Hairless Male Rat with Penis Cyst? HELP ME PLEASE!!

[catmil16]

Hello friends, I was hoping someone could help me out - my hairless male rat named Beans who is a little over 1 years old (non-neutered) has had chronic cysts on his lower abdomen nearing his penis, which have all been cured using antibiotics from the vet, however (hopefully you can view it in the pictures attached) his newest cyst seems to have spread to his penis..what is this?

 

[SQ]

In one picture it looks like it has a dark spot on it .... is it possible that it is an abscess?
Personally I would get a good knowledgeable rat vet to have a look at it, especially because of where it is.

 

[catmil16]

In one picture it looks like it has a dark spot on it .... is it possible that it is an abscess?
Personally I would get a good knowledgeable rat vet to have a look at it, especially because of where it is.

Thank you for replying! Usually with these lumps, they turn black and burst with a nasty, green pus - I’m just hoping it does the same and his poor penis is ok - but I will definitely travel to a good vet because my local vets are poop - thanks again

 

[Petunia]

sounds like abscesses not cysts, in that region, they tend to re occur

http://ratguide.com/health/figures/abscess_figure_5d.php

http://ratguide.com/health/integumentary_skin/abscess.php

 

[Petunia]

there's also several posts on here about these abscesses, this one may be esp helpful to you
https://www.ratshackforum.com/threads/growth-on-stomach.33883/

 

[catmil16]

there's also several posts on here about these abscesses, this one may be esp helpful to you
https://www.ratshackforum.com/threads/growth-on-stomach.33883/

Thank you! I’m not so good with terminology so i thought cyst=abscess lol

 

[Petunia]

yeh, a lot of times when a rat gets a lump, we think: is it a cyst, an abscess or a tumor? usually it's one of those, sometimes it's something else lol

good luck!

 

[catmil16]

yeh, a lot of times when a rat gets a lump, we think: is it a cyst, an abscess or a tumor? usually it's one of those, sometimes it's something else lol

good luck!

Ahhh gotcha, thank you so much!!

 

[Sheldon]

Just watch REALLY REALLY REALLY closely that he continues to be able to urinate. If there is too much pressure in the area it can block the flow of urine and that is an emergency big time.

 

[catmil16]

He definitely continues to..all over my bed like usual lol, but I will keep an eye on it for any changes - I’m just freaked out by how his penis looks and so is he, he keeps licking at it, all the articles everyone has shared are very helpful but I haven’t seen any dealing with an actual penis abscess - thanks for replying!

 

[Fidget]

Is his penis off-centre? Can you get him to sit with the lump over a comfortably warm compress while you pet him? Maybe a few sessions of that would bring it to a head (no pun intended) sooner?

 

[Luna&Ralph]

It definitely looks like an abscess. I have had several on my rats but not in that area. They generally don’t need intervention but I agree with others who said that it might be more dangerous considering where it is, but as long as he’s still peeing and there’s no blood, you should be good. It looks like it could open up fairly soon so just do the warm compresses or put him in a warm bath regularly and it should resolve fairly soon. The great thing about abscesses is that they’re in their own little pouch, so it shouldn’t cause any problems. This link shows a sterile abscess after neutering that might give you a better idea of what to look for: http://www.ratfanclub.org/abscess.html

 

[catmil16]

It definitely looks like an abscess. I have had several on my rats but not in that area. They generally don’t need intervention but I agree with others who said that it might be more dangerous considering where it is, but as long as he’s still peeing and there’s no blood, you should be good. It looks like it could open up fairly soon so just do the warm compresses or put him in a warm bath regularly and it should resolve fairly soon. The great thing about abscesses is that they’re in their own little pouch, so it shouldn’t cause any problems. This link shows a sterile abscess after neutering that might give you a better idea of what to look for: http://www.ratfanclub.org/abscess.html

Thank you! Looking at it now, I’m happy to say it seems to be clearing up

 

[catmil16]

Is his penis off-centre? Can you get him to sit with the lump over a comfortably warm compress while you pet him? Maybe a few sessions of that would bring it to a head (no pun intended) sooner?

Thanks for replying, the abscess made it off centered, my poor little baby - compress definitely helps!

 

[Luna&Ralph]

Oh yeah that will definitely resolve on its own soon. Great news!

 

[lilspaz68]

The abscesses your lad was getting were inguinal gland abscesses .They are pretty common in males and sometimes there will be pus coming out from the penis itself. The fact that they keep recurring might mean they aren't being treated correctly. With abscesses you either wait for them to open up and drain on their own or you speed up the process with damp heat (in this case you can use a sitz bath of a few inches of warm water in a sink). Once the lump darkens or scabs it should open up soon. Then you have to flush the cavity twice a day with isotonic saline (same salinity as our body) to fully clean it out. Using a syringe just flush it 2-3 times twice a day until the cavity has healed to the surface and then you can stop and let it finish healing on its own. Your boys penis is being pushed out of its sheath by the pressure inside .this is called paraphimosis. His is pretty mild and should resolve when abscess drains

 

[catmil16]

The abscesses your lad was getting were inguinal gland abscesses .They are pretty common in males and sometimes there will be pus coming out from the penis itself. The fact that they keep recurring might mean they aren't being treated correctly. With abscesses you either wait for them to open up and drain on their own or you speed up the process with damp heat (in this case you can use a sitz bath of a few inches of warm water in a sink). Once the lump darkens or scabs it should open up soon. Then you have to flush the cavity twice a day with isotonic saline (same salinity as our body) to fully clean it out. Using a syringe just flush it 2-3 times twice a day until the cavity has healed to the surface and then you can stop and let it finish healing on its own. Your boys penis is being pushed out of its sheath by the pressure inside .this is called paraphimosis. His is pretty mild and should resolve when abscess drains

Thank you so much! The last abscess he had was 5 months ago and he was on antibiotics and I did pretty much all the above and kept his cage nice and clean, what else can I do to prevent this from happening again?

 

[lilspaz68]

Hopefully you won't get anymore, but if they keep happening you may need to surgically removed the abscess capsule. If there is no capsule it cannot refill

 

[catmil16]

Hopefully you won't get anymore, but if they keep happening you may need to surgically removed the abscess capsule. If there is no capsule it cannot refill

Thank you! This is his third one, do you think it’s time for surgery?

 

[lilspaz68]

All on the same side? Usually it's once although both sides can be affected