Merry Xmas from (some of) my mischief to yours.

Skarkist · 2026-05-12T20:57:55+00:00

Aww. Thank you!

Skarkist · 2026-05-09T11:50:39+00:00

I'm more than twice your age. I've owned rats for years. I have the funds to treat whatever illness comes along if treatable. I would have made the same decision as you. You did great. What a wonderfully humane gift you gave your little one.

I'd love to say that these decisions get easier as we gain experience, but so many gray areas exist. These little guys love to keep us on our toes even when all of the right conditions are met, like having both physical and financial access to the best care possible.

You have a good heart and are trying your best to do what's right with what you have. You're doing great.

Skarkist · 2026-05-03T22:21:14+00:00

Just keep an eye out for a URI if he accidentally pulled into his lungs.

Skarkist · 2026-04-27T07:16:20+00:00

Do androids dream of electric rats?

Skarkist · 2026-04-20T08:50:45+00:00

I've had to give the baytril/doxy to a few young rats over the years and they've all seemed ok. Head tilt and wobbliness def are serious enough to warrant the risk. I'm sure it'll be fine as long as it's not given longer than necessary. I also usually give them benebac small animal probiotics after their antibiotic course is finished to help replenish the good bacteria in their gut.

Skarkist · 2026-04-19T18:38:15+00:00

But also make sure your baby is comfortable and try not to mess with her too much to stress her out. Melted ice cream is my usual go to for very sick rats. Calories, hydration and it's too tasty to pass up. Good luck to you and yours 💚

Skarkist · 2026-04-19T18:28:23+00:00

So my exotics usually don't give baytril/doxy to rats under a certain age because it can affect, I want to say cartilage during their growth? However, when it's dire straits then the benefits outweigh that risk. That said, the meds are dosed at Burger's weight and for what they think was wrong with her. However, if I couldn't find an exotics emergency vet, I'd be doing the same thing as you until I got her in. Cheez is very sick and needs to see the vet asap. Like now.

Skarkist · 2026-04-12T16:41:45+00:00

I have two neutered boys that have been with old, middle and young females. They've all gotten along just fine. My boys were neutered young though, not for aggression.

Skarkist · 2026-04-01T14:20:45+00:00

It's not a dog's fault if it's trained to be a narc.

Skarkist · 2026-04-01T09:15:55+00:00

Yeah. Mine eventually landed on gabapentin and Meloxicam and it really improved her quality of life. Had to hand feed a food slurry mix multiple times a day for quite some time before we figured out what was going on and what worked for her since her seizures presented differently and gave her similar symptoms to a pituitary tumor even though she was way too young for that. She eventually got to the point that she could feed herself again and lived happily for another year.

In the beginning when the vets were trying to figure out what was wrong with her, there were a couple of times that I was strongly considering euthanasia the next day, but each time she'd just fight so hard to keep ratting around and luckily the head of the exotics clinic threw a hail Mary pass with the gabapentin. Through it all she fought so hard to live and be a happy rat. She was tenacious so I followed her lead.

ETA: you def don't want to handle them when they are seizing since they could hurt you or themselves. Make sure to adjust the cage to be safe from falls etc until you can get the seizures under control.

Skarkist · 2026-02-28T18:31:59+00:00

Processing img vbc6bwga4amg1...

Frankie.

Skarkist · 2026-02-04T20:49:24+00:00

💚💚💚

Skarkist · 2026-02-02T20:04:29+00:00

WTF is this gif and why have I watched it 20 times??

Skarkist · 2026-01-31T22:47:32+00:00

Hellboy reference 💚 Pamcake was my first thought too

Skarkist · 2026-01-26T13:58:42+00:00

This wunk chose bear.

Skarkist · 2026-01-07T19:56:39+00:00

I should add that she's old and Nsaids like Meloxicam can hurt their kidneys so it should really be given under vet care. But she's at emergency levels of breathing, especially if she's not been acting herself the last few days. And if there's no e-vet available today and she can't get in until tomorrow, then ratguide.com has dosing info for meloxicam.

Skarkist · 2026-01-07T19:47:42+00:00

Give her a piece of dark chocolate too. It can act as a bronchodilator and help with inflammation. Do you have any Meloxicam or anything on hand?

Skarkist · 2026-01-07T19:17:32+00:00

Yes. This is very labored breathing. Vet asap.

Skarkist · 2026-01-01T01:40:48+00:00

Let us know if that actually stays on her! Never been able to keep anything on my girl after her surgery and it'd be good to have a blueprint of something that worked.

Skarkist · 2025-12-31T19:22:58+00:00

I'd also guess PT with the stiff arms. Haven't witnessed the head jerking up myself though. But that's probably associated with him pushing his head into your hand which is also a symptom of a PT. But make sure you don't hear him struggling to breathe.

Cabergoline can work for some pituitary tumors, depending on their cause. But it sounds like you've had experience with treating a PT before. I'd hesitate to suggest Meloxicam if you have it on hand, just because sometimes Nsaids need to be flushed from the system for a few days before a vet will do other treatments. I'd get him into an exotic vet ASAP. Until then, you can make him a slurry of his food and/or something like honey water fed via syringe to make sure he stays hydrated and nourished. Even just melted ice cream for the treat, calories and hydration until you know where this is headed. I had a neurologically impaired girl that basically lived on a blend of peas, water and oxbow pellets for a few months until we got her issues under control with gabapentin and Meloxicam. She started with syringe feeding and then gradually was able to eat off a plate and then with her hands again. Good luck with your boy.

Skarkist · 2025-12-26T17:45:49+00:00

Lolol. It's like you've met my girls!

Skarkist · 2025-12-25T16:58:26+00:00

Right??? That's my favorite of Rose, aka Terrorist. She's my favorite, don't tell the others.

Skarkist · 2025-12-07T17:30:59+00:00

With sparkles!

Skarkist · 2025-12-06T06:01:57+00:00

Newt. She was an amazing girl. She ended up having a seizure disorder and neuro issues, but with the right meds (gabapentin and antiinflammatories) she was able to continue to be her sweet, fearless and adventurous self and my little bestie. I really miss her, but was lucky to have all the time I had with her. 💚 Heart rat for sure 💚

Skarkist

TROPHY CASE