Charlie Cheese - Weight Loss and Panic Attacks

Question
QUESTION: My best friend and pet rate Charlie Cheese is suffering at the moment.  Charlie is nearly 2 years old and I got him from the adoption centre of our local store of Pets at Home in the UK.  Charlie is an amazing boy and incredibly lovely.  We do loads together, he loves shopping and driving and spends alot of his time on my shoulder especially in the summer months.

Recently Charlie has been loosing weight.  He did weigh 500g and now weighs about 375g.  He has always had a very good appetite and drinks well.  Recently he is totally off his food and it is a struggle to get him to eat much at all.  Previously as a treat he would have a small piece of chocolate or cheese, both his favourites, but at the moment we can only rareely get him to eat even these.  We have tried all sorts, including porridge, honey, apple, nuts, rat treats, rat pellets...

We have taken him to the vets and the vet prescribed Baytril 0.3ml orally once a day.  in the last couple of days he has started to exhibit what appears to be like a panic attack, sometimes after his medication and more recently when he has contact with me.  His breathing becomes extremely laboured through his mouth and he appears to be in some distress.  I speak alot to him and have found placing him on my chest with direct contact to my skin whilst stroking him can calm him down and reduce the stress returning him to a more normal state.  He then starts to relax further and rests.

He is still drinking well, however all the other issues as detailed above are giving me cause for extreme concern.  A friend like Charlie only comes around on in a blue moon and our bond is incredibly strong.  I am therefore desperate to help him and will do anything in my power to do so.  I will however not allow him to unduly suffer but really hope that this is not an option.

Please please please any thoughts, advice or remedies that you might be able to suggest will be tried immediately.  I want my dear friend well!

Thank you in anticipation of your time and response.

Love

Mark (46) and Charlie (nearly 2)

x

ANSWER: I am a bit concerned as this sounds like one of two things, sometimes both.  I need to ask  if he has a history of respiratory illness?  Also, do me a favor and refer to my site, sandyscrittercity.com and check out the signs and symptoms of heart disease in rats.  He may have one or the other or both (often lung and heart disease go hand in hand)  Also check for blue extremities.  Note if his tail muzzle is also blue and also tell me how pink his ears look or if the veins in his ears are more prominent and if the color of his ears are more red than normal.  Go over the symptoms of heard disease by using my website and please get back to me as soon as possible.  

http://www.sandyscrittercity.com/heartlungkidneydisease.htm

Let me know every illness he has ever had and mode of treatment too.

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi Sandra,

What can I say....I love you!

I was due to take Charlie for his last one way visit to our standard vet, until I read your reply and all the information you directed me to on your website describing the symptoms of heart desease.  Every symptom described exactly matched Charlie, down to the mysterious unexplained massive swelling of his left rear foot about 2 months previously (suggested at the time to be the bite of a domestic spider).

As a result of the information you provided I looked for an Exotic Vets and found one only half an hour away in East Sheen.  I called this morning when they opened at 8.30 and they agreed to seeing Charlie at 9.30.


The Vets specialises in Exotics and it turns out that over 75% of their patients are 'exotics' (Charlie is dead chuffed to be in this classification...only right for such an amazing boy!).

Charlie received introvenous fluids, and injection of diahoretics.  We also came away with liquid oral antibiotics, diahoretics and something I cant remember the name of to open his blood vessels to take additional strain away from his heart.

Only time will tell and apparently the next 3 days will give a good indication...but importantly Charlie did not today have a one way journey...but instead a two way journey HOME!!!

By the time got home the diahoretics had kicked in and the shoulder of my shirt what drenched in rat pee...never have I been so pleased to be wee'd on, proving that something was working.  Furthermore, when Charlie was put back in his home he immediately went downstairs and has a good drink on his own, rather than me needing as was suggested to force him to take water.

I can' thank you personally enough for taking your time to reply anf help both me and my best mate Charlie...please keep your fingers and toes crossed for his continued improvement.

Thanks also to Allexperts for the facility you provide, essential at such critical times.

Sandra, I would like to show you who you have helps and will therefore email a few pictures of the amazing Charlie Cheese by way of a thank you.

Please keep up the good work and continue to add to your website, I for one will be a regular visitor.

Love

Mark and Charlie Cheese

xxx

Answer
I am SO happy to hear that you found a good vet to help your little man. This is the rewarding part of being a rat health care advisor.  I only hope he continues to improve with treatment. I base most of my work on my own experiences with my rats and also rats I have worked with over the years, and sadly, I have seen many illnesses with my rats and other rats too....some that many people dont even think their rat could have, such as meningitis, brain aneurysm etc... and since many vets do not focus on rats as closely as I have, I have a tendency to see the entire picture, putting not only medical symptoms but their behavior into perspective that helps better match a more accurate diagnosis.

Anyhow, please send photos of your Charlie to Sandyscrittercity@ yahoo.com. I would love to see him and also include him in my Critter city site if you dont mind. I love to add other peoples rats on there.  As for all experts, its a great site, but keep in mind that some people that are added as volunteers really do not have half the knowledge they should have in order to take on a task like this. People write here hoping for an answer and if people guess their way through, thats not a good thing. The best way is to read past answers first before going through with questions. I do not take ratings because I dont need praised nor do I need criticized for volunteering many many hours of my own time to help people I may never cross paths with again, so I refuse to get upset or have my feelings hurt because someone didnt like my answers, if that makes sense.  I love rats and know how hard it is to find good health care for them and how misunderstood they are as pets in general, so I decided long ago to donate my time and energy to help educate people that share my passion, which is loving rats as pets!  PLEASE keep me posted throughout his recovery and keep up the good work taking care of Charlie!