[MrsTefee]

Hello everyone

My boy Poopy has been having symptoms of the pituitary tumor (clubbed hands, weak limbs, cant hold his food, cant walk or even crawl much) He has been on predisone (??? spelling lol) for a few weeks prescribed by the vet but Poopy is slowly progressing and getting worse and worse. Ive been checking on him many times through out the day and giving him mashed food (he still nibbles his lab blocks a little bit) and water since he cant drink/eat very well by himself now.

Im not sure what else to do for him. I love him so much and every time I take care of him my heart just aches for him. Hes only 1.5 years old and he has a brother but they are living in separate cages at the moment.

Im going to clip poopy's back toe nails tonight and check him for any penile plugs and im going to wipe him down with a damp cloth a little bit. I dont have a job right now (my husband works) so its nice that I can be home with him all the time...I just miss the old poopy when he could play and bounce and wrestle with his brother! I wish ratties had longer lives!!

How long do you think I have with my boy? How long does it take PT to become fatal? Is it painful for him? He doesnt seem in pain hes still happy to get food and scritches from me through out the day.

 

[Aryth]

Hey MrsTefee

Sorry to hear that. Just went through the same thing. I took both of my rats to the vet and they had told me that while one of our girls had a noticeable tumor near her bum that she was still very happy and was not in any pain and could live life like a normal ratty. The other had a tumor perhaps near her brain which caused her to react the same way in which you describe. In which case she may be prone to strokes (which can be fatal), will be very disoriented and will need quite a bit of attention. I had also thought of separating her from her sister though I believe that doing so may cause some unneeded stress unless the other rat is causing trouble.

I spent a few weeks feeding her baby food (stuff with protein which she loooooved), avocado (for the fat content) and tried to avoid solid foods where possible as I had found that my girl would choke on the smallest things. Also perhaps try to offer watermelon as a substitute for water if he's been refusing water.

It's a tough call though. My girl had her bad days and her good days so I was completely torn but she fought like a champ through it so I let her be just that.
The only advice I can offer is to make sure she's hydrated and eats. It may take a day or two to bounce back in terms of energy but you can just feel the happiness coming from them when you play with them and let them run around.

Never a bad idea to take them to a vet for an assessment. Just knowing where to focus your energy is extremely helpful and having the piece of mind from a professional gives you a little boost.
But yeah.. he can live a normal life though the tough parts will come in waves so you just have to take the good with the bad. This is all my own personal experience so take it for what it's worth. I can answer any questions you have.

Hope that help!

Best of luck!

 

[MrsTefee]

Thank you so much for the reply!! I appreciate it a lot its good to hear stories of others who had to go through this! Lately Ive been in a routine with Poopy and hes actually been doing really well!!! I will wake up (start my coffee haha) feed him, rinse his butt in the sink (because he sits in his pee all night), dry him and feed him some more and lots of pets! This whole process takes about an hour and a half. I try to keep a half a piece of cotton between his legs to help soak any pee when he pees again and this works fairly well! Then I feed him a lunch and wipe him down a bit and Ill give him a dinner at night and another rinsing in water. I think now that im getting used to him like this and after taking care of him if he does pass any time soon at least i did everything I could to make him comfortable and Im feeling a little better about it.

Poopy still visits his brother during outside time and I watch them closely during this time! Poopy is still happy and I think he loves all the attention anyways!

I just worry about him being wet/damp all the time because when he pees it just goes all over himself!! I try to dry him periodically through the day and I apply a tad bit of lotion to his feet after his bath which he seems to like.

 

[Roddy St. James]

You might want to try putting vasiline on it's tail to make it water resistant, as damp, pee covered tails can turn into a mass infection called Wet Tail. As for the rest of the bottom, dusting his bottom and belly with corn startch can help dry him up a bit, but not too close to his genital openings. If he barely moves much, and lays in the same spot most of the time, you can create a special bed for him out of cardbord and towells that will let the urin fall away from his body so he isn't sitting in it, as he will eventually develope urin burns

 

[robenbobben]

Hey there. I'm really sorry you're going through this. I lost a rat to this a year ago. Some things I did to make her more comfortable were making sure she could access everything she needed without climbing, as my rat experienced a decrease in mobility, and she would stumble and fall off shelves. I suggest placing a bed on the floor of the cage for your rat if you notice he's having trouble. I used one like this: http://imgur.com/y0E28gK

I also gave mine mashed foods and frequent baths as you described.

I should say that the time between noticing something was wrong and her having to be put to sleep was only a month. After a while she wouldn't eat or drink enough even when fed by hand several times a day. When she was losing weight and I couldn't do anything to keep her hydrated, when she stopped getting out of bed and seemed to lose her spark and will to live I knew it was time. Obviously this is only my experience though. Every rat is different.

Your rat is really lucky to have such a dedicated owner. Taking care of them like that isn't easy. Spend as much time as you can, would be the best advice I have. I hope this was helpful.

 

[MrsTefee]

Hey everyone!

Thanks again for the comments, it does help and I appreciate the advice and tips!

Just thought I would add a little update on poopy. His health is the same but hes still quite attentive and happy. He doesnt move around much but he loves getting pets and eating his mash (right now hes on a jar of green beans!) foods! He is still able to eat and drink on his own ok but I havent seen him drinking much today but hes still peeing so thats a good sign I suppose. I just might not have been around to witness him drinking any water.

I have also moved him into the large tank with his brother (dont worry I do clean the tank twice a day!) and he seems happy being able to snuggle with him again (although his brother wasnt too impressed moving into the tank after being in the big rat manor all by himself haha!).

So far hes doing alright. I just wonder how much time I have left with him, Im hoping he will pass away peacefully in his sleep as I just dont know what else to do anymore : /

 

[Aryth]

Good to hear he's happy, eating and back with his brother!. I'd check the water consumption though.. being hydrated is very important and an integral part to poopy bouncing back. If you dont see him drinking then he probably isnt. Have you tried the watermelon? Great way to hydrate if poopy is completely turned off from water.

Thanks for the update!

Best of luck!

 

[MrsTefee]

Thanks for the reply! I caught him drinking from his bottle yesterday actually so he is drinking a bit! I am still hydrating him when I take him out for cleaning as well just in case. It has become quite the job taking care of this little guy though.

The only odd thing now that I noticed this morning when I got him out for his morning bath was that when I was cleaning him, his penis sheath didnt look the same as it did when we went to bed. I noticed it almost looks like it split a little bit from the tip down the center partly. Do you think he is in pain from that? I have no idea how that would have happend but when I was cleaning and manipulating it poopy didnt squirm or make any sounds so I dont think he was bothered at all by me touching his area. He just closed his eyes and yawned a lot and fell asleep which he normally does when Im cleaning and drying him off down there haha (hes so cute!)

I am gentle when I clean him down there and remove the plug that builds up through the night/day I just thought this was rather odd though!