[Haley]

My girl Chonk is about 1 1/2 years old (she was adopted so I don’t know her real age but that’s what I presume). She had two mammory tumors removed in October last year. It’s only been three months since the surgery and she already has another tumor growing in the same spot as one of her last ones. She’s pretty healthy (only a little overweight) but I’ve seen so many mixed posts about what to do. Should I risk a second surgery while the tumor is still small? Should I wait to see how fast it is growing? What are the odds that she can make it through surgery and recovery again? I lost my heart rat Quinn last September during surgery and I just cannot lose another girl right now, I want what’s best for Chonk and keeps her healthiest and happiest for as long as possible. Any advice helps. Thanks.

 

[PeekaBoo]

I had one girl who had a tumor removed when she was spayed by the rescue agency before I adopted her. Then after I adopted her she had two more tumors removed, one after another, same spot, both the typical benign mammary tumors, and she did extremely well. When the 4th tumor came up and she was 2.5 years old, the vet and I decided not to put her through the surgery due to her age, but she became so depressed as the tumor grew and limited her movement, and she was otherwise healthy, so we finally risked removing it as a “quality of life” issue. She pulled through the surgery as well as the previous three and was like a young rat again, so happy not to be hobbled by that bog old tumor! She lived until age 3 years, 8 months (an obscenely long time for a rat) before we decided to have her euthanized. By then she’d finally developed an actual cancerous tumor, and also was having mobility issues common in elderly rats.

I’d say if your rat is otherwise healthy, if you trust you have an experienced vet and the means to cover the expense, surgery is a good option. I don’t know what Quinn was having surgery for, and I understand the hesitation to put another beloved rat through surgery. Was Quinn’s case unusual? Is this the same vet? I can of course only speak from my experience, and I know if I’d gone through what you have I’d be scared, too.

 

[Haley]

I had one girl who had a tumor removed when she was spayed by the rescue agency before I adopted her. Then after I adopted her she had two more tumors removed, one after another, same spot, both the typical benign mammary tumors, and she did extremely well. When the 4th tumor came up and she was 2.5 years old, the vet and I decided not to put her through the surgery due to her age, but she became so depressed as the tumor grew and limited her movement, and she was otherwise healthy, so we finally risked removing it as a “quality of life” issue. She pulled through the surgery as well as the previous three and was like a young rat again, so happy not to be hobbled by that bog old tumor! She lived until age 3 years, 8 months (an obscenely long time for a rat) before we decided to have her euthanized. By then she’d finally developed an actual cancerous tumor, and also was having mobility issues common in elderly rats.

I’d say if your rat is otherwise healthy, if you trust you have an experienced vet and the means to cover the expense, surgery is a good option. I don’t know what Quinn was having surgery for, and I understand the hesitation to put another beloved rat through surgery. Was Quinn’s case unusual? Is this the same vet? I can of course only speak from my experience, and I know if I’d gone through what you have I’d be scared, too.

Thank you so much for taking the time to respond! Quinn had a large tumor that we thought was benign, and it was, but unfortunately she has a smaller very cancerous tumor behind that one that wasn’t seen until she was in surgery. This tumor was very nasty and caused her to be extremely weak and unfortunately she just lost too much blood to come back. She made it through surgery and the vet said she was great but when they went to change her wrap before I picked her up she was bleeding out. I was able to bring her home to try to see her sisters but she died on the car ride back. It is the same vet, but she has seen my animals for the last 13 years so I trust her. She did Chonk’s last surgery and it went well. Between rat, dog, and human issues my life has been a lot recently so I just really want a smooth ride (which isn’t really possible with a tumor, but as smooth as I can get). My vet is very confident in her abilities, to a point where sometimes I think she isn’t weighing how risky it is for a rat to have surgery, so I always want outside opinions. Plus I’m an over thinker as it is. I really want whatever is best for my girl that also gives me the benefit of having a bunch more time with her. I do think surgery is the best option, it’s just scary and hard to think out sometimes. Her appointment with the vet is Wednesday so we shall see how that goes and get her opinion then as well.

 

[PeekaBoo]

I’m so sorry about Quinn, that must have been so traumatic and heartbreaking. That’s the downside of loving rats: their lives are so short even when they are healthy, and they are prone to so many different illnesses, heart disease and cancers. We love so strongly yet know we will lose them so soon.

Chonk is still young, and it sounds like Quinn’s case was unusual. Vets tend to be confident about their skills, but you are right, there is a distance between what they are willing/able to do vs. how heavily they weigh the life of each animal if something goes wrong — I think they have to have that slight emotional distance in order to maintain mental health in what otherwise would be such an emotionally challenging and depressing job. That said, a good vet will also listen to your concerns and take them into consideration. It’s good for her to know, though, that you DO have concerns. Though the patients may “only” be rats, they are beloved and important to their pet parents, and that’s the entire reason vet’s have jobs. Each surgery (and each success or failure) is serious, no matter the creature involved.

On a personal semi-related note: One of the vets at the clinic I go to makes me very uncomfortable because he really seems to view the animals more as objects rather than feeling creatures — I can tell by the way he handles them. Not that he is cruel, just more like an engineer than a medical professional. I won’t let him care for my rats. The other vet is compassionate and makes decisions WITH me rather than FOR me. I trust her enough that when dealing with a difficult choice (surgery, euthanasia, etc) I generally ask her what she would do if it was her pet. She’s honest about negative prognoses, rather than pushing an expensive or dubious treatment or surgery that might allow the rat to live longer but reduce QUALITY of life, and I can see when she has difficulty weighing the options, too. I think a good vet is one who can admit that some decisions are not easy, that treatment/surgery comes with risk, and is direct about the pros and cons of the options. This vet was especially attached to my rat who had all the mammary tumors removed, “Sugar.” When she euthanized Sugar, she sent me a card with Sugar’s paw prints, which I thought was sweet. I was surprised to find out later that she has an identical card with Sugar’s paw prints framed on her desk as well. She had a super soft spot for Sugar… ❤)

 

[Haley]

I’m so sorry about Quinn, that must have been so traumatic and heartbreaking. That’s the downside of loving rats: their lives are so short even when they are healthy, and they are prone to so many different illnesses, heart disease and cancers. We love so strongly yet know we will lose them so soon.

Chonk is still young, and it sounds like Quinn’s case was unusual. Vets tend to be confident about their skills, but you are right, there is a distance between what they are willing/able to do vs. how heavily they weigh the life of each animal if something goes wrong — I think they have to have that slight emotional distance in order to maintain mental health in what otherwise would be such an emotionally challenging and depressing job. That said, a good vet will also listen to your concerns and take them into consideration. It’s good for her to know, though, that you DO have concerns. Though the patients may “only” be rats, they are beloved and important to their pet parents, and that’s the entire reason vet’s have jobs. Each surgery (and each success or failure) is serious, no matter the creature involved.

On a personal semi-related note: One of the vets at the clinic I go to makes me very uncomfortable because he really seems to view the animals more as objects rather than feeling creatures — I can tell by the way he handles them. Not that he is cruel, just more like an engineer than a medical professional. I won’t let him care for my rats. The other vet is compassionate and makes decisions WITH me rather than FOR me. I trust her enough that when dealing with a difficult choice (surgery, euthanasia, etc) I generally ask her what she would do if it was her pet. She’s honest about negative prognoses, rather than pushing an expensive or dubious treatment or surgery that might allow the rat to live longer but reduce QUALITY of life, and I can see when she has difficulty weighing the options, too. I think a good vet is one who can admit that some decisions are not easy, that treatment/surgery comes with risk, and is direct about the pros and cons of the options. This vet was especially attached to my rat who had all the mammary tumors removed, “Sugar.” When she euthanized Sugar, she sent me a card with Sugar’s paw prints, which I thought was sweet. I was surprised to find out later that she has an identical card with Sugar’s paw prints framed on her desk as well. She had a super soft spot for Sugar… ❤)

Sugar sounds amazing ❤ When Quinn passes on my vet sent me a lovely card and she sounded very sad that she couldn’t save her. I do like my vet, and I know she does good work, it’s just so hard to hand over your little creature to someone! Thank you for all the advice, it has really helped!