Deb Rebel <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote
>>Could someone explain in detail what a fixed wrist looks like on a 2 week
>>old pup? My girl Alyssa had two little runtys who each have a paw that
>>doesn't seem to move....I'm wondering if they were squished, or if they do
>>have fixed wrists. Thanks so much! ~Tasha~
>
>
>I have not seen that in a gerbil or hamster. I did have a white dwarf
>campbell male that had broken a rear paw before I acquired him,
>and he limped around with it flopping and curling to the back. He
>did not bother it though, it did not bother him; and he went on to
>sire several litters. [not being a genetic defect, it was ok to breed
>him...]
The fixed wrist is an abnormality that may be genetic or may be due to
pre-natal or neo-natal injury.
One or, in very rare cases, both front paws are bent up at 90 degrees as
if the gerbil was saying "how!"
This obviously means the gerbil has not got normal movement in that
wrist but the gerbil can run normally and can hold food with the base of
the paw. Gerbils with this problem seem to live normal lives.
We used to see this a lot when most of our gerbils came from pet shops.
Since we started breeding our own gerbils, and made sure that we avoided
excessive in-breeding, we find this is very rare. I do not remember
seeing it for several years.
I hope this is helpful.
--
Julian
************************************************************************
* Jackie and Julian *
* [EMAIL PROTECTED] *
* National Gerbil Society *
* http://www.gerbils.co.uk/ *
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