Nova - Full Write Up

Hello again, readers,

Today, we wanted to talk about a previous resident rat - Nova. Due to tragic circumstances, Nova wasn't in our care very long. Despite that, she made a huge impact on our lives and taught us a lot within that short space of time.

This post will contain graphic content. All information stated is only applicable to OUR animals. If your pet is ill then we recommend consulting with your own qualified medical professional to give you appropriate and safe advice for YOUR animal.

Nova's Arrival:

Nova arrived alongside her cage mate, Nima. The pair were being given away for free within 2 minutes from our home. We decided to offer them sanctuary here with us as the young does were extremely nervous and difficult to handle - Nima still is. At the time of their arrival, they were approximately 3-6 months old.

Nova was a timid rat. In contrast to her introverted personality, her striking beauty always captured the attention of admirers. She did, however, have the most angelic and dainty features to match her innocent character.

After a brief quarantine period, the pair were able to join our pre-existing mischief of rats which consisted of 2 does and a neutered buck at the time. 

Health Complications:

Allergic Rhinosinusitis:

At a very young age, Nova appeared to be particularly reactive to dust. Her sensitivities were extreme, even for a rat. She would frequently develop audible upper-respiration whenever above-normal levels of dust were present. Given her young age, we were both concerned and reluctant to try aggressive medicinal management as you commonly would do with respiratory diseases. Instead, we tightened our prophylactics (preventative healthcare measures). The most beneficial change we made was swapping our rat's bedding from paper bedding to dust extracted cardboard bedding. We also purchased an air purifier to better manage her suspected allergic rhinosinusitis by improving air quality around her living environment.

When she experienced more prolonged flares, she would find a one nebulization session daily with isotonic saline (0.9% NaCl) beneficial, her symptoms would generally subside after a week. 
She never required any antihistamines to manage her allergies.

Oesophageal Blockage and Passing:

This section will contain very upsetting content which some readers may find distressing.

Overnight, Nova became anorexic and developed an oral discharge; a mixture of food, saliva, and blood. She was also demonstrating clear signs of pain.

Nova was immediately taken to the vet for clinical investigation. She was then admitted for a GA with an inhalant anesthetic. Despite the heightened risks associated with some of her symptoms, they needed to perform a thorough investigation to try and unravel her mystery illness.

After most of the fluids were suctioned from within her mouth, the vet couldn't see anything out of the ordinary within her mouth, however, it was plausible that Nova could've caused damage far enough back that it wouldn't have been visible without specialist equipment and procedures. She could've had an infection within the mouth stemming from a wound (puncture?) that then became systemic: affecting the entire body. 

Nova was introduced to intermittent syringe feeding given her anorexia. She was also introduced medicinal treatment including; Baytril/Enrofloxacin (broadspectrum licensed antibiotic), Ranitidine (H2 antihistamine), Antespin (GI agent), and Tramadol (opioid pain relief).

Nova continued to rapidly worsen despite medicinal intervention. Although some of the medications that were introduced can take a few days to begin to work, we were concerned about the extent she'd worsened within a short space of time (within 48hrs). We decided to take her back to the vet for another examination. Radiographs were taken, and the vet sought input from a renowned exotic specialist, Molly Varga.

The X-Rays were largely normal apart from the build-up of gas within Nova's intestines. Molly Varga suspected Nova was suffering from an oesophageal blockage which hadn't completely affected her ability to breathe but was nonetheless symptomatic. We agreed to refer Nova to Molly's practice the following day for an endoscopy to be performed, although the procedure wasn't without risks.

Sadly, Nova very suddenly passed away in our arms during one of her syringe feeds during the night. 

Nova passed away on 16th October 2018.

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