With an ear infection there could be a nasty smell - Cedar's ear infection smelled like a very ripe brie! It wasn't nice at all. And they can be unsteady on their feet too.

Nixie won't fight but she is the power grooming queen so I don't doubt she has already had her revenge on Teazle for humiliating her the other day.
They all bicker occasionally and I wouldn't normally interfere but Nixie is my special girl and I can't stand to see her upset!She pants and has a mini panic attack if she's jumped on!...thankfully its happening rarely so far and once she's got over it she is fine.
If she did have an ear infection would there be any other signs?I gave her ears a good checking over last night and there was no weeping,heat,swelling or pain anywhere in the vicinity.
Still no sign of a pm,Hannah :(

My Conker has a head tilt (from a fall when he was young we think) & he does get a bit of bullying, especially from Siam. However it's not enough to make him miserable - he just puts up with it with a bit of squeaking! Hopefully Nixie isn't too upset by it!

Just sent you another PM. Please let me know if you get it as I'm still not sure if they're working :-/

I think rats sense when another is not quite how they used to be. A bit of friction started between Jonah and Charlie even before I had to remove Noah from the cage and has been going on a bit since. I just hope poor Nixie can stand her ground with the others and that you don't have to rescue her too many times! A head tilt can mean a few things I think, an ear infection for one, but as she's had the tilt since the poisoning it does seem connected. Aw, scritches to Nixie!

No,I haven't recieved any pm's!??.....must be teething problems in the site again!
I don't think Nixies head tilt will get any better,she's had it since the poisoning,I think it caused neurological damage.But in every other way she is herself again,full of fun and energy and she has a phenomenal appetite!If it gets worse I will take her to the vets to get it checked out.
Teazle,the leader of the new 3,is harassing Nixie sometimes though.She can sense that Nixie isn't as physically strong.Yesterday I had to rescue poor Nix.Teazle had pushed her into the food bowl and Nixie was on her back in there,wedged in and stuck!I had to prise her out and comfort her.She hates fights..The first pacifist rat I've ever met!

Sarah, just wondering, did you get my PM???

Aw, scritches to the brave Nixie!!

Maybe the head tilt is just an ear infection and not related to the poisoning? :/ Nixie sounds like she's still loving life though and I bet so happy to still be here with you!!

I'm glad she's almost better - give her a wee scritch from me!

Its now been a month since Nixie's poisoning.
She hasn't made a 100% recovery as I hoped,she has a slight head tilt and is still a little wobbly when she stands but she can climb and run as fast as she did and is obviously happy and full of energy so I am grateful she is with me.x

Aww,a gentle belly kiss for Phoebe!x...Given her condition,it sounds like you are doing what is best for her.I'm sure she is happier and feels safer sleeping where she is...and one amazing thing about our oldies is the bond between us and them strenghtens and deepens and they really appreciate the love and care we lavish upon them.
I hope the Senior aid helps
x

Phoebe says I'm to say thank you for Nixie's big sneezy fooff! :) I expect she's very happy to be back in the main cage, and good to know that she's behaving herself! And I can imagine you now having a plantless house!!

Yes, it's easy to be overprotective. I feel bad that Phoebe and Molly still sleep in two separate cages but the reason for this is Phoebe's very wobbly condition. She can no longer climb and is now starting to find getting up her ladder very difficult and I have to be very careful not to walk fast when she's perched on my shoulder as she can so easily start to wobble off! Whereas Molly is so full of energy and can still do everything that she did as a baby. Molly always wants to be and sleeps at the very top of the cage and poor little Phoebe, although she so wanted to be up there too, just couldn't get to all the places that her sister went and would always look so sad, and of course Molly just couldn't understand why Phoebe couldn't join her and play along and so she was always getting pounced on and pulled into joining in but she couldn't :( In the end it just didn't seem fair and Phoebe was very unhappy. They free-range (supervised) for up to four hours a day in two separate 'shifts' although Molly still gets quite rough with her at times, prompting Phoebe to run to her Mummy!

I've actually just placed an order tonight for some Senior Aid and a pot of Ipakitine as I've been reading very good things about these, especially the Senior Aid, helping to improve HLD and also cognition in older rats, so here's hoping these may help Phoebe!

Hope you enjoy the dog sitting :)

Nixie sends a big sneezy fooff and a happy shake back atcha!!
As of yesterday evening she is back in the main cage.I notice an improvement each free range.I am in gratitude and wonder that my gorgeous girl has not only pulled through but is likely to make a 100% recovery!...I'd say she is at 90% now.
She is behaving herself!She tends to avoid conflict at all costs,if there is any bickering in the group she is to be found quivering behind my legs!!
I am dog sitting for a neighbour friend this w/e so I have been sleeping there but when I am back at my place monday night I shall have her and Chi free ranging in my room as usual(without any plants anywhere in the vicinity!!)

I know what you mean Hannah,about being protective.When Mab was old and had HLD the other fitter ones seemed to take great delight in rolling her over and sitting on her.Mab really got into the role of damsel-in-distress though,she used to let out a long,pathetic wail which was my signal to wade in and rescue her and make a big fuss of her,which she loved!

This is excellent news!! I'm so happy for you and Nixie that she has come through this!! And there's nothing wrong in being an overprotective Mum :) I'm like this too when Phoebe free-ranges with Molly. Phoebe has Hind Leg Degeneration and often walks around with her hind legs making her look drunk, while her sister Molly is still running and bouncing around like a six-month-old and will pounce on an already very wobbly Phoebe!
Nixie sounds like she's enjoying life more than ever and hopefully will not cause mayhem when back in the main cage :-/

Kisses to Nixie x x x :)

The Nixster has improved some more!She only wobbles when she stands on her hind legs.Her energy levels are in fact greater than before!...probably because she is excited at being active again.
She can run and climb now and was even humping and pinning the younger ones last night,which I'd thought she'd grown out of.
I'm hoping she will improve a little more so I can put her back in the main cage,she would probably be ok now but after everything she's been through I admit I am being a bit of an overprotective Mum!

I think you're right, Sarah, that the poisoning was a huge shock to her central nervous system, but I'm so glad you're still seeing such positive signs of improvement!

Scritches again to Nixie :)

Nixie is doing great!She is walking normally and can almost trot and I know she feels back to her normal self 'cos she doesn't need comforting anymore.Its back to a time limit of 20 seconds per cuddle then she's wriggling to get back to her ratty business!!
Last night she had her first proper free range.I'm having to follow her everywhere to see she doesn't get into trouble as she's very over confident and keeps trying to attempt stuff beyond her means such as launching herself back into the main cage.When she stands and climbs she still wobbles and tilts on her axis so I can't let her back in with the others as theres too much of a risk of falling.Still,she's not on her own,one of the others goes in the single storey cage with her to keep her company.
I'm hoping her overreaching is a positive sign that she WILL get there!!I think the poison is out of her body but it was a huge shock to her central nervous system so it will take a while for full recovery.

Poor Nixie! But she's done well, I hope things continue to improve for you both - give her a scritch from me!

Aw, Nixie definitely is going to make it, I can tell! :) And a lot of this is down to you, all the time and care you have given her. Some ratties may have given up without all the love and attention you have given Nixie. She's a fighter though too and getting back to her little cheeky self by the sounds of it, snatching the toast crust you had saved for the others! lol I don't know exactly how long for the toxin to get completely out of her system. It may be now but her body just needs a little more time to recover.

Well done Nixie and well done you!!

(((Hugs)))Thanks for your kind thoughts ,Hannah,your'e right,she's a fighter.Her cheerfulness and sheer determination to pull through have astounded me!
I'm so excited as this morning was the most significant improvement yet.Her strength and co-ordination had improved to the extent where she managed to exit the cage on her own without me lifting her out,she had an exploration of the kitchen floor,she climbed up and through a ferret tube in her cage and she cheekily lunged and snatched the toast crust I had saved for the others(this was despite her having her own special breakfast with me first!).
She gets tired quickly but I make her have a little exercise session,just a couple of minutes,so she can learn to get her co-ordination back and build up her muscle strength again.
As well as the physical symptoms the toxin seemed to cause mental confusion but today her personality was starting to shine through again.Nixie knows she is my favourite and revels in the fact,she gets jealous if she doesn't get first dibs on any treats so it was so typical of her to try and nick the others breakfast and get in there before them!

Phew, Sarah! What a relief! I've been thinking about Nixie today and wondering if she's OK and it sounds like she's going to be!! And she sounds like a little fighter too and has beaten the poisoning!! As she's drinking again and it looks like her kidneys are fine, hopefully the wobbliness will abate soon too. It may be just weakness caused by the toxins and her little body having to fight them, so hopefully with eating normal rat food again she will pick up strength and her co-ordination return to normal. I hope so anyway!!

Scritches and big kisses to Nixie x x x

I now know her kidneys are working fine as theres evidence of wee's too so she is drinking again.
She excitedly rushed out of her nest to scoff some tea just now and she's back on normal rat food.When I put my hand in to scritch her she gave me a big lick.
Its hard not to get upset at her wibbly-wobbliness but yesterday morning she couldn't even feed herself so its an improvement!

Last night she hadn't improved from the morning which was upsetting but I'm glad to say that she's sat on my shoulder fooffing away and she is considerably brighter.
I've just fed her some bread soaked in water and she was strong enough to have a wander on the couch.Her co-ordination and movements still are poor and I still don't know if there'll be a favorable outcome but all I can do is be in the moment and think positive and right now she's telling me she wants to stay and fight it!

As she's brighter I am going to put her in the one storey travel cage with her sister Chi today.In a bit I will take her upstairs for the others free-range time as I'm sure they are wondering why she suddenly vanished!

Thankyou for googling peace lily for me Hannah.When she hadn't improved last night I was wondering-had she had a stroke and the peace lily thing was a co-incidence?-but if they are toxic it makes sense that she is so ill.

Oh Sarah, what a shock!!! I hope Nixie will be OK and am glad she is better than when you first found her!! I remember when my dog was a tiny puppy and she ate one of my mum's sleeping tablets. The vet told us to force feed her salt water. We did and she was very sick but she was OK. Rats can't vomit though, so like you said, I don't know what even a vet could say to do! I did a quick google on peace lily and read that ingesting the leaves in humans causes burning of the lips, tongue and throat and is toxic if large amounts are eaten and can also cause severe mouth pain, and that they are poisonous to dogs and cats and can cause kidney failure, but I don't know what amount would have to be ingested to cause this. I read a large quantity.

I'm so glad Nixie is looking better and not worse, and I'd say possibly the first 24 hours after ingesting would determine the outcome. I'm glad she has eaten and has done some poo. It's also important to keep her hydrated. I've have thought if the leaf caused her tongue and throat to burn that she wouldn't have carried on eating it but maybe it just tasted so good!

I really hope Nixie is OK! Why do all the bad things always happen to our favourites! :(