Gerbils had fight & have injuries [vet update]

[gerbilstace87]

I've had two male gerbils for 3 years in February and tonight noticed they were covered in blood. They now look considerably better since they've cleaned themselves up, the lighter coloured boy obviously looking 10x worse to start with. The larger agouti one isn't as bad - one back foot is swollen which is probably due to the bite mark inbetween his toes I think I can see - he also has one nail missing on a front paw. The smaller (possibly dove in colour) boy is worse. He has a swollen back foot and one of his front paws is injured. The front paw he has slightly to the side, curled up and a little floppy. He has been walking on it and digging, but he didn't appear to be able to hold a dried mealworm I gave him - so I'm not certain if he can hold food right now. hey are now separated. Do I even try to allow them to live together again, or keep them separate? I have no intention of trying reintroductions regardless until they're healed up.

Can gerbils have baby food? They don't get a great deal of fruit/veg, so I wasn't sure if baby food is a good idea with quite a large percentage being vegetables. I have some baby food that I'm supplementing one of my rats with, so trying to think of soft food alternatives if he can't manage his normal food.

Would photos of the gerbils' injuries be useful if can manage to get some and post them?

I'm planning on ringing the vets in the morning. I was just there tonight with one of the rats for his teeth to be trimmed too! Typical, eh? I have some Metacam but have no idea of the dosage or if he needs it, so should I leave pain medication for now?

Thanks!

[GerbilGal]

First. Separate them immediately. If they fought once, they will do it again. Yes. Gerbils can have baby food. In small quantities. use some neosporin if you have it and try to clean them up the best you can.

[gerbilstace87]

Jan 12, 2010 14:17:58 GMT -8 GerbilGal said:

First. Separate them immediately. If they fought once, they will do it again. Yes. Gerbils can have baby food. In small quantities. use some neosporin if you have it and try to clean them up the best you can.

I think I must have edited my post just as you replied! I added...

"They are now separated. Do I even try to allow them to live together again, or keep them separate? I have no intention of trying reintroductions regardless until they're healed up."

Is there a maximum amount of baby food you'd suggest daily? I was thinking about letting the one that's worse have a little walk in very very shallow warm water - would that be okay to do?

Thanks for the reply

[catnut]

I would saline to wash their injuries,some say neosporin isn't good for gerbils. I would ask the vet about dosages for gerbils re:the metacam but it is a very small amt.,he may also want to see them due to the swollen feet. Good wishes for both of them.

Take care,

Tammy

[catnut]

I wouldn't put them in water at all,don't want to risk RI. I'd try them with a spoonful of baby food first,some say organic is best.

[doug]

Do not use neosporin, it is a topical ointment and the gerbils will injest it, injesting topical ointments isn't good, doesn't matter if it is a gerbil or a person. A vet can prescribe a treatment that should get him fixed up.

Doug

[marcia]

I wouldn't touch the metacam until you have seen a vet. Metacam is very dangerous if the wrong dosage is given, besides, it is not licensed for use in small animals so a vets advice is needed.

I don't think you need pain relief as much as you need an antibiotic of some sort to stop infection.

[GerbilGal]

They can never go back together once blood is drawn. I have never had any problems with plain neosporin. My vet even recommended it for one of my gerbils that was very ill. She had cancer and I had to get her the part that was bugging her as clean as possible,. Just use some cotton balls and warm water to dab and use a heat lamp.

Have the vet prescribe some metacam. It will help alot. Go with what the vet says to do.

[gerbilstace87]

Thanks for the replies. I will update about the vets later, as I'm using the internet on my phone at the moment.

In the meantime, what is the best and easiest way to hold gerbils to syringe them meds??

[ohmylokix]

Neosporin is toxic to the kidneys of gerbils. No vet would prescribe a human-strength antibiotic ointment. Unless you see clear signs of infection, just a gentle saline wash should do enough.

I used two people to dose Nyx and Ruki. My mom would hold them with their back legs on her hand and her thumbs under their armpits, and I'd give them the meds. But, Ruki started dosing herself.. the metronidazole tasted good, and she would grab it. When I had the pups and mom with RI, I'd just put my thumb in front of their front legs and stick the syringe in.

[doug]

While a one time use of neosporin shouldn't cause much issue why risk it? If you were able to put a cone on the gerbil similar to the ones used for dog and cats then no issue. A friend of mine is a vet and has done research, taught, and practiced would only use neosporin on an animal if it was urgent and nothing else was available, however there are many acceptable animals.

Doug

[gerbilstace87]

Update about the vets. There were some more wounds discovered when the vet was examining them.

The nail missing on the front paw of the agouti boy (Nutty) is nothing to worry about and the bite on his hind leg should be fine. A bite on the side of his cheek was found which has caused swelling on the side of his face - so I need to keep an eye on that for any further swelling. He also has some scratches somewhere on his head and under his chin. I mentioned I'd noticed he was making a clicking sound today and was asked if it sounded like teeth or respiratory. I think it sounded respiratory, but it could also be down to stress.

The dove boy (Nibbler) also had a few more scratches that weren't really obvious otherwise, until he was thoroughly examined. The bites on his hind leg, other scratches and the bite to the side of his mouth should heal fine. His front paw might be broken, but can't be 100% sure until the swelling goes down and the usage of his paw monitored. A slight grinding was felt, which is why the vet said there's a possibility it could be broken. He said he'd have been happier if the grinding wasn't there. A good sign is that he didn't flinch or anything when his paw was manipulated. I had a prod while the vet was examining him and it is very swollen, so the stiffness and limited movement of his paw at the moment is understandable either way - broken or not. If it does turn out to be broken, on us it would be like a break just below the elbow and splinting would be of no use. Hopefully the paw will be fine, but if not then amputation may have to be considered. Nibbler bit the vet

If really necessary I can give Nibbler a painkiller; Metacam. Any amount he'd be given would be an overdose, so I'm only to do that if he takes a turn for the worse and the benefits outweigh the overdosing. It would be the tiniest drop to be given. He's bright enough right now though.

They are both on Baytril. Nibbler for at least 7 days and 14 days would be best if I can manage it - gerbils are NOT easy to medicate lol as I had imagined! Nutty is to be on Baytril for at least 5 days, but it isn't as vital with him. The dosage is 0.1ml once daily - 5x Baytril oral solution 2.5% and it is diluted to 1 in 5. Does this sound okay?

[GerbilGal]

sounds good to me. If you have problems with the medicine. I usually put the medicine on a cheerio and they usually eat it right up.

[gerbilstace87]

Thought I'd update about Nibbler's paw with some photos too. It's his right paw that got injured. He still manages to put weight on it, dig, hold food etc (albeit differently) but the paw doesn't look normal. It does still go backwards sometimes, for example if he climbs over something. It is always kept quite clenched like a fist. I don't really see any need to do anything to the paw?

You can see in the first two photos that he holds it lower down than his left paw.




This one is a bit blurry, but you can compare both his paws and see the right one is kept quite clenched like a fist while his left paw is normal.



Another view of his paw...



This one may be a bit clearer...

[catnut]

Does Nibbler let you touch his paw? Does it feel swollen(his toes) or warm? He may just have permanent damage to it,just healed abit different. He is a cute guy. If he doesn't seem in pain and can use it,then I would let it be but if it seems worse or he is squeaking,cleaning it more,etc,i'd get it checked out again.

Take care,

Tammy