How to Know if My Pet Mouse is Sick?

Mice are very energetic pets, and these little critters are intelligent and curious too. They are perfect house pets if you want animals with lively personalities. It is essential to monitor them every day to make sure they don't have any necessary health risks or conditions. Inspect them for possible skin issues and peculiar behavior as well. If it acts in pain, trust your instincts and bring them to the vet as soon as possible.

Observe your mouse regularly before you handle it.

A healthy mouse is energetic and active. Observe its body parts as well: its belly should have no lumps, and its eyes should be bright and without discharge. If your mouse feels tired and lethargic, if it has swelling, sticky eyes, or even skin rashes, then it's time to bring it to the vet.

Observe your mouse for diarrhea and dehydration.

If your mouse is dehydrated, it can be killed in 48 hours. This is because they have tiny bodies that cannot take much fluid loss. Mice are very vulnerable to illnesses.

Your mouse may have common colds.

Just like humans, mice can have colds as well. Thankfully, most of the time, it goes away on itself. When your mouse is sneezing, has runny eyes, and is tired, it may be a symptom of colds. When this happens, make sure you provide fresh food and water at all times and sanitize the cage to prevent other diseases. Keep your pet in favorable temperatures, not too hot or cold. If the colds get worse, bring it to the vet.

Your mouse can easily be food-poisoned.

Make sure everything is clean when handling food and drink for your mouse. Clean the sink and food containers thoroughly before you put food and water on them. Always wash your hands too before you handle your mouse. Avoid touching its cage with dirty hands as well. If your mouse is food poisoned, you will notice that it has diarrhea, dehydration, and a significant loss of appetite. If your mouse gets infected, force it to drink water by gently feeding it through a medicine dropper. 

Your mouse may have skin allergies.

If your mouse has a skin allergy, you will notice baldness on certain spots of its body, excessive scratching, swelling and red bumps, high-stress levels and obvious discomfort, bleeding scabs, or lethargy. This may happen when you start using a new product, so never use more than one product at a time. To treat skin allergies, sanitize its cage with warm water, replace old beddings, and clean everything. If you can, trace which product has caused an allergy in your mouse and discontinue use immediately.

Always remember that whenever your mouse seems to act beyond normal, bring it to the veterinarian to prevent worse things from happening.