Help on rat issue

Question
Hi, I own two rats which live in a decent sized cage and are pretty happy with life. But one of them I'm concerned about and possibly know what it is but I need help confirming. Last week one side of her cheek started to swell. I, distracted at the time, thought of it as her cramming food into her mouth. But by Thursday it had grown larger, and she has a scab on her cheek by her ear. It's half closed her eye and she doesn't look like she can eat or drink, because she feels small and frail compared to my other healthy one. I'm thinking it's either an abscess or a tumor, but I'm not sure if it's life threatening for what. I'm only asking if she really needs to see a vet badly or if its the scab thats doing something, or even, though it can't be possible, her teeth. I hope you can help me out here.

Answer

Happy Easter Ari

I am a bit worried about this....please refer to my website, sandydscrittercity.com and refer to the page titled "Tumor on side of face"    Please study the photos of the other rats featured on there...let me know if the mass your rat has is located in this area.   If th is is indeed    zymbals gland tumor, it is indeed serious and life threatening. However, 80% of the vets in this country that claim to treat rats are clueless about rat ailments esp those that are in depth, such as certain diseases and injuries, even something that seems simple enough like having misaligned jaw where the teeth do not meet properly so therefore they do not wear down right like they normally should such as during eating and when they brux.  The vet may tell the client to give their rat wood to gnaw on to get the teeth down, not realzing the rat has a deformity that has led to malocclusion.  The list goes on.....rats being put to sleep because they are dizzy and have head tilt and the clueless vet says the rat has a brain tumor and all along it was from an inner ear infection, leaving the rat to  have been put to sleep for NO REASON.  The reason I am telling you this is because if your rat has zymbals tumor, many vets are not familiar with thiis and will try to cut it out, only to have it return days later, filling up with pus again, putting the rat through sheer misery.  In other words, please let me check the credentials on your vet OR give you names of vets that know what they are doing before spending a dime on  this.  Comfort is key if it is zymbals though, but time will tell.

Let me know if the photos match you rats mass.