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Post by thegerbilfamily on Jul 25, 2015 5:04:42 GMT -8
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Post by crittercrazy on Jul 25, 2015 5:58:59 GMT -8
It certainly could be a runt, but either way there isn't much to do for it. Most of the time a runt does fine on his own. . . you can try to supplement with kitten replacement milk if he isn't getting enough food, but that is harder than it sounds!  I would just keep an eye on him for now. |
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Post by betty on Jul 26, 2015 4:23:53 GMT -8
Runt is just a term used to describe any gerbil who is smaller than the rest - is last in the pecking order for food and warmth and therefore takes longer to develop - it will grow hair later and possibly open its eyes later too - and male runts can be mistaken for females to due to late development. I would say that up to half my litters have had a runt of some kind and 2 who were absolutely tiny (both of whom made it).
If there is too much competition for milk or space, the runt could miss out on nutrients over a prolonged period of time and so could pass at any time before weaning at around 3 weeks. It may also pass if it has an underlying medical condition (which you can't see) which either made it small in the first place or affects the way it metabolises food and so it can't grow normally even if it eats normally.
Things you could do to 'help' your runt will include making sure the mum isn't too disturbed so she has more time to eat herself (by shielding the tank from visual or audio disruption and scattering more calorie dense foods around the whole tank) and therefore she should make more milk and feed more often; and with large litters, some people have taken out the larger pups for a short while (keeping them together and warm) leaving the runt and another pup alone in the nest - and hopefully this will mean that the runt will at least get one full tummy a day. Other people try to substitute a bit of mums milk with kitten milk powder and a tiny paintbrush (don't syringe feed - see other threads for alternatives).
I will try to find that image of my tiny tinker...
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Post by betty on Jul 26, 2015 4:25:33 GMT -8
Here he is - he did absolutely fine once weaned and grew to 'normal' size by 12 weeks...  |
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Post by thegerbilfamily on Jul 27, 2015 7:15:08 GMT -8
Thanks guys ! I watched the mother feed them all yesterday and it didn't get past the others to get fed so I think I will give the kitten milk powder and paintbrush technique if it can't get past the others today. The mother doesn't seem to groom the runt, only the others but the dad groom it so I guess that's good ! |
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Post by betty on Jul 28, 2015 2:23:59 GMT -8
Let us know how you get on - and if you weigh him/her and the other pups, you will see if he is gaining weight at the same rate too. Weighing can be a useful guide - and help put your mind at rest on his progress.
Good luck.
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