Is this an emergency?

[Michellef]

300606 is this an emergency? He was neutered yesterday. Not sure if he has peed today but he did poop.

[Mel1959]

Is that a scab on his penis? If so it needs to be softened with some warm water and removed so urine can flow.

Upon closer look it looks like a protrusion out the tip of the penis, correct? There was a member who had a wild squirrel that had a similar problem. I’m not sure what the vet did or said about it.

I will alert him to your thread.

[Michellef]

I'm not sure I used warm water and then I put a little Vaseline.
The vet doesn't answer at night and they refer me to another. I'm not sure if he has peed at all. Do you think I should take him in ? Or can it wait till morning.

[Mel1959]

Is it a protrusion out the tip or a scab?

[Michellef]

I've never seen this before. It looks like the inside part of penis. But may be a little hard scab too. What should I do

[4Puddles]

Where is the incision from the neuter located?

[Michellef]

Incision is on abdomen under the jacket. I havnt seen it yet.

[4Puddles]

Incision is on abdomen under the jacket. I havnt seen it yet.

Wow, that seems really high up for the incision to be. I wonder if they put in a urinary catheter during the surgery and now the urethra is inflammed and irritated? From your picture it looks kind of like a urethral prolapse. I am not sure why the neuter would cause this though. Do you think there is any chance he has been chewing down there and caused an injury?

[Michellef]

No he has not been chewing. How can I tell if his bladder filling up. And could the jacket tgey put on be causi g this?

[Michellef]

I hope I'm not going to be sorry I neutered him😭
I don't know if I should take him to the emergency vet or wait till morning and go back to Dr k.

[4Puddles]

No he has not been chewing. How can I tell if his bladder filling up. And could the jacket tgey put on be causi g this?

I cannot say for sure that the jacket isn’t causing some type of irritation if it is a bit too tight, but I cannot imagine how it could cause the penis to look like this. If you GENTLY squeeze his lower abdomen (right around the very bottom of his jacket) does it feel pretty soft and normal or hard and tight? Please be extremely gentle since he just had surgery, is probably pretty sore, and his incision will be close by. Also, is he acting normal otherwise?

[Mel1959]

I looked up the story of the yard squirrel that had a protrusion. It had damage to its penile sheath so the penis could not retract.

Examine this closely, with a magnifying glass if necessary, and determine if the red is protruding out of the penis opening or a scab at the tip.

[Mel1959]

I also can’t understand why the incision for neutering is so high.

[Michellef]

He's perked up since I brought him home last night but he still goes back to sleeping like he's recovering. His testicles area and belly above are very swollen so I can't tell what is what

[Michellef]

The pink is comi g from the Inside of penis

[Mel1959]

The emergency vet probably has little to no knowledge about squirrels. Is he acting ok? Has he eaten and is he moving around?

[Mel1959]

Did his bladder feel full? When did you first notice this? If the surgery was yesterday he has to have urinated since then.

[4Puddles]

He's perked up since I brought him home last night but he still goes back to sleeping like he's recovering. His testicles area and belly above are very swollen so I can't tell what is what

This is just my personal opinion, but if he is acting pretty normal, then I would probably check on him multiple times throughout the night and wait until tomorrow to bring him in to see the vet that neutered him. Generally animals who are unable to urinate act very uncomfortable and restless. The vet that did the surgery will know all of the specifics about what was done during the surgery (urinary catheter placement, castration approach, etc.) and why the penis might appear this way. If he starts acting very agitated or lethargic then that is a different story and I would take him somewhere tonight.
Did the vet give you any pain medication or antibiotics to give to him?

[Mel1959]

This is the thread of the squirrel that had the protrusion. Maybe it will help to review it.
https://thesquirrelboard.com/forums/showthread.php?53881-Wild-yard-squirrel-impaled-or-herniated-or-what

[Michellef]

Ok thank you so much. He is on baytril and metacam

[4Puddles]

Ok thank you so much. He is on baytril and metacam

Great! He has some pain/inflammation control and infection control on board. Hopefully the vet can give you some answers tomorrow! :hug
One last thought...I know there is elastikon (very sticky stretchy tape at the bottom of his little jacket, but is there anywhere up top that you can try and slip your finger under the dinosaur wrap and make sure it isn’t super tight? Sometimes that wrap can be deceiving about how tight it is when applied, especially if the pet is under anesthesia and sleeping.

[Diggie's Friend]

Curious, did the vet do more than one procedure, as the bandage is looks more like where a hernia?

The neutering incision, from what I have seen of them, is done at the distal end of the scrotum.

[Diggie's Friend]

Please excuse my prior ignorance, this is the abdominal approach to neutering. Perhaps it was done this way out of concern for chewing of a scrotal incision?

http://ratguide.com/health/reproductive/neuter.php (other approaches outlined on this same page.)


Abdominal approach –

The rat is placed in a dorsal recumbancy (lying on its back) position. The abdomen is clipped (of fur), prepped and prepared aseptically, and as the inguinal ring remains open in this species, the testicles can be accessed via a caudal laparotomy incision and traction on the spermatic cord.

Abdominal castrations may be favored by some vets, in the same way as ovariectomies. The theory is that it causes less soft tissue trauma. However, this may just be preference based since abdominal incision in and of itself does not appear less traumatic than 2 tiny incisions to the scrotum.

Abdominal castration is used primarily in congenital conditions of cryptorchidism, where the teste or testes fail to migrate freely into the scrotum but remain in the abdomen.

The disadvantage to abdominal castration are that there are greater risks if the rat chews the wound, more heat loss due to having the abdomen open and a larger surgical field, as well as a 3 layer abdominal closure that would be needed, all adding to the anesthetic time….

For any of the above techniques the following closure material may be utilized based on veterinary preference:

Absorbable suture used to close muscle (as in abdominal technique), and the closing of the skin may be done with non-absorbable sutures, surgical adhesive. (Bennett, Rodents:soft tissue surgery, 2009; Bennett, Soft Tissue Surgery, 2012; Flecknell & Waynforth, 1992; Harkness, et al, 2010; Mayer, 2008)

[Mel1959]

How’s your boy doing this morning?

[TubeDriver]

That looks like he may have chewed on his penis? Was he given any pain meds after surgery?

I think it is critical that you watch him and make sure he is peeing. If that swells or scabs up and he can NOT urinate, it could cause life threatening complications.

As long as he is peeing regularly and without issue, I would be a LOT less worried! But I would also watch for any signs of infection. Probably a good idea to have an AB like Clavamox on hand just in case.

[Michellef]

Thank you for all your help last night. Chippie is back with Dr k today. She said it's a scrotum hematoma and its swelling the penis out. She has to check his bladder to make sure he is relieving himself because I don't see any pee in his cage. Their going to do a laser treatment to increase blood flow for healing and hopefully get that pecker back inside. I just don't like him getting anymore anesthesia.

[4Puddles]

Healing thoughts for your boy :grouphug

[Mel1959]

Please update us on how he’s doing when you have news. :hug

[cava]

Following and wishing you both well.:hug

[SophieSquirrel]

The "Dr.K" I referred Michellef to is the one on Nat Geo: http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/wild/dr-ks-exotic-animal-er/

She is one of the top consulting vet's for many zoos. Chippie is in excellent hands however every surgery has inherent risks no matter who the vet is.

You had asked me for a vet reference for squirrels but didn't say anything about getting him neutered. Was there a reason for the neutering?

How old is Chippie?

[Diggie's Friend]

I saw the laser treatment the other day; it was used on the injured thumb of a mini sized baby monkey, and its itty bitty wee thumb!

Very impressive, cool laser, no pain involved, no anesthesia needed; just as long as someone is able to hold the animal still enough and shield the eyes.

[Diggie's Friend]

The only reason to use anesthesia would be if no one can hold the squirrel securely. Considering that this group specializes with exotics they likely know how to handle a squirrel. Still I would ask if the doctor or staff has handled squirrels before. On the program I have seen the Dr. rely upon the handler when biting is an issue. If you are confident in handling your squirrel in this situation that may be the best choice.

Holding a squirrel over the back of their head and shoulders firmly tummy down, to keep them pinned down onto the table with a blanket (fleece) so they can't get anywhere easily, not on the table directly where they then would have traction is needful. Just keep in mind that when they are in pain or sore they may even try to bite you, so hold the position. Talk to your squirrel is a low soft tone. If they wiggle place your other hand left in front to block their moving forward, likewise behind them if they move backwards.

If another is to handle your squirrel, please let them know that pet squirrels aren't easily handled as pet rats that are domesticated are, and with being tender they may bite them if you don't have them secured down to the table on a blanket so they can't grip the table with the pads of their feet.

A pair of ceramic woven small animal handling gloves for rodents worn over kevlar surgical thin kevlar gloves offers some protection from their incisors penetrating the skin.

[Diggie's Friend]

Sorry for another post, just want to cover the bases.

Putting a squirrel/chipmunk under for a few minutes shouldn't be an issue. This was done a number of times for our squirrel just a few minutes. It may be needful to do this anyway due to the hematoma.

I hope it all goes well for your little chippy.

[Michellef]

Chippie is doing great. His bandage is off and he's not touching it.. The penis problem us fixed and they said the laser therapy reduced swelling. He's eating and drinking and they said he's going to be a star on tv. National geographic wild season 6.🐿🐿 we go back to Dr. Monday for check up.

[Diggie's Friend]

Way to go Dr. K! :w00t

Looks like this thread should now be moved out the emergency forum.