My Finale is Dying....

[starsevol]

He is gasping and running and there are NO evets open. If he is still here in the morning he is going right to the vet. It is after midnight here. Is there anything I can do to ease him or help him? I had some Vicks vapor rub but he didnt like it....I feel so helpless...There are no ashma meds or anything like that in the medicine cabinet...he licked some nutrical off my finger about 20 minutes before he started running....

[rapforjane]

Chocolate can help a rat breathe. If you have chocolate available, I'd give him some.

[WS]

Aww. I'm so sorry, starsevol
   
       I hope your little guy made it through.   It's hard when you don't have a vet on-call or a 24 hour hospital.    -- Good luck and  (hug)

  - Here's some information if one of your rats has respiratory distress at home (and if you can't get to a vet):

Usually, a rat who "runs" or "dashes" and gasps for breath is having an acute respiratory distress and is not able to get enough oxygen to the brain. (Unfortunately this causes a kind of panic reaction that can make the situation worse)    -  NOT ALL RATS who "dash" or who have these symptoms die.    Depending on the cause, a rat can make a recovery with treatment.   This "dashing" may also come and go but it isn't a good sign, I'm afraid.   Rats who are dashing because they cannot breathe usually need to be put into oxygen chambers and be warmed because their body temperature drops rapidly as blood oxygen concentrations lower.   If you can, get your rat to a vet right away!

When you can't take your rat anywhere to see a vet, there is often little you can do at home but you CAN keep your rat a little more calm and comfortable by avoiding handing your rat (which is hard because you want to comfort them but this actually stimulates their revved-up autonomic nervous systems) too much if he is trying to run.  If you have a small cage or travel box, put your rat in it and cover it partially with a sweater or something to make your rat feel somewhat enclosed.  This will also help your rat be warm.  If your rat will let you, you may stroke your little guy or lay your hand across him to keep him warm. (Cagemates will sometimes avoid a rat who is having a problem like this and it's OK to take them out of their normal cage if this happens)  You can also use a warm watter bottle under the cage (only under part of the cage) to elevate body temperature.   Rats who can't breathe will extend their neck and try to lift their heads and may take breaths through the mouth (if your rat is mouth breathing, he can't breathe: rats are obligate nasal breathers)  ----   Rolling up a towel or a sock or using your hands to elevate your rat's upper body will be comfortable and help him to breathe.    Steam can help, but often does not once breathing has become that bad and can sometimes make breathing more difficult.  Chocolate is a good idea as well but doesn't have the effect of medication.  Your rat will not want to eat or drink anything when he is having this symptom so it's a good idea to have your vet show you how to administer medications or liquids or foods if needed when your rat can't help you by cooperating.

If you don't have a 24 hour emergency vet-clinic in your area, you can talk to your veterinarian about what types of things you might do or might be able to have at home in case of breathing emergencies after-hours.   Your vet might give you a prescription for an oral bronchodilator or other "rescue" type medication or might even supply you with (or write a prescription for) the equipment to nebulize (turn into a fine mist) these kinds of medications to get straight into the airways. (You may have this stuff if you're asthmatic)   These medications have powerful cardio-pulmonary effects so be very careful and make sure you get proper dosing instructions from your vet and never give your rat any asthma medication in a metered-dose-inhaler (like Primatene Mist) or any of your own medicine.      Using a nebulizer, a typical dose for an adult rat is 0.10 - 0.20ml of liquid Albuterol (which come in little plastic ampules)  in 2ml (two one cc-syringe-fulls) of sterile saline but you must check with your vet to be sure what (if any) dose is appropriate for your rats.     (You can buy sterile saline from the pharmacy or vet or you can... which is cheaper... buy "Simple Saline" -a nasal mist that is safe for home-nebulizers.  You spray it into a clean paper cup to gather your dose and one small bottle lasts for several doses and keeps for a long time.   It's also available at grocery stores.   

One last note:  Even though some places just don't have anything at all, -  I've talked to a couple of folks who live in pretty small towns and were unaware of any 24 hour pet-hospital but when talking it over with their veterinarians, found out there WAS a staffed hospital in the area or an emergency-on-call vet through their own office- so it never hurts to double check and to ask your vet-doctor about who they refer after-hours emergencies to.

[starsevol]

This morning he is still here...making horrible noises and not moving much BUT he did eat his banana slice. I am trying to get through to the vet but the line is busy....

[starsevol]

The earliest they could see him is 3...please pray for my widdle man..

[lularat]

Prayers on the way for your little man. Poor baby, I hope everything works out well for him.

[kmw]

Honestly, if he was that bad, I would drive him to the vet's office and leave him there to be seen ASAP when the vet gets 2 minutes.  But, I'm pushy like that.

[ckhs]

Honestly, if he was that bad, I would drive him to the vet's office and leave him there to be seen ASAP when the vet gets 2 minutes.  But, I'm pushy like that.

This is what i would do also, at the very least they can get him into an oxygen tank pronto.
Good luck.

[starsevol]

I wish I could...the vet isn't in the office til 2 and she's the only one there that treats "exotics"....

[rampantrats]

Keep us updated.. HUGS I am so sorry.

[starsevol]

My stomach hurts and I can't stop shaking.
I'm at work now. I plan to leave at 2, we can be at the vet by 2:30 in case they can get us in early.

He has been sick since August and nothing ever cleared him up. He has sounded awful for about a month but Friday when I cleaned his cage he rearranged the bedding and poppcorned all over the place just like normal.
Imagine a bald sick skinny old man poppcorning.....

[dwankrista]

my fingers (and my ratties' little toes) are crossed for you both.  keep us updated!

[starsevol]

In the waiting room I held him and was talking to a nice man who had a ferret with an adrenal tumor. Finale was calm but struggling to breathe and really noisy. When we were called into the little room, while we were waiting for the vet, he started to gasp openmouthed and wheeze and struggle. It was horrifying, I was shaking when the vet came in. Anyway, she gave him an injection of dex and one of enalapril (I think that was it) and he will go back for a recheck on Wednesday. The total cost of the visit was $30 (I LOVE my vet) and even though we know Finale's days are numbered, he seems much more comfortable. He is making less noise, had a little nutrical, shredded a towel and now is sleeping under his towel bedding, which is a very Finale-like thing to do.

Thank you everyone for your support through this.

[Wisefool]

Sounds like the myco I lost one of my babies to.  Buy some robitussin (just the regular kind, nothing with extra meds in it.  Guaifenesin syrup only.)  Give 0.1 mL twice a day to help clear his lungs.  It did a lot to help save my other girls while the antibiotics kicked in.

Good luck and prayers for you both.

[Minnow]

the gasping you are describing,  is he opening and closing his mouth and making a sort of  hiccuping noise, or looks sort of like he is trying to vomit?  my boy did this for a few minutes last night (he looked like my cats do when they are working up a hairball), and them seemed perfectly normal.  i thought maybe he just had a piece of food stuck in his throat that he was working down.  but now you have me worried.

[Marybelle]

the gasping you are describing,  is he opening and closing his mouth and making a sort of  hiccuping noise, or looks sort of like he is trying to vomit?  my boy did this for a few minutes last night (he looked like my cats do when they are working up a hairball), and them seemed perfectly normal.  i thought maybe he just had a piece of food stuck in his throat that he was working down.  but now you have me worried.

It sounds like what you're describing is exactly what you thought.  If he were gasping for air, it would continue, and he wouldn't be back to normal.  You'd at least see some other symptoms.  I think your boy just needs to slow down when he eats. 

[Wisefool]

Starsevol, any update?  Still keeping everything crossed here.

[DolciLady]

Poor baby passed.  Check out her post in Rat Tails.

Robin