Please help me fast!!

Loach · Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 5:28 am Post subject: Please help me fast!!

ok, just a minute ago I was playing with my mouse and notices he has what looks like a black scab on the edge of his ear! before he cut his ear scratching himself but it wasnt black. is it infected? and I also noticed pink lumps on his back! are they tumours?!?!?! Sad

plz help I love this little guy!

faeriedust1127 · Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 5:22 pm Post subject:

Are they lumps or little bumps like goose pimples? Is the black scab the same cut you noticed before? Have you changed his diet recently? Have you checked for lice/fleas/mites? What kind of bedding do you have him in? Have you changed the type of bedding recently? How old is your mouse? Has his behavior changed? These could all be factors. Do you have picures of him?

You can probably get some good info from the RMCA website and look at the health articles. http://www.rmca.org and also try http://ratguide.com/ Thats really for Rats, but they have many similarities and you might find some useful info there too, just don't try to medicate a mouse with the rat doses given on there. Thats not the same; rats are much bigger. Then consider taking him to a Vet to get a better idea of what may be wrong and possible treatment.

Loach · Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 9:07 pm Post subject:

They might be goose pimples but the cut is different it looks the same as the first time but it is black before it was pinkish but that went away fast, His bedding is called CareFresh Pet Bedding its like a grey cotton, I have used it ever since I have had him, He is maybe a year now, I got him when he was 3-4 months old, He eats Hampster And gerbil food mix( it has pellets,corn,sunflower seeds,other little things) I have fed him the same food and he has been fine with it.

faeriedust1127 · Posted: Mon Jan 03, 2005 11:37 pm Post subject:

Ok well first of all, you have him on a completely inappropriate diet. A mouse's dietary needs are much more like a rats than a gerbil or hamster's. They need meat in their diet and they wont be healthy just eating seeds and dried corn. You would be MUCH better off feeding him a lab block diet such as Mazuri. I don't recommend the Kaytee brand, but most others are OK. I make all of my rat and mouse food at home with my personally developed recipe, but i realize not everyone is interested in doing that, so really the best way to go is get him off the seed diet and get the lab blocks. Its also a good idea to occassionally offer bits of raw veggies and meat bits from your left over dinner. About corn: fresh or frozen corn is ok and they usually love it, but dried corn can grow mold inside that you cant see and its very toxic to your mouse and can make him sick. Ok, sorry if i'm being preachy, off that topic.

CareFresh is a very decent bedding health wise, tho i find it to be rather dusty. Its good for digging around in tho. I use a layer of Yesterdays News and then add some CareFresh on top of it for extra softness, throw in some Oxbow orchard grass and usually throw in a strip of cut up old T-shirt for nest lining.

Have you been cleaning his cut since he first got it? Tried any Neosporine on it? Is it runny or pus at all? Does the black stuff come off it you rub it like dried blood maybe?

It's hard to tell without seeing him what the problem might be. As for the bumps, the only thing i can think of is that either he is having some kind of reaction to his food or he has a parasite that is irritating his skin. Have you pulled apart his fur to check his skin? If you can't see any thing abnormal there, then you will need to take him to the Vet to do a skin scraping to determine if he has any lice or mites. Sometimes they aren't easy to see as they are so small and clear. Also pelleted beddings such as the Yesterday's News are less likely to have mites in it when you buy it. You can prevent any mites that may be in your pets litter from getting onto them by freezing the litter before you use it. I've never heard of any rodents being allergic to Care Fresh tho.

Has he been acting sick at all? It doesn't sound like tumors. Honestly, the only thing i can think of regarding the bumps is irritation to parasites or something in his diet that is causing a reaction.

Have you used some kind of new cleaner to clean his cage with that may be causing him to break out in a rash?