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Post by queenofthenile on May 21, 2004 8:17:05 GMT -8
I just noticed today that Astra, my black gerbil was looking thin. She is not very tame so I don't pick her up very often. I just stick my hand in the tank and let her sniff. Anyway, I attempted to hand-feed her sunflower seeds because she looked thin and she would snatch one eagerly but then drop it. I assumed she must have overgrown teeth so I looked in her mouth. Her upper teeth are not growing close together, but rather there is a space between them. I pressed on her top teeth and they can move a bit from side-to-side. Her teeth were not like that a few weeks ago! I'm thinking that maybe the teeth are broken in the sockets and that's what causes them to move  . I am trying to feed her soft foods right now, and she seems to enjoy the cooked oatmeal. From the Playgerbil website, it says to feed softfoods until the teeth grow back, when a tooth has been lost or broken. So I am going to feed the softfoods, and hopefully the teeth will come back in normally. What else can I feed other than cooked oatmeal? Any suggestions? I was thinking from Peter's website that I should try to feed her some plain yogurt because this may be due to a calcium deficiency. Are gerbils able to digest milk products because I know that most cats cannot... |
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Post by brittanie on May 21, 2004 8:20:22 GMT -8
try creamed corn, its the same thing they're getting in their own food but soft version. and...... uhhhh.... I can't think of anything else but when I do I'll post it on here
good luck
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Post by queenofthenile on May 22, 2004 7:37:25 GMT -8
I might have to try the creamed corn, but I think it has too much sugar in it . On the GML, there is a person who has had the same trouble as me and fed a mixture of wet cat food, KMR and applesauce. The teeth took about a week to harden up and then they were fine. Problem is, Astra HATES it! She likes the cooked oatmeal, and is able to eat the small seeds in the gerbil mix. She doesn't like the applesauce or the mix though. Any suggestions for getting her to eat it? |
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on May 23, 2004 4:39:34 GMT -8
I'm actually not sure if they can digest dairy products!! What could they eat??? Very difficult to tell, because I've never had that problem myself! If she is not eating enough, maybe you can try some fruit, banana, apple, etc. Maybe she can eat that. But be aware for diarrhoea with food that contains a lot of water! I have also heard of gerbils that had lost their teeth that they started to eat with their molars in stead of their incisors! |
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Post by queenofthenile on May 25, 2004 9:42:49 GMT -8
Well the first few days she would eat the cooked oatmeal but now she won't touch it. I tried feeding a mix of KMR, applesauce and wet cat food, but she hated it. So now I am just grinding up her regular gerbil food using a mortar and pestle. She seems to be doing well on that and I think she is now chewing with her back teeth. Yesterday, she lost her right, top incisor. The other top one looks quite loose as well. In addition, the bottom teeth look loose as well, so I am assuming this is a genetic defect . Should I try supplimenting calcium or vitamin C? How much cuttlebone is too much, because I would have to break it into little chunks for her to actually eat it. |
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on May 26, 2004 4:36:13 GMT -8
I think you need to supplement some calcium and vitamins.
Calcium:
Mineral preparations, dairy products, cuttlebone, versatile food.
Vit. C:
Green fodder, fruit.
Vit. D:
Dairy products, egg yolk.
Too much vitamin D causes osteoporosis and calcification in the blood vessels.
And if you're giving cuttlebone, I think you probably need to break it into little pieces if she cannot chew it herself!
The problem you have is also new to me!
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on May 30, 2004 3:08:39 GMT -8
Queenofthenile, how is Astra doing?
Here a suggestion that I encountered:
Try bread soaked in evaporated milk,
cooked Porridge oats,
kashi,
organic baby food,
canned kitten food,
mashed banana,
shelled sunflower seeds
applesauce mixed with KMR powder,
There are many other soft food treats!
Remember give only small supervised amounts until he realises it's food, and remove any wetfood that's left uneaten.
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Post by queenofthenile on May 30, 2004 7:51:27 GMT -8
Peter, she lost both of her upper incisors, but they are growing back ;D. She has two little orange nubs right now. I am just crushing her regular gerbil food and she seems to like that. From now on I am going to suppliment with cuttlebone just in case. I'm not really sure what happened to her . It should take about 2 weeks, I think, for those teeth to grow back. I'm going to watch her closely and see if I have to get her lower incisors trimmed as well because she hasn't been able to chew cardboard for awhile. Thanx for your concern, Peter! |
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on May 31, 2004 7:36:04 GMT -8
Good to hear that she is doing well! And it is indeed difficult to tell what could have been the cause???!!!! It would be great if they just could tell us what is wrong with them, but they can't! ;D
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Post by jesster on May 31, 2004 11:04:07 GMT -8
Glad to hear that Astra is doing ok and her teeth are growing back! Sounds like you are taking good care of her. I read in a gerbil handbook (the one by Kotter and Ehrenstein, on Peter's website) that yoghurt is good to feed to them. But mine have never been interested in it.
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on Jun 1, 2004 6:10:34 GMT -8
Some gerbils like it, but as you tell others don't! The same is it with e.g. meal worms.
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Post by queenofthenile on Jul 16, 2004 9:33:13 GMT -8
Sorry it took so long to reply, but I wanted to let everyone know that Astra's teeth have completely grown back. I'm supplimenting all my gerbs with cuttlefish bone now, and haven't had a recurrence.
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Post by lizzy on Jul 16, 2004 11:17:47 GMT -8
That sounds like what is known as malocclusion, which basically means the teeth aren't aligned properly/don't grow together so they can't be worn down naturally. My friend's rabbit had it and it cost her quite a bit to get the teeth removed, but I think it can happen in most rodents.
Hopefully they won't grow back the same way.
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Post by queenofthenile on Jul 17, 2004 7:32:22 GMT -8
Would malocclusion cause the teeth the fall out? Astra's teeth were fine before (growing together) but then when she wasn't feeding properly I noticed they were sticking out in all directions. They have grown back in the normal way. I think she broke the teeth in the sockets either from fighting with her mate, or from falling off the water bottle. I think she has weak teeth because she was a pet store gerb. All my pet store gerbs have some problem or another!
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Post by Ritzie/Admin on Jul 18, 2004 6:36:18 GMT -8
I don't think malocclusion was the cause, because the teeth were fine in the beginning. But they can start to grow in the wrong direction when she is not using them. This way she won't trim them by gnawing. Good to hear that everthing is fine now! ;D
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. I am trying to feed her soft foods right now, and she seems to enjoy the cooked oatmeal. From the Playgerbil website, it says to feed softfoods until the teeth grow back, when a tooth has been lost or broken. So I am going to feed the softfoods, and hopefully the teeth will come back in normally. What else can I feed other than cooked oatmeal? Any suggestions?
