>bit of gerbil chocolate, and I can't get him to take any water - it just
>drips down his fur.
Use an eyedropper, swaddle him in a paper towel, hold him at
sixty degrees above horizontal (head up, stomach down) and
put the fluid directly into his mouth. Insert the eyedropper from
the side just behind the front teeth, deliver a very small amount
of fluid, then stroke his throat with a fingertip to encourage
the swallow reflex. Try to get him to take fluid, and if he would
rather lap at the eyedropper that's fine, but keep at it. You may
have to do a few drops every ten minutes, stretching that to every
few hours...depending on his activity and that. If he lies there limp
more or less, you have to do it a lot more often.
As he rehydrates, he will be more active. The only other thing
you could do is subcutaneous rehydration...and most people
aren't equipped to do that.
Unless you can get him rehydrated, I doubt he'll last until the
vet visit.
Try offering half light cornsyrup, half warm water; or KMR,
or even applesauce with a needle-less syringe or eyedropper.
If you can get him to nibble, offer an apple chunk or some
carrot, lightly prescored as to make it easy to get bits off.
>I've made a warm corner in the tank using a lamp,
Good, that will help keep him warm and his metabolism up.
If you are feeding him stuff, offer a bit to his cagemates also,
so that they taste/smell the same, and keep him together with
them. They've already been exposed...and take ALL THREE
into the vet for treatment. Keep them together. Unless one
or both start to harrass him.
>but is there anything
>else I can do to improve his chances before I can get him
>to a vet tomorrow morning?
>
>Clare
Keep at him and try to keep him hydrated. Loss of fluid (dehydration)
is what you're describing, and that can kill very fast. And you have
to keep at it. I've done ten minute intervals for six hours or more at
times to pull an animal through, and don't underestimate how much
they're recovering....after six hours (2 am on) of intensive work, I've
sat down, dozed off for thirty minutes, and woke up to a dead animal.
So stay on top of it.
Good luck.
Deb
Rebel's Rodent Ranch
