Dear all
Thanks to those who suggested that my gerbil may be suffering from diabetes.
I took him to the vet on Saturday, complete with urine sample, and the vet
diagnosed that he was quite severely diabetic. Unfortunately, this
particular vet (although excellent with my other animals) is not a
small/exotic animal specialist but another vet in the practise is,
apparently, a gerbil expert so I shall be having a chat with her, hopefully
today. The vet did say that my gerbil could not be treated with insulin, as
even the smallest amount they can inject would be too much and may result in
him becoming comatose. If anyone has any experience of diabetic gerbils I
would appreciate any advice. It seems that the only way forward is to
control it by altering his diet.
It seems to me that there are 2 things in his favour. First that he only
started his excessive drinking about 2 weeks ago and second that he has not
(yet) lost any weight, so I think I've caught it early on. I was worried
he was overweight but the vet said he wasn't - he was just a big boy!
I will update you all with any advice I get from the vet as it may benefit
other owners/breeders. Does anyone think that this may shorten his life
expectancy - he is only 18 months old. I am prepared to do absolutely
anything it takes to try and control his condition - I'm not ready to lose
him yet.
Best wishes and TIA
Arabelle
