rat fears

[ratcreature]

I just let my rats out this evening and noticed a huge growth/bulge/something (about cherry-sized!) on the underside of Ignatz' throat. I'm fairly sure it wasn't there (or not nearly as large) yesterday, because I like to scritch him under his chin and would have felt it just like I did today. I don't see/feel any wounds, but I guess it still could be an abscess? I see an emergency vet trip coming tomorrow morning. I wish I had noticed it early this afternoon, then I could have gone the regular vet hours, which wouldn't have cost the extra emergency charge, and spared me a night of worry about something horrible happening to him with this. He seems okay, is eating and running around as well as usual (he is elderly after all), so that is something, but still, there is a cherry sized something on his throat. I just hope it won't impact his breathing and swallowing if this worsens.

Comments

[reginagiraffe]

Eep! Hope he's okay!

[ratcreature]

I hope he'll be okay until tomorrow morning without it getting worse or developing some impact on his ability to breathe and swallow (which is what worries me, I mean, it is really right on his throat), and that maybe it is an abscess that can be drained even by the emergency vet or something relatively uncomplicated. I really think I would have noticed it before now if it had been growing like cancer, which can be fast in rats, but not just from nothing to this large, and I do scritch his throat pretty much every day.

He's just already elderly and has health problems with an antibiotic resistant lung infection, so it's not like he can bounce back from stuff like a young one.

[jacquez.livejournal.com]

one of my rats had that once, same spot. it was an abcess -- likewise with no visible surface injury -- and healed up just fine once it was opened to drain. so I'll keep my fingers crossed for him, poor lil guy!

[ratcreature]

I hope it'll be alright, I guess an abscess would be better than a tumor, but I really believe I would have noticed it before now if it had been growing at the rate cancers usually do. I just worry, because he's over two years, and any he has still trouble with that antibiotics resistant myco anyway (which also has come back a bit already, I just haven't brought him in yet again for the rattling, because it's still fairly quiet, and it's not like I can bring him in for daily injections all the time, if there even was still an antibiotic that worked). I just hope this thing doesn't expand so that his breathing or swallowing is impaired before something can be done, and that the emergency vet is experienced with this type of thing in rats (it's always something of a roulette with the emegency hour vets in their practice, though one of the regular doctors is the one my local rat club recommended, but obviously I can't wait until Monday).