sigh

[ratcreature]

I brought Rusty to the vet today because I noticed he's starting to make the myco breathing sounds. And once I was there I noticed that he had actually developed bumblefoot sores on both his backfeet, that I completely failed to notice. I had never had a rat develop these before, and didn't remember to check their feet closely. Clearly a mistake. Oscar's feet are fine, but Kieran's have backfeet have raised bumps too, one very slight, but the other a bit larger, theough thankfully no open sore, though the larger looks like it might be heading there.

I don't have wire cage floors, just solid metal sheets covered with several layers of newspaper, so I'm not exactly sure what caused this. They are a bit on the heavy side, which is also supposed to be a risk factor, because it puts more pressure on the feet, but not more so than my previous rats. Though I'm going to change their bedding more often now. I usually do that every two or three days, but because they pee in their favorite house all the time, sometimes the bedding there is still wet. And I read that wet bedding can cause bumblefoot too. So I'm going to change it once or even twice a day to make sure they are on dry bedding at all times. I also changed their favorite cloth-tube for a new one, because they had chewed through in places and also it was sagging by now so that it bumped against the willow basket below, so maybe that made for an irritant.

I have oral antibiotics (for both the lungs and the feet), a painkiller and an antibiotic wound salve for Rusty, plus a decongestant, and I'm going to use the salve on Kieran's more irritated red bump too, hoping that his won't develop into open sores. I feel horrible that I didn't even notice this going on, and that somehow the conditions in their cage made this develop in the first place. I heard that once they developed these sores only heal with much difficulty too. :(

Comments

[madripoor_rose]

Hugs, I hope everything turns out okay. I know how awful it feels, seems like every time I turn around Frannie's got another ear infection, something bichons and other floppy-eared dogs can be prone to, and you always feel so guilty for not catching it quicker.

[ratcreature]

I had actually noticed a bloody streak on one of the newspapers I changed a few days ago, and wondered where it came from, whether there had been a scuffle, and I checked all their bodies for wounds, but didn't think to check under the feet. Now of course I realize Rusty must have broken open one of the sores then. :(

I think part of it is that my current three just aren't very cuddly by nature, so they don't sit on my lap to cuddle voluntarily where you notice these things, but I have to actually intentionally check them closely. You just see much less when you just give some scritches.

I hope the sores will heal okay, and that my plan to change the bedding far more frequently will have an impact. I made the mistake of googling this condition, and have now seen all sorts of horror stories of how awful these can become. D:

[king_touchy]

Rodent pets are cool. I had a mouse who was the sweetest little mammal you could ever meet. I'm sad your rats aren't well.

Best wishes for speedy recoveries all around.

[ratcreature]

Thanks. I hope the sores will heal. I never had this particular problem before.

Rats are very sweet, but their health problems can be numerous. I usually end up spending some €400-600 on average for vet care over the life of a rat, more when they need operations, and they don't get older than 2-3 years.

[king_touchy]

I was very fortunate with my mouse. She lived nearly three years, a healthy life. As I've got three cats, I think I'll forgo any more rodents, but I do admire them when I meet them.

[ratcreature]

I thought about cats in the past after a group of rats I had died, but I have no access to a garden and my apartment is quite small, so I don't think a cat would be happy.