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Post by peeps on Mar 22, 2022 4:50:56 GMT -8
So I was going to hold one of my gerbils a few days ago but when I picked him up I was horrified because the fur on his back is super pachy. My first thought was that my gerbils had Declaned or something but when I looked closer there was no bite marks or scratch marks or irritation of any kind. It literally looks like 10% of the hair on his back just disappeared for no reason! And it happened practically over night! (in about a week).The other gerbil has it to. I don’t think it’s there diet because I feed them a good mix, I forgot what it’s called but it has a huge variety of different things in it. I also don’t know that it’s over grooming because I just finished giving them a ton of new things to chew on and they were spending all there time chewing. Please comment if you have any suggestions!
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Post by LilyandDaisy on Mar 22, 2022 8:16:32 GMT -8
Is it definitely fur loss or could it be normal moulting? When gerbils are in the middle of a moult and they puff their fur up, it can look patchy. This is one of my gerbils puffing her fur up during a moult: If the fur still looks patchy even when flat, or if the fur is completely missing and you can see the skin, it does sound abnormal. I don't think overgrooming is likely because it's happened to both gerbils. One gerbil might be overgrooming the other but for both to overgrooming each other seems unusual. I would still consider diet as a possibility as hair loss is a common symptom of many nutrient deficiencies. Can you try to find out what the food is, or perhaps where you bought it from? Even with a good food, if it's been improperly stored (potentially before you bought it), or it's very old, it's still possible for some of the nutrients to have degraded. Personally what I would do here first is buy some new food from a good commercial brand and switch them onto that immediately, just in case it is a dietary issue, so that base is covered. Also consider taking them to a vet to rule out a fungal disease such as ringworm or a parasite infestation.
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Post by peeps on Mar 23, 2022 4:45:32 GMT -8
Ok, thank you. It is definitely not molting, I can see a lot of skin on there backs! I will look into there food. Also, I don’t think it’s ringworm because the skin looks vary healthy underneath. I will also clean there cage, I’m not sure why that would help but it can’t hurt.
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Post by betty on Mar 24, 2022 12:34:35 GMT -8
If the patch is almost dead central to their spines and almost - if not exactly - in the same place on both gerbils - this may be because they are both chewing on one thing that is in an awkward place - so at the same time they are both rubbing their backs on something else - wearing off all the hair.
I can't say that this is it without a picture before - and if you suspect parasites or a fungal infection - then perhaps a trip to the vets in in order anyway.
However it is very common for gerbils to wear off all their fur on the backs of their necks or spine with their determination to chew a new doorway in something - oblivious to the back rubbing - and this is why it is always on their back that they lose the fur.
It is often only the tips of the fur that come off leaving all white-bellied gerbils with a darker patch at first - but if the angle of the chewing is bad enough - it can go right to the skin.
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Post by Markpd on Apr 17, 2022 15:36:30 GMT -8
Any updates on this?
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