Rat fall from shoulders

Question
My rat slid down my back and landed on the lino floor on her feet.  She won't put weight on one of her front legs now - What would a vet do for a rat with an injured leg/shoulder?  Do they put casts on?  She is eating and moving around in her cage - she stands up on her hind legs and holds onto the cage bars to look out but seems to be holding her front leg close to her body and won't walk/stand on it.  What should I do?

Answer
You should get her to the vet.  They can actually cast a rat but they may chew it off. A vet that is well educated in caring for small exotic mammals would operate and put a little pin in the bone if it were a compound fracture.  Something for inflammation may be given as well.  However, if its a sprain, you can put her in a single story cage where she cannot move around much for a few days so she keeps quiet and rests. This may also help, but I would see a vet if you have one, and if not, where are you located? I have a database of vets that see rats I can give you some names.   I tell people never to let their rat stand on their shoulders no matter what. I know rats like to do this but accidents happen so much, sometimes even killing the rat from a broken neck, so I advise people not to let them stand on their shoulders just to be safe.