Emily Forrester <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote
>It is highly unlikely that blood sucking invertebrates would kill a
>mammal. The amount of blood they would need to suck would be simply too
>much.
>
>It is much more likely that the gerbils were infested for some time but
>had been successfully grooming them out of their coat. On becoming ill,
>they ceased grooming so much so the parasites accumulated so much you
>became aware of them.
>
>--------------------------
>
>Just a note from a lurker who reads by the archive ...
>
>I've heard of at least one case where a breeder who had mites had SEVERAL
>animals die. In fact, partially because of that, she quit breeding. I've
>heard another person state (several months ago) that also these mites can
>kill.
I don't think this is inconsistent with what I said. That several
animals had the problem at the same time would suggest to me that there
was another problem, the mites were secondary. I know of plenty of
people who have had multiple deaths at the same time where mites have
not been involved.
Can someone with "killer" mites please get them identified by a vet?
--
Julian
************************************************************************
* Jackie and Julian *
* [EMAIL PROTECTED] *
* National Gerbil Society *
* http://www.gerbils.co.uk/ *
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