# pot bellies on baby mice



## webzdebs (Mar 29, 2010)

Just a querie as all the mice are looking very healthy and bright eyed, big perky ears no sneezing or other irritations but I have noticed that they have what looks like pot bellies, the body is slim until it gets to the abdomin then it bulges out slightly and back to slim at the tail.

Is it something I should worry about or does this sound normal in young? Should I cut the lines now if it is abnormal or is it a case of getting a lot of food and doing what babies do which is round out then take a stretch as they haven't always been like this.

They are currently 4 and a half weeks old and on a diet of a homemade mix which includes; base rabbit food, pedigree small bite mixer, cereal, dried pasta, dried rice, buckwheat, barley & oats.

Any advice would be much appreciated


----------



## zany_toon (Apr 3, 2010)

Hope some one can give you some advice hun, will keep my fingers crossed it's nothing.


----------



## Rhasputin (Feb 21, 2010)

Pictures would help.

Worst case scenario, it could be megacolon.


----------



## webzdebs (Mar 29, 2010)

thanks i'll try to get some pics to help,

it seems to only be the boys who have just this week been moved away from mum if this helps too


----------



## bethmccallister (Mar 5, 2010)

Possibly parasites...you could treat them just to cover all your bases. The mite spray I use also treats for parasites too. Iver-on.


----------



## racingmouse (Jan 12, 2011)

Debs, is that raw rice you feed them? I noticed you have `dried rice` in your list of food, so rice (in it`s raw state) could be a culprit. I only feed puffed rice. Raw rice and cooked rice can cause bloating, so ommit that unless it`s puffed rice (like low sugar rice kriskpies or kallo puffed rice).

I have read that mice can carry worms, but I`ve never seen this personally. They would probably have to be exposed to the parasite in the first place to have these. I would take away the rice (if it`s raw or cooked) and see if it improves things. Some puppy and dog kibbles can be high in fat/oils aswell, so reduce those if they are higher than 4-5% fat overall.


----------



## Matt Haslam (Mar 13, 2010)

worm them with panacur if you can get hold of it. that's just to cover your back really.

this one is probably a case of them just filling there bellies on food tbh.

if you want a simple mouse mix that you know will be ok, do this:

50% oats 50% wild bird food. you could add in a higher protein source.

TBH i'd leave out half of the stuff you are putting in there food.

pictures would help also and of course if you are very concerned please seek veterinary advice.


----------



## webzdebs (Mar 29, 2010)

hey everyone, bit of an update for you this morning their bellies look pretty much back to normal so i'm inclined to think it was just either them filling their bellies or some of the extras in my mix. I'm going to look at simplifying it down as suggested Shiprat and worm them as well just in case


----------



## AnnB (Jan 14, 2011)

Now I'm not an experienced mouse breeder or a vet but you mentioned it was just the boys who had been taken away from mum that were experiencing the pot bellies. Could it be they are used to mum cleaning them and toiletting them and since mum hasn't been there they've got lazy about going to the loo?


----------



## Matt Haslam (Mar 13, 2010)

webzdebs said:


> hey everyone, bit of an update for you this morning their bellies look pretty much back to normal so i'm inclined to think it was just either them filling their bellies or some of the extras in my mix. I'm going to look at simplifying it down as suggested Shiprat and worm them as well just in case


i think that the filling their bellies is the most likely thing. When they are young they tend to gorge on food and because they are small its more noticable.


----------



## racingmouse (Jan 12, 2011)

Sounds the most likely debs. Just like some foods that we eat make us feel bloated in excess. Tweaking the diet by taking away most of the fatty ingredients should help. Although kibble has protein, it can also be too much of a good thing where fat/oils are concerned, so should really only be a small part of a mix. Sa half a cup of kibble, to the full cups of everything else. Depends how many cups of each you add. I tend to add five cups of the base rabbit mix and then add one cup or half a cup of the other grains and seeds like kallo puffed rice, jumbo oats, buckwheat, lillet/canary mix. I would make the kibble the lowest volume in a mix purely because of the fats.


----------



## geordiesmice (Oct 26, 2010)

yes I would add the kibble when giving it to the mice as I say its hard to mix with seeds etc as they would sink to the bottom ,nursing Does need more protein than normal .


----------



## tinyhartmouseries (Dec 30, 2010)

When they wean, some young mice tend to bloat up a bit as the food changes from a little/some milk to no milk at all. I just had this happen too and it scared me quite a bit until i got that bit of information. If it happens again you can try a little Karo syrup but like you noted, it resolves itself.


----------

