Urgent! New litter is looking very thin

[texz53]

We have a new litter of three gerbils who are currently 4 days old and all are looking extremely thin, their bellies are sunken/caved in and their state hasn't changed throughout the day. They're still energetic but that might not last if they're not fed soon. I'm assuming it's too early to hand rear them, we DO have another gerbil nursing some pups that are about 17 days old; would she be able to foster? Are there any dangers to this?

What's the best thing to do? A quick response is needed please!

[texz53]

There's still no milk in their bellies this morning, and while they're still active I don't think they'll be able to push on for much longer, we can see their rib cage and shoulder blades quite clearly and they're trying their best to suck on anything available. The mother is very skitty so she isn't always on the nest for very long and we just don't think she's able to produce enough milk, they latch on but it produces nothing, not even remains of milk around the mouth/nose we had with our other gerbils litter.

If things get much worse we may try our luck at hand rearing, which is where I have a few more questions! I've read that both canned evaporated milk and goats milk can be substitutes for pups, is this correct? And does any have experience with using either of these?

[t1gg3er]

I have heard of pups being fostered to other lactating mothers but don't know how you'd go about introducing them to your other girl without her attacking them. It may be worth searching the forum to see if there's any advice.

I've read of people successfully supplementing with kitten replacement milk but don't know from what age. Also you have to be very careful if using a pipette to make sure they don't get any into their lungs. I think soaking tiny pieces of bread in it for them to suck on is recommended & make sure you clean any remain from around their mouths as it sets hard when it dries.

Good luck with them.

[chelseam]

Another recommended way to help feed small babies milk is to use a small paintbrush and let them suck on that. I would probably use kitten milk replacer over canned or goat's milk, simply because of what's contained in it. A container of that should last awhile with the gerbils.

Lots of luck.

[betty]

Kitten milk would be a great choice for them - but if you are considering hand-rearing them, please read ALL the previous threads for tips on this as it is a very time-consuming (feeding day AND night) and difficult task with (unfortunately) a very, very low survival rate from that age.

Best answer would be to find a local small animal breeder with any pups that are still hairless and the mother may well take them on as her own. I have done this myself with another gerbil without any issues as have other breeder friends, but other threads seem to say that other rodents might do the same?

Someone may suggest moving them to a smaller tank and take out all the toys etc so the mum has to spend more time with them including feeding, others might say she is an unsuitable mother and she can't be changed in time to save this litter. All gerbils are different and not everyone has the same results.

Is she already pregnant with her second litter?

[MoonstoneGerbils]

This may be two days too late... Fostering is always preferable. However... the foster mother should have a small litter herself. She can only care for 8. If you give her 10, expect 2 to die, or to have 10 very scrawny runty pups that are prone to illnesses. The foster mother should ideally also have pinkies or pre-fuzz pups. I wouldn't add them into a litter that is more than a week older. Foster mothers will generally accept pups without fur. However they are likely to reject sick, unhealthy, or weak pups. If you choose to foster do it sooner than later. Do not wait to see if the real mom will do better tomorrow.

Use a Kitten milk replacement or other formula. Do not use cows milk, goats milk, evaporated milk, or cream. This is because they are not similar to "raw milk"... don't use raw milk for that matter.

It is best to use a formula, though more expensive, using premixed formula is better than mixing your own.

The best thing to use is either a fine tipped natural hair paintbrush (better for pinkies), or a 1cc syringe (I use a 1 cc syringe with the tip of a BIC mechanical pencil jammed on the end of it). (better for older pups)




IF you decide to hand feed pinkies, understand that even people experience with handfeeding pinkies still manage to kill them. Feed SLOWLY. It is very easy to aspirate a pup. Give them one drop at a time. Give them a solid minute or more to drink that. If you force it too fast i promise you it will end up in their lungs and they will die either quickly from not being able to breath or slowly from a massive lung infection.

I have had fairly good luck with pups that have opened their eyes and begun eating solids to feed them "formula jello". I will take PLAIN gelatin... plain. no sugar no nothing. Basically JUST PECTIN. and mix it with warmed formula to make a solid milk that can be left in the tank with older pups to eat at their own leisure.


As far as whether you allow this mother to breed again is dependant on WHY she failed to raise a litter. 3 is a small litter and most gerbils have a hard time raising a little less than 4. Is she on a good diet (aka not store bought). Is her age a factor?