Gerbil accident

Question
Today my fiance was trying to capture one of our pet gerbils who escaped from his cage while he was cleaning it.  He however accidently went after him a little too rough with a plastic dustpan and thinks that he may have hurt our pet.  After the incident he said that the gerbil was running around like always, now he just lays around breathing very quickly and is not as active as before.  Could our gerbil have an internal injury?  We don't know what to do to help him get better.  Thank You

Answer
Hi Melissa,

It could be possible, you will need to keep an eye on him, and if he doesn't go back to normal i would take him to the vets!

It could just be stress/trauma from the incident and he may return to normal within a few days!!

My advice would be leave him be to settle, watch over him and make sure he doesn't get any worse, but if there is no improvement pop him to the vets.

However if you are concerned now then i would give your vets a ring and tell them the situation, they may be able to tell you if he needs veterinary attention!!

I hope this helps you, sorry i can't help further.
It is difficult without having him examined!!
If you need anything else feel free to ask,

Thank you,
Charlie.