# Sick Mice Need Vets Treatment/Euthanisia



## SarahY (Nov 6, 2008)

Hello everyone,

This is something that has been on my mind for a few months now, and I've been umming and arring as to whether or not to say anything. I really am not usually the kind of person that will tell people what to do with their animals, these things are personal decisions and I have no wish to preach, lecture or sound holier-than-thou, or for that matter upset ANYBODY in any way. However, I feel I must say something as I feel that some animals are suffering needlessly. This is not in response to a single post, but I have noticed an alarming number of these types of posts and it both worries and upsets me.

When your mice are obviously very poorly or injured, I do not feel that writing a post on a forum and waiting for people to reply is an appropriate form of care. To me it seems almost neglectful. Sick and injured mice need to see vets or be humanely euthanised as soon as possible. The internet is not a good enough substitute for proper care. Mice do not last long once they go downhill, and I do not feel that they should be left to suffer while the owner is waiting for people for reply to their original post. I also do not understand why people need to be told that their animals need treatment.

It's one thing asking for advice on mice that seem well (coats are shiny, eyes bright and there's nothing obvious wrong) but are sniffling slightly, or asking for the best way to treat mites. These are not emergency situations and the experience of people on here is well able to help in these types of situations, but posting about mice that clearly need veterinary treatment or euthanisa and asking what to do does not seem like responsible animal ownership to me.

I'm sorry if this post offends anyone, it is not my intention, and as I said it is not aimed at any one person.

Sarah xxx


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## Jack Garcia (Oct 9, 2009)

Thank you.


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## moustress (Sep 25, 2009)

Oh, Sarah, how deeply do I agree! Especially disturbing are the reports that detail day after day of suffering. It's too much for me to bear.


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## WillowDragon (Jan 7, 2009)

Agreed and totally QFT!


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## The Boggit keeper (Mar 5, 2010)

I totally agree with you and I think that you were right to broach this sensitive subject. I have seen some sad pics.

Just a thought; Frustratingly, I have spent a considerable amount of time and money in the past trying to find a vet that has any more knowledge on Mice than the average book on mouse care( one poor vet,bless her produced her "exotic pets bible" and to my shock it only had two pages covering diseases of Mice and Rats) maybe i'm expecting too much? I just wanted my sick Mice to have a fighting chance if treatment was appropriate, to ensure that my Mice have always had the best treatment,as is my responsibility to them.

My point being, I can understand with some of the minor ailments (i'm guilty of a recent post) how some people may have lost confidence in their Vet to be able to effectively diagnose/treat a lot of mousie problems, maybe it's out of desperation/frustration to get clear answers that some of the posts arise.

Please, absolutely no offense meant to any Vets, I know you all work damn hard.I'm just speaking from personal experience, It just seems that most Vets in my area are surprised to see a mouse brought in for treatment, maybe it's because I live in a rural location and it's more large animal or dogs/cats?
Thank you SarahY


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## WoodWitch (Oct 18, 2009)

Thank goodness someone has said it......with you all the way SarahY!

I've seen some really alarming posts in the time I've been here and felt like posting what comes straight into my head. I've resisted with a mind to keeping the forum a nice, friendly place.
Well done for being diplomatic and adressing the point without causing offence to any individual parties.


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## Kallan (Aug 16, 2009)

The Boggit keeper said:


> I totally agree with you and I think that you were right to broach this sensitive subject. I have seen some sad pics.
> 
> Just a thought; Frustratingly, I have spent a considerable amount of time and money in the past trying to find a vet that has any more knowledge on Mice than the average book on mouse care( one poor vet,bless her produced her "exotic pets bible" and to my shock it only had two pages covering diseases of Mice and Rats) maybe i'm expecting too much? I just wanted my sick Mice to have a fighting chance if treatment was appropriate, to ensure that my Mice have always had the best treatment,as is my responsibility to them.
> 
> ...


I guess most vets don't think it's worth spending all that much on a mouse! Our consults for mini pets are half normal ones, but thats still around £15. Any treatment is more than that. Plus the only drug we have (at least in the UK) licensed for rodents is Baytril, so by law we can't use any other antibiotic until Baytril doesn't work. And trying to get the doses and dilutions for anything smaller than a rabbit is a nightmare; I do it for my own mice and it takes ages.

Also, for most things brought in in a small box, it becomes their coffin. Again, anything smaller than a rabbit rarely gets better  It can be quite discouraging, especially when owners only bring them in when they're dying and you can only help them on their way 

And unless you're in a research lab or working for one, it's so difficult to keep the mini things alive under anaesthetic. We have removed a hamsters leg once, but most minis are hard to knock out and kard to keep out - as I shall no doubt find out tomorrow when I bring my four males in for castration! 

LOL exotics bible! We all have one, msot of the stuff we do is dogs, cats and rabbits, and the textbooks are there for quick reference for anything else. But no-one has produced a textbook for meeces yet, I tried to buy one when I first got mine!


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## Cait (Oct 3, 2008)

It is sad but true that the reason most breeders know about all the ailments mice can get is because they've seen them first hand or have been told by another breeder - as in been there, tried to treat that. Vets sadly have to rely on an owner's judgement as to how ill a rodent is (and they hide it well) for them to bring it in, and many decide they cannot or will not spend that sort of money on a small pet.


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## The Boggit keeper (Mar 5, 2010)

I believe that when you take responsibility for any animal, you have a commitment to provide for it's needs including as many visits to the vet as needed.However, I didn't realize there were such limited treatments available for mice and maybe I've had unrealistic expectations. I'm guessing it's sometimes just as frustrating for the vet as it is for the owner of the sick mousie. I guess you can't save em all, thing is, I just feel the need to keep trying.


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