We thought it was an abscess, so we took him to the vet and they put him on antibiotics. They didn't work, though. It kept growing. Everything we read said that sometimes abscesses have to get WAY WORSE before they will break and drain and then the healing can take place. So, we kept treating him with the antibiotics hoping that either that would help, or it would come to a head and be able to drain.
That didn't happen.
Then one evening, we went into the office, and there was blood all over one of the hammocks.
The thing had broke open, and it was full of blood.
We took him into the vet where they did x-rays.
NO tumor.
Everything on the x-ray looks fine other than just this sac filled with blood.
The vet aspirated it and said nothing but blood came out, no pus.
She sent us home with a stronger antibiotic.
I had contacted his breeder, and she was stumped.
She's been breeding show pet rats for a while now, and so she's come across LOTS of different rat issues.
But never this.
She researched and researched and contacted another breeder who she used a rat at some point, in Grinderman's line, to breed, and what they came up with is a possible hemangioma.
Everything they found, though, pertained to humans.
From what I've read they can treat them (depending on what kind it is?) with either steroids or laser surgery.
He's eating ok, acting ok. And he has the entire time.
I'm just afraid he's going to bleed out eventually from this, and there isn't much I can do about it.
Just a little down, I guess. He's my favorite rat in the trio.
That didn't happen.
Then one evening, we went into the office, and there was blood all over one of the hammocks.
The thing had broke open, and it was full of blood.
We took him into the vet where they did x-rays.
NO tumor.
Everything on the x-ray looks fine other than just this sac filled with blood.
The vet aspirated it and said nothing but blood came out, no pus.
She sent us home with a stronger antibiotic.
I had contacted his breeder, and she was stumped.
She's been breeding show pet rats for a while now, and so she's come across LOTS of different rat issues.
But never this.
She researched and researched and contacted another breeder who she used a rat at some point, in Grinderman's line, to breed, and what they came up with is a possible hemangioma.
Everything they found, though, pertained to humans.
From what I've read they can treat them (depending on what kind it is?) with either steroids or laser surgery.
He's eating ok, acting ok. And he has the entire time.
I'm just afraid he's going to bleed out eventually from this, and there isn't much I can do about it.
Just a little down, I guess. He's my favorite rat in the trio.