Ratty Emergency!

[skelly10]

I came home from work today to find that both Bo and Gordon had bites on their scrotums, presumably given by Jack. Bo's is more on his leg, but Gordon's is literally leaving one of his testicles hanging out. I'm not sure what to do for them?? I've put Jack in a separate cage for the night, but I'm really scared for the boys, especially Gordon.




I know this is kind of a blurry picture, but it shows what Gordon's battle wound looks like. Any advice or help on how to keep him comfortable until we can get to a vet (it's 4 am here) would be greatly appreciated! Also any help on what to do next... we are thinking of getting Jack fixed to minimize aggression?

 

[Dahlas]

Oh my...I am not sure...I would give metacam for the pain.....and keep him quiet and comfortable. Is Jack new to the group?...If you are sure it was him I would separate him from the group.... and a neuter sounds very needed....and after the neuter start back at square one and do intros all over again.....
There are others on here more experienced with situations like this then me...hopefully they will see this post soon....

 

[lilspaz68]

He needs a vet asap. They might be able to stitch him up or they may just have to neuter him. I am sorry, you must've been so scared to see that.

 

[jorats]

It's hard to see, but is he cut only on the skin or does it look deeper? If it's just the skin, it will heal up, if it's deeper then he definitely needs more work like lilspaz said, either a neuter or stitching...
Keep us posted!

 

[skelly10]

It is just the skin. I don't know if it was a bite or a scratch, I'm just assuming it's a bite because Bo has one in a similar place. He acts normal, it isn't bleeding, and he doesn't jump or squeak when I tried to touch it so I think it's just a flesh wound. Where can I get metacam?

And we are contacting a vet today about getting Jack neutered. He was our first rat and Bo and Gordon are the companions we bought for him. He was a rescue who had never lived with another rat before, and everything was going fine until this! There were a few dominance fights and arguing over food, but nothing like this and they've been together for a week and a half...

 

[jorats]

How old are the three boys?

Rats don't show pain like how we would think they do. They will zone out, lose appetite, start to lose weight become weak...so be sure to keep an eye on him. If he is really damaged, he could have some serious harm done to him and it will become worse.
If you know for a fact that it's only a flesh wound, then he doesn't need metacam.

 

[skelly10]

Here is a new picture from this morning. It already looks like it is starting to heal and Gordon seems to be doing just fine. He is eating any treats I give him and he is running around like normal.

 

[Joanne]

Have you taken your poor boy to the vet's yet? It does seem like his testicle is exposed. Yikes!

 

[skelly10]

W haven't taken him to the vet yet because unfortunately our bosses don't see this as an emergency enough to leave work. We have been emailing vets as we are able and will take him in as soon as possible. The skin seems to be closing in on itself so far because last night the whole testicle was hanging out but today it is in more of a pocket with just some of the testicle exposed. There are no punctures or scartches on the actual testicle and no blood at all so I think it could just be torn skin that is working already to heal like a regular cut. And Gordon and Bo are almost 4 months and Jack is older than them but we aren't sure of his actual age. Less than a year but older than the other two.

 

[temblabamomo]

Lots of healing vibes coming his way. I hope he continues to heal okay without the aid of a vet.

 

[hprats]

Hmm, that doesn't seem like something that could be stitched up anyway.

Small anecdote. When I had a breast reduction, the incision opened up and then I ended up with a hole bigger than that of just...exposed tissue. Totally nasty, and they couldn't do anything about it but let it close up. I was skeptical, but it did close up.

It seems like your boy's injury is healing quickly, but keep a very close eye on it for infection, right?

(Of course it's best if you can get a vet to look at him soon).

 

[skelly10]

Just an update: Gordon's wound healed up on its own just fine. We watched him carefully for signs of pain and infection, but he was still eating and drinking just fine and was his normal, affectionate self through the whole ordeal. He's a trooper!
Jack has been living alone while all of this has been going on, but now that the wounds are healed up, we're going to start from the ground up with introductions again. Wish us luck!

 

[mamarat]

Glad your boy is doing so well. Good luck with intros.

 

[jorats]

Good luck!