Dried Blood or Mucus on Gerbil's Nose

[nycgerbillover]

I have a very healthy female who twice now has had dried blood or mucus on her nose. She hasn't minded me wiping it off. I called the vet and am waiting to hear back. I suspect I may have waited too long to clean the tank and it got too dusty for her. Her sisters did not respond similarly. I am hoping that if I clean the tank more often I can prevent this from happening. Does anyone have any insights into the matter? She's very active and seems to relish life. Thank you in advance.

[fysha]

What type of bedding do you use? Some gerbils are allergic to certain types of wood bedding. You might need to change to a paper base. If you use paper based bedding, it might be too dusty.

[nycgerbillover]

I use Carefresh; it's paper. I definitely think you're right. I let it get too dusty in there. Shame on me. I'm going to move to a more frequent cleaning schedule to hopefully avoid this problem in the future. Thanks for your insights!

[fysha]

I have always found carefresh to be more dusty then other paper bedding. I have use Kaytee and All Living Things bedding and find those are much more dust free.

[catnut]

it may be better to change to a wood like aspen if more frequent cleaning doesn't help, many have said carefresh is more dusty.

[nycgerbillover]

Great. Thanks for the advice, everyone. If biweekly cleanings don't help, I'll definitely switch litter. Now that I have cleaned the tank, she is fine but if it happens again, I'll know what to do. Thanks again.

[betty]

What size enclosure do you have nycgerbillover and is it barred or completely glass - as cleaning twice a week would be way too much in any decent enclosure and I don't think it would help reduce the dustiness - it might just stress the gerbs out and cost you a small fortune...

Gerbils often excrete a reddish substance from their eyes and nose when they are 'stressed' so I'm wondering if it could be something else - as if it were an allergy to the bedding - she probably wouldn't be fine again after just one day. Allergies can affect them for weeks sometimes, even after the trigger has been eliminated. And did you mean she was fine in the sense that she isn't excreting any more mucus or blood since you wiped it off last?

Did the vet call back - and if so - what were their suggestions?

You also said 'her sisters' - is she in a tank with two or more other gerbils - and what ages are they? Not that is is a definite - but groups of female gerbils can become unbalanced very easily, and I wonder if this could be a factor. Have you noticed any of your gerbils sitting on their own on a high ledge, heard gerbils banging on the side of the enclosure or walked in the room and there is just one gerbil sat frozen still in the open?

[nycgerbillover]

Hi, betty. I have a 40-gallon tank for four gerbils. I'm looking into getting a bigger one. I didn't mean cleaning twice a week. I meant cleaning every other week, i.e., every two weeks. I had been cleaning every three weeks because I fill the tank so high with bedding.

I don't think my gerbil, Axl, is stressed because she behaves normally; she uses the exercise wheel, she chews toys and cardboard, she eats, drinks and grooms her sisters.

Since I last cleaned the tank, I have not seen the dried red stuff again so I think I let the tank go too long without cleaning. That's why I'm moving to a bi-weekly schedule. The vet said to bring her in if cleaning the tank every two weeks doesn't work for her.

I'm not entirely sure how old my gerbils are because I bought them from a pet store (won't do that again) but my best guess is they are a year old to a year and a half years old.

The other gerbils behave very normally. No one isolates. They seem very tightly bonded. No one is exhibiting any of the behavior you named.

Thank you very much for your interest and assistance.

[betty]

Ah, I see - cleaning out every other week - sorry I misread that.

That's great that you haven't seen any of those signs and let's hope it stays that way. Gerbils are the masters of disguise though, and us humans don't often see something is wrong until it is far down the line as gerbils manage to just 'keep on going' through anything. Always good to know the signs of something brewing before it starts though.

Let's hope you new cleaning regime - and a new substrate if you try one - does the trick for her.

[nycgerbillover]

Yes. Thank you so much!