Never owned a male rat before...

[ryelle]

i was going to say he looked really skinny in the picture on page one
sorry for your loss poor baby. did the vet have any idea what was wrong with him?

 

[Petunia]

It's not rat-specific. In fact, for rats I believe it's off-label use. It's a basic antibiotic that most vets should have on hand.

As far as I know, convenia is really only good for skin infections/abscesses? But I'm not sure, my vet does not prescribe it, he doesn't like to use it on rats.

yes this is true, although many vets are giving it to cats because it is so much easier than pilling a cat, and it is having disastrous consequences, including hemoltytic anemia resulting in death of the cat.

It's been discussed on VIN. if you have a cat and your vet suggests using this shot for an antibiotic for anything other than a skin wound, tell them that you want something else!!

it *is* convenient, that's for sure, but it is NOT worth the risk and has not been found to be effective for off label uses. You don't want it for your cat's dental. I agreed to it before I knew about the risks and of course now I'll do the pilling instead!

 

[Petunia]

I'm so sorry for your loss JD Cole

 

[JD Cole]

The vet never gave a diagnosis, but it was obviously respiratory, whether it was pnuemonia or not I don't know.

i did get a replacement at the pet store since I'd purchased Mac just over a week ago. I named this guy Lockheed, and he is hands down the most affectionate pet I ever had. I don't know how, but he learned his name in just over a day (or maybe he just comes no matter what noise I make, but it doesn't seem that way), and he seems to be fully litter trained. He's older than Mac was, but I don't think Pet Smart is in the habit of training their animals, are they? Anyway, the guy follows me around everywhere when he's out of the cage, and even when he's off exploring, he comes running back when i call him over for play. Hopefully that won't change once his quarantine is over, he gets fixed, and moves in with the girls. (Oh, and I put together another cage for him, the one I had for Mac was way too small)


I have another question about one of the girls, but I'll start a new topic to keep things easy.