Bald Patches

Question
QUESTION: hi, i have two mice, they were split up about 9 months ago as they were fighting. they have seperate cages although they are near each other. they both keep scrathcing and one has several bald patches on his back, what could all these bald patches mean?
Jackie

ANSWER: Dear Jackie,

Bald patches and scratching are most likely signs of mites.  Mice get mites like dogs get fleas and ticks.  Mites can kill a mouse, especially, sadly, if it has to live alone, because usually a mouse gets some grooming from its friend.  It's too bad about male mice--- nature didn't make them to live in cages, and they simply need larger territories, so they fight and have to live alone.

If you can go to a vet they can diagnose whether the problem is mites.  The vet will always know best.  However, mites are common and can easily be treated at home.

To treat the mice for mites you need to get an anti-mite spray that is weak enough that it won't damage the mouse, so you need a special small animal spray.  The one I have used is called Ultra Care, and it is milder than sprays for larger rodents.  Still, it's toxic and needs to be used sparingly.  Shake it up thoroughly.  Your mice should be sprayed as directed on the label, and the liquid should be massaged into the fur to make sure it touches the skin.  Do this over the bed because a wet mouse can panic and leap.  Some mice have more sensitive skin than others, so it might actually be a little painful after a little while, so if one of them is squeaking at touch a few hours later, just know it is from the spray and it will get better soon.  

Spray them again 1-2 weeks later, as the eggs on them at the time of the last spraying will hatch and need to be killed.  If they are still scratching or the bald patches are getting bigger after three weeks, they might have mange.  

As a side note, if the mice are in cages near each other it is actually very comforting for them because they 'talk' all the time and won't feel so alone.  They squeak in such a high pitch that we can't hear them.  Mice get depressed (you can tell because they lose weight) when their friends die, and I had a mouse get depressed when its friend three feet away died, so I know they are a comfort to each other!

best of luck,

squeaks!

Natasha

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

QUESTION: yeah but i cant pick them up. i mean i can sometimes, but the brown one is so scared of me and my parents dont let me take my mice to the vets as they think its not worth the money for a small animal, also where can i get the spray?

Answer
Dear Jackie,

I find the 8-in-1 small animal flea and tick spray in two places on the internet:  

www.petcarerx.com  ($4.72)

www.petsmart.com ($5.29)

in fact here is the link for the product at petsmart:

http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2752081&cp=2767038.2769320&f

If you can find it in a pet store (call around) that would be best, because you need it right away.  If not, have them overnight mail it or as fast as they can.  Mice get sicker fast.

You are going to have to handle the mice.  Do they bite?  If so, wear a pair of gloves.  A mouse who does not want to be handled can be picked up by taking hold of the very base of its tail (by its butt) and immediately putting the mouse on the other hand, holding the tail until the mouse is calm enough not to jump.  You should get help treating the mice because you might need to have one person holding the base of the tail and the mouse while the other sprays and rubs the spray into the fur.  Or one person can hold the mouse by its tail on a flat surface and use the other hand both to spray and massage.  Remember, do it over the bed or other soft landing place just in case.  

After each of the two treatments, all bedding must be thrown out as well as any wooden objects.  Everything else should either be cleaned with a bleach solution or by boiling for a few minutes.  

Good luck!

squeaks n giggles,

Natasha

PS  Other treatments that I have heard of for small rodents **but never experimented with** (therefore please note I CAN'T RECOMMEND any of them at any dose) are ivermectin, Revolution (get from a small animal vet), and strangely enough, "Hi-Yield Garden Pet & Livestock Dust" and Diatomeceous Earth.  PLEASE DON'T USE THESE WITHOUT TALKING TO YOUR VET first because some are very poisonous and you could easily kill the mice.  

PPS Please don't forget to rate both answers : ))