Star! I have an URGENT rattie question - need advice

flutterby

Fly away!
Thank you, Star. I was surprised to find that I do have corn starch. Have no idea how old it is. But, he will not let me touch that area and I'm afraid I'll do more damage if I press the issue. He's struggling so hard to get away that I'm afraid he'll rip stitches out. He's huddled in the corner on top of a thick, folded up towel, and we have an old pillowcase (cause it's lightweight) that he is under.

I feel sick. I feel like we have just tortured him. I can't believe the vet hasn't called back yet. He always calls back right away.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
You know ----he MAY have bitten or chewed an uncomfortable stitch out??? How bad is the bleeding? Just drips, spots - do you think it's just FROM the incision (like rubbed off after the surgery) or do you think it's from the wound itsself that has opened? If he's sitting still I wouldn't bother him too much until the vet calls and then I would THROW a towel OVER him - and papoose him. OR ----if you have a kennel cab carrier -see if you can get him into that then - I wouldn't do anything now -

With the corn starch you need to wad it up in a pinch and kinda dawb it on (make sense?)
 
H

HaoZi

Guest
Maybe the vet is on his way home and doesn't use phone when he drives? Hope you hear from him soon and Moose is doing better!
 

flutterby

Fly away!
After I posted, I called the vet back. They still hadn't heard back from him and his wife had said that he was going to be unavailable, so they told me to bring him in so he would be there should he happen to call or come in later tonight. So, I took him, cage and all, and by the time I got there he had called. They are going to put compression "pants" (they called them - a compression bandage) on him and keep him overnight. He's bleeding - dripping from either a torn stitch or a missed spot - not oozing or smearing.

:whew:

But, of course it wasn't *that* easy.

See, in order to prepare the sick cage, we had to remove a rat from it. It's a rat we've had since he was a baby and he recently became extremely aggressive to the other rats - and to us. So, difficult child was working on introducing 2 other boy rats to the boy rat that shares a cage with Moose because when we tried to put bad boy rat back in with Armageddon (Moose's cagemate) it didn't go well. So, she was in the bathroom with 2 of the brother rats and Armageddon in the tub introducing them.

It's raining and my car is not in the garage - long story - so I went out and put my purse in the car, unlocked and opened the back door and came in to get the cage with Moose. Jewel is afraid of everything, especially rain and storms. I'm lugging this cage through the house and she is on. my. heels. I tried to get out the door without her, but with my hands full? Not happening. I tried to block her with my foot and she does her panic attack thing where she does this horrible bark/whine/I'mGoingToDie sound while grabbing my foot with her mouth (grabbing, not biting) and moving it out of the way. She charges out and jumps into the car. Fine. She's going, too. Get Moose settled and leave. Had to get gas so I would make it to the vet, and go to get back in the car and Jewel is now in my seat. This mean she's really freaked out. Push her into the passenger seat and drive to the vet with Jewel trying to get in my lap. She is not ever a lap dog. Get to the vet and it is *packed*. Had to park waaaaaaay in the back behind the office. Leave the car running so Jewel doesn't overheat and get out of the car while pushing Jewel back inside the car. Only to discover I hadn't unlocked the back door. Sigh. Open the front door, push Jewel back in - she doesn't have a leash on because I wasn't prepared for her to be going with me - unlock the back door, push Jewel back in and close the front door real quick. Open the back door, try to gently ease the cage out while Jewel jumps into the back seat. Try to gently ease the cage out of the car while pushing Jewel back into the car with my knee, and simultaneously close the door with my elbow. Managed to gouge my hand somehow in the process. No idea on what. Walk all the way around the front of the building in the rain and fortunately some nice lady saw me, turned around and got the door for me or I might have been standing out there for hours trying to figure out how to open the door with hands and nowhere to set the cage because of puddles. Oh, and I have blood all over my clothes so I look nice and scary. With a one-eyed, twisted legged rat.

Talk to the tech, go back to the car only to find the doors locked. :rollingpin:I'm thinking....I'm thinking words that can't be typed here. It went something like: BLEEP BLEEP BLEEPITY BLEEP!!! YOU HAVE GOT TO BE BLEEP KIDDING ME!!!!! Jewel is in the running car, panting, sees me and starts jumping around and whimpering. I'm standing in the rain looking at a locked car with a dog freaking out inside thinking.....this week CANNOT get any worse. I literally stomped my foot with my hands clenched in fists at my sides, while muttering words I can't type here under my breath one second, then almost yelling the next and I'm sure everyone thought that I was certifiable. And by then I was panting. I was so frustrated I couldn't breathe. I stood there staring at the car thinking that easy child has my other key and he's at least 45 minutes away IF he answers his damn phone and I don't have his number with me and difficult child never answers the house phone and I couldn't remember her cell number at that minute for the life of me. I started to pace and walked around the car and by some miracle the passenger side front door wasn't locked. Oh THANK YOU GOD! The ONLY door that wasn't locked - which means Jewel jumped around on every door and locked them. Which is way better than hitting the auto lock button. I thought I was going to lose my mind right then and there in front of God and everybody.

I haven't had more than 4 hours sleep in one shot in 5 days. And that was only the last 2 nights. The previous 2 nights I didn't sleep at all and got a couple of catnaps during the day. I am taking some klonopin and I am not doing another thing all. night. long. So noone better ask me to. :hangin:

And bad boy rat who suddenly decided that he doesn't like anything or anyone? He's going to the rescue we got Moose from. I was talking to her about him, too, last night and she told me to bring him to her. I can't work with him because I'm allergic and difficult child is too intimidated to. And I really have enough on my plate and as much as I love animals, I'm really not in the mood to deal with a biting rattie.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
Okay Flutter? I am really REALLY sorry that you have had a bad day. But the way that you wrote the part about standing in the parking lot? Being certifiable? I could picture that perfectly----and was laughing so hard the dogs came running. Sooooo um.....I'm not going to ask you for anything....but thank you so much for a very much needed roll on the floor. (still snorking at the visual of a wet, frustrated woman having a conversatiion with her Invisible God, clenched fists, all bloody, standing there looking at the dog......in the rain and then realizing the door was open after all) and OH I have HAD days like that.....too many - so yeah - I get ya!
 

flutterby

Fly away!
I'm sure it was very amusing to everyone watching, too. I think they were just smart enough not to say anything to me at that moment. :rofl:
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
You know of course..........THOSE are the times......when I WOULD PAY GOOD MONEY to pull up in my car.....next to you and just sit there with my window down and say "So.....FLUTTER.......(exhale) I was thinking about that sale on dry goods . Then just casually drum my fingers slowly.....and dig in my purse and say slowly ------OH DARN......say can you give me an umbrella I AM REALLY GETTING WET SITTING HERE TALKING TO YOU!.....you should really get out of the rain - and probably NOT a good idea to leave your dog in the car like that. OH but you know that don't you.???? Got that umbrella for me yet?? No?? OH>>>>>>

Yeah - that's our brand of humor in this house.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
:rofl: You do realize, though, that you might not have made it out of there in one piece, right? We have the same kind of humor here, too. At least I do. And easy child. difficult child doesn't appreciate it. Makes me wonder how I'm still in one piece.

You know, it never even occurred to me that she would lock the damn doors. I was so distracted with everything else - or I would have thought of that. I think. My brain doesn't work right anymore.
 

flutterby

Fly away!
And then, this morning? I slept last night, but I am C-R-A-B-B-Y. I took difficult child to work, went to the vet to pick up Moose (who is doing fine now, by the way), and while at the vet, difficult child calls. She forgot to take out her nose ring. And she needs a tool to take it out, which is at home. So, I bring Moose home, go searching for these special nose ring pliers, take them to her at work, and come back home. Jewel is still freaking out about being alone, so trying to leave the house without her is this elaborate act and I just wanted to come home and RELAX. She won't even stay outside by herself. It's a beautiful day. I don't know what her deal is. But between a difficult child dog, a difficult child rat, and a difficult child kid? I'm ready to run screaming for the hills.

difficult child gets off in 45 minutes. I'm sitting here wishing they could make her work a double shift. :sigh:
 

flutterby

Fly away!
I guess so, although it's been full of drama. And I don't want to think about it anymore, much less talk (or write) about it. But, yes, she is working at Meijer through MR/daughter for 7 weeks this summer.
 

Star*

call 911........call 911
WELL HAPPY DAY (Xturns around Xturns around X turns around) <---deletes any board jinx.......THAT IS FANTASTIC NEWS.
 
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