VERY sick rat!

Question
QUESTION: I have written to you before about my rat, Emerson.  I finally found a vet in Phoenix who seemed knowledgeable.  She put him on a stronger Batril and Doxycycline.  Also  he had hair loss that spread to his head and he had crusty eyes.  Come to find out the poor guy had sarcoptic mange AND lice!!  He was treated one week ago yesterday for all of the above.  When I brought him in he was on death's door.  Within 3 days he was MUCH better and quit his labored breathing and began eating again.  Some days he would eagerly take food, other days he would turn  his nose up to it.  He did take his meds with a teaspoon of yogurt which he loves.  He has been getting more and more active and his coat, in just a week's time, looks so much better.  His eyes cleared up and he looked on the mend.  Yesterday he seemed lethargic and refused food.  When we took him out of his cage we noticed he appeared almost "blind" and could hardly walk - a HUGE difference from the day before!!  Suddenly he looks old and ragged.  He doesn't have that moist sound in his lungs anymore but his breathing is labored.  He looks terribly skinny and refuses food.  He tried to sit up and eat granola from our hand last night but was unable to sit up so he held on to it and tried repeatedly to eat until he gave up but held on to the nugget.  I was sure he would die in the night but this morning he is laying seemingly comfortably but no activity.  Again, he appears to not be able to see.  He was treated systemically and topically for the bugs w/o reaction.  One week later, to the day, he appears at death's door.  Can you explain what might be going on???

ANSWER: Has the vet taken any blood work on the rat?

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

QUESTION: Emerson died this morning at about 1AM, laying on my son's lap.  I truly believe he was in heart failure.  I finally got a vet to call in the meds and I gave him the one dose but it was obvious he wasn't going to rally.  I had not noticed how cyanotic he had gotten and he finally had rear leg paresis.  I have cried my heart out all morning for this little guy and will sorely miss him!  I can't believe how much I fell in love with him.  All I know is that he knew he was loved -- I only wish I had been more educated and then tenacious with the vets to get for him what I believed he needed.  Thanks for your advice and I hope you continue to help others.

Answer
I am so sorry for your loss:(

Dont feel guilty about not being educated as much as you think you should have been. To be honest, it is up to the Vet to know what is wrong with our rats, we should not have to play guessing games and we certainly should not be expected to know all about rat care etc...but sadly there are not enough exotic vets to care for our rats and more than half the vets that do see them do not really know much more than the basics. The sad part about owning rats is that we learn from out mistakes and unfortunately the one that suffers for it is the rat. This is why I do what I do....to teach people, educate them....I try to make my website easy on the eyes, easy to read and understand and make it easy for people to understand and remember what they read rather than have it be technical mumbo jumbo I put things more in laymens terms to make it easy.

Again, I am so sorry about Emerson. He is all better now.