Nicole

[SQ]

They didn't say the cecal impaction was the cause of death. Just that it was there ....
all of the possible causes I have been able to find for cecal impaction would have been caused by the deep skin & muscle damage. (no evidence of parasities found)

 

[LA]

I'm so sorry SQ and Godmother :hugs:

 

[minnow]

There are so many 'if I would have' and 'if I wouldn't have's in this life, and the reality is, well... you really can't tell. She may have had a long and happy life, or she may have died at about the same time from the cecal impaction. The fact that she was burned is a tragedy, and the circumstances that led up to it must be corrected, but it may or may not have been what killed her. If you didn't take her to the vet, she may have picked the internal sutures and gone through worse suffering in a shorter period of time.

I went over and over about whether spaying was worth the risk when I lost Sienna to complications... that turned out to not be related to the spay at all. Cecal impaction is a very nasty thing and can kill quickly as well.

I'm so sorry you had to lose her. Don't blame yourself, though. Us humans are fallible, and prone to mistakes. We're also prone to laying blame on ourselves when there is no blame to lay. Grieve in whatever way you need to, but please don't blame yourself for this.

 

[RatsForever]

Although Nicole's passing is heartbreaking I feel the need to defend SouthPaw. The autopsy was inconclusive so I'm not sure, in my mind, that SouthPaw is to blame. I've had a number of surgeries (including today) and my rats have always recovered wonderfully. I've always received excellent care from the staff and doctors. Also, on a number of occassions the the vets have gone beyond the call of duty for my rats. If a problem should arrive, I feel confident the vets at the hospital would take my concerns seriously. I spoke with the vet in question today about this unfortunate circumstance and she is deeply troubled by what happened and feels that she did provide the best care possible, and I believe her. She truly cared for Nicole. I will continue to place my trust with SouthPaw.

 

[SQ]

Nice to know that your vet has a cheering section ... but imo, testimonials would be more appropriate in the section on vets.
In light of your post, you may want to reread this entire thread since your vet did do what she could to try to help Nicole.
We will never know with 100% certainty what caused Nicole's skin & muscle damage or what caused her death.

Edit: spoke to my vet today and he is going to ask the lab about some questions I had .... such as if info that is missing from the history provided to the lab would make any difference to the findings.
Specifically, the information that Nicole was placed on a heat source just hours before her skin damage was noticeable.

Edit:
I too believe what the vet at South Paw said.
I believe:
1. She used a hot snuggle safe on Nicole while Nicole was lying unconscious on her back.
2. She laid a towel over the hot snuggle safe.
3. She doesn't think she burned Nicole.

Unfortunately, that doesn't change what happened. Nor does it change the fact that the only cause that seems to make sense was that Nicole was badly burned on her back, the back of her neck and her ears.

 

[Dahlas]

Although Nicole's passing is heartbreaking I feel the need to defend SouthPaw. The autopsy was inconclusive so I'm not sure, in my mind, that SouthPaw is to blame. I've had a number of surgeries (including today) and my rats have always recovered wonderfully. I've always received excellent care from the staff and doctors. Also, on a number of occassions the the vets have gone beyond the call of duty for my rats. If a problem should arrive, I feel confident the vets at the hospital would take my concerns seriously. I spoke with the vet in question today about this unfortunate circumstance and she is deeply troubled by what happened and feels that she did provide the best care possible, and I believe her. She truly cared for Nicole. I will continue to place my trust with SouthPaw.

I think we need to remember that mistakes happen. I know my vet lost a baby rat after a neuter ....she was very upset. No apparent reason could be found.
I KNOW my vet...we are friends, going out to the movies, hanging out and I KNOW how deeply she is effected by things like this. She cares and sheds many tears over her patients. I don't know the vets at SouthPaw but it does sound like they are very caring people who have a great reputation.
SQ I know you are upset but it is neither fair nor productive to BLAME SouthPaw vets.....something happened and it is a tragedy. It is good to try and find out what so that it can be prevented from happening again but try and remember...vets are human. They make mistakes....and sometimes things just happen...and there is nothing anyone could have done differently.

 

[SQ]

Dahlas, you are right .... if Nicole was burned so badly that even her skeletal muscle was damaged, it was not done on purpose ....
However, if Nicole was burned by being laid unconscious, on her back, on a towel covering a too hot snuggle safe while she was being operated on, it would have been entirely preventable and things could have been done very differently .........

My understanding is that it seems a burn is the most likely cause for the extensive rare and unusual damage to Nicole's ears, neck and back. The damage is exactly where it would occur if Nicole had been burned during surgery and the timing of her injuries also suggest that this is what occurred. Two other possible but less likely causes are that something (for which no evidence was found in the samples examined) caused cell death from lack of oxygen and least likely would be a reaction to medication such as the injectable metacam given 3 days prior (again no evidence found).

The reason why Nicole died is unknown.
There was no infection found by the lab.
The skin damage, which was so deep even Nicole's skeletal muscle was affected, appeared to be healing according to my vet.
Nicole was in good physical condition and hydrated according to the lab's report.
The cecal impaction does not seem to have been bad enough to cause death.
Perhaps the damage was so great that Nicole's little body couldn't fight any longer (speculation on my part).

Unfortunately we have no closure and have not learned anything that will help prevent this from happening again in the future.
This should never have happened to Nicole.
I will not post about this anymore.

Please note that the snuggle safe has a warning not to use with an unconscious animal, imprinted onto the surface.
The vet used this product with Nicole when she was unconscious despite the manufacture's warning.
That is why I am so angry! This should never have happened.
RIP my baby girl

viewtopic.php?f=8&t=19473&start=15

 

[SQ]

Nicole ......... still missed

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