Urgent mouse tail black, withering

Question
Please help my mouse has scabs on his tail and the tip is all black and withered and dead please help bet wont help

Answer
Dear Bree,

When a mouse tail is injured, the injured portion turns black and falls off. The tail may be injured in a number of ways-- a fight, even with a wild mouse if the tail was out of the bars; or getting caught in the wheel; are two possibilities.

You should wash the tail off and then apply a triple antibiotic ointment such as Neosporin, very lightly (whatever is extra the mouse will eat, so the less tha better). Apply the ointment 2-3 times daily until the tail is clean and healthy. The black part will eventually fall off, and the mouse will not care.

Watch to make sure there are no signs of infection such as redness, swelling, open wounds, or a bad smell. If this happens, the mouse should go to a vet better trained in mice-- Someone trained in "exotics" or "pocket pets." It will need antibiotics; even an infection on the tail can kill the mouse through blood poisoning.

I have also thrown the question out to a few other mousepeople, so if anyone has a different idea I will write again; however, this is a common reaction to tail injury.

Best of luck and a speedy recovery.

Squeaks,

Natasha