Respiratory Distress

Question
QUESTION: Hello,

I have a 9-10 month old rat who has been suffering some respiratory distress. He and his two brothers have always done a bit of sneezing, but he started to lose weight, have labored breathing, and wheeze. I took him to the vet and she prescribed a 0.2 cc's of baytril/doxy suspension twice a day for 7 days for him and 5 days for his brothers. His weight was down to 300-something grams, and he was very lethargic.

During the course of antibiotics he perked up right away. He's since resumed fairly normal activity levels. He still eats plenty and seems to drink enough, although I feel like he's dehydrated and he's not putting weight back on.

I've noticed the past couple days that his wheeze has returned. He's hiccup-chirping, and his breathing, although not as labored, still seems fast.

I plan on calling the vet tomorrow. Is there another course of action I can take? I've read that rats need to be on antibiotics for longer periods of time to combat respiratory illness. Is the doxy/baytril combo a good one?

Is there anything I can do to help him, apart from going back to the vet/getting him back on antibiotics? Is there anything you can suggest as a good way to put weight back on a rat, or to help keep him hydrated?

I'm located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and I've been taking him to Dr. Gemeroth at High Country Veterinary Clinic. I used to take my females to see her, and she did a great job removing mammary tumors, but I haven't ever brought her rats with myco flare-ups. Is there another vet in the Springs you know of that you'd recommend more highly?

I'd really appreciate any advice.

Sincerely,
Rachel

ANSWER: Oh my, this is not good at all.

For starters, the vet has not treated him properly, which is no shocker.  This is what gets under my skin about vets and gets me going! Vets that treat rats yet have no idea what they are doing and end up causing more harm than good.

What happened is this:  Your little guy had/has mycoplasmosis pulmonis, which is pleomorphic organism that lacks a cell wall. Most rodents, including pet rodents in the general pet population carry this organism, which is responsible for the vast majority of respiratory and genital infections in rats, including otitis media (inner ear infection)

Vets are taught this in College, but they do not focus on the proper treatment. They may or may not remember that mycoplasmosis lacks a cell wall, which means that it requires an antibiotic. Most antibiotics attack and destroy the cell wall of bacteria, but since myco lacks a cell wall, an antibiotic that is made to destroy the cell itself is needed.  If the wrong medication is used, it wont work and the victim will not recover.  The good news is the vet gave the proper medication, but bad news is, the medication was not used long enough to properly destroy the bacteria, and your at has relapsed. This is very bad news because there may be irreversible do the lungs such as scarring or even blistering.  If this is the case, chronic respiratory  disease including pneumonia, can set in.  
In order to avoid this, the first sign of respiratory disease must be treated using the proper medication for at least 4 weeks, preferably 6 weeks. Should there be a relapse, it is advised the rat be treated the same, but once the rat improves, the medication can be decreased to once a day for the rest of the rats life to prevent even more damage to the rats lungs.
More info can be found on my website, sandyscrittercity.com. Refer to the page titled MYCOPLASMOSIS.
Although the vet you have seen did a good job removing a mammary tumor, this does not imply this vet knows how to treat rat disease properly. In fact, I bet if I ask you a few things about the surgery I will be able to point out several mistakes that were made that you may not have been aware of.  For starters, was the rat kept over night the first night after surgery and if not, was she kept there for at least 12 hrs after surgery? Was she sent home on narcotic pain medication or given metacam/meloxicam for the pain? Were antibiotics given post op?  Were external stitches used?  Things like that......
This vet is NOT an avian/exotic vet and hopefully she has never claimed to be anything more than a general DVM.  Many vets say they are the exotic vet on staff, which can confuse people into thinking they are dealing with a real board certified avian/exotic in these cases.  
You can do one of two things: Return to this vet, but this time, be armed with knowledge about respiratory disease in rats, complete with the print out about how to treat it from my website so you can discuss this with the vet. However, most vets turn their nose up on outside advice, esp from a lay person such as myself, despite the fact I have enough confidence to say that I probably know more than your vet does about rat care.

As for a new vet, I have several names for you.  How far are you from

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

QUESTION: Thanks for getting back to me so quickly.

At the end of your reply you said, "As for a new vet, I have several names for you. How far are you from"

and then the message cut off. Could you please re-send the names of the exotic vets? I don't really want to take him back to my original vet if she won't know how to treat him properly.

(Answers to your questions about the surgeries: No, they were not kept overnight. They were kept around 8 hours. They were given pain meds. I'm not sure if antibiotics were given directly following surgery, but they weren't prescribed meds for me to administer at home. She did use external stitches.)

Thanks again,
Rachel

Answer
Dr. Jerry Labonde
Homestead small animal and Exotic Animal Hospital
6900 South Holly Circle
Englewood, CO 80112
(303) 290-8233

Above is a bit of a drive I see as I compared it to the Yahoo driving directions. Below is in your neck of the woods.  Here is the deal (you will think I am nuts but oh well. LOL)  The facility below lists (on their website) that they have EXPERTISE in exotic mammals including rats etc... which irks me, so I called.  I asked right off if they have real bonafide certified Avian/exotic specialists and she said "No, they are hard to find here" which is no joke, and she went on to say that what that statement meant is the people that see these small exotic companion mammals have tons of experience seeing them, they see rats all the time. So I put her on the spot. I told her that my rat has respiratory infection AGAIN after only being treated for 5 to 7 days. I told her I found a Vet that was an exotic vet (which is true, since the exotic vet that is my mentor has taught me everything I know) and I told her I was told that when they have this type of problem they should be treated 21 to 30 days and if they relapse, they should be treated for the rest of their life.  She said she knows all about that, they see it all the time and I said "If I come in there, I must be assured that my rat will be on medication for at least 21 to 30 days...because truthfully I am tired of Vets that say they treat rats and are clueless about them"  She said she fully understands and I wont be disappointed. No names used etc...she said they would get my rat in the same day, which is awesome.  I would go ahead and print out my info on mycoplasmosis and call for an appointment.  Its your call, of course, or you can drive a bit out to see the other place (I did not call them)  but they are not any more experienced than the one below.  The exotic clinics are two hours from  you, unfortunately. They are listed below:

Dr. Katherine Phillips
Dublin Animal Hospital
888 Dublin Blvd
Colorado Springs CO 80918
Phone:  (719) 593-1336
Website: www.dublinanimalhospital.com
    
When I asked about what the other vet did when they removed the tumor:
You said they used external sutures.....they best way to go on rats is to use the newest method and that is stitching from the inside, and putting glue on the outside. This way, nothing pulls and this in turn makes it so comfortable for the rat, they dont even try to pick the incision. Read my page on Post surgical complications to see what I mean.
Also, antibiotics should always be used post op, for at least 5 days. And the pain medication should have been given to you to give her at home and should NOT have been metacam, which I bet my last dollar it was. Metacam is an NSAID most vets use post op its nothing more than a fancy advil. Humans use it for arthritis pain.  Tell me, would the vet herself use advil if she had an incision half the size of her body? I bet she   would be on morphine pumping through her veins. LOL

Anyhow, please let me know what you decide to do.



Dr. Elizabeth Kremzier
Avian and Exotic Veterinary Service     
180 Fiou Lane Suite 101
Basalt CO 81621
Phone:  970-927-4146



Dr. Jolynn Chappell
 Aspen Wing Bird and Animal Hospital
 3904 West Eisenhower Blvd
 Loveland CO 80537
Phone:  970-635-1850
Website: www.aspenwing.com