# My rat sucked up one of his testicles!!



## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

Help!

Silence has sucked up one of his testicles! You can feel it in his body and now his sack only has one in it!

What happened? Is this okay? Please tell me Silence will be okay!

A quick edit to add info

Silence does not seem to be sick in any way. He climbs like a monkey. He is eating and drinking. He is exploring. He is not wheezing. His eyes are clear and breathing is normal. He is absolutly fine. Except for the testicle thing.

Another edit. 

He is going to the bathroom just fine. All over my pants. My baby loves to share!


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

Just had a quick look on net and says can be due to being cold or fear (or maybe it's not same thing). Someone else will probably know for definate though.


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## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

I thank you so much for looking. Silence is just a baby. He could have gotten scared. But it is still there after a few hours. Is he that scared?


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## Stace87 (Jun 24, 2008)

Hmmm I'm not sure. I've found an article about a puppy, I know he's not a puppy but....
"Yes.. it happens all the time. I know of a show dog who when stressed would pull one testicle back up."

I just found this too; "Rats can retract (withdraw) their testicles into the pelvic cavity."


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## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

Silence's testicle is still up in his body this morning. He peed on me so I guess that's still working okay.


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## Suzuks (Jun 25, 2008)

I know we're all advising you on the wrong creatures - but I'd say if it doesn't descend again for a while to take him to the vet - just because in humans (see, I don't know if it's true in rats), when men's testicles aren't descended from birth they tend to be more susceptible to cancer developing from it. 

Of course, maybe it just slipped back in. . .weird problem.


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## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

Thank you so much Stace87 and Suzuks for trying to help me. I am still quite panicked about the situation. I really really really love my Silence. I thought with as many rat owners and even rat breeders on this board that I would get a lot of help, but that doesn't seem to be the case.

I did talk to the vet's office. They told me not to worry as this situation was normal. It sure doesn't feel normal to me.

It's now day two and it's still up there. I can't tell if it's hurting him. It doesn't seem to be. He still climbs and everything. I really really wish it would move back to where it belonged.


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## Drakkie (Apr 8, 2008)

Hey my Simease's one testie hangs out. The other one is still inside, and he has no problems. So, you're not the only one. I'd only worry if he couldn't pee or have stool problems!


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## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

Thank you so so much for answering! How long has your Siamese been like that? 

Silence definatly can co pee and poop still. He's still a baby so if he's out too long without a bathroom break, he will go out of the cage. Like he did on my lap yesterday. You got to love babies. Silence and his brother are six weeks old today!

I still wonder WHY Silence suddenly pulled one testicle up like that and then decided to leave it there. Kind of weird.


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## Drakkie (Apr 8, 2008)

Im guessing since he was born, because I noticed it maybe about a month later, and of course I freaked too. But I found out from my friend (whom i got the ratties from) that it was normal as long as he pooped and peed normal =).

Don;t worry about it. But if you wanted to, from what i heard you could get it fixed if you want.

Hehe, I call Spike my one nut man =) along with my suggie who is half nutered XD


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## rach913 (Jan 11, 2008)

I had a baby rat with the same situation, and kept a close eye on it. He had it up there for months, and as of now, I can't contact his new owner anymore, but I certainly do ponder if his testie is still up there. I figured that since I have the same wonder, I'll tell of his parents' history...Maybe there'll be an answer for us soon! 


First off, the little guy was named "Monster." His father, Moo, was a white and gray, splotched, curly rat, who fertilized my female when he was over 2 years old. Now, I'm not sure if that could be a cause, but hey, it may be so...Rin, my female, is a hooded, beige and white (I wish I could know how two mostly white rats could make an all-black, straight-haired male, but that's a different ponder of mine...), who was roughly over a year when she had this litter. Might I also add, she was also a rescue from a local pet shop who breeds rats for snake food, and never for pets...That, too, could be a possiblility, as this pet store (I hate to sound rude, but it's what I found out...) has a record of taking half-siblings, and breeding them without a care about specific markings...In other words, EVERY rat looks EXACTLY the same. None of them have anything special about them, except Rin had one tiny dot on the top of her butt. Otherwise, they all had hoods that went all the way down their back. Plus, they were pretty stressed.

When the litter was born, we had adopted a large, female cat at the time, and she knocked the cage over on their birthdate, where 7 became 5. Upon the babies' growths, one ended up blind in one eye (We checked her into a vet, and there were no ear infections...), one bloated out and died, and this one was herniated. I think that it had something to do with the situation on the cat, as even Mama Rat wasn't herself for about a month after the incident...Try figuring out the rat's history....Maybe then someone could help us out...  Good luck on your research!! RACH


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## rach913 (Jan 11, 2008)

Oops! went in there twice lol


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## Drakkie (Apr 8, 2008)

Lol, well thats interesting!

I wonder if its kinda like a damaged gene or something. Thanks for sharing rach!


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## Suzuks (Jun 25, 2008)

I keep imagining that you could fix it by simply covering his nose and mouth and blowing him up like a balloon to pop it back out. 
lol :wink: 

. . . yeah, you probably shouldn't try it.


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## Susinko (Apr 29, 2008)

Suzuks said:


> I keep imagining that you could fix it by simply covering his nose and mouth and blowing him up like a balloon to pop it back out.
> lol :wink:
> 
> . . . yeah, you probably shouldn't try it.


LOL! Thanks! I needed that!

It's been over a week and Silence still has his testicle up in his body. It gives me the shivers whenever I see it, although Silence himself pays it no mind.

I'm still concerned that he had it in the right place and then moved it like that. It's just kind of stressful.


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## Drakkie (Apr 8, 2008)

LMAO!! Thats so funny....poor guys lol.

It helps me that one guy's testie is up, because he has a twin and i cant really tell the difference between those 2 yet! XD, one testie....two testie =)


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## Poppyseed (Feb 1, 2007)

"The etiology or exact cause of testicular tumors is unknown, however, factors that are believed to contribute to their development in rats are: congenital cryptorchidism (undescended testicle), and aging."

It mentions it briefly in ratguide here. That is the excerpt. The page is here:
http://ratguide.com/health/neoplasia/testicular_tumors.php

I would say it's not a cause for immediate alarm but you may need to save up for a abdominal neuter. I wouldn't want to risk testicular cancer being greatly increased as rats have enough stacked against them there as it is. I also wouldn't want the risk of infection to be increased...


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## kalamazoo (Jul 25, 2008)

Aweh, poor thing. I'm sure he looks a bit silly and that he remains in good health.


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