>Hi. I have a 2 female gerbils, 1 1/2 yrs old. Neither has ever been sick
>until now. One seems to have somewhat labored breathing (breathing a little
>fast ans with some difficulty) and is somewhat lethargic. She did take a
>peanut from me just now and ate it but rather slowly, like she`s weak. I
>noticed this just now, she was ok late last night. Am I correct in thinking
>it is a respiratory infection? I have Mardel Ornacycline for birds. It
>contains 250 mg of Tetracycline Hydrochloride. Should I use this? Should I
>dose her directly (never even tried that before), or just put it in her
>drinking water? I don`t know if she`ll go get a drink or not. What dosage?
>The box says for a small bird (Parakeet) to use 1 tablet in 8 oz. water.
>Does that sound ok? Please let me know soon, I`m VERY worried! Thanks. ~Deb
One half a tablet to four ounces water. Use duct tape and cover over
the bottle, it needs to be light tight. Change the bottle water daily.
It sounds like she's dehydrated, and that will kill her fastest.
Get some human infant pedalyte solution or even Kitten Milk
Replacer and an EYEDROPPER.
Hold her upright (I usually swaddle in a washcloth, leaving the head
out), at about a fifteen degree forward of vertical. Take a few drops
of the liquid, insert the dropper from the side into the mouth behind
the front teeth. Gently ease a little fluid into the mouth slowly, and
see if she will swallow. Be careful not to flood the mouth or you
will choke her or she will inhale it. If she swallows, continue to give
her a little more. IF she laps at it instead, then just gently ease
the fluid to her.
Get her to take at least a few drops every ten minutes for the
next hour, or until she starts moving more normally. Also
keep her warm. I rig a light to shine on the end of the tank
on the side, to warm up the glass of the side. And place
her there with a few sheets of tissue paper over her, head
sticking out.
Rehydrate her, and if she starts to drink from the waterbotttle
or an eyedropper held for her, and starts to nibble at a treat
of food (peanuts and shelled sunflower seeds are good to offer)
with normal vigor; then leave her to rest and recover, check her
every few hours. She can get the medication from the waterbottle
contents. It is more important to get her rehydrated.
If she is not responding well, you have to keep it up until you get
her responding.
Good luck.
Deb
Rebel's Rodent Ranch
