Testicular Cancer?

Question
QUESTION: Hi Sandra.
I feel like such a bug :P always emailing you. haha.

But Rufus, being as old as he is, isn't doing to good :(
Yesterday he was laying in his bed, and he cant hear anything anymore, so i went into his cage to get him and he didn't move. he didn't even get scared and bite me when i touched him like he usually does. when i picked him up he still wouldn't move. it scared me so much. he was breathing though so i knew he was still alive. me and my friend had pickles on a plate and i guess he smelled them and that perked him up a little bit. i gave him a some of the pickle juice just on my finger tip and he got up. (thank god!)

but that's not what i'm emailing you about.
Today i was cleaning his cage and he was walking around on my bed. i noticed he was walking funny. and for about a week now hes been urinating a lot, like on the floor and on my bed and in his blankets. its like he cant control it. For about 2 days this week he stopped eating and drinking, but now he is drinking a little and will only eat baby food. but his left testicle is swollen, purple and very soft. i cant find anything about testicular cancer or abscesses on the internet.
got any ideas?

ANSWER: Hii Teagan and no yooor not a bug. I am happy you feel yo can trust me ad

Whoa boy.  He needs a vet now.  He probably has testicular abscess, but dont worry, much to his dismay, he will be fine once he is neutered.

I have seen this many times at the clinic an d had it happen to my own rat once, the rat in the photo on my profile that is licking my face had a swollen testicle and it was blue. I knew already it was an abscess since it was so acute. He was neutered and that was that. All better.
If it isnt taken care of the testicle will burst and he will bleed out which of course would be fatal.

Now here is the golden question that I dont know if I asked before (I am old I forget easy)  Do yo have an exotics vet?




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QUESTION: okay, i will call the vet tomorrow. and no we dont have ony :( i usually get all my information from the internet or from the winnipeg rat specialist and then i go to my veterinarian and tell them what to do.
its about 80 dollars to neuter them. i heard that it was really hard for rats to heal after a surgery like that and thats worse when your rat is as old as rufus. is this true?

ANSWER: No its not true. I had to have an emergency neuter on my old rat and he did fine.  He may have an abscess in the testicles but its not worth waiting days for the meds to work UNLESS there is proof it is an abscess and not a tumor which in turn means you need a qualified vet for this  diagnosis.

 You do need a better vet though. I would worry having someone operate on my rat that isnt real experienced.


Are you near this place? I would go here first before any other vet.....

Centennial Animal Hospital
Dr McDonald
2747 Pembina Hwy
Winnipeg, Manitoba
R3T 2H5

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

QUESTION: that place is about 2 hours away driving, i have called there before for information, they were really good!
but im completely stumped now!
yesterday it was the same as how i explained it and today, they look normal, not swelled anymore, regular coloured and he is now walking back to normal as well. :S could he have just got  caught in something?
but he still isn't drinking..:(

Answer
Get him to drink even kool aid.....use a dropper.

He could have banged it on something..... just watch him. If its normal, there isnt anything the vet can see, but I would feel better if you took him and told him what occured....maybe he can feel something you are not seeing.