# Having a hard time deciding if I should put him down



## silverfox (Aug 29, 2013)

A few months ago I got four african soft fur rats, which are really a type of african mouse and also called natal rats/mouse. These guys were adults when I got them so I don't know how old they are. A few weeks ago one of my guys developed a lump. We will call him Number 4 as I never bothered to name any of them. I was too busy concentrating on taming them. Anyway, this lump grew fast so I assumed it was an abscess. It deformed when you pressed it like a rabbit abscess does. I did the usual treatment of heat compress. No luck on bringing pus up. So, after about a week, I decided to poke with a needle. I compressed and then gently inserted the needle just right (as I read to do). Nothing but blood. I cleaned the entire area with benedine and left it alone. It attempted this method three more times, never getting pus even in areas that were colored like they were filled with pus. I've decided that the lump is a very large tumor. He also has some inside his eyelids making him mostly blind. 

He still eats and does everything the other three do, so I'm having a really hard time deciding if I should put him down. I have read that ASFs are prone to fast growing tumors and that having them removed doesn't seem to do much good. I can't imagine the ones in his eyelids being removable anyway as they are small and many. He's my favorite of the four and I'm just having a hard time making the choice to put him down. What would you do? If he was acting normal except for not being able to see well and having a huge tumor on his leg?


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Does he seem in pain? If he's in pain then I would put him down. If its effecting his movement then I would put him down.


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## silverfox (Aug 29, 2013)

It doesn't seem to be. He can barely see but that doesn't slow him down any.


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Then I would wait and see if it starts bothering him. If he's not suffering in any way then there's no reason to put him down. If he starts suffering then its better to put him down even if he's your favorite.


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## silverfox (Aug 29, 2013)

That's what I was thinking but was worried I was being selfish, especially with him not being able to see properly with the eyelid tumors.


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Well, I don't know much about ASF, but most rodents have poor eyesight and don't rely on eyesight so I'm sure its not much of a difference to him.


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## silverfox (Aug 29, 2013)

Well, the lump on his leg was scabbed over last night so I pick it. I'm still not sure if it's a tumor or not. It was relatively easy to clean out but if it was pus, it was the weirdest pus I've ever seen. I'm pretty sure it was tumor material. It looked like fat fibers. That lovely yellow kind you see in humans. It didn't seem to hurt him to have me scrape it out. He bled a little though. I earned a nice deep bite on my thumb. It's nice and swollen. On moving day no less. Lol. Anyway, I'm doing my best to keep the wound clean. It looks like its healing and I'm using betadine four times a day. After the move, he will be going into a hospital tank. I have to use it to move critters today. I've attached photos of the wound about 12 hours after cleaning. GRAPHIC WARNING!!!!


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## Awaiting_Abyss (Jul 24, 2012)

Ouch! I have two fancy mice that have tumors like that... I believe they are tumors.. I'm planning to put my girls to sleep soon because they aren't recovering. I know the open wounds have got to hurt them.


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## cagedbirdsinging (May 28, 2012)

Pus can become quite thick at times and form curds, for lack of a better term. The visuals here very much suggest an abscess.


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## JoshDeMott2010 (Aug 25, 2007)

Keep treating him with proper cleaning, food, water and see what he does if he becomes hindered then it is only right to end the suffering if he isn't suffering and is pushing on allow him to live a normal quality life. I had a hairless rat that developed a large tumor on his belly and hind quarters he lived happily for 1 year before the tumor bursted and he past away shortly after. The vet said it was cancerous...


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