weird skin tissue coming out of Margot's butt????

[jen]

Ewww...could it have been some kind of worm?

[ohmylokix]

Sounds like a worm to me. Get her to a vet!

[margotandnelsy]

God I hope not We only got them less than a month ago, and they haven't been exposed to any other animals or anything like that. They don't go roaming around the apartment or anything. I don't know where she could have gotten a thing like that if that's what it was. It didn't look alive. I got scared as I was trying to get it off of her because it looked like her rectum got turned inside out!!! Even though I know that would NOT be white. I'm so confused....

[ohmylokix]

Hmm.. the vet thinks my kitty got a type of tapeworm from tainted food from her old owners. Karina's worms weren't alive, either. They were just segments.

If it IS worms, she'll get verrry skinny.

[margotandnelsy]

Hmm... Margot is actually a bit fatter than Nelsy and eats all the time and isn't as active. Is she eating so much to compensate? I'm going to go look for the thing in the tank to take a closer look at it. (as much as it does gross me out....I just want her to be ok!)

[cliveandcharlie]

Please make an appointment with the vet. Seal the object in a container and bring it along for the doctor to see.

How is Margot?

Linda

[raggyheed]

If the Anus, then sounds like a Rectal Prolapse, It's the
colon lining coming out and, then going back in.

marc

[margotandnelsy]

Ok, I looked up rectal prolapses and I didn't find a picture or even a description of what that would be like in a gerbil (or any other animals). Is that dangerous? She fiddled with it and it was gone when I looked back less than a minute later. I couldn't find it in the tank, though. She seems fine... not acting weird or anything. She didn't seem all that stressed about it when I was inspecting it either. Oh and it was clearish white with no pinkness in it, so I don't know if it was colon lining. It also could have been from her other hole, because now that I think of it, she pooped a little when I was holding her and the thing was still there.

[ohmylokix]

If it was from the other hole, it could have been a vaginal prolapse as well. These are all quite dangerous, and need immediate vet attention!

[pepandmax]

With rectal/ vaginal prolapse, I imagine the mass would have been reddish or pinkish. If it was clearish white, it sounds like either a worm or some sort of mucus in a sac. If she's had worms in the past, then I think the most likely cause is worms again.

I'm sorry--it sounds like it was a pretty scary experience for you. You're in control, now, and you should get her to a vet for an evaluation. Good luck.

Nicole

[vacampbell]

my gerbil blackie had a vaginal prolapse just before she was going to give birth (the litter didn't survive)

...but it looked cyclinder in shape and was about 0.5-0.75cm in diametre and about 1.5 - 2cm long. it looked very pinkish and she left blood on the bedding. also tried for a long time to pull it out (may have thought it was a pup but i'd imagine it was uncomfortable for it to be there anyway and would've tried pulling it out if she wasn't pregnant. it took about 2-3hrs to go back in but she has no lasting damage.

hope margot is ok

[tsunamis]

Gerbils have their very own pinwom called Dentostomella translucida. White in color and can be upto 2cm ( a bit less than an inch) in size. There some pictures of the worm on this site, and if you take the latin name and google it you can find lots of info about it. www.radil.missouri.edu/info/dora/gerbilpa/GI.html

Here is a quote from another homepage i found.
" Nematodes:
Oxyurid pinworms, including Syphacia obvelata , S muris , and Dentostomella translucida may be seen in gerbils. Transmission is by the fecal-oral route. Mild enteritis may occur with heavy infection in other rodent species, but no clinical signs have been reported in gerbils. Diagnosis includes identifying perianal eggs retrieved from cellophane tape impression smears or fecal flotation. Treatment includes 2 separate 7-day courses of piperazine (10 mg/mL water) or ivermectin (0.2 mg/kg), separated by 5 days to account for the pinworm’s life cycle. Fenbendazole mixed in the feed at 0.1% and fed 3-4 wk should also eliminate pinworm infection. Because pinworm eggs are light and may aerosolize, it is important to sanitize and disinfect the housing environment."