Gerbil drooling/foaming mouth

[melynnrose]

Hi! Firstly, thank you for everything. I've been a lurker of this site since I got my gerbils 3 years ago and everyone's threads and comments have helped my gerbils live a fun and healthy life.

I have two gerbils that are brothers and best friends. They are both about 3 years old and have had no health issues. One of them though, Jiji, just tonight, my boyfriend took him out and brought him to me (we do this with them sometimes to say hello and pet/play with them). Both the gerbils have been handled their whole lives and are accustomed to it and very tame. When he put Jiji in my hands, I noticed that he was making a strange noise, like a sad woop woop woop. So we put him back in the tank in case he was sad or mad.

Right after we put him back in the tank, we noticed his eyes were half closed and he started lurching as if he was throwing up, opening his mouth really wide (I know they can't actually throw up, but the motion looked similar) and drool/foam started coming out of his mouth. He sat still for a bit wooping and drooling and occasionally rubbing his mouth in irritation, and then rubbed his body all over the area he was standing on. Then he slowly went down into the den.

Later he came back out and looking completely normal, but not too long later he started drooling and rubbing his mouth again. He seems to be acting normal until he starts drooling.

It's too late to take him to the vet, so I'm keeping my eye on him for now. The other gerbil seems to be his normal energetic self. I tried googling these symptoms and I wasn't getting many good results so I was hoping that you guys would know something so I can make him more comfortable while I wait to check in with the vet.

Thank you so much!

[betty]

Well, I am sorry to hear about your little one as he looks like he is in a lot of discomfort and I hope I'm not too late with my reply to be of any use melynnrose

Three things spring to mind from your description, but it could be none of these - however drooling often revolves around dental issues or breathing issues. None of the following sound good, but there may not be much a vet could do either and you may not be able to help him short term physically.

So, firstly I would say that he could have had something caught in his mouth or throat and it was causing him to gasp for breath and so keeping his mouth open and therefore causing the drooling. He temporarily dislodged it, but it moved back or got worse again. Mouth rubbing can be due to gasping for air.

A bad heart can affect his ability to get enough oxygen around his body and so he will think he is struggling for breath, which can result in the drooling and face rubbing as above. Depending on the heart issue and his activity levels this could appear to come and go.

Alternatively he could have a broken or a sore tooth and this is causing him enough discomfort that he is holding his head forward and mouth open causing the drooling again. Sore teeth and mouth pain can cause face rubbing.

The only things you can do until you can get him to a vet would be to keep him quiet and warm and his enclosure simple - so food and water all on his level and no climbing, wheel running or new toys - he needs to remain calm.

You could certainly offer plenty of wet nutritious foods which will be easy for him to eat, like veggie baby food, boiled egg yolk, blended veg etc. Anything that doesn't need unpicking or dehulling or too much chewing from him.

[melynnrose]

Hi!! Thank you so much for your response.

I took him to the vet just now and found out that he must have cut his mouth on something and it got infected, so it's inflamed, which explains why his mouth was open and he's drooling. I don't know what he could have cut it on, but it might have been an accident with a seed shell or some of the wooden items in his tank I'm thinking. Like maybe a splinter poked him. He seems to be in a lot of pain he's mostly just laying and letting the drool fall out of his mouth.): My poor friend.

I got an antibiotic from the vet, and he told me to feed him soft foods, so your post helped me a lot since I was unsure of what to give him. I will try to feed him some of the things you suggested and hopefully it isn't too painful for him.

Thank you so much again!

[gerbiltopia]

Thankfully, your gerbil's problem was literally the least harmful of all the possibilities. If he has trouble eating, you might consider giving him veggie baby food through a syringe. If he is in pain, it might also be possible to give him some pain killers such as metacam if you have some from an earlier vet visit, but do consult your vet about that first and make sure it hasn't expired.

To prevent future occurrences, I would replace all the wooden stuff in his tank and check the new ones for splinters, and also make sure there's no plastic he's been chewing (jagged pieces of plastic can also cause serious injuries).

[betty]

Poor little tyke - and I hope the antibiotics work fast and he doesn't lose any weight from it all.

Certainly if you haven't already I would weigh him for a starting weight and keep an eye on it over the next few days/weeks. It isn't so much the actual weight of him, it would be any big changes in weight that could be a concern - and look at the differences in percentages of the start weight too rather than just grams as this gives a much better picture of the change.

Hopefully, he will be back on top form soon - we all know how painful it is when you bite the inside of your own cheek! And you always manange to bite it a second time - no matter how hard you try not to, right?

[melynnrose]

So... Jiji died. ): I guess the infection had a hold on him. He was about 3.5, so maybe he was too old to handle it. I'm in shock, him and his brother were both so healthy and then suddenly this happened and he barely made it through a few days... I had a feeling though, I was feeding him the antibiotic but he didn't seem to be getting better. His eyes closed up all the way and he wouldn't open them, his body felt cold, he was moving slowly, and he could hardly eat. I thought if I kept giving him the antibiotic he'd be okay, but alas.

Thank you so much for your help. If you guys have any advice for me on what I can do for the remaining gerbil that would be amazing. Right now I'm trying to find a pet cemetery since I live in an apartment and we're going to get some babies in a couple of days (different tank of course) so the other gerbil will feel less lonely. Any more advice will help me a lot.

Thank you so much!

[betty]

Oh, I'm so sorry. Gerbils do have a habit of not looking ill when they are and then going down hill right at the last minute before you can do anything about it. You did all you could.

If your new babies are going to be less than 8 weeks old, you could try to introduce them to your older guy if you wanted - so that they could all live together. This only works with a trio if the pups are super young - so if you are getting the new ones from a breeder, perhaps they can help you to do the introduction asap?

If the new ones are older and you want to keep them seperate, then you just need to make sure that your older guy gets an easy life. He still needs interaction and exercise of course, but he may need more bedding or a warmer location as he is sleeping alone now. But if he is active and healthy-looking then just keep up what you were already doing.

Do try, however, to keep all his stuff seperate from your new pups until you see how strongly bonded they are. Sometimes the scent of another gerbil on toys and bridges etc. can cause a squabble in an unrelated pair, especially if they are different ages and haven't been together long. The last thing you want is three seperate gerbils!

[melynnrose]

omg this is super helpful thank you! I love the idea of giving Bibi some new friends I think he'd like that. From knowing his personality, I think he'd be strong enough to be on his own too, but I can't really say since Jiji just died last night.

The thing you mentioned about not using old toys and stuff because of the scent saved my life probably. I saw a video about introducing sugar gliders once, and they gave them each something that smelled like the other before showing them to each other, so I thought it was a good idea. But that makes complete sense since they are a pair and I don't know how well they will know each other, I probably shouldn't do that. Thank goodness for your advice.

I don't know if there are any breeders in my area, I'm looking around. If I can find one I'll definitely let them all live together. If not I'll have to get them from the pet store I got my first two from.

Thank you so much!

Edit: We decided we're going to keep them separate. My boyfriend is scared that they will fight or not bond with us very well, which makes sense only because we have such a huge tank (I can't even touch the bottom with my hand lol) it will be easier to have the babies in a smaller one that we can move into different rooms or beside us and get used to us and then eventually move into a bigger tank. I have a small, medium, and large tank so I will move them accordingly as they grow, and into the big one when Bibi passes.

[melynnrose]

Oh! I have a question. I didn't know if it would be shocking for Bibi if I cleaned the tank completely of Jiji's scent, but I assume I'll have to wean that out eventually especially if I want to put new gerbils in the tank with him. Should I remove and replace stuff slowly? Should I wait a bit? or is it actually okay?? This is my first experience with gerbils so I don't really know. Thanks again!

[catnut]

sorry to hear about Jiji, may he rest in peace. What I do is bury my gerbils' in pots/planters and add a cute plastic/ceramic figure on top. I hope Bibi will be okay alone but usually they do well but do make sure he is eating/drinking and acting himself. Just give him extra attention and cardboard to keep him busy when he is awake. Take care, Tammy

[melynnrose]

Hey Tammy, that's a really good idea! Do you ever plant something in it? That might be a good option for me since I live in an apartment, I can put it on the balcony.

Edit: I did a bunch of Googling on this topic and it's PERFECT for me, thank you SO much! I'm really happy that I can bury Jiji at home and still return him to the earth. I will let him feed some flowers.

We've been keeping a good eye on Bibi and playing with him a bunch. He seems to be fine. He has a very strong, playful and energetic personality (always into mischief omg) so I have a feeling he'll be okay. I always thought to myself that out of the two of them to go first, I think Jiji would want to go because he's much more sensitive and caring. He's like a big loving papa. I think he'd get very sad if Bibi was gone first.

Thanks for the idea!

[betty]

Glad to hear you are making some decisive decisions about your new gerbils - and yes, having the new guys in a smaller more manageable set up will certainly help with bonding. Putting new gerbils in a giant tank with deep bedding can sometimes have the opposite effect.

Do keep us updated on your new family when you get them.

[melynnrose]

Thank you so much for everything, I'll let you know how the little ones are doing when we get them!

Since I never shared, here is a picture of Jiji when he was well, wearing an acorn hat. He had a little white spot on his head and on the tip of his tail. I love him and miss him

[catnut]

he was a cutie! I usually don't plant anything in those pots. It will take time, it is very hard at first when they pass but 3 1/2 years is a good life. Take it easy on yourself and spend time with Bibi and your new pets when you get them.

Take care,

Tammy