today she laid against the side, with a bar holding up the side of her mouth.
Then she seemed unable to eat parsley despite wanting to.
And is sneezing.
Other than that, she's as normal. So I'm hoping her lungs or whatever are healing."
She lived to be two.
 
If you are the slightest bit concerned, please take rat to the vet. The last thing that you want to happen is to later regret that you did NOT seek the attention of a vet. No one on a forum can provide the advise you need!
 
RatsDrawBlood said:
Email I sent when she was six months old to who gave her to me at eleven weeks:
"You can't imagine how scared I am that last night I injured her. A few weeks ago my foot had started to step on her, when she wriggled I stopped putting weight on it, & she seemed okay. But last night I put the bottom tray of the Critter Nation back onto its rack & loaded it up with their curved-Y PVC pipe, 1.5 gallon pyrex soil/rocks bowl & big flower pot. Maybe 10 minutes later I heard what I thought was plastic clicking, went around to the side, there was her squished face & she started screaming for help.
I yanked it up, she kind of walked in circles, slow/uneven/jerky/clumsily as though she had internal damage & were too disoriented to know simply how to come out (as she normally would do so instantly).
And bobs her head when she chews.
Then today she laid against the side, with a bar holding up the side of her mouth.
Then she seemed unable to eat parsley despite wanting to.
And is sneezing.
Other than that, she's as normal. So I'm hoping her lungs or whatever are healing."
She lived to be two.
Click to expand...
Thanks for sharing ! I'm sorry you had to go through this with your girl. I'm happy she lived to be two !
 
Ok see how your rat is this morning. You also may want to watch for signs of dizziness or head tilt possibly indicating that she has an inner ear infection that caused her fall. Otherwise watch for swelling and any further symptoms like bruising.
A vet in this case if the rat is recovering wouldn't be able to do much unless there's swelling and they could give you Metacam for that.
 
schpier said:
If you are the slightest bit concerned, please take rat to the vet. The last thing that you want to happen is to later regret that you did NOT seek the attention of a vet. No one on a forum can provide the advise you need!
Click to expand...
I called my vet and explained the situation, she told me it was best for him not to go there cuz he shouldn't be traveling right now and prescribed him medication.
 
lilspaz68 said:
Ok see how your rat is this morning. You also may want to watch for signs of dizziness or head tilt possibly indicating that she has an inner ear infection that caused her fall. Otherwise watch for swelling and any further symptoms like bruising.
A vet in this case if the rat is recovering wouldn't be able to do much unless there's swelling and they could give you Metacam for that.
Click to expand...
I called the vet today and explained the situation. Yesterday he was doing fine but today he can't really walk, he just flops on his side and can't really grab food. His on Prednisolone, in a dark room and small cage with his cage mates. Vet said he shouldn't be exposed to any great activity while he heals.
 
lilspaz68 said:
Ok good. I'm glad your vet was able to prescribe prednisone. Hopefully it reduces the inflammation causing the issues. Are you giving it with antibiotics?
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I'm not. He is doing much better compared to yesterday. He still has some balance issues but can move around okay and is slowly being able to hold food again. Yesterday he couldn't really move without flopping onto the side so I'm really glad he's seemingly feeling better today !
 

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