Foot injury

Question
Hello,

I have a female fancy rat who is about 18 months old who is having a problem with her back right foot.  I noticed earlier this afternoon that she wasn't putting her foot on the bed when sitting still.  She limps only occasionally when she is walking and though the foot appears larger than normal (I wouldn't say swollen because it is hard) she does not act as though she is in any pain, I can touch it and move it without her squeaking or pulling away.  Her cage has a solid plastic base with no additional levels so she couldn't have gotten the foot stuck in any wires.  However she does like to wander around my room and could have gotten it stuck on something when out of her cage that I didn't notice.  I think it might just be a sprain but was wondering what else it might be or anything I could do to help the healing process.  I am a college student studying wildlife rehabilitation so anything that can be done at home I am pretty equipped to handle. I appreciate your advice thank you.

Answer
Hi Kelly

How cool that your  studying wildlife rehab. That is awesome!  I love animals and have been so lucky to have found a job where I can work with rats  and learn more about them each time someone new comes in the door with one plus I learn from my own, of course, which is the best way to learn: hands on!

Anyhow, is the skin on the foot in question red or do you notice any sores, ulcers,lesions of any type on or around the foot?

I want to rule out infection first. Sometimes a rat can develop infection even from the slightest little cut in the foot. What occurs is that once there is a cut, the area is, of course, open and anything can get in to the cut that is lurking around, such as bacteria from urine that has accumulated in a corner etc...and so on. This wee bit of bacteria slips into the wee little cut and infection begins to fester.
Sometimes the hocks  of the feet will get infected and become red and  seriously swollen. It isn't tender to the touch though and she doesn't  protest when you touch it so those are good signs.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              Check the very bottom of her feet and see if you see any sores there.      There is a condition that you may be aware of called Ulcerative Pododermatitis (bumblefoot) that is usually found on the plantar surface of the foot. However, infection can settle in anywhere in that area and just affect the ankle.

Right now what you can do is try to hold heat on the swollen leg. You can fill a sock with rice, nuke it in the microwave for a bit and hold it on her leg. Check it good first by squishing the rice all over first to be sure there are no HOT spots..you just want nice and warm for this. Since you have her in the single story cage thats good...remove  anything she can climb on...keep food low and water bottle low and don't let her move around much. The smaller the area she has to move around in the better.
You can give her childrens liquid motrin for inflammation and pain.
If you can give me an idea of her weight I will tell you how much to give her. There is a pretty big dosing window using the childrens motrin so its ok if your not spot on with the weight.  I need to know in grams if possible.  If not I can use the trust net to convert it for me though.  LOL
Wrapping it or putting a splint on it is worthless since she will take it off again in no time flat.  However, when there is a fracture, a skilled surgeon that is educated in exotics can insert a pin and will even cast the limb. Usually by the time the rat gnaws the cast off, the area has had time to set in and heal.The cast is made of material that is "edible" yet strong like a real plaster cast would be.

Anyhow, do watch to make sure you do not see any open sores or ulcers  and if you do, she will need oral antibiotics and you can use neosporin on the sores too.

Hope this helped

Sandra