In search of a vet in NJ

Question
QUESTION: Hi Sandra,

I was wondering if you knew of a rat friendly and knowledgable vet in Morris County area of NJ (zip is 07876). I have found a rat specialist in NYC who is supposed to be excellent, however, the cost of having a consultation with him is exceedly expensive (over a hundred dollars!). Right now my rat has a tumor that is growing at a slow rate, she has been on antibiotics for the past 2 weeks to rule out infection before I proceed with surgery for her. There are vets in my area that treat rats, but I don't feel they are very knowledgable about them. So if you have any contacts for good and reasonable vets in my area please let me know. I would greatly appeciate it.

ANSWER: First choice would be:

Anneliese Strunk, DVM
Red Bank Veterinary Hospital    
197 Hance Avenue
 Tinton Falls NJ 07724
Phone:    732-747-3636
Website: www.rbvh.com


Second choice:
Advanced Care Small & Exotic Veterinary Hospital
1991 US Highway 22
Boundbrook, NJ 08805
(physically located in Bridgewater)
(732) 764-9595


Not sure how far you are from these places. Let me know if they are too far and I will check more.

The lump that is growing slow, where is it located? What does it look like? Is there a scab on it or a pit in the center, etc?
How old is your rattie?



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

QUESTION: Hi Sandra,

The two locations you listed in NJ are a bit of a distance, but I appreciate your help  nevertheless. So, an update on my rat... She is about 14 months of age, and the lump is slowly getting bigger. There is no scab or pit in the center that I know of. It is located  on her rear in her groin area. I did get a second opinion by a vet who performed many operations on my pet dog, and surprisingly he knew a great deal on rats and does many surgeries on them as well. He felt her tumor was a fatty tumor, and I scheduled to have it removed this upcoming Friday. So I hope she can handle the surgery and it will probably be traumatic for her. One question...what can I do to prep my rat for the surgery and how can I ease her recovery afterwards...are there any important things that I should take note of? My biggest worry is her bitting the switching off her surgery location. I feel like I'll have to keep a constant eye on her at all times.

Thanks,
Heather

Answer
Hi

I doubt it is fatty, it is in the prime location as the mammary glands. Fatty tumors also do not grow at a fast pace. However, it still needs removed and I am glad your having it done. It will do nothing but get bigger and become very vascular. If the vet is good with surgery on rats, there should be no trauma for her at all. These things peel right off and are rarely invasive. If the vet, once again, is good with surgery on rats, he should know to stitch it twice, inside and out, and not pulling the stitches too tight. Pain medication and antibiotics are something the vet should give. Its too easy for the surgical site to become infected. We are, after all, talking about rats, who, even if they are litter trained, can still get soiled easily and this can cause infection. Also, the pain medication will keep her comfortable and will keep her from messing with her surgical site. She should leave it alone and the first 3 days are the most critical while the skin starts to heal and fuse together.  He may want to use staples but I would ask him NOT to use them unless she pulls the first set of sutures out. Staples are painful. The pain medication should NOT be metacam, which is nothing more than Advil. She should be given a narcotic pain medication. We use torbutrol/
torbugesic for three days post op and our rats recover wonderfully without incident.
Did he suggest she not be fed after midnight before surgery ?  
If so, let me know....this is important to note which will tell you alot about the vet that is going to operate on your rat and will tell you how much he really knows about rats.
I would also ask what type of anesthesia they use. In fact, check out my website about vets and it will give you a list of things that should be available to your rat during surgery, from the proper implements to being kept warm both during and after surgery, which is vital for the rats survival.

Here is the URL:

http://www.freewebs.com/crittercity/therightvetforyourrat.htm