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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 15, 2009 23:56:28 GMT -4
So wait... you DON'T want same sex littermates? Same sex, yes. ALL littermates, I don't know any more. Littermates are nice to keep together. I wasn't even thinking to my past rats, but indeed, now that I think of it, health issues ran in littermates. Maybe it was a fluke, I dunno.
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 15, 2009 1:21:57 GMT -4
I don't know what others think of this, but I'll stick to my guns if I get any more rats: -different ages -not related -6 mo. or younger (adding belatedly: same-sex) I love my rats, but this group has been a money pit as far as vet bills. My heart ruled over my head --my bad-- when I heard about these three brothers and I adopted them, ignoring my "rules" that I decided on while I didn't have any rats there for a few months. I think having unrelated rats will help avoid genetic predispositions. Of course, they are littermates so all the same age, and I adopted them "old" at one year of age. One has had to be put down already I would never EVER give them up, but in the future I'll avoid rash head-over-heels decisions. Good luck, and welcome to wonderful world of rat-love!!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 9, 2009 2:39:47 GMT -4
I'm speculating here...
Sometimes head tilt is caused by a tumour. I think it's steroids that help that. My vet has not been inclined to give Earl Grey steroids for his hind end weakness (which may or may not be cause by a pituitary tumour). He said that because EG has a wound on his chest, overlying a possible cyst or tumour and he says it can compromise their immune system, and he really wants that to heal up...and once it's healed possible remove the cyst and wait for IT to heal...
My thought is that IF your rat has a tumour, maybe it's sometimes putting pressure on a particular spot (in the brain or on a nerve) that is causing the lethargy.
I wonder about an injury and if anything can be done, but wait for time to heal it. My old piano teacher was once in a car accident and got whiplash or some neck injury and if she tilted her head just the right (wrong) way, it would be like she was dozing off.
Along another line, and I don't know that this fits AT ALL....I had a dog who shook her head so hard (for whatever reason) that she ruptured a vessel in her ear which made it puff up. I can't remember now if she hung her head to one side as a result of it (it's decades ago). I thought I'd just toss that out as a (remote) possibility.
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 8, 2009 10:16:23 GMT -4
I ditto that suggestion that DF made, too. I'd also like to let know about (with DF's permission) a recently formed Yahoo Group that is geared toward pet rat behaviour issues: pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/JoinRats
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 7, 2009 15:07:55 GMT -4
Was he doing this with a) the other cage, and b) ever since being in the new cage?
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Sept 6, 2009 23:22:37 GMT -4
Ok, so he doesn't really mind being picked up he objects to, it's "being picked up to go back in the cage"?
It sounds like he gets on well with his pals, so it doesn't sound like he's afraid to go back in there with them.
Has he done this all the time, regardless of cage? Is this something new?
Is it possible he hurt himself in the cage and he's making a bad association with it?
Is the cage still a new environment for him?
Might he feel too exposed (or something) in the new cage? I doubt that's an issue if he plays outside it. I bought a new carrier that I thought the boys would love. It plastic, but with a metal-bar flip open lid. If it's not covered Earl Grey flips out in that one...every motion he sees is *above* him and he just doesn't like it.
Do you have a means of buying or building a large fence/corral that the cage could sit inside, and the rats could come out into the pen for playtime...the maybe you could put a tasty dinner inside the *cage* the might lure him back in?
I've built such a "corral" using several pieces of plastic corrugated signboard duct taped end to end -- that allows it to be be folded and stored. Not sure it's cheaper than a store-bought thing in the end, but it's tall and unclimbable (although one of my old rats used to fling himself toward the top edge!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Aug 26, 2009 17:15:12 GMT -4
Whoa, that is one hectic morning! Good thing Thor is okay. Aw, poor Earl. How is he doing with his meds so far? Does he allow you to give it to him? Well, you know how it is, the vet does it and makes it look so easy! He's not a rat that like to be held, so it's been a struggle! Eventually I do get it on him, though. It's tricky, with the wound being in his underarm!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Aug 26, 2009 2:53:18 GMT -4
Well, it wasn't just blood, when the vet had a good look at it he said there's a wound right into the tissue! Not sure who inflicted that, EG himself, or Thor, perhaps in grooming. When Hugh and Locutus were around, Hugh had a lump on his back and his pal was determined to get it off him! For the moment he's on a lanacane topical liquid to stop any pain (and hopefully that will help him lose interest in it) and also an antibiotic ointment. As soon as he's on his way to healing, I'll be looking at having the lump removed. As he's starting to experience hind-end weakness, I want to get that off and healed *before* he gets to that stage that he might be causing it friction.
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Aug 25, 2009 11:05:15 GMT -4
Ugh, pets have shattered my nerves and broken my heart all year! Just now Thor seemed to be choking so I ran to the computer to verify the info on rattie fling and Heimlich maneuvre!! One thing I knew is that the rat has to be unconscious, and no way was I going to sit there and watch anyway, waiting for that to happen! [PS: CORRECTION: the rat does not have to be unconscious, the rat should be NOT breathing AND/OR unconscious]Found the info, did a couple quick "practice runs" with an imaginary rattie, ran back to the cage, and there he is, perky as ever! Thank goodness!! Finally my heart has stopped racing and I've mostly stopped shaking, but my nerves are shot. So much excitement, and it's only 630am. Thank heavens he's ok!! Then... I went to check on Thor after writing up about him choking. I see blood on Earl Grey!! OMG, I such a wreck this morning. He's a rat who REALLY doesn't like to be picked up or held, so it's really hard to do decent examinations of him. While I had him at the vet for his hind-end weakness last week, I felt a lump on him! Vet thinks it's not a tumour since he can get his fingers around it and it moves, and we're just going to keep an eye on it. The blood was over the lump site, and now the shape of the lump has changed: itstarted as very round, now feels a bit more flattened. Off we go to the vet again!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Aug 23, 2009 1:58:44 GMT -4
Odd, that although I see a lot of Twinning's special teas, LS never seems to be around. Must be somewhere! Do you hit the specialty stores? We used to have a large one in Vancouver that was a big deal when it opened, maybe 20 years ago. I don't know if it's still around. I've seen the odd small specialty tea place.
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Aug 21, 2009 0:45:42 GMT -4
Here are some pics I took of Earl Grey and Thor yesterday... EG: Nibbling on a snack Being adorable! Thor: The Speed Demon -- he'll launch himself right out of there and onto me, given the chance! Cute but dangerous! He keeps me on my toes! Cutie-patootie!! Probably thinking about getting ready to launch himself! LOL
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Jul 26, 2009 21:36:28 GMT -4
My little fella was put to sleep this afternoon. More when I can. Linda
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Jul 23, 2009 1:19:10 GMT -4
Dukhat's Day at the Vet I left him there for the day so they could assess him, in particular his breathing issues which seemed tied in to when he eats... Here's the quicky version: they did an x-ray and little Dukhat has "a mass" on his lung. They can't say for sure what it might be, but it's either a growth or a partially "consolidated lung" meaning the bronchial passages have closed up on themselves and the lung is not fully functional. Presumably this is what's causing his issues, that he can't get enough air, mainly in the excitement of feeding time. Nothing they can do for it, alas. He'll be trying different meds to help him and will get another x-ray in a few months. If it's grown, then they know it's a mass. They didn't think steroids would be of help. If anyone has any thoughts on alternative therapies that would help, I'm all ears. So for now, I have to try and make feeding time not very exciting. I feel I might stay with very soft foods for him (baby food, pureed things) because if he's excited and inhaling deeply while eating I don't want him choking on anything solid. That *might* be what happened to him last night with a carrot but I'm not sure (I didn't see the gagging that my old rat, Chopin, did once). I've been taking Thor out of the the cage for feeding time because he's a maniac (sweet, but a maniac) and disruptive. I usually feed Dukhat and Earl Grey on different shelves of the cage so they don't go after each others' food. I might in fact start taking out Dukhat so he can eat with NO fear of the other one getting it. Still...he might become overly exciting coming out, knowing it means feeding time. I just don't know... I left him in the carrier when I got home and fed him there, and things seem ok. I'm also now looking into other cages, one with a large floor space and maybe only one low shelf (and other things the brothers can get into), so he doesn't have to exert himself going up and down the big cage. A question: if I can't feed him in such a way as to alleviate the resulting breathing issues, am I making him suffer unduly? He's such an adorable little guy and when he bounces back from the episodes he's very sweet and perky. That part of his quality of life is great. I just don't like putting him in distress several times a day. Hopefully I'll work something out that won't cause that. Although nothing can be done, I feel less stressed now. It's when you see an ongoing problem and keep thinking, "come ON, let's get this thing fixed!" you feel things aren't happening fast enough. Even though it's chronic, at least now I know that's what we have to work with, and now can find ways to make things more comfortable for him. Oh...this turned out kind of long anyhow!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Jul 20, 2009 22:31:11 GMT -4
What kind of music do you play? I was at a Creedence Clearwater concert last week, as I posted. Nice! I just got back from the weekend away so I didn't see that! I'll go check that thread now. I was classically trained (piano). At work it's more sing-a-long stuff (piano or voice & guitar). Part of my duties include playing for the hymn sing. I was taken about by one oldster who asked for "Who Let the Dogs Out?" LOL!
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Post by adoptaratcanada on Jul 20, 2009 19:04:03 GMT -4
...(minus 2 days, actually) of the moon landing. I was just watching In the Shadow of the Moon on Discovery Channel Canada. A few of us are up in the woods a couple hours drive from Vancouver, in a small rented cabin. There's a small TV here, and although I normally prefer to "get away from it all" while here, I couldn't resist a few of the shows about the moon landing. As I stood in this tiny place watching the TV I was taken back 40 years, when I was 7. Our family was in a very similar cabin to this one, one which my great-grandfather built, in fact, not far from here. We had no phone or TV there, but my parents brought up a TV for the occasion of the moon landing. They and their friends waited for hours for the landing to take place, calling us in every time it seemed it was about to happen. We kids were less patient , trotting in repeatedly, with sighs at being taken away from our pastimes. Finally it happened. It was very exciting and the first "I remember where I was when..." moment of my life. We might have at first been irritated kids but no doubt this moment stirred my life-long love of astronomy. 40 years later, I stand once again in another small cabin, in front of another small TV, and get choked up over the footage and interviews. I think back to the virtually identical scene, but this time I’m alone at the moment and almost all the adults of yesteryear long since passed. I wonder at how lucky I've been to have been here and experienced such marvels, and to have been in such fine company. I have a good cry about all that. I would have liked to have been an astronomer, but alas my skills weren't sufficient. Happily my other love, music, has brought me great joy and a truly satisfying career as a music therapist for Alzheimer patients. Most satisfactorily, I can continue my amateur’s love for the wonderment above us, which truly IS heaven.
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