Bosco's tumor

So I took Bosco to the vet today, and the thing on his foot is indeed a tumor. It's right on his toe which means they can't take margins (distance between a tumor and the edge of the surrounding tissue that's removed along with it.) so it'll grow back. my only other option is to have him PTS but I feel like I'm just giving up on him even though there's no chance of him recovering I'm kind of at a loss on what to do, so I'm just looking for advice, and asking what everyone else would do. I'm definetly not rehoming him and Ludo now, I wouldn't even dream of putting him through the stress of a new home with the tumor. So if anyone has any advice or has been in the same situation, please let me know.

Have you got photos? A tumour there would be very very odd - how was the vet sure? Did they do a biopsy?

I am quite sure amputation of foot is very much a possibility (if it's a small enough growth, then amputation of toe may work) - so don't write him off yet!

xx

bloody camera is out of battery so can't take pics for now. It's outside the skin, and it's full of blood. Also it burst and was sort of deflated. It's a little smaller than a butter bean. She mentioned amputating a toe, but would probably have to take the one beside it too, and I got the impression she thought this was kind of cruel so I pushed this option out of my head. But now that I'm thinking about it, this would probably be the best option.

Sounds like a haematoma, not a tumour :/

xx

I've seen rats with a whole leg amputated and they've coped very well, though I suppose it's the risk of the anesthetic... I suppose it's risk vs quality of life. Maybe she's just not confident doing it?

I'm no expert but it doesn't sound like a tumour to me at all

My little girl has 3 legs and copes very well ^^ if you go that route look me up i can give helpful advise :3

totally agree with the above...tumours are solid masses so if they did happen to somehow burst then they shouldn't deflate?

Is it possible to go get a second opinion?

A hemotoma on the other hand is almost like a bruise but under the skin. It would be full of blood and it would be somewhat hard but a little squidgy. Normally if you fall and cut yourself your blood clots and forms a scab, when a hemotoma occurs this clotting occurs under the skin hence the lump. Usually it is best to leave it alone and let the body sort it out....draining it can be an option but if you drain it, it can simply form again and is more prone to infection due to the drainage site. How long has he had it? hmmm...I just have my suspicions this may be far more simple then a tumour...

If you could get a picture that would be great - although I know its much easier said then done!

I suspected it to be some sort of blood blister, but she said 'no, that's tissue alright.' It doesn't actually have any of the whitey yellow tissue in it at all that you'd usually see in tumors. The problem is though that he's really quiet and down in the dumps, could a hematoma have this affect? He's had it about 3 or 4 weeks.

Should I leave him for another week and see if it gets bigger or 'inflates' again? I'll take a picture on a mobile but it won't be very good quality I probably wouldn't get one much better on the camera anyway, I'm useless at taking photos

If you can use the camera, use flash as it should help - best to do it from a bit of a distance and crop closer on the PC after.

Any photo is better than none though.

I would perhaps seek a second opinion, ask about the possibilites of a haematoma.

xx

I'd definitely get a second opinion. The vet on the tullow road told me one of my boys had a tumour. I said it's appearance and growth made it more likely to be an abscess and asked for antibiotics before they tried to operate. They gave my a quater of the recommended daily dose of antibiotics. I brought him to a different vet who didn't really have a clue but gave me the proper dose of antibiotics and the lump was burst and gone within 2 weeks. As far as I know, none of the vets in carlow town have any experience with operating on rats and don't appear to have much of a clue what they're doing and tend to blantantly lie about their knowledge and experience.

Was that the vet on Dublin Road? I'm going to take him there for a second opinion. Is it a certain brand of AB's that I can ask for? And what would be the recommended amount for an adult male rat? The woman who saw him seemed very confident about her knowledge, but like you said she could be trying to appear that way. Am going to take a photo on my mam's phone's camera, as the battery charger seems to be hiding.

I don't think antibiotics would help. In fact, I'm not sure that there's much at all that you can do except keep it clean and drained if possible. I would *possibly* look at amputation of toe myself.

xx