|
|
Post by peshandlucky on May 22, 2015 5:44:29 GMT -8
A few weeks ago one of my gerbils named pesh died from abdominal tumor, it was very sad and me and my partner are still upset about it but heres what happened, she first started sleeping in wierd places and put on a teeny bit of weight but was still energetic so we didnt think anything of it, 2 weeks later , she just wasnt in the mood to do anything on the night I got her out put her down my top as she likes burrowing in my top but she fell asleep in my top for ages and I thought the house was to hot so I thought she was just to hot but on the morning next day , she just sat on the second shelf and was breathing funny jolting forwards and I got her out and she just sat on my hand with her eyes squinted closed so I held her for a while then put her back in , we went to pet shop to get her little house to sit in came back and she crawled in it and just stayed there not eatin not drinking I noticed her fur had come off on her side and her belly was growing big by the hour , my first though she was pregs well I hoped even tho she lives with her sister but as we were on the way to take her to the vets alon the motorway she just kept turnin around then looked up at both of us and flipped backwards and died in my hand in a carry case,
the reason I am explaining in detail was that when I searched up abdominal tumor there wasnt much on internet so hopefully when someone searches it now my story will help
we had pesh cremated and kept her ashes , it didnt feel right if I had buried her or tip her ashes somewhere because she wouldnt be with us and I dont want some kid digging her up years later
and her sister lucky is alive and well she is doing okay on her own she is the dominant one after all so she likes the space but misses her sister still
thankyou for reading my story I hope it helped
Plus , Female gerbils are prone to abdominal tumors and the vet doesnt do internal surgery so my advise if shes got a few weeks left dont put her down because she will still be energetic till the second to last day and give her lots of attention and maybe seperate the cage if you think its goin to be the day because it can make the other one scared and also they might eat the dead one and that can be traumatising .
Symptoms
sleeping away from the other one
jolting forwards breathing
fur loss
Stomach growing big
not eating or drinking
fur loss along the tail
and clicking noises hours before death
eyes squinted shut
not moving from same spot and when movin very slow
sat upwards with paws on the side of something so the stomach isnt pressing down on anyhing that would be uncomfortable
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on May 22, 2015 14:56:25 GMT -8
soo sorry to hear about Pesh, my gerbil Zena was put down on Wed. due to an abdominal tumor, she was still eating but her breathing was bad and she was sleeping almost all the time, I looked after her for 2 weeks but she was growing worse and I knew it was a tumor (or heart issue)due to the swelling. Zena was alone, I couldn't afford to keep her ashes as it cost me $113 just to have a checkup-which they required, put to sleep and shared ashes buried. I knew she was going to pass in the next day or two but I didn't want her to really suffer,she was a good eater so she was even eating some on Wed. but her eyes were almost closed by that time. I had to walk my gerbil 1/2 hour in the heat due to not driving to the vets, which I'm sure didn't help her. I can't find much either, I've had other gerbils with tumors and am trying to find out more esp. if there is anyway to prevent them or what can cause them. Zena was only over 2 years but was a rescue and abit overweight when I got her in Jan. so I wasn't able to feed her right from the beginning.
RIP Pesh, hope lucky is doing okay. I have Adam, who is also a rescue, thankfully he is healthy and abit younger.
Tammy
|
|
|
|
Post by rs on May 22, 2015 15:50:16 GMT -8
So sorry about Pesh (and Zena). I'm glad we're all putting information out there; hopefully, it will begin to add up, or someone reading these posts will someday be a veterinarian or researcher who develops more knowledge about these problems.
SH and I are able to pay for tests and cremation now, and are glad to do so, but I grew up in a family that loved its pets, and none of those pets were cremated, and only a few small ones (mice, parakeet) buried. Love doesn't come in dollars; I'm glad that some people can afford these options, but not being able to afford those options isn't really the biggest thing, it's the care and affection during their lives. Obviously, your particular furry friends got lots of both when they were around to know it.
Here's to Adam and Lucky, and let's post whatever facts about gerbil health we come to know. Again, maybe the building a body of knowledge in honor of our deceased friends will help the living ones (and people) in the future. And, again, so sorry for your losses.
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on May 22, 2015 16:20:10 GMT -8
I wish vets could help small animals more, some in my area won't even see a gerbil and the ones that do are expensive. I feel bad for those who really can't afford to get a pet put down that is suffering or one that may be helped but the owner has no funds and wants to help their pet. I will always remember Zena.
|
|
|
|
Post by peshandlucky on May 23, 2015 2:05:48 GMT -8
Thankyou for your comments I really appreciate it and im so sorry for your loss catnut R.I.P zena you done all you could for her , there isnt a way to provent abdominal tumors it just comes very quick and the vets cant do internal surgery , if the gerbil was a boy and had a scent gland tumor therefore they can remove because it is on the outside , and my pesh was nearly 2 years , gerbils dont live long in wild so when they are cared for they tend to get common deseases the longer they live , all that matters when this happens is to show them they are loved and give them as much attention as you can , I just wish small animals could live longer without complications ,
And lucky is doing perfect we keep puttin new toys in everyweek so she doesnt get bored and we give her a loofah teddy she flings that about like mad and we get her out way more than usual amd the usual is like 4 times a day half an hour each time ,
And when one is left behind whem the other one dies you should clean the gerbilarium straight away and put new toys in to get rid of any scent left from the other one I know it sounds terrible but its best for your remaining gerbils
I let lucky smell the carry case that pesh died in for closure and then washed it afterwards
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on May 23, 2015 14:55:07 GMT -8
thank you, I just take my pets' deaths hard but deal the best I can. I wish I could take Adam out but he is a skittish gerbil, he lets' me touch him at times when he is tired but he loves his wheel and I change his toys around.
|
|
|
|
Post by peshandlucky on May 23, 2015 22:58:34 GMT -8
Me and mu partner took it really bad I have been with him 2 n half years and they were our first pets together , he loves gerbils and now I do , he slept near the cage the first few nights without pesh , I couldnt stop crying I just look in the cage expecting to her her out or see her but shes not there I mnow she isnt but I still do it, gerbils have such personalities pesh used to back scratch my hair and chew any of my clothes I was wearing and play little games shed stare at us for ages wag her tail until we go over then she runs and hides
have you hand tamed adam catnut, if so and he still doesnt like being out try putting him down an old t shirt while wearing it and sit in an empty bath he will run all over you then , pesh was hard to tame I had to wear gloves at first and my partner luke was scared of her , she warmed to me and only nipped me when she wanted to go back in but she would still hard nip luke as he always very wary holding her but he started to bond more the last couple of months she had
You could try turning all the sound on tv and stuff of put your phone on silent and just talk to him while you get him out, if hes skittish it could be the noise in background making him jump , we had that problem everytime phone went of they would jump a mile , or even get a gerbil pen place it on hard surface and makesure he doesnt jump over top like mine did and you could put hurdles in and train him to jump them , what about an exercise ball a big one , we nearly made the mistake on got a dwarf hamster ball that would of hurt there back so we got big ones
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on May 24, 2015 15:04:08 GMT -8
I've tried different things with Adam but he was abandoned at a bus stop and must've been abused by the way he protects himself by biting-he has gotten better and will let me touch him but he gets stressed so I have to keep it short. I've never had a gerbil who hasn't warmed up to me but I will just take him how he is-he has cute ways and I do put my hand in so he sees I'm not going to hurt him, he likes when I talk to him.
|
|
|
|
Post by peshandlucky on May 24, 2015 23:48:49 GMT -8
Aww I cant believe people would leave him in a bustop thats horrible , why do people buy gerbils and then do horrible stuff , someone on youtube actually fed there pet snake with there pet gerbil how horrible is that I cryed I only watch it cause it popped up and I wanted to see if it got away ,
the pet shops dont give the buyers enough information about these beautiful animals so they take them on and dont realise what to do with them or there kids get bored so they dump them its horrendoes , gerbils have such personalities and they get frightened and have feelings to people dont realise that.
try putting him in empty bath with toys by himself and just put a glove on and let him run over the top of your hand ,
Over time he may trust you more but the fact you got a rescue gerbil thats great thing to do not many people take on rescue animals , I bet hes grateful and much happier now with you then he was before
|
|
|
|
Post by catnut on May 27, 2015 14:48:28 GMT -8
i don't have a bathtub but I have tried him in a bin with some toys but that didn't seem to help,either. I keep trying and he is getting abit better with me. It's disgusting what some do when they don't want their pets any longer but at least they didn't just set him free.
|
|
|
|
Post by peshandlucky on May 28, 2015 4:17:46 GMT -8
You could try rubbing your hands in the bedding so you smell like him and got an old top and put sunflower seeds in your top and he will headbut your top and chew it and he will get used to your scent , im glad hes getting closer with you
|
|
|
|
Post by rs on Jun 4, 2015 2:41:45 GMT -8
If you use anything with a drain, stick something in the drain so you can't have accidents.
What catnut says is true, at least whoever abandoned your little friend didn't just dump him. My guess would be that they had some idea that someone would find him, but that's not the way to do it.
I think there's a real conflict of interest when pet stores have both small mammals and other pets that eat them. I know that in the wild that the snakes, foxes, and other rodent-eaters are needed to keep the fast multipliers from eating so much that the environment is damaged or destroyed, but people's homes aren't the wild and there's no excuse.
Sounds like you're on the right track with your guy, and he may be getting a lot of what he needs from you already.
|
|
|
|
Post by rs on Jun 18, 2015 1:13:23 GMT -8
I'm reading a book called Rats, Mice, and Dormice as Pets by Lolly Brown, and on page 18 it says that selling mice as live food for reptiles is illegal in the U.K. Maybe there's a push to make that the law of the land here.
|
|
|
|
Post by peshandlucky on Jun 18, 2015 7:10:15 GMT -8
Is the book a good read? And is it I didnt know that , well thats good it should become less of a problem but pet shops dont look into anything about customers before they sell them the pet so its easily goinnto happen , but its great that its illegal because its animal cruelty and thankyou for the information really appreciate it
I just dont know how some people can be so cruel to animals no matter what size they are they all have feelings and emotions, and we was all put on this planet so its all equal
|
|
|
|
Post by rs on Jun 23, 2015 4:51:28 GMT -8
The book seems like a good intro to rat, mouse, and dormouse ownership, but I don't know enough about these creatures to be sure. It certainly is a pleasant, fast read, with adorable photos (of course!).
I have heard occasionally of a pet store refusing to sell an animal, but it does seem to be rare. I think the laws are important, however, because they create a kind of mental climate. When these things aren't illegal, it's like saying it's okay. When they are illegal, it means the majority of people in a country think it's wrong, and I do think that, even when laws can be gotten around easily, it still says something about the values of a country or a locality, elected officials, the citizens who put them in office, and the non-citizen residents who are on-board. And I do think it creates a different feeling in people in general.
|
|
