my rat has hurt her tail!

Question
QUESTION: my pet rat has injured his tail. I think somethink has fallen on it, and made a gash on it. It was playing in my sons room, it has the full run of his room when he gets home from school, so am not sure what happened! i have cleaned it up. im just wondering whether it will heal itself, or should i take her to a vet? thanku!

ANSWER:
Hi Stacie

Tail injuries are pretty painful.  How deep is the gash?

Is she acting ok if you touch it? Can you "see" inside it?

If its superficial, it should heal over  as long as you clean it for her a few times a day with saline solution or betadine diluted equal parts, but never peroxide as it can damage the delicate tissues and it does burn as we both know. Neosporin or generic antibiotic ointment with pain relief is  ok to use too, also putting that on at least 3 to 4 times a day. Keep her cage free from litter that may get in the tail and put the litter   in a shoe box if she isn't litter trained, this may be the perfect time to start.  Lift up the litter from the bottom of the cage and put down fleece or other fabric that doesn't fray and shred. You can use newspaper (soy ink only which I do believe most newspapers are soy based now days) keep litter only in a shoebox or other container. She will more than likely use it readily by instinct.  The litter may stick to the sore on the tail. How big would you say it is?  Pinkie fingernail size or smaller?  Is it bleeding? Is it discolored?
If the area has any foul odor or starts to turn necrotic (black or bluish) she will need a vet, but if its superficial wound, following the treatment I suggested above.  Do you have a vet that is skilled with rats?



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

QUESTION: Hello
you can see inside the cut, 2 white things which look string like are visible (i think they may be bones?) I have been cleaning it several times a day, she is letting me touch it with no problems. She does not seem to be in pain.I will put the litter into a shoe box like suggested. The cut is pinkie finger sized, it only bled for a couple of minutes when she first hurt it and is not discolored. Thankyou for your advise.

Answer
The tail is actually an extension of the rats vertebrae...what your seeing is the bones to this extended vertebrae. There is also a major artery in the tail. If that was bitten she would have bled to death. She is very lucky that was not severed.

I know...that probably just made your knees weak didn't it?

It may turn black and if it begins to smell, this would be very dangerous.  Lets hope the antibiotic ointment is enough. The fact she doesn't seem to hurt is a good sign though....lets hope it keeps up.