I need to figure out how to help him... as if things weren't bad enough, I just discovered a gaping hole in Stanley's stomach near his penis. (Penis is unaffected.) There is white, cheese-like stuff in it, which I am assuming is pus. I tried to rinse it out, but he wasn't happy, seemed to be in pain. I'm going to call the vet first thing in the morning, but until then what do I do???
Major abscess near Stanley's penis
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Just now read your post Breyer, sorry, I was away from the computer all night. 
I guess at this point it is probably early morning where you are so you may have already called the vet. I hope Stan is okay?
All I could think of was keeping the hole as clean as possible, with baby wipes, maybe and possibly some Neosporin? I am shooting in the dark here.
Let us know what the vet says? I am sure you are keeping Stan as comfy as you can. Hang in there, okay? Keep us posted.
I guess at this point it is probably early morning where you are so you may have already called the vet. I hope Stan is okay?
All I could think of was keeping the hole as clean as possible, with baby wipes, maybe and possibly some Neosporin? I am shooting in the dark here.
Let us know what the vet says? I am sure you are keeping Stan as comfy as you can. Hang in there, okay? Keep us posted.
Flush it out as best as you can. I use saline, and DO NOT use any ointments as they encourage surface healing which in this case is a bad thing. You need an abscess to heal from the inside up to the surface otherwise bacteria could be trapped underneath and it will recur again.
Abscesses near the penis could easily be a bite from a cagemate. Does he tussle with anyone?
Abscesses near the penis could easily be a bite from a cagemate. Does he tussle with anyone?
No, he never fights with Russell... not quite sure how he got this. The vet opens in 3 minutes so I'll be calling for an appointment to have it looked at and flushed out. Do abscesses hurt them? He hasn't been acting like he's in any pain...
Most don't cause too many problems, others can be quite painful especially when we are trying to clean it out. I would advise keeping infant liquid ibuprofen in your cupboard at all times..great for quick response to sprains etc.
Okay, just got back from the vet. They flushed it out (he was screaming because they were holding him down...and I'm sure it didn't feel so great...) and he prescribed oral and topical Baytril, because he has an infection in his abscess. I'm supposed to wash it with saline solution twice a day, put two drops of the topical Baytril in the abscess, then give him oral Baytril twice a day. He wants to see Stanley again in ten days to make sure everything is going ok.
He also checked his throat lump, and it has gotten about double in size, though it is growing in the skin and not attached to anything. He said that we'll just continue to monitor it, and maybe we'll even notice a difference with the Baytril now... we'll see!
He also checked his throat lump, and it has gotten about double in size, though it is growing in the skin and not attached to anything. He said that we'll just continue to monitor it, and maybe we'll even notice a difference with the Baytril now... we'll see!
Thanks for the update Breyer...poor Stan. I am sure it was not fun in the least to have the vet messing with him. I am so bad when it comes to things like that..I just turned into a crying mess when the vet had to do things to my boys. But I am so glad he has some medicine and is back at home. Get better soon Stan! We love you!
I really couldn't be prouder of my Stanley. It was torture hearing him scream like that--I never knew that a rat could make noises that loud. But, in spite of him being uncomfortable and terrified, he never once tried to bite or hurt anyone. The nurses all love him to death, and they were all congregated around his travel cage as we were leaving, because they wanted to tell him what a good boy he was. :heart:
Tonight we had to go through it by ourselves, so we flushed him with saline and put his Baytril drops in his wound, and he just sat calmly in my hands through the whole thing! I am very proud of my brave little baby.
(Oh, and he gobbled the oral baytril down like a champ, but really, that was expected! After all, he usually fights me for Russell's meds and gets mad when he doesn't get any of them! :lol
But, in spite of him being uncomfortable and terrified, he never once tried to bite or hurt anyone. The nurses all love him to death, and they were all congregated around his travel cage as we were leaving, because they wanted to tell him what a good boy he was. :heart:Tonight we had to go through it by ourselves, so we flushed him with saline and put his Baytril drops in his wound, and he just sat calmly in my hands through the whole thing! I am very proud of my brave little baby.
(Oh, and he gobbled the oral baytril down like a champ, but really, that was expected! After all, he usually fights me for Russell's meds and gets mad when he doesn't get any of them! :lol
What a little trooper he is! I am so proud of Stanley too. He is such a sweetheart. The fact that he could have bit or nipped in self defense (and I would not have blamed him at all) when he was going through all that discomfort and being scared, and yet, he never bit anyone, shows what an absolute sweetheart and a good sport he is. What a sweet baby and SO brave!! That really tells you about what a gentle nature he has. We are SO proud of you Stanley! Poor lil' guy...I know it must be horrible to go through a procedure like that. Give Stan extra kisses from me tonight. He deserves some spoiling too, eh? :thumbsup:
Hi, Vlad! He is doing okay--getting his abscess flushed out with saline 2x daily plus topical Baytril, plus his oral Baytril (which he loves!). There seemed to be a bit of junk in it tonight, so we swabbed the outside of it to get some of it off, and flushed what we could. The vet called to check up on him this morning, and we'll be going back for a checkup in 12 days, unless things get worse before then. Poor boys--they both have to be "tortured" twice a day now for different reasons--Stanley with his abscess and Russell with his foot bumble. Hopefully they'll forgive me!!
Aww, I know how hard that is to feel like you are being "the bad guy" when you have to do something to your babies to help them that is not fun. I hate that feeling too. I am sure they forgive you though.
Don't you wish you could speak ratty, so you could tell them that you are doing all that to help them?
Don't you wish you could speak ratty, so you could tell them that you are doing all that to help them?
Well, tonight we flushed it as usual, and it looks like it's starting to close up...hardly any hole left, though still pink skin visible with a bit of a hole now. This is good, right? He is being a very good boy through all of this.
Wow, that sounds good! I know I am not a vet, but the way you describe it sounds like it is healing up. That is great! Stanley is being such a good boy through all this. I am so proud of him. :thumbsup: Thanks for the update, I am happy it seems like he is getting better!
Got good news today! Stanley had his two-week checkup to make sure everything healed well with his abscess, and the vet was not only very happy with his progress, but actually extremely impressed at how well he's recovered. He felt the area thoroughly, poking and squeezing a bit to see if there was any hard tissue below, and he couldn't find any! Just in case of an underlying infection, he extended the oral Baytril by one more week, but Stanley no longer needs his topical treatment! He said I did a great job taking care of him, because it was a really nasty infection, so I feel really happy! Stanley got a few treats when we got back home, since he was such a good boy.
He said I did a great job taking care of him, because it was a really nasty infection, so I feel really happy! Stanley got a few treats when we got back home, since he was such a good boy. 1 - 20 of 38 Posts
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