Suddenly weak and drooling

[Clumzilla]

I don't know what to do, my rat Crackie that was perfectly fine this morning suddenly got very weak. She is drooling allot a pinkish/white liquid. She barely walk and sometime she will make some weird face, like she is having problem swallowing. She never had enough respiratory problem ad this morning she was perfectly fine. She is now 2 years old, till now she was my most healty baby. I don't know what to do. I'm afraid she is passing away and at this time there is nothing I can do because it's closed everywhere.

Right now I'm letting her rest in my blankets and giving her some love.

help please ;_;

 

[handmeafish]

It sounds like maybe she had a stroke.
Is there a rat trained e-vet you could see tonight?
Strokes are no fun, but some rats will bounce back with treatment. She is an old girl, so that might be harder on her
Good luck, hopefully someone can give you advice for treatment soon. I think getting her to a vet ASAP will be your best bet, but only if they are rat knowledgeable. If not you'd be better off to try to get in first thing in the morning

 

[Clumzilla]

Right now there is no where I can go since it's 3ham, but tomorow morning I'll go see a vet. (hopefully some places are going to be open)

She refused to drink from her bowl so I got my finger wet and let her lick it, she seem to drink better like this right now. She look like she is slowly recovering, she is already more active than she was 5 minutes ago, I fed her a tiny piece of popcorn and she ate it. She stopped drolling and even if she is still acting slower than usual she look better. I feel relieved.

Thank you allot for your help, it does make sense with her age that she might had a stroke or I suspect a peice of food was stuck in her troat. I'll keep some updates tomorow.

 

[handmeafish]

Thats good that she seems to be getting better
If you can, try to give her as much water as possible, she may not want to drink from a bowl or bottle, but maybe out of a syringe. You can also try pedilite, but you probably wont be able to get it, sense its 3am. Keeping her hydrated will be very important.
I think there is a sugar water mixture you can make, but I don't remember what it is.

Here is the rat guide for stroke, it might hel some
http://ratguide.com/health/neurological/stroke.php

 

[Clumzilla]

Thank you, I'll do my best to keep her well hydrated.

Should I keep her separate from the other for the night? I had a bad experience when I had pet mices. One died during the night and found her the next morning half ate by the others mices :/

 

[victoria]

The faculty clinic in St. Hyacinthe (450) 778 8111 offer emergency services for exotics as may the DVM Clinic in Lachine. I know people that have gone to both and were served by knowledgeable vets but it's always best to call first. Here are the links to their sites if you're interested:

http://www.medvet.umontreal.ca/chuv/amb ... l#Services (I can't find the link I was looking for, but their number is 450-778-8111 if you are interested)

http://www.centredmv.com/index_en.aspx

Good luck. Keep your girl warm and hydrated if you can and in a cage where she can't fall off any levels or hammocks.

 

[jorats]

It sounds like your girl was choking on something. It's really scary when they do but the best thing to do is leave her alone to work it out. The funny face movements is her working it through. The drool is done to help "soften or melt" the obstruction.
How is she now?

 

[Clumzilla]

Yesterday before heading to bed after a small while decided to put her back into her cage with her two other friends. I placed a towel in the cage just in case she needed a place to hide and be warm. (She had a little house but she love towels and blankets.) And moved her food and water to the first level in the cage in case she wouldn't have enough forces to reach the other levels.

This morning when I woke up she was perfectly fine like it never happened. She is herself again and I'm completely relieved. I missed my little hyper fur ball. She is breathing perfectly and her hunger is definitely back!!

Thanks you so much, I'm so relieved. I love my little Crackhead so much <3

 

[lilspaz68]

Choke can be very frightening but its rarely fatal. Do you have any idea what she ate that was red or pink?

 

[Moon]

Absolutely sounds like a bad choking episode. It really can take a lot out of them for a while when the choking is over but they usually bounce right back after a while. Glad it wasn't anything more serious!

 

[Clumzilla]

Do you have any idea what she ate that was red or pink?

Well some of her pellets are red-ish or the only other thing would be one of their chewing block which is red too. :/

 

[lilspaz68]

Do you have any idea what she ate that was red or pink?

Well some of her pellets are red-ish or the only other thing would be one of their chewing block which is red too. :/

chewing block is wood?

 

[Clumzilla]

yes it's a wood one, they love it allot because there is a hazelnut in the middle of the block. I didn't think it might be dangerous for them.

 

[lilspaz68]

yes it's a wood one, they love it allot because there is a hazelnut in the middle of the block. I didn't think it might be dangerous for them.

Usually they gnaw wood and splinter it...unless she got something stuck in her teeth or mouth...did she paw at her mouth as well?

 

[handmeafish]

sorry I was way off. I hope I didn't cause you too much panic, but it was late, and I went with my gut because I didn't think anyone else would be on until the morning.

I am so glad to hear she is going well

 

[jorats]

sorry I was way off. I hope I didn't cause you too much panic, but it was late, and I went with my gut because I didn't think anyone else would be on until the morning.

I am so glad to hear she is going well

This is what I like about a rat forum as opposed to asking only one person, you get multiple answers based on multiple experiences. I'm glad you answered, it's better than getting no answers. :thumbup:

 

[lilspaz68]

I want to add, it can be very difficult to tell the difference at times, even for the so-called "experts" LOLOL

 

[Beautiful_Insanity]

The same exact thing happened to one of my guys a few months ago. It scared the hell out of me, but he was fine the next morning. Glad to hear your girl is all better <3