Should I show mice their friends body?

Question
QUESTION: Dear Natasha,

I recently purchased 3 female mice for my daughter they are now around 3 to 4 months old. Our favorite one last week began to have a large lump appear on the side of her body.

We asked a friend to take a look as she is a vet. Her thoughts were it was an abscess as there was a small wound that looked as though she had been bitten.

One of the other mice is rather aggressive so very possible. She seemed perfectly happy and other than excessive itching of the area in good health. I called a vet and took her as soon as they could fit me in which was today, so a fair wait so the lump had grown.

In total it was the size of teaspoon so quite big for a small mouse. The vet couldn't tell as the area where the original wound was had changed and was blood covered.
But agreed was probably an abscess. They took her out the back and tried to drain it but only blood came out. They decided she had lost too much blood for a small animal and stopped.

If she survives I'm to take her back Wednesday where they will remove it under anesthetic.

My concern is her health now. She is so sick and still but still breathing. I can't get her to eat or drink the water that has anti biotics in.

I have broken the habitat into two and she is on her own in a quite dark room so the others or my daughter don't bother her.

She can't even seem to find the energy to move. I've covered her in clean bedding which is soft to keep her warm. Is there anything I can do? Or is the best thing just to leave her alone?

My daughter is obviously upset and I am worried she will not make it through the night so any advice you can give I would really appreciate. Any kind of food that would perk her up? should I try and put a drop of water near her mouth? She is a lovely little mouse has the best personality and so young.
Please help if you can.

Kind regards
Kim

ANSWER: Dear Kim,

Poor, poor, poor little mouse. She is certainly in danger. Mice are very delicate. In terms of getting her to eat her medicine, mix it in butter. If a mouse will eat anything, generally it will eat butter. You can also try to get some liquid in her with soy yogurt, or a very thin mixture of commercial peanut butter and water.

It is absolutely critical than she not get cold at all. Is this mouse incredibly sweet and loves to be held? If so, this is what I have done and saved lives several times. I have simply held the mouse in my hand completely quietly, often in my pocket (don't suffocate her), for 12-24 hours (with kisses-- face time is good). It is a combination of the warmth and the love. This may be impossible for you of course. Also, if she doesn't really love to be held it is the wrong option. In that case I would put a heating pad on low under part of the cage, allowing her space to escape the heat if it gets too much, and leave her alone.

I wish her the very, very best of luck and quiet kisses.

squeaks,

Natasha

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thank you so much Natasha thats most helpful. I have no heat pad but can improvise with various things. She can't seem to move so concerned about over heating. Her house is currently in my bed where it is warm and quite. I'm a bit worried about handling her she is so so ill and I'm worried she is in pain or it might stress her. I imagine her heart is under allot of pressure right now. She is very sweet and seems to like handling normally. I will see how it goes.

She is normally a very greedy mouse that eats all foods so will try the butter and peanut butter just to try and get fluids in her which I'm sure would help. She would normally go mad for a sweet biscuit but doesn't want to know. The medicine was put in water so I can only put it in fluids.

I can't leave the house until morning to get things but if there is anything else I could do, I will do it! Do they give pain killers of any kind to mice?

I assume separating her from her friends was the right thing to do as she does love them but I didn't want them treading on her ( the wound is large too) as one is often a bit mean to her which is why she had the lump in the first place! I wasn't sure if she might miss them?

In your experience with mice on average what are the chances of her surviving this blood loss and infection and then on Wednesday another operation? She is young so I'm hoping thats on her side.

Thank you so much for your speedy reply and answers.

Warmest regards

Kim

ANSWER: Dear Kim,

It is hard for mice to both be under physical stress and also lose their companions, so for the most part I don't say separate. There is, however, concern about infecting the wound. Of course I would take the one out that had been aggressive to her. In any case, it is best for separated mice to be as close to each other as possible so they can communicate. If she is with you, she might not need a friend. Whether you should handle her is also something you will have to kind of negotiate with her. If you hold her of course you must hold still so she can go to sleep. Another fact is that under normal circumstances, often when a beloved mouse is going to die she will ask to be picked up, so she can die in your hands. However a mouse in pain may feel differently, and it may also be hard for her to negotiate a comfortable position in your hand.

Reconsidering, if my mouse had a large wound I would not hold her. I would, like you, have her cage in my bed and stay nearby so she could smell me and be warm. You can quietly talk to her and even just breathe on her.

I know of no OTC painkiller that a mouse can take. Of course there are painkillers for small animals, and your vet should certainly have sent you home with one. Maybe you can get them to call one in over the phone tomorrow.  You might be able to find some Bach's pet Rescue Remedy at a good pet store (call first; try an alternative type shop). That calms them down even though it isn't a pain reliever.

Her chances are pretty slim. Still, valiant hearts can beat in tiny breasts, and she is young.  I have given advice to people where I thought the mouse had very little chance, and the mouse pulled through and lived a long life. And love can go a long way. You know it is important to get food and especially liquids into her. Liquids are crucial so she can wash the toxins out of her system. If she won't take anything liquid by mid tomorrow you should use an eyedropper. Even better than water is pedialyte, which is what we give to dehydrated baby mice. A little sugar in the water might help if you give her water.

I'm really sorry about her. Please let me know what happens. Poor little tyke. You were smart to get three, though, because if you lose her, the others will not be lonely. In that case you would want to replace her so you have the same situation, but you would have time to do so.

Many whiskery mouse nuzzles from my girls.

Squeaks,

Natasha





---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Natasha,

Thank you for your help. I'm afraid to say she did not make the night. I did not feel she wanted to be held. I tried with a small pipet to get liquids in her but I could not. I don't feel the vet dealt with it very well but it's too late now. Will the other mice need to see her before we send her off?

Oh it's such a shame she really was so lovely.

Kind regards

Kim

Answer
Dear Kim,

I am so sorry. I was afraid of that. Thank you so much for letting me know.

It doesn't sound to me like that vet knew what he was doing. Mice should go to vets trained either in "pocket pets" or "exotics." I have no medical expertise but that doesn't sound like an abscess to me. But maybe I shouldn't even guess. I will say, even if she had survived until the surgery, there is a large chance that she would not have survived the surgery. And if it was a tumor, mouse tumors are hard to remove and usually malignant. So, after that experience yesterday, she was probably saved a lot of pain by passing away last night. What a tragedy to go from a perfectly healthy seeming mouse to a sad death, so quickly.

I never show the body to the other mice. It seems to me kinder to let them think she left, than that she died. They will mourn her. Mice get sad when they lose a friend. But because there are two, they should be okay. This is why one ought always to have mice in threes.

I hope your daughter is ok. Let her know that the other two need extra love to help them with their loss.

Many condolences.
Squeaks,

Natasha