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major_clangerAll of a sudden about 10g of brown furry rodent has taken over my life.
Just over a month ago Ben and Jerry had their fifth litter of baby gerbils. We were a bit surprised to see only 3 (after litters of 8, 6, 6 and 6) but otherwise all seemed well. Last week though, we noticed that two of them were visibly smaller than the third. Two days ago one of the smaller ones suddenly became ill and, sad to say, died.
On checking the other small one (number 5.3 in our rather unimaginative system for referring to gerbil pups) we saw that she too was very lethargic. She didn't show much interest in food and I rather worried that she wouldn't last the night. I was pleasantly surprised to find her still alive the following morning and indeed over the day she seemed to perk up a bit. I made sure to feed her some chopped apple to get some moisture into her system but nonetheless she was still a lot less active than her sister. She also had occasional 'clicky' breathing that can be a sign that the lungs are infected or congested.
We also took the decision to split up Ben and Jerry. Normally Jerry goes six to eight weeks between litters, but she is already very obviously heavily pregnant. Gerbils go for 'post-partum mating' meaning that they get pregnant almost as soon as they give birth, but can usually delay gestation whilst nursing. Perhaps with such a small litter that didn't happen, but we wanted to avoid Jerry getting pregnant yet again, so Ben was off to a separate tank.
Today 5.3 was still going but again lethargic and off her food. Time to try the vet. I called our local veterinary practice and was told there was an appointment in 20 minutes time, so quicky packed up Jerry and the two pups in the travel tank and drove round to the high street.
After having all the receptionists 'ooh' and 'aah' over how cute the babies were, it was in to the vet for a check. She agreed that 5.3 was very small for her age and rather dehydrated, so administered a couple of drops of antibiotic (against possible lung infection) then asked her assistant for some rehydration solution. The assistant popped out and came back with a drip bag (which led to some amusing mental images!) but the vet took about 0.5cc out with the smallest syringe they had and injected it into the back of 5.3's neck. 5.3 didn't seem to mind, although some frantic face-cleaning suggested that the antibiotic might not have tasted too good. Advice was to separate her from Jerry and sister, keep her warm and feed with baby-rice. I also got a couple of cc's of antibiotic to administer.
So, got home via chemist to pick up baby-rice. Having seen the vet administer liquid I was a bit more confident to try myself; some water worked OK, but my first attempt with dilute baby rice was a near-disaster. I used a syringe and perhaps administered a bit much, as 5.3 had a fit that suggests I nearly choked her. For a minute I thought I'd managed to finish her off but she shook herself vigorously and seemed to recover. Now thinking how to do this better; perhaps small blobs via a toothpick?
And now I find myself checking on her every half an hour or so, trying to decide what to do next. I'm wary of trying too hard to feed her, lest I precipitate more problems, but it's important to keep her well-nourished. Part of me finds it odd that I'm putting so much effort into a gerbil pup that will sell for only £1 and indeed will probably be politely declined by most pet shops given her condition. However, she's our responsibility since we let her parents breed, and after taking her to the vet I am motivated to do my best to put the advice and help I got into effect (and not just for the £10 it cost).
So there I am. Carer For Small Mammals.
MC
Just over a month ago Ben and Jerry had their fifth litter of baby gerbils. We were a bit surprised to see only 3 (after litters of 8, 6, 6 and 6) but otherwise all seemed well. Last week though, we noticed that two of them were visibly smaller than the third. Two days ago one of the smaller ones suddenly became ill and, sad to say, died.
On checking the other small one (number 5.3 in our rather unimaginative system for referring to gerbil pups) we saw that she too was very lethargic. She didn't show much interest in food and I rather worried that she wouldn't last the night. I was pleasantly surprised to find her still alive the following morning and indeed over the day she seemed to perk up a bit. I made sure to feed her some chopped apple to get some moisture into her system but nonetheless she was still a lot less active than her sister. She also had occasional 'clicky' breathing that can be a sign that the lungs are infected or congested.
We also took the decision to split up Ben and Jerry. Normally Jerry goes six to eight weeks between litters, but she is already very obviously heavily pregnant. Gerbils go for 'post-partum mating' meaning that they get pregnant almost as soon as they give birth, but can usually delay gestation whilst nursing. Perhaps with such a small litter that didn't happen, but we wanted to avoid Jerry getting pregnant yet again, so Ben was off to a separate tank.
Today 5.3 was still going but again lethargic and off her food. Time to try the vet. I called our local veterinary practice and was told there was an appointment in 20 minutes time, so quicky packed up Jerry and the two pups in the travel tank and drove round to the high street.
After having all the receptionists 'ooh' and 'aah' over how cute the babies were, it was in to the vet for a check. She agreed that 5.3 was very small for her age and rather dehydrated, so administered a couple of drops of antibiotic (against possible lung infection) then asked her assistant for some rehydration solution. The assistant popped out and came back with a drip bag (which led to some amusing mental images!) but the vet took about 0.5cc out with the smallest syringe they had and injected it into the back of 5.3's neck. 5.3 didn't seem to mind, although some frantic face-cleaning suggested that the antibiotic might not have tasted too good. Advice was to separate her from Jerry and sister, keep her warm and feed with baby-rice. I also got a couple of cc's of antibiotic to administer.
So, got home via chemist to pick up baby-rice. Having seen the vet administer liquid I was a bit more confident to try myself; some water worked OK, but my first attempt with dilute baby rice was a near-disaster. I used a syringe and perhaps administered a bit much, as 5.3 had a fit that suggests I nearly choked her. For a minute I thought I'd managed to finish her off but she shook herself vigorously and seemed to recover. Now thinking how to do this better; perhaps small blobs via a toothpick?
And now I find myself checking on her every half an hour or so, trying to decide what to do next. I'm wary of trying too hard to feed her, lest I precipitate more problems, but it's important to keep her well-nourished. Part of me finds it odd that I'm putting so much effort into a gerbil pup that will sell for only £1 and indeed will probably be politely declined by most pet shops given her condition. However, she's our responsibility since we let her parents breed, and after taking her to the vet I am motivated to do my best to put the advice and help I got into effect (and not just for the £10 it cost).
So there I am. Carer For Small Mammals.
MC
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no subject
Date: 2003-04-24 06:59 am (UTC)Hope 5.3 lives.