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Help with euthanizing pet mouse

insomniac101

insomniac101

Occupant
Hi All,

I have a female pet mouse that has developed a tumor of some sort on her abdomen. I sent a photo to my vet, who thinks it could be a mammory-gland tumor. Obviously, surgical and/or radiation treatment is not feasible due to cost, and poor prognosis.

I want to humanely euthanize her at home, and have been reading through old threads here, and some articles on Google. I don't want to try cervical dislocation, because I've never done it, and don't want her to be my first attempt. I'm also trying to avoid spending $40 on a Co2 canister that I only need once.

I read about the vinegar-and-baking soda method, but have concerns about the odor stressing her out. Has anyone used that method? Or should I bite the bullet, and do it properly with the compressed gas? I want her death to be as quick and painless as possible.

Thanks,

Kathy
 
EuthaSol, and only a small dose of probably 0.3-0.4cc (going off of memory here from my stint as a necropsy tech at a respiratory research facility) would be the quickest and most humane means, but most likely the most expensive as barbiturates are a controlled and heavily regulated drug that can only be administered by those licensed for such. In this case it would be a vet or any licensed techs at their clinic.

From there, cervical dislocation or CO2 are the only humane routes. I definitely wouldn't do the vinegar mix. Such a strong, foreign odor in a confined space on a small, easily scared species will probably trigger a fight or flight response.

Cervical dislocation, next to EuthaSol, is probably the quickest means. It was a method used for studies where barbiturates would potentially skew results. BUT, it's obviously hands-on and can definitely be disturbing if not done properly on the first attempt, let alone the action of just doing it.

Which leaves CO2. The body's natural method to getting sleepy is increased doses of CO2. Using this method you might still see signs of distress as CO2 levels overcome those of O2. If done properly, I'd like to think the pet will be asleep well before it has the ability to realize anything. I've never done this method though, but I know many frozen rodent suppliers utilize it.

It's a tough decision either way and I fully mean anything said above as sensitive as possible. Knowing you from MVF, I know you have the best intentions at heart.
 
I've been in similar situations with my gerbils. One of them I tried to help and ended up prolonging his life, and he was clearly miserable through the whole thing. My current one, I had decided I wasn't going to do anything special to keep him alive, but after a few days I started looking into ways to euthanize. Then he got better and I didn't have to worry about it.

Anyway, small rodents have short lives. If it wasn't a tumor, it would have been something else that comes with old age. If you don't want to let nature take its course (which sucks to wait through, I know, but most mice do it), then I'd say go with the CO2. It's stressful watching them suffer and you worry about making things worse using the vinegar, which is what put me off using that method myself.

If you reconsider cervical dislocation, someone posted a video here of it being done. He does it over and over again in the video (with sad music to go along :p) and after a minute, it starts to look easy. But I totally understand your concern with it being your one chance to do it right the first time.

http://www.cornsnakes.com/forums/showthread.php?t=133179
 
Cervical dislocation is a bad idea if it is your first time. Plus it is distressing to do it to a beloved pet. You're likely to not be a forceful as necessary and a botched dislocation is not pleasant. I would do CO2 with dry ice, you can google how to make a simple set up with things you probably have on hand. Sorry you have to go through this :(
 
Thank you all for your kind replies and detailed information. We're at the emergency vet right now. Her tumor has started bleeding, and she seems uncomfortable, so I'm having her euthanized here.
 
This is the tumor, for anyone interested. I first noticed it about 3 weeks ago, and it was much smaller. It was fast-growing, but didn't seem to bother her at all. It started to bleed today, and she seemed distressed, and constantly licking at it. The vet said he's seen a lot of tumors on mice and rats, but mostly older animals. RIP, Momma Mouse.

Kathy
 

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I am so sorry to read about Mama Mouse. I think you selected the best route for a bad situation.
 
Sorry about your mouse, it looks like she was a cutie.

For posterity, if anyone needs to know in future, I use vinegar and baking soda to kill mice and the smell doesn't appear to stress them. I found a paper about humane treatment of lab animals, and it said to introduce CO2 slowly because a sudden introduction of a high concentration causes the mice to panic. Now that I know to introduce it slowly, I notice that the mice always go quietly to sleep.
 
Thanks again for the condolences and information, everyone! She was gravid when I got her, so at least I have her babies - all weaned and separated by gender. No more babies!

The ER vet charged me $45 to euthanize her. I probably would have spent at least that, for all the stuff I would need to make a Co2 chamber. And, of course, I feel better that her death was quick and painless. They used an inhalation anesthetic, and said she didn't feel anything.

Kathy
 
I am sorry you and Mama went through this, but the way it happened was probably the best. The vet was able to do it humanely and was able to give you first-hand info on the tumor, and Mama went quietly and quickly and was with someone who loved her.

(((((Hugs)))))
-Michelle
 
I'm sorry to hear about your mouse. She looks like she was beautiful. My last mouse trio had similar things happen to them. I expect it was from a mix of old age and inbreeding since they were possible feeders i picked up from my local pet shop.
 
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