Like
many wild animals rodents, guinea pigs and rabbits can instinctively
hide the fact that they are ill, because to show external signs of disease
would make them easy prey for predators in the wild. So, sometimes pet
rodents, guinea pigs and rabbits appear to die suddenly when in fact they have
been ill for some time. On the other hand there are acute diseases in
which an individual may show no signs at all other than sudden death. Here is
a list of the most frequent reported causes of sudden death :
Species |
Reported Causes of Sudden Death |
Comments |
Gerbils |
- Exposure to cold
- Exposure to excess heat
- Dehydration
- Neoplasia (cancer)
- Septicaemia
- Starvation
- Administration of streptomycin
- Exposure to various toxins
- Trauma
|
|
Guinea Pigs |
- Antibiotic administration
- Dehydration
- Dystocia (difficulty giving birth)
- Exposure to cold
- Exposure to heat
- Gastrointestinal disease - inflammation or twisting of the caecum
or intestines
- Pneumonia
- Pregnancy toxaemia
- Salmonellosis
- Septicaemia
- Toxaemia
|
|
Hamsters |
- Amyloidosis *
- Antibiotic administration
- Atrial thrombosis *
- Dehydration
- Exposure to cold
- Exposure to heat
- Gastrointestinal disease - eg "wet tail" (proliferative
ileitis)
- Myocardial degeneration *
- Neoplasia (cancer)*
- Pregnancy toxaemia (rare)
- Renal failure *
- Salmonellosis (rare)
- Sendai virus infection (rare)
- Streptococcal infection (rare)
- Trauma
- Tularaemia (rare)
- Warfarin poisoning
|
* These conditions are mainly seen in old hamsters |
Mice |
- Administration of antibiotics
- Administration of chloroform
- Ectromelia
- Exposure to cold
- Exposure to heat
- Dehydration
- Infectious diseases eg Candidiasis
- Mouse hepatitis virus
- Organophosphate toxicity**
- Pseudomoniasis
- Salmonellosis
- Sendai virus
- Toxaemia
- Trauma
|
** Pet mice should not be exposed to common
organophosphate products such as flea control sprays. |
Rabbits |
- Bacterial infections (eg Pasteurellosis**)
- Enterotoxaemia
- Mucoid enteropathy
- Myocardial disease
- Myxomatosis
- Neoplasia (cancer)
- Rabbit pox
- Retained placenta in does
- Salmonellosis (rare)
- Septicaemia (due to colibacillosis)
- Toxaemia (eg clostridium following pregnancy)
- Toxoplasmosis
- Tularaemia
- Urolithiasis
- Viral haemorrhagic disease ***
|
**Snuffles can appear to be very innocuous with mild signs
such as slight ocular discharge, but it may lead to rapid death due to
overwhelming infection
*** Often external haemorrhages present
|
Rats |
- Inappropriate bedding eg cedar wood shavings
- Degenerative diseases *
- Dehydration
- Exposure to cold
- Exposure to heat
- Gastrointestinal disease eg megaloileitis, twisting of the caecum
- Malnutrition - starvation
- Pneumonia
- Stress
- Suffocation - during transportation
- Trauma
|
* In older rats |