First spay - Healing vibes needed

[MissGuardian]

I´m getting my girl, Nirvana spayed Wedendsay morning..
I´m very nervous, since she´s my first, and probably only girl..
How long does it usually take before they are back on their feet?
Are there other benefits from spaying, except reducing risks of tumors and stuff?

I hope it all goes okay..
Spaying is fairly uncommon here..

 

[jorats]

Sending you lots of good luck.
Some rats take a day or two to recover but I've had some bounce right back that same night.

 

[mamarat]

Sending healing vibes for your sweetie. Like Jo said I've had girls go right back into the colony after their spays and some took a day or two to recover. Good luck!

 

[MissGuardian]

Thank you both!
I´ll just take the vet´s advice about when to put her back I guess..
Hopefully she´ll bounce right back..

 

[Asheka]

Healing vibes hunni...I'll be going through the same in a few months.

 

[lilspaz68]

Just remember that you should take home oral pain meds to possibly give her for a day or 3. They can cramp after a spay and will do owwwie stretches (they look like they sound). But with pain meds on board they often bounce right back to normal. Is your vet planning on glue, staples or sutures? My vet does internal dissolvable sutures and glue on the outside...its worked really well and the rats don't pick at it since there's nothing to pick at. Staples are least favorite as rats hate them, and will try to pull them out, sometimes opening up a healing incision a bit.

 

[MissGuardian]

I do not know how they close the wound(I didn´t think of asking), but I will ask when I´m going.
I will ask for pain medication. I got metacam after my boys were neutered(I still have some left, but I don´t know how much and the dosage.).
On the boys they used dissolvable sutures and glue I think.

 

[MissGuardian]

Leaving for the vet soon..

 

[lilspaz68]

How did she do? Have you heard yet?

 

[MissGuardian]

I just got her home.
She´s doing okay.
I have gotten a prescription for metacam. She´s going to have it for 3-5 days.
she has internal dissolvable stitches and glued on the outside.
The vet recommended that she´s on her own until she´s been for her checkup(the 22.)
She´s in the lower half of the cage now with no shelves, YN and some fleece blankets(and food and water of course)..

 

[lilspaz68]

I just got her home.
She´s doing okay.
I have gotten a prescription for metacam. She´s going to have it for 3-5 days.
she has internal dissolvable stitches and glued on the outside.
The vet recommended that she´s on her own until she´s been for her checkup(the 22.)
She´s in the lower half of the cage now with no shelves, YN and some fleece blankets(and food and water of course)..

Ugh, another vet who recommends solitary confinement for 9 days. At this point, you will have an unhappy rat and will have to completely re-intro her to the group, at this point she will be completely healed. IF you feel you must separate her out, let her meet her cagemates once a day, and see if its healed enough to go back in with them at 3 days. You wait, its almost scary how fast rats heal

 

[MissGuardian]

I just got her home.
She´s doing okay.
I have gotten a prescription for metacam. She´s going to have it for 3-5 days.
she has internal dissolvable stitches and glued on the outside.
The vet recommended that she´s on her own until she´s been for her checkup(the 22.)
She´s in the lower half of the cage now with no shelves, YN and some fleece blankets(and food and water of course)..

Ugh, another vet who recommends solitary confinement for 9 days. At this point, you will have an unhappy rat and will have to completely re-intro her to the group, at this point she will be completely healed. IF you feel you must separate her out, let her meet her cagemates once a day, and see if its healed enough to go back in with them at 3 days. You wait, its almost scary how fast rats heal

What I did when the boys were neutered, is that they are in separate cages, and on day 2-3 they get to be out on the couch together.

 

[mamarat]

I'm glad your girl is home. If she's doing fine I would put her back with her buddies. Are the cagemates usually good to her? They get so lonely in the hospital cage.

 

[M0onkist]

Can you put her cage beside the cage with the others for the first couple of days (asides from supervised out-time with the others). I did that the first day or two after Plumeria healed from her spay (Princess had been spayed before I got Plumeria), and Princess diligently stayed at the point closest to Plumeria's sick cage. I agree with the others too though, if it's healing well you should be able to put her back in earlier.

 

[MissGuardian]

They are fairly good to her, but she gets very hyper when she´s near them..
I will consider putting them together earlier than recommended, but not until she´s started eating properly again.
I wouldn´t notice if she didn´t eat much if she were living with the boys.
She is doing fairly okay, she is drinking, but not eating much(Think she´s eaten one lab block since yesterday).
I don´t think she´s picked at the wound, but I haven´t touched her since I got home from work(pet store - don´t want to transfer lice etc).
I´ll take a look at her after I´ve taken a shower.

I´ll see how it goes during out time and take it from there. If they show much interest in the wound, I won´t put them together.
They had a tendency to pick at eachothers wounds when they were neutered, so I´m a bit wary of putting them together yet..

 

[mamarat]

If she's not eating I would only have play time with the boys. Offer her yummy foods like baby cereal or baby foods. Mine enjoy soy milk after a spay.

 

[MissGuardian]

If she's not eating I would only have play time with the boys. Offer her yummy foods like baby cereal or baby foods. Mine enjoy soy milk after a spay.

Thats what I was thinking.
She ate a bit of baby food last night(a teaspoon or two), but she haven´t touch what I put in for her last night.

Also; are there anything I can mix the metacam into so she´ll eat it?
I got some of it into her, but I don´t know how much, since she tried to spit it out..
Are there any other benifits of a spay than she can´t get pregnang and the tumor risk?

I´m sorry if it seems like I´m not going to consider putting her in with the boys in my previous post. I will, but not quite yet.

 

[MissGuardian]

Where do they have soy milk?
I don´t think I´ve seen it here.. It´s not very common anyway..

 

[lizmo1221]

I mix meds with a drop of strawberry quick, a fruit flavoured ice cream topping (kinda like chocolate sauce but strawberry flavored. Its a huge hit. You just have to make sure you still get the right amount of meds into them (meaning measure the meds first, then mix the flavoring in, not the other way around).

 

[M0onkist]

There's a whole host of things you can hide medications in - since she's alone right now that's a significant advantage, there won't be chances of anyone else stealing yummy food (and thus the medication).

Some people use Cool Whip (a small dollop), some mix it in with cereal or baby food, yet others put it on a tiny bit of toast or bread (though I don't recommend the toast/bread, as some rats have a tendency to choke on it). I tend to favor the Strawberry Nesquick or Ensure (the adult nutritional drink). The point isn't really what it's in so much as that she eats it all.