Re: large lump on Hope's back- updated 8/3

[mamarat]

Fingers crossed for your sweetie.

 

[Joanne]

Here's hoping it's just a deep abscess...

 

[Petunia]

thanks. well she's acting like she's just fine, had a great time during free range time today, running and exploring, and stealing my papers from me (I was trying to do the budget for the next couple of months) LOL

she looks like she *might* be losing weight, but she's eating and drinking normally.
I'll get her on the scale tonight when I take them out for their midnight romp and get a weight on her, heck I probably should get a weight on all of them and keep it updated weekly or so.


the lump is now looking a lot rounder, rather than the way it did before, it's come up higher and you can see more of it, and it's actually looking like it's smaller in total area than I thought before, when it seemed like most of it was under her skin.......
er I'll try to get a photo, but to me, it's looking more like an abscess, which would be wonderful news at this point!

do you think I should put her on an antibiotic just in case?
I can pick some up on Tuesday when I take my cats in- the vet won't be there but she put up a prescription for TMZ/ bactrim if I wanted/needed it.

 

[Joanne]

I would probably pick up the prescription but just not use it right away. If it will come to a head on its own then it will drain. Otherwise the antibiotics may stop it from draining and it will actually take longer to resolve (longer than two weeks, that's for sure!)
If it doesn't come to a head and drain soon, then I would probably start the antibiotics.

 

[Petunia]

just an update on Hope's lump, it's still growing and is pretty hard, and she is losing weight :sad3:

It is much too hard to be an abscess. the vet is away for two weeks, too.

but she's still bright eyed and comfy, still happy to run around and boss the young'uns around :giggle: and stash her lab blocks.

 

[mamarat]

Fingers crossed for your sweetie, Petunia.

 

[lilspaz68]

You have been compressing it the whole time? And no real change?

 

[Petunia]

You have been compressing it the whole time? And no real change?

no I stopped putting warm compresses on it when I realized it was rock hard an--------------------------------------------------------------------- she's helping me type- and it doesnt move at all
before I thought it did but now I'm thinking it was just her skin moving over it....?

do you think I should still do the compresses?

 

[lilspaz68]

hard or soft, they can really confuse us as to whether its a tumor, cyst or abscess. You can just watch it, make sure it doesnt cause her pain. It might be a lumpy bumpy as I call them, happens in older rats.

Does it continue to grow?

 

[Petunia]

hard or soft, they can really confuse us as to whether its a tumor, cyst or abscess. You can just watch it, make sure it doesnt cause her pain. It might be a lumpy bumpy as I call them, happens in older rats.

Does it continue to grow?

it *seems* to have slowed down growing, at least- hard to say, because she's lost a layer of fat that she had before that made it hard to tell the lump was there. The skin over the lump has thinned out some and looks a bit bluish almost under her fur.

it doesn't seem to be bothering her but I do still notice that she seems to scratch herself a bit more than the other girls- not a whole lot, and it could just be my imagination because I am watching her more closely, you know?
but scratching can be a sign of pain in rats, right?

she is still very active and alert and playful. Cookie her sister, is actually acting older- she sleeps more, but then she was never quite as active as Hope anyway.

they won't be 2 til November or December, so they're still not that old.