Neuter abscess - paraphimosis is resolved

[Joanne]

I had my two baby boys neutered Friday. Today Calvin's scrotum is noticably swollen and hard. Do I wait for the abscess to pop? I just did his first warm water soak tonight. I was thinking of getting the local vet to incise it so it can drain. I think it hurts to soak it. I have some Baytril handy. Do I need to give him any? I hate to put him on antibiotics unless it's really necessary. Also, I was thinking if the antibiobics start kicking in, the abscess may not drain on its own. Too late to call the vet who did the neuter tonight, will have to wait until tomorrow.

 

[smilez_n_hugs]

I would go back to see the vet that did the neuter but until then I think baytril would be a good idea as long as it isn't expired.

 

[Joanne]

I hope I can take care of it long distance, as she works shorter hours than I do!

 

[jorats]

If he were mine, I'd bring him in for a recheck and ask for meds. That's not something you want to get out of control.

 

[Joanne]

If he were mine, I'd bring him in for a recheck and ask for meds. That's not something you want to get out of control.

What type of meds would you ask for?
And would you lance it so it can drain?

 

[jorats]

I wouldn't get it lanced. When my Gera had a neuter abscess, he was given Clavamox, within days it started to heal and shrink away.

 

[MaryCayden]

I just went thru this with Ben. He needs meds to clear this up. Ben started to attack me because of it. I didn't know what was wrong with him because I couldn't get him. Give him meds for sure! It's very painful down there so pain meds may help to. Could just be stitching on the inside to that makes it hard.

 

[SQ]

My vet perscribed clavamox for Solomon's and Isaac's neuter abscesses.
Had them on it for about 3 or 4 weeks and they healed up just fine.

 

[Joanne]

Hi, OK, so Clavamox seems to be the best solution. Calvin is on Baytril right now - should I get the vet to change it? Or just keep up with the Baytril?
As well, now Dudley has paraphimosis, so I think he's developing an abcess too.
What is good to put on his penis? I noticed it last night so put some vaseline on it. It is out again today. After reading a couple of threads, it seems that the most likely thing is an abcess that is putting pressure on his penis. So he will need to be on antibiotics too I guess.
What do you think?

 

[jorats]

The Baytril should eventually work but the Clavamox in my opinion is much better suited for neuter abscesses.

 

[Laila's Human]

What ended up happening? How is he doing?

Regarding medications - I would go by the type that your veterinarian recommends and would not dose medications you happen to have on hand yourself. With rats being so small, medication is not something I would mess around with (speaking from a veterinary assistant and rat guardian point of view).

Good luck!

 

[lilspaz68]

the swelling inside his abdomen is pushing his penis out. Do you know how to care for a paraphimosis? Make sure its kept moist with lubricant. I used an anti-inflammatory to bring down the swelling so it could go back in. Goliath got a paraphimosis a week after his neuter, and it wasn't an abscess, it does happen, but not that often. If you want to see Goli's situation here is the thread.

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=4242&hilit=goliath+paraphimosis

As for the other boy's hard abdomen, I find neuter abscesses take more than a week to show up, so I might be more worried about swelling of the tissues or even an infection. I would start on abs until you can get to your vet ASAP.

 

[jorats]

Regarding medications - I would go by the type that your veterinarian recommends and would not dose medications you happen to have on hand yourself. With rats being so small, medication is not something I would mess around with (speaking from a veterinary assistant and rat guardian point of view).

This is very true in most cases although quite a few people need the guidance of those with vets more experienced to offer advice to bring to their own vets for better and faster treatment.

 

[Joanne]

Calvin's neuter abscess seems to be resolving with the Baytril - the swelling in his scrotum has definitely gotten smaller. My boy Dudley with the paraphimosis is still peeking out. I have used Vaseline, but my vet recommended KY as it's water based, so it's time for another application. We started Dudley on Baytril this morning. I guess I should try some metacam? I have some Clavamox that's not made up yet, just in case the Batril doesn't finish the job.

 

[SQ]

If you mix up the clavamox, mix up half a bottle at a time as it is only good for 14 days in the fridge after being mixed.

 

[Joanne]

If you mix up the clavamox, mix up half a bottle at a time as it is only good for 14 days in the fridge after being mixed.

OK, good idea.
Just gave Dudley some Metacam and a lube job. I hope he does OK. I didn't think that something like this could be fatal. I will be keeping a close watch on him.

 

[Joanne]

For Dudley I put him on Baytril, gave him some Metacam for pain, and used the KY jelly. I think the switch from Vaseline to KY jelly made a big difference, and things resolved over the course of the day. He only got two doses of Metacam, once in the am and once in the pm. Once things looked normal, I stopped applying the KY jelly and giving him pain meds.
Now he is just on antibiotics along with Calvin and everyone is hopping and wrestling like babies should.

 

[SQ]

great news!

 

[lilspaz68]

It was the metacam, its an anti-inflammatory not just a paid med and shrinks those swollen tissues that are pushing the penis outside of the body. I am glad its resolved

 

[mamarat]

Great!!