Jerry's not right at all and has a new big lump

[chloe]

Hey. My Jerry isn't right He seems to have a fairly large lump between his front right leg and his head which almost definitely wasn't there yesterday, and he's not moving around too easily. I noticed this evening that the food I gave him last night (on the top level of the tank) has barely been touched, so I put a tiny bit of banana next to him down the bottom and he ate it straight away. I'm guessing he hasn't had much water either so I put a dish where he can get to it easily.
I don't know how old he is, I rescued him and his friend Sandy from my nephew who didn't want them any more, about a year ago. He thought at the time that he'd had them for a couple of years, but we don't really know. Sandy died last month so Jerry's all on his own now.

I'll see how he is in the morning, but do you think vets could help at all? He was extra jumpy when I tried to handle him just now.. I don't want him to be stressed.

Please send happy healthy vibes to little Jerry!

[pepandmax]

<<<sends happy vibes>>>

Maybe a tumor? Although I don't think tumors appear overnight... Maybe an injury? Could you post a photo?

I would certainly call the vet. Even if the vet can't diagnose it over the phone, s/he can at least give you advice on how to make him comfortable and whether you should bring him to the vet.

Keep him warm (do you have a heating pad?). Very important--make sure he stays hydrated. Gerbils don't seem to like to drink from bowls, so see if you can lower the spout of his waterbottle so it's accessible to him.

Hope everything works out well. <<<sends more healthy vibes to Jerry>>>

[chloe]

Thank you.
Jerry died this evening.
I spent all day cuddling him, keeping him warm, offering him water from a syringe and tiny peices of apple. He seemed to perk up a little but got a lot worse again. If he had to go, I'm glad it was warm in my arms and not his lonely un-warm tank or at the vets.

He can play freely with Sandy now in Gerbil Heaven where there is endless digging sand, loo roll tubes, cardboard boxes, and GIRLS
xx

[pepandmax]

I'm so sorry to hear that

You are right, he is a lucky boy to have gone to The Big Tank while warm in your hands. I'm sure that he's so happy to be back with Sandy, and I bet that they've already got new girlfriends!

<<hug>>

[caz]

Aww, How Sad Chloe
You did all you could and he was warm and comfortable - it looks like it just wasn't meant to be
Does this mean you have no more gerbies now?.....
Caroline