Skip again

We've been back to the vet with Skip again this evening :( After his initial improvement he has been going down hill again and his tummy is really bloated. The vet was actually quite surprised at how well he was given how impacted he is :( But there isnt a great deal more we can do. He has medication to stimulate his intestines to work which he has been having for a few days now with no apparent effect. He now also has liquid paraffin which should hopefully soften his poo to make it easier to pass. The vets recommendation was that if he's not significantly better in a few days we should think about letting him go :(

So the plan of action is to put him on an entirely liquid diet for now since the smoothy last week seemed to help. Mixed in with that will be his liquid paraffin and we'll carry on with the zantac too. If that goes well we'll add some solid fruit, then some veg, then some fish, gradually working up to more solid food to see what he can and can't manage.

I think the next few days are pretty critical though so please keep him in your thoughts. He is the most incredibly special little guy. I know realistically its a miracle he has lived this long but he has a real fighting spirit and love for life so if anyone can beat this, Skippy can!

Skippy Update

I'm pleased to report that Skip is much better :) The vet couldn't find much in the way of impacted faeces and thinks we can manage his problems with a bit more fruit and veg in his diet. So he has had a great week, with yummy fruit salads for pudding every night! He's pretty much back to his usual self in terms of activity but still looks a bit thin and scraggy. Given the way his appetite is now, I don't think it will be long before he is back to his usual plump, glossy self.

I'm very sad to report though the very sudden and unexpected death of Gordon the degu. He had shown no signs of ill health but I found him dead on Thursday.

Skippity Doo-Dah

Skip is one of the Portsmouth babies. He and his two half-brothers (?) have been kept back from homing as they hadn't been thriving and there is a history of megacolon in the group. They have been doing pretty well and are the loveliest boys in the world, full of mischief and fun! On Sunday I noticed happily that Skip's bottom was unusually clean - he usually has slight diarrhoea and gets a bit messy. I should have occurred to me really that this wasn't necessarily a good thing as constipation is worse than diarrhoea in a rat with megacolon. So Monday at feed time he didn't come running straight out as usual and there he was at the back of his cage looking a bit sorry for himself. His tummy is a bit bloated, he is hunched up and quite quiet for him. Dave - being the utterly fabulous person that he is - went out at 10 oclock last night and bought a load of fruit which he then made into a smoothie! Skip attacked this with considerable enthusiasm and we gave him some antibiotics too to protect against infection. This morning I'm pleased to report that he is looking a lot brighter although he tummy is still swollen. So we are off to the vets this afternoon to get some treatment to help him to poo, bless him!

I am seriously, utterly in love with Skip. I can't begin to describe what a little hero he is. He really ought to be below average activeness but he is undoubtedly the silliest, bounciest, most playful little boy I have ever met. He is just so full of fun, you can't help but smile! So please keep everything crossed for him making a good recovery. He has defied the odds in coming this far, I'd like him to keep doing that for a very long time yet!

This Weekend's News

Lots more people have travelled to new homes this weekend :) Ratties Marina, Nerine, Squiggles, Mikado, Jimbo, Nelson, Puck and Oberon have all made their journeys up north with the latter four boys travelling all the way to Glasgow!

Of course there is always an exchange to be made and, in return, we have taken in 7 male gerbils. They are super cute so I'll make sure to post piccies of them very soon.

Eva and Meryl

Following the sad passings of Poop and Abbi recently, there are two ratty shaped gaps round here. I've been very tempted to keep Eva, one of the portsmouth babies, since the day she was born so I have decided to definitely keep her, along with another baby girl, Meryl. I will update the Ratties page very soon so you can meet them properly :)

Run Free Poop :(

It has been a sad weekend :( After Abbi dying suddenly on Friday, Poop lost his fight with his brain tumour. He did so well, battling on much longer than expected. But today it was quite clear that he was ready to go. He slipped away peacefully with the help of the vet and has gone to be with his old friends Squirt, Dumpling, Lily and Jasmine and his brothers who have gone before him.

Ins and Outs

We've had a few people go off to new homes this weekend. Melia and Delilah the baby girl rats were collected for their new home and Kimberley, Shyla, Shortie, Ludo, Hoggle, Lancelot, Gollum and Frodo and spiny mice Niki, Simone, Jessica and Clare left for the first part of their journeys to their new homes.

The new arrivals are two possibly pregnant little girls rats (no names yet) and two young male rats called Spike and Nutmeg, who are lovely little chaps!

Run Free Abbi

After weeks of expecting Poop to leave us, I was shocked to find Abbi passed away today. She has been perfectly fine, not a hint that she was in any way unwell. She appears to have just taken herself off into the hammock, gone to sleep and not woken up again :(

Run free darling, reunited with your sisters at the bridge

I can't think of a title for this one!

We've had a good run on homing the last few days and most of the baby girls have now been reserved - just six left which is great. Hopefully ten rats should leave for new homes this weekend and a similar number the weekend after which will at last free us up some much needed space. Not being an actual rescue myself, I don't usually deal with hand ins unless they are animals Emma has agreed to take who are coming direct to me. But recently I'm getting more and more emails directly asking me to take animals in. But I'm absolutely full and then some, with animals even spilling over into the bathroom at the moment. And I know Emma actually has a waiting list of animals waiting to come in. I suspect things will only get worse with Ratatouille now showing. Inevitably kids will wants rats as pets, they will be bought from a pet shop with little thought and they'll end up in rescue in a few months time.

Anyway, on a happier note, Poop is still going strong :) Oh and check out www.stuffonmymutt.com - you might see some people there you recognise!!