been to a vet

Question
Hi Sandra,
It's Michelle and Nimh again. I found a new vet today who sees exotics often and is experienced. The news was not wonderful. He says he can remove the tumor but the size of it is now also an issue. It doesn't look good and it's attached to her back leg which may cause some problems in the healing process. He says it appears vascular and incapsulated but it has several hard nodules throughout. He has put her on an anti-inflammatory and she is booked for surgery on Monday if I decide to do it. It is going to cost more than $500.00 and could go up depending on the length of the surgery. If I do not do the surgery I will need to put here down. The lump is affecting her movement and now there's an issue of her back leg getting injured. Also she is losing weight although she's eating and drinking.
I guess I'm wondering if the surgery would be worth it. Dr. Stokes says there's always a possible of losing her on the table, the tumor may be spread throughout and it could be cancer, the tumor is so large there may not be enough tissue left in the area, she is over two years old, and with her leg stiched up it may not heal properly with movement.
I guess I'm leaning towards putting her down but it feels like I'm giving up, but I want to do whats best for her. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks and sorry for being such a pain.
Michelle

Answer
Michelle


I feel alot better that you saw someone that is experienced. The bad news is it appears vascular but many tumors are vascular and that is when the skill of the surgeon comes in. He must be skilled enough and have the right implements to tie off any bleeders he may encounter during surgery which is why it was important to find someone that knows about small mammals. Their veins are itty bitty and these bleeders can pop out at the worst times during surgery when you least expect them to.
The good news is it is encapsulated, which again many tumors on rats ARE and this means they probably dont spread.
The reason for the weight loss wouldnt mean cancer, but instead, it comes for the tumor being vascular like mammary tumors are. This means it is robbing the rat the nutrients from their body and these nutrients are needed to sustain the health of the rats vital organs which  in the end,organ failure is one of the main causes of death in rats with tumors.
Its just so hard to say what to do. Its your rat and your decision. If you want my personal opinion, if it were my rat,I would do it. I have done it plenty of times actually on my 3 year old rat that was so weak and frail she had a 5% chance of surviving the operation and she made it with flying colors.  

My opinion only- the way I feel is that I want to try at least all options. If she makes it, she makes it, if she doesnt, at least I tried.  If the vet said  to me that there is NO WAY he could do it and he is sure she would have a terrible time and he just was so sure it was not a good idea, I would  let   my rat go peacefully, but because there is a chance, I would have to take  it.
Either way, no matter what you decide, I will support you. Everyone is different in how we think and what we think is right so its impossible to tell you what to do.  All I can say is what I would do. When I consult with people about this like I am you, all I can say is that you must be comfortable with your decision and feel good about it.                                If you have any doubts about putting your rat down without the surgery, dont put    him down or you will feel bad and have the "what ifs" for a long time to come. On the other hand, if the rat dies on the table, at least you know you gave him a chance.

If she does survive, she may lose the use of her leg, but rats do adjust to amazing  circumstances, so I will be honest in telling you that she would work it out if you do decide to do it.

If you have more questions please feel free to write I know this is hard to handle and its a hard decision.