my mouse is bleeding! - Paw Talk

shredthedocuments · #1 01-17-2008, 02:14 AM

i'm very sorry to start a new thread moments after i joined, but i am very, very desperate.

my youngest mouse saria (she's about... 4 months old i think?) is bleeding on her underside somewhere, which i discovered when she was walking around on a towel and was occasionally leaving a few spots of blood as she walked. the reason i am so desperate is because i absolutely CANNOT figure out where this blood is coming from! when i handle her, i do not get blood on me. when i lift her from the base of her tail and inspect her stomach, i cannot find any blood.

i'm sorry for a potentially stupid question, but do mice menstruate? this is the only possibility i can think of! either that or if she's peeing blood? but even this doesn't seem possible because it comes out a few drops at a time, randomly. not all at once and then it's done, like if she were urinating.

and my final questions, if you have ever had to take your mouse to the vet, how expensive was it? i wanted to take them a while ago just for a check up to make sure everything was okay, and i called one vet and they told me it would be 45 dollars per mouse. will i find a price much lower than this?

thank you very much in advance.

Mousey · #2 01-17-2008, 02:34 AM

Hi and welcome.

Mice go into a estrus cycles, but they do not bleed. If you can look on the under side of the mouse see if there's a wound or maybe a lump. Also how old are the mice and what kind of bedding and diet do you have them on? How long have you had the mouse? Also here there is only one exotic vet that willl look at rodents and he charges $50 for the check up fee and then whatever the extra cost are for test, meds, etc. Most vets herre will do a service fee but only charge for one visit plus extra costs even if two pets are with you to be seen . I have heard from other people in different states and countries that it cost much less for their pets to go to the vet. You can call around and see if there is a cheaper vet near you. Please keep in mind that most vets that do see mice ion the us are exotic vets. I wish you and your mouse the best..

shredthedocuments · #3 01-17-2008, 03:14 AM

there's nothing out of the ordinary on her stomach. she has had a wound on her stomach before from a fight with another mouse and i could see it right away, as the fur on her stomach is white. i use carefresh bedding and feed them tropical carnival brand food. i've had her since she was young, so about three or four months.

upon closer inspection i think that i may be able to see a miniscule amount of blood on her... um... urethra. so i think she is bleeding from her bladder but not necessarily peeing it out. but on the other hand maybe i'm just imagining it!

she also seems a bit tired. granted, i've been handling her quite a bit so maybe she's worn out. however i know that lethargy is a bad sign and therefore this is making me extremely worried.

pinkie1205 · #4 01-17-2008, 03:34 AM

$45 is usually the going rate for pets...but like mousey said usually they will see 2 for the same price. I kinda thought about UTI infection or something. Mice don't pee much at once so a few drops sounds okay...

Maybe you can take that mouse out and put her in her own cage with just some white paper towels to see how much she is peeing and bleeding....regardless you might need a vet ASAP

shredthedocuments · #5 01-17-2008, 04:26 AM

okay i've determined that she's definitely peeing it out.

my mice are on carefresh bedding and i feed them tropical carnival. speaking of which, over the last three days i completely ran out of food and had to give them some makeshift food, composed of cheerios, a bit of pasta, this kashi brand stuff with a bunch of different grains in it, some dried peas, almonds, and raisins. i know that with cats, if they don't have enough of some vitamin they can easily get a UTI. is it possible that the same applies for mice?

either way, i have three other mice and none of them have had problems. and for the record, they got their normal food today.

cerulean42 · #6 01-18-2008, 02:23 AM

Hmm. I would still separate Saria from the other mice because, if it is an infection caused by some kind of bacteria, she could transmit the problem to the other three. As for costs, it really does seem to depend where you live. There are several vets here that will take "exotic" pets like small rodents on a sliding scale basis. There might even be an emergency vet near you that could see her if need be; I have one in San Francisco that I go to, but the cost is much, much higher than a regular vet (like $69 just for the visit alone plus additional costs for any tests or medicines). I had a mouse who had lymphosarcoma and that was very costly to treat, but I did continue to take her regularly. Some vets might be willing to work something out with you. The trickier part is finding one that accepts mice. You're doing the right thing by observing her, and I think pinkie's suggestion about the toilet paper or paper towels in her cage is good. That way you can see how bad the problem is. I'm sure the vet will be able to tell you definitively. Good luck, and I hope that Saria heals soon.

Mousey · #7 01-20-2008, 02:24 AM

If shes peeing out blood then she needs to go to the vet for a check up.

shredthedocuments · #8 01-21-2008, 12:50 AM

okay, so i took her to the vet a few days ago and the vet paliptated her bladder and said it was more firm than it should be. she also looked at her urine under a slide and said she thought she could see some bacteria in it, so she prescribed an antibiotic.

the appointment and antiobiotic together were only 60 dollars. she won't take the antibiotic by itself though, so i've been letting it soak into a teeny bit of bread and then feeding that to her.

i'm too lazy to check when i posted this topic, but i think it's been a good amount of days and she's still peeing blood. it doesn't seem to be as frequent as it was before, but the problem's still there. i'm starting to feel doubtful. she at least doesn't seem to be suffering at all, in fact in all other aspects she seems completely normal.

Vanilla_Rat · #9 01-21-2008, 10:02 AM

Yes,if she is peeing blood then she most likely has an infection that will need to be treated.

LongClaws · #10 01-21-2008, 02:54 PM

I agree with everyone here, take her to the vet. It may be a UTI, a bladder infection, bladder and/or kidney stones, or worst case, kidney failure. Mice are pray animals, and so they don't show pain, so she may be in quite a bit. My vet costs a base of $50 for a booked appointment, and $20 extra for a walk in.
See a vet quickly, a mouses health can degrade rapidly at any moment.