Post by pepandmax on Jul 12, 2007 17:45:28 GMT -8
If your gerbil is ill, you may not be able to contact a vet immediately. Alternatively, you may have already visited the vet and returned with instructions. What else should you do to care for your pet?
The four key W’s are warmth, water, weight, and watch.
Warmth: Gerbils must use their energy to heal, not waste energy on keeping their bodies warm. Use a heating pad, a bag filled with warm water and carefully sealed, a warm lamp, a thick sock, or even human body heat. Make sure that at least one side of the tank is not heated, in case the gerbil gets overheated and wants to escape the warmth.
Below, Fox stretches out his belly onto the gentle warmth of the heating pad that's wrapped on the bottom and side of the tank. Feels great!
Water: Dehydration is a serious threat to any ill gerbil. Signs of dehydration include lethargy, sunken eyes, being “wobbly,” weakness, and skin that stays “tented” when you pinch it. If the gerbil is well enough to eat, provide grapes, celery, watermelon, or any other fruit or vegetable that has water in it. If the gerbil is not eating, try water through an eye dropper or syringe.
Weight: Because gerbils are so small, they can lose a significant percentage of their body weight seemingly overnight. Therefore, if your animal is sick, it is important that you encourage it to eat. If your gerbil is so sick that it has stopped eating its regular food, try the “pyramid trick.” Begin by removing other gerbils from the tank. Hand-feeding your gerbil a treat that he likes. Let him eat until he doesn't want any more. Then, bring out a treat that he likes more. Again, let him eat his fill. Bring out a third treat that he likes even more. Continue enticing your gerbil with more and more desirable foods (within reason!) until he has had his fill. As always, it's preferable that your gerbil continue to eat his regular, well-balanced staple diet.
Watch: Finally, it is important to continually monitor the condition of the animal for improvements or deterioration. In the case of deterioration, it is important to contact the veterinarian as soon as possible for an appropriate treatment.
The four key W’s are warmth, water, weight, and watch.
Warmth: Gerbils must use their energy to heal, not waste energy on keeping their bodies warm. Use a heating pad, a bag filled with warm water and carefully sealed, a warm lamp, a thick sock, or even human body heat. Make sure that at least one side of the tank is not heated, in case the gerbil gets overheated and wants to escape the warmth.
Below, Fox stretches out his belly onto the gentle warmth of the heating pad that's wrapped on the bottom and side of the tank. Feels great!
Water: Dehydration is a serious threat to any ill gerbil. Signs of dehydration include lethargy, sunken eyes, being “wobbly,” weakness, and skin that stays “tented” when you pinch it. If the gerbil is well enough to eat, provide grapes, celery, watermelon, or any other fruit or vegetable that has water in it. If the gerbil is not eating, try water through an eye dropper or syringe.
Weight: Because gerbils are so small, they can lose a significant percentage of their body weight seemingly overnight. Therefore, if your animal is sick, it is important that you encourage it to eat. If your gerbil is so sick that it has stopped eating its regular food, try the “pyramid trick.” Begin by removing other gerbils from the tank. Hand-feeding your gerbil a treat that he likes. Let him eat until he doesn't want any more. Then, bring out a treat that he likes more. Again, let him eat his fill. Bring out a third treat that he likes even more. Continue enticing your gerbil with more and more desirable foods (within reason!) until he has had his fill. As always, it's preferable that your gerbil continue to eat his regular, well-balanced staple diet.
Watch: Finally, it is important to continually monitor the condition of the animal for improvements or deterioration. In the case of deterioration, it is important to contact the veterinarian as soon as possible for an appropriate treatment.