Rat
Rescue :: Rat
Article
Operations & Post Operative Care
Is Surgery Necessary?
If you have a rat that needs an operation, try to discuss
the surgery with your vet beforehand. Some vets may not have
had much experience with small mammals, and may have only had
a few hours of 'exotics' training, being only familiar with
the more common pets and livestock - so it might be worth asking
around for one with rodent experience. Talk to your vet about
the possible risks of surgery - if you have an overweight rat,
or one with extensive respiratory problems or heart disease
- the vet may possibly advise you against surgery, unless it
is absolutely necessary to save life.
These days, the anaesthetic risks are much lower than they used
to be in the past, and operations such as mammary tumour removal
are considered fairly routine, very safe and only take a few
minutes. It is preferable to get a tumour removed than it is
to have to euthanise the rat just because the tumour has grown
too large or has ulcerated.
Neutering (other than for health reasons) is not generally considered
to be essential operations, but a castration may be necessary
in a hormonally aggressive buck. Perhaps you may just want to
keep a mixed-sex cage of rats, that is personal choice but not
considered a necessary surgery.
If your buck is having a castration, ask your vet if he has
performed this operation on a rodent before - not all vets realise
that rats have an open inguinal canal which must be closed off
afterwards! Some vets will remove the testicles through the
abdominal wall, but this is less common than through the scrotum.
If you have a doe that needs spaying, it is extremely important
that you ask about post-operative analgesia before your rat
has the op. They are given a pain killer whilst under anaesthetic,
but this will have worn off by the following morning, and females
can
suffer from painful abdominal cramps (visible as the rats sides
sucking in and out) for several days after a spay. I recommend
1 drop of oral Metacam (meloxicam - an NSAID) once a day until
the cramps stop, which is usually from 3 to 5 days max. If the
cramps are really bad, it is possible to give the Metacam twice
on the first day after the op, morning and evening.
Anaesthesia & Analgesia
Rats do not need to 'fast' before surgery like other mammals
do. A rat cannot vomit, so you can provide food and water right
up until they are ready for the surgery. Not all vets and their
assistants realise this! Some rats will start to eat right after
they come round from the anaesthetic too, this can help them
to keep warm, as well as comfort themselves.
It would also be a good idea to discuss the method of anaesthesia,
and what type of stitches the vet intends to use beforehand.
Injectable anaesthetic is too dangerous for such a small animal,
and is not generally used anymore. Anaesthesia used to be considered
a major problem when operating on rodents, but now in the 21st
century, this is no longer the case. Inhalation anaesthesia
is now the accepted method. Gaseous anaesthesia is usually given
in the form of Isoflurane, Methoxyflurane or Halothane, and
is very safe. For analgesia - the usual pain-killers used are
Butorphanol or an opiate such as morphine, which is normally
administered with before the rat is revived from the anaesthetic.
Metacam or Rimadyl are sometimes prescribed post-operatively.
If a rat chews at their stitches after surgery, some vets will
give another shot of an opiate based drug, which makes the rat
sleepy, and this hopefully gives the op site and muscles enough
time to knit back together and the inflammation to subside before
the rat is alert again.
Types of Sutures
Ask your vet what type of sutures he intends to use. For small
incisions subcuticular dissolvable stitches are best - these
are hidden under the skin so more difficult to chew. These sutures
are usually dissolved away from a week to 10 days later. For
larger incisions staples may be better. Vets will assure you
staples are not painful, and one vet even stapled his own finger
to prove this! Some rats will not worry their wounds and will
heal surprisingly well, but it is worth being prepared for the
rat who wants to chew its stitches out and worry the wound if
it is reachable. I have known vets to add a small gauze pad
to the incision for the rat to 'worry', thereby leaving the
incision alone to heal.
Collars are notoriously difficult to attach to a rat and very
easy for the rat to remove. I do not recommend them because
it can cause the rat to become depressed as it is unable to
groom or feed normally, but in some cases it might be the only
option to allow the rat to heal. A body sock may work well on
a rat determined to chew - if you can get it to stay on! If
the incision is on the main body - you can wrap gauze around
the torso and hold in place with surgical tape.
I have found that rats are more likely to chew at an operation
site if it has skin glue. Internal soluble stitches are preferred,
with external stitches holding the wound together until everything
has knitted back together underneath. Rarely, a rat can have
an allergic reaction to internal stitches, so do keep an eye
out for sudden swelling or signs of infection.
Post Operative Care
Your vets should monitor your rat for a couple of hours after
the surgery before allowing them to go home, and will know how
to give fluid replacement for your rat if necessary, as dehydration
is common. Glucose/saline solution is usually warmed to body
temperature and given by subcutaneous injection. It is standard
practice for some vets to prescribe antibiotics to prevent infection
after a surgery, but it is not always deemed necessary, for
example a mammary tumour removed with aseptic techniques is
very unlikely to have the incision become infected.
It is most important to keep the patient warm after surgery,
your vet will normally use a heat-mat or an overhead light source
to provide warmth after surgery and until they are ready to
go home. When you collect your rat you can ask your vet to fill
a latex glove with warm water as a makeshift 'hot water bottle'
to keep it warm if it is cold outside, or you may already own
a microwavable heat-pad which can be taken with you.
At home you should have a 'hospital' tank set up, where your
rat will recover until well enough to be re-united with cage
mate. A one level glass or plastic tank is ideal. You can purchase
a heat mat used for tropical animals such as reptiles, or a
microwavable heat pad for pets. Place it under a small part
of the tank, so your rat can choose whether to sit over it or
not. Your rat will probably be groggy after the op and want
to sleep so put the hospital tank somewhere quiet.
Check on the rat every hour or so to begin with and ensure
they drink. You can offer your rat baby food or other soft foods
when awake - it should stimulate the appetite and has a high
water content, so will help to avoid dehydration. Offer fluids
from a dropper or from the tip of your finger. The dropper from
a cleaned empty bottle of Echinacea is good for this. Some rats
will go off their food, so try to encourage them every couple
of hours to start with. It would be a good idea to add a few
drops of Bach's Rescue Remedy to their water. If they still
seem reluctant to move to the water bottle, continue to offer
water via dropper, finger or syringe.
A vitamin supplement such as Nutrical or Ferretvite can be
offered if appetite seems smaller than usual - only give a pea-sized
blob once a day to avoid overdose of the fat-soluble vitamins.
Foods rich in antioxidants, such as grapes and broccoli, are
believed to help the healing process.
Give your rat plenty of love and attention - this too really
helps with the healing process, and get them back with their
cage-mates as soon as possible. Most rats can go back in with
their cagemates the day following the surgery if they have had
minor surgery - but it's always best to clean out the cage first.
Some vets will try to tell you to isolate them for a week or
more - this is unnecessary! A young adult is ready to go back
to a cleaned out cage with cagemates the next morning after
tumour removals, castrations and even some spays, unless they
were very sick before the op and need a few days to recover
their strength. If the castration was for aggression or to go
into a mixed sex cage, you need to wait at least 3 weeks to
ensure any residual sperm and hormones have dissipated!
Author : Joolz
