My ill female rat

Question
I'm not sure where to begin, so I guess I'll start at the beginning.  My female rat is about 1 1/2 years old.  Recently she was diagnosed with an abscess which was lanced and given Baytril and I used the warm compresses. A week later another abscess (same place) appeared so the vet drained it, I used warm packs again but it has come back. They sent off some drainage and had it cultured, then they switched her to Clavamox..for this Strep strain. Meanwhile, she has developed an inner-ear infection (she has a head-tilt and scratching at her ear)and was given Baytril.  The head tilt is a little better, not much tho (it's been 4 days now)she still has that proaphen coming from her eye..(she may have a cold too) She is eating, drinking and pooping.  My question is, I have read about giving rats with a head tilt, a steroid.  My vet has not prescribed that. They do work with exotic animals (a lot of rats are brought to them) Also, they want to surgically remove the abscess.  I am nervous to do this till she is totally well because they will be putting her under general anesthesia. I know they want to wait also. Any answers will be greatly appreciated.  Thank you!

Answer
Hi Debbie


Where is the abscess at?  Also, an exotic vet knows that in order to get a rat better when they have signs of pressure on the vestibular cochlear nerve, which is the nerve that controls balance in the brain, they only way to get this under control is to use steroids or metacam, but steroids is the best route to take. Even if they work with exotics this doesnt mean they are exotic Vets. There are only a few hundred exotic vets in the world. Removing an abscess surgically is not real common either so I dont feel real comfortable about this either.
There are things you can ask your vet if you want to know if they are board certified exotics or just regular vets that see dogs, cats and exotics on the side. This is not always a bad thing, mind you, but often they are much more prepared to handle dogs and cats and the small mammals get substitutes during surgery, such as instruments that are meant for larger animals and not just for small mammals. Its not cost effective for these vets to purchase two or three different instruments or machines etc....when the vast majority of their patients are dogs and cats.  This can make it more risky for the rat.  A good exotic vet will have a set up for the rat or small animal to stay overnight if the case is critical or after surgery and they should have their own small incubator type cage that has oxygen piped in if needed etc... You can check my website for info on making sure your vet is prepared to handle surgery safely for your rat. Here is the URL.

Meanwhile, if you want me to check the credentials of the vet just for curiousity you can make this follow up private so nobody else can read it but you and I.  

Is the abscess on her face, by chance, between the ear and the jaw?