How to Diagnose Chronic Murine Pneumonia in Mice
Look for the general signs of respiratory illness., Look for symptoms in your other mice., Take your mouse in for veterinary care., Approve veterinary testing., Treat the mouse with antibiotics., Keep the mouse's home clean., Prevent the spread of...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Look for the general signs of respiratory illness.
A mouse with a respiratory infection, like chronic murine pneumonia, will usually sneeze, have difficulty breathing, and have discharge from the nose.
Infected mice will also usually make a noise described as "chattering."Mouse "chattering" is usually a clicking noise.
This is a good sign that the mouse has a respiratory illness, as they are usually silent otherwise.Not all mice with respiratory infections show outward symptoms.
This can make spotting a pneumonia infection very hard to spot. -
Step 2: Look for symptoms in your other mice.
Chronic murine pneumonia is spread easily from mouse to mouse.
It can be spread via casual contact, sexual contact, sneezing, and coughing.Keep a close eye on all your mice for symptoms if you think that one is infected.
If one of your mice has the infection, it is likely that other mice it has contact with will have the infection as well. , If you suspect that your mouse is sick, you should get it veterinary care.
Your veterinarian will give the mouse an exam, including taking its vital signs and assessing its physical health.
However, during the early stages of respiratory illness, mice rarely show overt symptoms.
This can make it hard to spot chronic murine pneumonia in your pet.
Make sure you go to a veterinarian that has experience working with mice.
This will assure that your pet gets good veterinary care. , Chronic murine pneumonia is usually diagnosed by testing the mouse's blood.If you want a specific diagnosis, you will need to pay for laboratory tests on your mouse's blood.
Chronic murine pneumonia is treated similarly to other respiratory infections.
This means that a specific diagnosis is not necessary, as long as your veterinarian identifies that your mouse has a respiratory infection. , A respiratory infection, such as chronic pneumonia, can be hard to clear up completely.
However, a treatment of antibiotics can keep symptoms suppressed and under control.Your veterinarian may be hesitant to prescribe antibiotics right away.
Overuse of antibiotics can promote antibiotic-resistant strains of diseases.
Because of this, your veterinarian may wait to see if the mouse's immune system can fight off the disease before prescribing antibiotics. , If your mouse has a respiratory infection you should do all you can to keep that infection to a minimum.
One of the best ways you can do this is to keep the mouse's home clean.Cleaning your mouse's home regularly will keep airway irritants to a minimum and will eliminate additional bacteria and viruses that could worsen the mouse's infection.The first step in cleaning your mouse's cage is to empty all bedding and supplies, such as containers for food and water.
All used bedding should be thrown away and all supplies that will be put back in the cage should be cleaned and sanitized.
The second step is to clean and sanitize the cage.
Clean the cage surfaces with soap and water to get all debris off.
After you have gotten all the surfaces clean, rinse the cage with hot water to get the soap off.
Then wipe down or submerge the cage in a mixture of bleach and water.
This mixture does not need to contain a lot of bleach.
It should just be one half tablespoon of bleach to one gallon of water. , Keep infected mice away from uninfected mice so that the infection does not spread.
This infection is very contagious, so any contact can spread the disease.
Because in most cases it is impossible to completely eradicate this infection, it is a good idea to keep infected mice away from uninfected mice forever. , Only bring mice into your home that are known to be of stock that are free of the disease.
Even so, you should isolate mice that you bring into your home away from established colonies to be sure that the disease doesn't spread. -
Step 3: Take your mouse in for veterinary care.
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Step 4: Approve veterinary testing.
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Step 5: Treat the mouse with antibiotics.
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Step 6: Keep the mouse's home clean.
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Step 7: Prevent the spread of infection.
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Step 8: Prevent future infection.
Detailed Guide
A mouse with a respiratory infection, like chronic murine pneumonia, will usually sneeze, have difficulty breathing, and have discharge from the nose.
Infected mice will also usually make a noise described as "chattering."Mouse "chattering" is usually a clicking noise.
This is a good sign that the mouse has a respiratory illness, as they are usually silent otherwise.Not all mice with respiratory infections show outward symptoms.
This can make spotting a pneumonia infection very hard to spot.
Chronic murine pneumonia is spread easily from mouse to mouse.
It can be spread via casual contact, sexual contact, sneezing, and coughing.Keep a close eye on all your mice for symptoms if you think that one is infected.
If one of your mice has the infection, it is likely that other mice it has contact with will have the infection as well. , If you suspect that your mouse is sick, you should get it veterinary care.
Your veterinarian will give the mouse an exam, including taking its vital signs and assessing its physical health.
However, during the early stages of respiratory illness, mice rarely show overt symptoms.
This can make it hard to spot chronic murine pneumonia in your pet.
Make sure you go to a veterinarian that has experience working with mice.
This will assure that your pet gets good veterinary care. , Chronic murine pneumonia is usually diagnosed by testing the mouse's blood.If you want a specific diagnosis, you will need to pay for laboratory tests on your mouse's blood.
Chronic murine pneumonia is treated similarly to other respiratory infections.
This means that a specific diagnosis is not necessary, as long as your veterinarian identifies that your mouse has a respiratory infection. , A respiratory infection, such as chronic pneumonia, can be hard to clear up completely.
However, a treatment of antibiotics can keep symptoms suppressed and under control.Your veterinarian may be hesitant to prescribe antibiotics right away.
Overuse of antibiotics can promote antibiotic-resistant strains of diseases.
Because of this, your veterinarian may wait to see if the mouse's immune system can fight off the disease before prescribing antibiotics. , If your mouse has a respiratory infection you should do all you can to keep that infection to a minimum.
One of the best ways you can do this is to keep the mouse's home clean.Cleaning your mouse's home regularly will keep airway irritants to a minimum and will eliminate additional bacteria and viruses that could worsen the mouse's infection.The first step in cleaning your mouse's cage is to empty all bedding and supplies, such as containers for food and water.
All used bedding should be thrown away and all supplies that will be put back in the cage should be cleaned and sanitized.
The second step is to clean and sanitize the cage.
Clean the cage surfaces with soap and water to get all debris off.
After you have gotten all the surfaces clean, rinse the cage with hot water to get the soap off.
Then wipe down or submerge the cage in a mixture of bleach and water.
This mixture does not need to contain a lot of bleach.
It should just be one half tablespoon of bleach to one gallon of water. , Keep infected mice away from uninfected mice so that the infection does not spread.
This infection is very contagious, so any contact can spread the disease.
Because in most cases it is impossible to completely eradicate this infection, it is a good idea to keep infected mice away from uninfected mice forever. , Only bring mice into your home that are known to be of stock that are free of the disease.
Even so, you should isolate mice that you bring into your home away from established colonies to be sure that the disease doesn't spread.
About the Author
Doris Allen
Professional writer focused on creating easy-to-follow practical skills tutorials.
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