I think one of the gerbils is dying

[JanH]

It was moving around with great difficulty earlier (paralysed down one side) and now it's lying on its side, eyes closed, breathing very fast - it looks quite peaceful and DH says just leave it but I feel I should be doing something...

If it enjoyed being held maybe cradling gently in your hand will make it feel safer? But I think anything you do will be your benefit rather this its based on what it sounds like.

Mmm, I think you are right - I just wondered if I should try to give it some water or something.

well if you're near a vet's surgery, you could take it in to be put to sleep. not the most pleasant option, but maybe better than watching it slowly pass away...

if not that, just make it comfortable in a low lit room...

mine was like this a few years ago. i cradled her in my hands and held her close to me and she passed away.

just be careful though if you do this as mine went from breathing fast to suddenly stiffening up and her eyes bulging. (which scared me to be honest)

but then she died and i knew she was out of pain, which was a slight comfort

i dont mean to scare you by this but just be warned in case your little ones are about

They don't mind being held but I wouldn't say they enjoy it - and it seems quite calm - I guess it's best left.

They are so sweet

i love gerbils. when i was at school and all my friends had hamsters they used to think i was weird for having something different.

i think they are so much cuter than hamsters too.

how many more do you have?

i had 2 sisters to begin with and then a few years later got another one on its own

It sounds like exactly what happened to my hamster A few years back. It was lying on the floor looking like it was about to take it's last breath so Mum put a towel over the cage and put it in the cloakroom so it was nice and quiet for him. When she went in later on he was running around!

Are you near a vet JanH? Might be best to take him and see...

I would put it in a quiet place, out of the way of the children and possibly away from the others in the cage - do you have a box you could put it in perhaps?

if it was paralized down one side sounds like it's possibly had a stroke or something similar - how old is it?

Just googled Strokes and came up with this:

As in humans, these are more common in older gerbils. Recognisable by paralysis or weakness down one side. The best treatment is to try and make the gerbil as comfortable as possible and keep him warm. In some cases another stroke follows fairly soon after and the gerbil may unfortunately die. Recovery is possible in other cases and the gerbil may be left with little or no disability. The important thing is to make sure the gerbil can feed and drink until it recovers enough to do this itself.

Oh, thank you, RW - at the moment it's out in the open with no bedding so it won't be warm, I'll see if I can get it to take some water and then wrap it up.

It is quite old though - not sure how old but maybe 3.

any news on the poor wee guy?

Aw, thanks for asking, NU - he died during the evening yesterday

I had wrapped him in a paper napkin and put him in a small box by a radiator, and there was blood on the napkin that appeared to have come from his ear, so I think he was in a pretty bad way. He had had a few slight strokes before this one too. He seemed to slip away peacefully.

I don't know how long the other one will last on his own.

sorry to hear that, but at least s/he's definately not in pain

Sorry to read that he died.
(Had to come back to check!)