Old rat going senile and breathing issues

Question
hi sandra

i have a 32 month old rat. I have spoken to you before about her, she had
vaginal bleeding and then got a bad baytril burn at the vets, and i couldn't
decide if i should spay her, i don't know if you remember her or not.

Well i decided not to spay and that was almost 2 months ago i think. The
vaginal bleeding has stopped since then and only reappeared once. A tumor
has developed in her lower body cavity i'm assuming in her uterus. It is about
the size of a grape and has not grown for about a month now. She is still very
active cleans herself all over moves around with no problems.

One day she seemed to be struggling with breathing and her little feet and
lips were turing blue. She did not have any red mucus on her nose and did
not have raspy breathing but was gasping for breathe. i was prescribed
Theophylline "to help open her broncilli to get more oxygen into her lungs" as
i remember my vet describing it.

This has worked and she breathes much better but ever since that day she
started to turn blue she seems to have forgotten certain things. She will not
drink from the water bottle at all. When i offer it to her she looks at it like it is
a foreign object.  i track the water amount and it does not go down. She will
drink from a small dish if i mix the water with something else, like yogurt or
banana baby food, and until about a week ago she wouldn't eat from her food
bowl.

If i remove her from her cage she gets panicy. This has gotten better and she
now is pretty calm on the couch or in her cage or in my hands close to her
cage. if i take her any where else she panics and has a breathing attawk.

Sorry this is so long. Recently she has developed what i'm assuming is myco
as she has red on her nose and sounds like some fluid in her lungs. i went to
make an appointment with my vet  for antibotics but he apprently has left
that clinic and the vet tech said she didn't know what clinic he was at now??
The back up vet i have there who is also a knowledgable rat vet is outta town
until next week. The vet they have subbing for him doesn't know rats.

SO here are my problems/questions:

1. Do you know why she may be acting sorta senile? is it a side effect from
the theophylline?

2. I am afraid to take her to the vet  out of her comfort zone becuase of her
panic attawks/ what looks like an asthma attawks.

3.I was planning on seeing if my vet would prescibe her an antibotic by me
just coming for an appointment without the rat but even the back up vet isn't
there till next week.
i do have a Chloramphenicol Palmitate at home from a previous rat her size
that is still within the expiry date can i give her this until i can see the vet
next week or is it too strong? it says on a rat medical chart i looked up that it
works against mycoplasma?

And she is still on the Theophylline

Thank you for your help i'm sorry this is so long. Kinda of a complicated old
rat.  

Answer
By all means, start her on the Chloramphenicol. She may be getting a secondary infection.  SHe may also have heart disease. With the fact she is hypoxic and shows signs of cyanosis (blue extremeties from lack of oxygen) it would not shock me at all if she had heart disese on top of lung disaeas. They often go hand in hand.

Continue the theo as needed.  I have a male like this but he has heart disease.  He is fine in his cage...you would not know he has any problems, but soon as he gets out of the cage he freaks and panics and breathes rapidly. He has cardiomyopathy but the heart meds dont seem to work well like they have on other rats so we just keep him in the cage and I pet him from there etc..
I would keep on the fluid you think you hear in her lungs. She may need lasix.  Myco wouldnt cause this but pneumonia would as would congestive heart failure.

I would also find the nearest ER clinic that treats rats and keep an emergency cage handy for her in case you need to transport her should she have really serious issues.  

Also, I have had rats on liquid valium before too. ALthough some vets may worry that it may supress respirations but it has been known to also help calm a panicked rat so its worth it to ask the vet about it too.

Here are your questions:

1. Do you know why she may be acting sorta senile? is it a side effect from the theophylline?  It could be lack of oxygen to the brain.

2. I am afraid to take her to the vet  out of her comfort zone because of her panic attacks/ what looks like an asthma attacks.
Ask the vet for valium in liquid form. It wont stone her because of her metabolic rate burning it up. I have had alot of great results with it and it has calmed the most panicked rats I have had that gasped and would dart around gasping till the valium kicked in.

3.I was planning on seeing if my vet would prescibe her an antibotic by me
just coming for an appointment without the rat but even the back up vet isn't
there till next week.
i do have a Chloramphenicol Palmitate at home from a previous rat her size
that is still within the expiry date can i give her this until i can see the vet
next week or is it too strong? it says on a rat medical chart i looked up that it
works against mycoplasma?

I would start it right now, today. No it is NOT too strong. She should have something in her system.It wont hurt her at all.

*****

Hope this helps you out!  Please keep me posted.