[SamsterAndRocky]

ok, so my little 4 week old rat Sphinx is sick......it started with sneezes, and i thought it was maybe allergies to something in the cage....so i cleaned the cage and put fresh toilet paper as bedding...didnt put cotton balls or anything else in, told people not to smoke around the babies' cage (i wish they would smoke outside.....but apperantly that idea is "not practical"). it keeps getting worse, ive tried the whole steam in the bathroom thing, and the upside down thing, and the freezer thing....i kknow a vet wouldnt be able to give him meds cuz he's so young.... and i dont want to take him to the vet just to have them tell me they cant do anything for him..... so does anyone have any suggestions. ive been watching wolfy (his litter mate/cage mate) carefully, and he doesnt seem to be getting it....he has no symptoms, not even the slightest sniffle or sneeze or anything. but im still watching carefully....i dont want to separate the two of them cuz sphinx is in a cuddling mood and likes to drape himself over wolfy's back.....unless sphinx is cuddling me......he needs a cuddle buddy, and i dont want him to be alone when he's feeling so crappy.....please any suggestions would be helpfull.....unless nobody is willing to try to help me. i understand if nobody wants to try to help.

 

[JennieLove]

Who is Sphinx? I thought you only had the two big boys and then wolfy? You said you have wolfy and Sphinx together...did you QT Sphinx first? I would take Sphinx to a vet. I dont know where you got the idea that they wouldnt be able to do anything for him becuase he is young. Its always a good idea to take a pet in, even if they say their isnt anything they or you can do, at least you know and then you would be able to separate Sphinx from the others so that THEY dont get sick.

Whats the upsidedown thing...and the freezer thing? I think its best, for now, to separate wolfy and Sphinx, I wouldnt take the chance of getting wolfy sick.

 

[Stephanie]

told people not to smoke around the babies' cage (i wish they would smoke outside.....but apperantly that idea is "not practical"). it keeps getting worse, ive tried the whole steam in the bathroom thing, and the upside down thing, and the freezer thing....i kknow a vet wouldnt be able to give him meds cuz he's so young.... and i dont want to take him to the vet just to have them tell me they cant do anything for him..... so does anyone have any suggestions. ive been watching wolfy (his litter mate/cage mate) carefully, and he doesnt seem to be getting it....he has no symptoms, not even the slightest sniffle or sneeze or anything. but im still watching carefully....i dont want to separate the two of them cuz sphinx is in a cuddling mood and likes to drape himself over wolfy's back.....unless sphinx is cuddling me......he needs a cuddle buddy, and i dont want him to be alone when he's feeling so crappy.....please any suggestions would be helpfull.....unless nobody is willing to try to help me. i understand if nobody wants to try to help.

Ok fisrt off NO SMOKING AROUND RATS!!!!! move he rats to a smoke free environment it is terrible. I am a smoker and REFUSE to allow ANYONE to smoke around my kids and my rats and my cats!!!!!

second of all take him to the vet and tell the vet to give you AMOXICILLIN OR DOXY JUST NOT BAYTRIL !!

also what freezer thing??? i hope to god you did not put your rat in a freezer!

if you want I can give you the excerpts out of Debbie D's health care guide for dosing with the amoxicillin so that you can take that to the vet with you. Please get that rat to the vet there are meds that it can take!

 

[Kimmiekins]

:\ Sadly, smoking in a house with pet rats could cause so much damage... Their little lungs are so fragile and sensitive.

That said...

A vet WOULD be able to treat him. Age doesn't mean much of anything. They can force meds if they have to. It sounds to me like you DO need to get him to a vet. There is nothing you can do if he's sick and needs medicine. If you don't get him treated, he could die or be sick (and suffer) for awhile, before succumbing to the illness.

By the way... What is "the upside down thing" and "the freezer thing"??

 

[Stephanie]

oh and PS this is why quarantine is ALWAYS needed even if they were only gone for two days you don't know where she took that rat or what otehr rats were around it or where she was around other rats!!!

 

[rattikins]

Okay, so I've been probably the biggest advocate of being understanding with people who don't do everything right on here.

That being said, I NOW understand why the other members get so darn frustrated!!

I would almost rather not hear about what horrible things some of these people are doing (and not doing properly) with their rats, rather than have to hear a story about how they AGAIN refused to take any advice and are AGAIN asking for more.

This is getting out of control. After learning that samsterandrocky is a young adult, not a child, I no longer have sympathy. We KNOW you have a job and we KNOW you don't take your pets to the vet. What are you buying with your money that could be SO much more precious than them??

I'm sorry but this is my end for you kiddo - It's called RESPONSIBILITY and you need to learn how to PREVENT your issues, as there seem to be so many.

Done with this thread. Sorry. Hopefully others are willing to attempt (futilely) to get you to finally TAKE their advice, but I'm not going to look at this thread again, as it upsets me too much to think of all the little lives you are ruining.

Done.

 

[JennieLove]

his brother came to be with us yesterday....so he has a little playmate his own size (they thought his brother was a sister until his balls dropped a few days ago). his story is the last update post that i added to "wolfy's thread" in the health forum.

Oh yes, I remember now. I assumed you ment he was visiting, since you had said that you were NOT getting anymore rats...my bad. That doesnt excuse the fact that you were suppose to QT Sphinx before even doing a "playtime" with Wolfy.

This time the situation is "in your hands". You have a sick rat, take Sphinx to a vet and save the poor thing. No more excuses...listen to us, were not here to turn you away if you need help. We are doing all we can. We care so much about what happens to each others pets, and its sad that no matter how hard we try to help you, and certain others, and you all dont listen...and then this happends.

All we can say is a vet visit is needed ASAP. I hope you take our adviuse this time, and I hope Sphinx makes it through this.

 

[JennieLove]

By the way, I had asked you once before how Momma rat was doing and never got an answer back. You must have talked to your friend becuase shes the one who had taken Momma rat and the rest of the babies, and you got Sphinx back...

 

[renay]

wow its the never ending story with this person seriously i think getting pets should be a stricter process for some...

 

[Stephanie]

hello???? what is going on with sphinx? did you take him/her to the vet? GAH this is why i hate when people post and I help even though they are one of te people that rarely listen then they just disappear and no update no nothing!!!

 

[SamsterAndRocky]

he died today when i was at work....please no more bashing me. i know im stupid and should hurt myself for what ive done. i hate myself right now, and wish that i had a razor blade.

 

[JennieLove]

....thats really imature of you to say, and I dont think any of us would want you to do that to yourself. You've actually put me in a weird situation and Im not sure if I should try and get you some help or what...so I hope your just overreacting in your typing and not serious.

 

[rattikins]

he died today when i was at work....please no more bashing me. i know im stupid and should hurt myself for what ive done. i hate myself right now, and wish that i had a razor blade.

That is a ridiculous thing to say. You shouldn't even joke about something like that. There are people who actually do this and it's extremely unhealthy and actually quite inappropriate to say (even in passing) in such a way.

You need to simply realize that you acted irresponsibly and FINALLY get your sh*t together and take care of your pets from now on BEFORE this type of thing happens. :?

 

[Stephanie]

If you want to hurt yourself then go ahead and do it I am not going to sit here and coddle you because you throw in something about razor blades and huring yourself. You are an adult so grow up! You should feel bad because you're irresonpiblity caused a life to end. The problem with this istuation is that no matter what happens you have two choices either sit there and sulk adn feel bad and do nothing or learn from your mistakes. You ask our advice and then disappear for two days. Honestly i think the best thing you could do for all of your animals is to find them new better homes. You have proven that you can not take proper care of your animals and refuse to learn from anything that happens instead you pull a suicide card which is just moronic if you ask me. So yes I am done with you and will not be helping in the future because if you aren't willing to learn at all then i am not willing to teach.

 

[Stephanie]

P.S. Get yourself some help find a shrink and start talking tot hem because pulling this card seems to me like a desperate attempt for some sympathy from an online forum. You need to talk to someone before you get really bad. I think you really need to take yourself out of the situation and determine if you really are mentally stable. This is not something a stable person would say.

 

[renay]

... isn't there a rule here that says that there is to be no threats of suicide on this forum? Thats ridiculous, you wish you had a razor blade? Don't be a coward, I agree you need a shrink, and this is not the place to confide such things we are not qualified to help you in that department. Wow...

 

[SamsterAndRocky]

first of all, my last reply got mixed up with another one for a differant board that deals with self injury.....i had both windows open at the time and my computer was being weird and switched the window back after i had started typing....

second of all me saying that i wish i had a razor was in no way a suicide threat.... not all people who hurt themselves do it with suicide in mind (in fact most people dont)


what i meant to type here (and had i not been so emotional and checked the windows i would have) is that i am taking the other 3 rats to a rescue tomarrow before work (gotta pay someone to drive me, but its worth it if they can have the lives that they truely deserve).... i have found the dove a loving home too with some people up the street who have a female about his age who has been fixed....it'll do him good to have a mate.....the only animal i have left is the old dwarf hamster.... the one i stared with before people started giving me animals. im stupid for not doing this sooner, and i feel horrible that it took the death of an innocent little baby to make it sink in...... i cant afford to have any more animals....and no matter who has what, or tries to give me what....i am not taking any more animals or getting anymore animals....until i can actually afford to take them to the vets....and have some money to put away for a vet fund for when its needed. seeing how i have no more rats, and only have a hamster, the only time u'll see me post is in the meet my rat or something every now and then.........i must go now so i can get my head sorted out.

 

[JennieLove]

he died today when i was at work....please no more bashing me. i know im stupid and should hurt myself for what ive done. i hate myself right now, and wish that i had a razor blade.

You can’t be serious? It’s right there! So what, you don’t actually read what you write before you press submit? There is no way that you could have "mixed" your replay to us up with something else...and that is a really stupid excuse; it obviously was meant for all of us to hear and it was your way of getting sympathy, which didn’t happen and because it didn’t happen, you had to come up with a lame ass excuse.

The fact that you had wanted to hurt yourself by using a razor blade may not be a suicide threat to you...but to a normal person, it is. To say that not all people who hurt themselves do it with suicide in mind is foolish...I don’t know one person who would intentionally hurt themselves the way you are describing without a thought like that in mind. People cut themselves for reasons...that tragically end up with them killing themselves most of the time. You seriously need help and maybe some proper education on the subject of life.

 

[JennieLove]

Finally! Those poor animals are going to get the proper care. People didn’t just give you pets; you chose to have them...like Wolfy....you asked for him! I really don’t believe anything you say at this point...It’s been one lie after another. To say that this baby’s death actually opened your eyes is bull. When Momma rat and all her babies were taken away by your friend, you had told us you were NOT getting any more animals; even in a couple other posts I saw you say you wouldn’t, "until you had money for them", then what did you go and do? You got this new baby! Was that not a lie? Why would you go out of your way to ensure us you aren’t going to be getting any more animals and then turn around and get more? You don’t make sense…and I don’t think we’ve heard the last from you, sadly.

seeing how i have no more rats, and only have a hamster, the only time u'll see me post is in the meet my rat or something every now and then.........i must go now so i can get my head sorted out.

You actually do still have the rats...there not gone yet so stop trying to convince yourself , and Im not even convinced you are really getting rid of them. And yes, I do expect you to get back in the "Meet my rat" and other sections, because again....I don’t think those rats are going to be getting a better home and if they do, I don’t trust you when you say you won’t get any more pets.

 

[DonnaK]

SamsterAndRocky: I highly recommend getting some books on the different animals that you like to have as pets. You can learn so much and they are a good reference to have so you can look up what to do in situations where you think your animal may be ill.

If you can't afford to buy the books, perhaps you have a library that you can go to? Whether you still have your animals or not, you can learn so much from reading about them that you can prepare yourself for when you do get animals again.

And a final note, threatening to cut yourself in a public forum, whether you meant to post it in this one or not, is not a very good idea. Most forums have moderators that you can contact if you need that extra bit of help. Posting things like this, no matter how upset you are, is not fair on other members and it is certainly not the answer to your problems. Please bear that in mind in future, ok?

If you want to talk about all this some more, please send me a private message, as I am now locking this post.

Other posters in this thread: I understand your frustrations when you are concerned about animals being taken care of properly, and SamsterAndRocky was certainly wrong to post about cutting herself as a way to get people to back off, but this is a community that is supposed to help people in need.

I accept that sometimes getting a little harsh with people who don't seem to be listening can help make them sit up and listen, but some of the comments in this thread have gone waaaaay too far. We don't want to end up with people who are in genuine need being too scared to post their questions for fear of being bashed for their mistakes - after all, if they are asking for help, they obviously want to do something to make the situation better for their animal.

In future, if you have a problem with a post or another member, please highlight it to a mod before you go posting with things like "go on then, kill yourself" or calling people liars or whatever.

If anyone has any further issues with this post, or any other, please PM me so we can talk about it further. Thanks!