sick rat, please help

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

My male rat, Murdock, has recently been treated for URI with a pink medicine. He is over the URI, but then his eye started to sink in and dry out and swell so I took him back to the vet. Vet said it's either an abscess or a tumor and put him on .2 ml of Baytril once per day. The swelling does not seem to be going down, and now he is acting very strange, running in circles like he's drunk. He has zero balance. I just took out all the shelves in his cage because I'm afraid he is going to fall off. I have another appointment with the vet on Thursday and can't afford to take him sooner. I terrified. He will be dead when I wake up. Can someone help me understand what is happening to my baby?

 

[lilspaz68]

The pink stuff was probably what my friend called the nasty pink, vibramycin, or doxycycline...its actually a very mild drug to be used solo for respiratory issues. I assume your rat was on it for a minimum of 2 weeks and he got better?

The eye could be something unrelated...could have been inner ear infection (which can cause head tilt and/or circling), could be an injury to the eye which has become infected and is now affecting his brain, could be an abscess or tumour behind the eye.

Can you tell us how old your boy is?

Can you take a video of him?

Also he's very much in pain, did the vet give you any pain meds like metacam to give to him for that and for any swelling? Its also an anti-inflammatory.

If not, can you get some infant liquid ibuprofen to dose him with? The ones rats love are Advil, grape-flavoured, dye-free.

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

He is about 2.5 years old. He was on the pink stuff for a month, he had to go 2 cycles. Today he is very lethargic, we had to pull him out of his hay ball, and the only reason we knew he wasn't dead was because he was warm. Right now he is cuddling me and not moving much, he hasn't been eating yesterday or today. I'd be happy to take the video but he's just laying there now...

He has been going to the vet for 2 months now, so it's pretty well cleaned out my bank account every week but I will try to get him some suspension advil.

I'm sorry if I didn't answer specific questions, I can't think straight right now

 

[lilspaz68]

He is about 2.5 years old. He was on the pink stuff for a month, he had to go 2 cycles. Today he is very lethargic, we had to pull him out of his hay ball, and the only reason we knew he wasn't dead was because he was warm. Right now he is cuddling me and not moving much, he hasn't been eating yesterday or today. I'd be happy to take the video but he's just laying there now...

If he's not eating, he won't make it to that vet appointment. Will he eat if you syringe liquid-y food into his mouth or offer it on your finger?

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

He takes his medicine out of the syringe, I was thinking of blending up the chicken and riic the doctor put him on and feeding it to him that way, or getting some baby food.

 

[lilspaz68]

He takes his medicine out of the syringe, I was thinking of blending up the chicken and riic the doctor put him on and feeding it to him that way, or getting some baby food.

try baby cereal, and Ensure (strawberry) is a favourite and rats really like it. I have syringe fed many a rat. It sounds like he needs more than just doxycycline if he's still really ill.

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

Well he finished the pink medicine about a week and a half ago, and we have been on a 10 day course of Baytril, today was day 7.

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

Oh, when he took the Baytril today, which I mix with apple juice, he was foamy drooling a little from his mouth

 

[hopefloats]

The drooling could be a stroke? Does he have weakness on one side? like he is unable to use them?

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

He doesn't seem to have trouble with a specific side, it just seems like he's very dizzy. He will stumble around, kind of leaning to the left side, and his mouth is all cocked up on that side like Elvis' lip. Then he will just stop and sit there.

 

[lilspaz68]

He doesn't seem to have trouble with a specific side, it just seems like he's very dizzy. He will stumble around, kind of leaning to the left side, and his mouth is all cocked up on that side like Elvis' lip. Then he will just stop and sit there.

Can you get us that video?

 

[hopefloats]

is there any way to get a video and post it on here?

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

I got a little on video, how do I post it from mobile?

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

I uploaded them to Youtube, my username on there is Ridikkulus1 and the videos say for Rat Shack forum on it.

 

[hopefloats]

[BBvideo 450,375:e2b8i623]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6HWr3rcUbk[/BBvideo:e2b8i623]

 

[hopefloats]

He is uncomfortable and in pain........ that is why he is doing the sudden movements. He is trying to get comfortable and cannot.

is he on meds now?

 

[lilspaz68]

He is uncomfortable and in pain........ that is why he is doing the sudden movements. He is trying to get comfortable and cannot.

is he on meds now?

7 days of baytril she said...

Poor lad looks so ill and so unhappy. Metacam might make him feel better...

 

[hopefloats]

I would give him something for pain. Is he eating and drinking at all? I would almost say it is time to help him across the bridge he looks very ill and at that age it is hard to come back from that.

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

We got him some suspension acetaminophen, he has had one drop today. We also got some baby food, he has been eating the bananas like crazy, and some chicken and rice blended up with some chicken broth and milk, using a syringe. He still won't eat crackers and largely just cuddles me instead of exploring, or sleeps in his hay hut

 

[Rattie_Tat_Tat]

I just gave him .2 more ml of acitaminophen after some research.