Exotic Small Mammal Care and Husbandry

by Banks, Ron E.; Sharp, Julie M.; Doss, Sonia D.; Vanderford, Deborah A.

• ISBN13: 9780813810225
• ISBN10: 0813810221
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-03-02
• Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Summary

Exotic Small Mammal Care and Husbandry is a practical reference for assessing, handling, and treating small exotic animals in the veterinary clinic. Covering common species such as mice, hamsters, rabbits, and ferrets, the book focuses on nursing care, giving veterinary staff the information they need to work with these less-common patients. With information on basic anatomy, preventative care, and common diseases, Exotic Small Mammal Care and Husbandry provides a thorough grounding in the fundamentals of caring for small exotic mammals and communicating with owners.

Author Biography

Ron E. Banks, DVM, DACLAM, DACVPM, CPIA, is the Director of the Office of Animal Welfare at Duke University.

Julie M. Sharp, DVM, is a veterinarian at the Office of Animal Welfare at Duke University.

Sonia D. Doss, M.Ed., RLATG, is a veterinary technologist at the Office of Animal Welfare at Duke University.

Deborah A. Vanderford, DVM, is a veterinarian at the Office of Animal Welfare at Duke University.

Table of Contents

Introduction to Small Mammals

Comparison between larger species

peculiarities of these species

General Husbandry Recommendations

For each species and even sex or age of the species, there are preferred housing and care recommendations

For example, male rats are highly social

male mice are often adversarial toward other mice

hamsters are monogamous and prefer lots of wall space [thigmotactic] as opposed to open floor space

Occupational Health and Small Mammals: Keeping the Pet Owner Healthy!

This section will focus on pet selection and the potential for human injury or disease

For example, having a rodent as a pet is a very bad idea for asthmatics due to the high antigen load of rats and mice and the effect upon human allergies

Another example is the effect of allowing animal bedding or cage litter to become damp in a bedroom which can foster mold / ammonia build-up/ etc and exacerbate existing human health conditions

A third example is use of products that may harm animals or humans [e.g. cedar bedding has 'cedrols,' which are organic hydrocarbons that absorb through the skin or mucus membranes of the mouth and nose and can elevate liver enzyme function - not a good thing for animals or humans.]

Species

Each chapter below will include: basic anatomy

unique features of importance

feed / water / caging needs; special care requirements

common diseases (bacteria, virus, traumatic, etc) and potential preventions or treatments; and well being issues for each species

Mice

Rats

Hamsters

Gerbils

Chinchillas

Degus

Ferrets

Hedge hogs

Guinea pigs

Rabbits

Sugar Gliders

Opossums

Psychological enrichment

Human-animal bond

Additional Reference Resource List

Normal Profile Values by species

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.