Chinchilla Community Forums

1

Health / Gus has stones! :( help?

« on: March 16, 2010, 09:31:57 AM »

So my gf took Gus to the vet and my poor boy has stones? Apparently he cant really pee and thats why he has been in pain when he poops. they took two x-rays to see the stones. they are trying to get one out now but two are in the ureathra. The vet referred us to another place that would "flush out" the stones? she said that they would likely take an ultrasound and the total cost would be around $1000

Is there anyone else out there that has encountered this problem? The vet apparently gave my gf some stuff to treat Gus at home as an alternative but we were told if his condition doesnt improve he would have to go to the hospital.

She said that stones are caused by city water or dark leafy greens? I give him kaytee brand timothy hay and western timothy, and we dont live in the city. I give him water from the purifier downstairs in the kitchen and i wash out his water bottle with bakingsoda and water regularly.

Is there anyone with experience here or advice? I am trying to explore options because i am not in a position to spend $1000 right now, the vet bill alone with xrays was 245 already. Is this hospital the only route? I am at a loss right now and could use some advice asap please..

2

Health / what should i do?

« on: March 14, 2010, 05:17:00 PM »

I noticed that for the past day or so Gus has been sleepy alot. Yesterday when i was petting him he was making sounds like he was hurt a little, and when i was holding him he was letting me (usually this doesnt last long). I noticed that some liquid was coming out of his butt, and I freaked out and started doing research online. There really arent that many vets around here that do exotic, and it is the weekend so I decided that I would try to get some answers online. I bought natural cranberry juice and we tried to put a little in his water (he didnt really like it) and i gave him some shredded wheat and lots of hay. He seemed to be doing better and was more active (no more liquid coming out of his anus today) but he still seems a little mopey. I read online that you can give chins twice a week 1/4 of a 500 mil vitamin c, so i gave gus 1/6 of a 500 mil . Has anyone experienced this ? im freaking out a little. I read that symptoms usually come in the late stages of being sick. my little boy is tough and ive been watching him closely, should i rush him to an animal hospital? i dont feel its THAT urgent, but i def do want to take him to the vet tomorrow. i dumped the cranberry water because he doesnt like it. any advice is appreciated.

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General Chat / destined to be seperate?

« on: February 16, 2009, 06:47:36 PM »

So I have been patient. Since the last time they met and fought I have separated Gus and Neo. First for about 2 months they were in seperate rooms. then for the past month I have had both cages in my room. they arent right next to eachother but about 3ft apart. Neo is still fairly new to us its only been 4 or 5 months. He isn't 100% comfortable with us I guess but still social. I give him little treats I guess he isn't 100% trusting though. so for the past month every week or so I switch the two boys into eachothers cages. They have almost identical setups. Neo must be somewhat comfortable, for some reason whenever he is in Gus's cage he sleeps in the little log we got him on his back. Tonight I set up a fenced in play area in hopes to reintroduce the two guys. First i let neo get used to the area alone, then gus. Since neo is the younger/newer one i put him in the play area first. Then I picked up Gus and sat in the play area and before i could let gus go, i was placing him in the general vicinity of neo, neo jumped up and looks like bit gus in the face. It wasn't too serious, there wasn't any blood and gus usually wines in his corner back in his cage but this time he seemed to be fine. I was more worried that gus would play too rough with neo but neo was definitely the aggressor. I don't know what to do. am i supposed to let them fight it out a little? i literally still had gus in my hand and hadn't even placed him down before neo bit him and i immediately removed gus out of the cage and then put neo back. They didnt have time to get along or fight. I dunno. how long should i wait again? do i seperate them completely again? should i have the cages closer together next time for a longer period of time before i let them play? I heard on youtube someone said placing a tiny amount of cologne behind one of the chins necks confuses them and lets them relearn their individual smells. should i wait until neo is completely comfortable with me before i reintroduce them? it took gus a while to really trust me.
It just is terrible because i think gus gets lonely, even though we play with him. i really wanted to get him a friend. also, i try to play with them each an hour a day but because of my schedule its hard to dedicate 2 hours of supervised play, whereas one hour for both would be so much easier. i tried having them both play with the room divided by the little fence i have but gus is a great jumper and is smart enough to figure out how to get over. any advice? does it sound like my efforts are futile?

4

General Chat / how to introduce a new chin

« on: December 28, 2008, 01:48:04 AM »

ok, so felix is long gone now and the new chinchilla is named Neo. I don't know how I should introduce the two(Neo and Gus)?! I have them in the same room now (i waited a while this time, Neo and I seem to get along pretty well). The first meeting was extremely controlled (my sisters fiance held neo while i held gus and they were allowed to sniff at each other. when they were roaming around all was find until they both got under the dresser then there was a little tussle, nothing serious). so i bought a little containment play area thing and got into with the two boys today and they were not having it. Gus was very aggressive jumping at Neo and it looked like someone (dunno who) lost a little tuff of fur. Obviously I did not let this go on for long at all. I used the play area to separate the room and had them play seperately. After play time Gus was pouty again. he was making whiney noises and laid on his ramp with his face to the wall like he was a sad little boy. should i be concerned about this? also if there isnt any blood or biting do i let them get rowdy with eachother and just wait it out? is there a better way to introduce them? are they not supposed to tussle around at all? i have no idea if im going about this all wrong. what is appropriate? what isnt? can anyone help?
I have also prepared myself with the notion that they may never get along. thats ok but i feel like i want to give a good solid effort for them to be pals.

5

Breeding 101 / question about males and females

« on: November 24, 2008, 09:39:30 AM »

So I recently acquired another chin but I worry about the two boys getting along. I have heard that two boys living together is usually the worst combination, even though there are no guarantees with any combo. Felix is really new and I haven't grown a bond so strong that I can't bare to return him, though I do feel like he's been through some abuse because of his super shy super cautious demeanor (gus was shy too but he warmed up really quickly). So what I'm getting to is wanting to get a female for my Gus. Obviously I need to be prepared for kits before doing so; I have many books to read and research to be done. My question is: If the male and female get along, is it guaranteed that they will have lots of kits? I hear about housing a guy with a bunch of girls when you're trying to have babies.

What I'm getting at is that I want my baby boy to be happy. I want him to have a buddy or two to play with. I think it would be nice to have a girl. I don't want to breed chins, but babies would be nice. I would be fine not having babies too. I just feel a little confused as of which direction to move in at this point. Like I said I just want Gus to be happy. I feel like Felix and Gus just aren't a good mix. I am still considering keeping Felix but even one on one Felix is weird. We get along fine and play with eachother, and then next thing you know he is off in the corner just looking at you. Felix loses hair so easily too. I never had this problem with Gus. Thats another reason I feel like maybe felix was abused at the pet store or maybe he has been in another home and been returned already. If that were the case I would feel too bad returning him, I don't want him to get abandonment issues. what to do what to do.

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General Chat / gus and felix fight!

« on: November 21, 2008, 11:07:01 PM »

so i got a new chinchilla because i thought Gus was getting lonely. I let them play together too early(i know im stupid) and Gus tried to assert his authority by jumping on felix, they ended up barking at eachother so i immediately separated them (i moved felix into another room) after 2 days i moved Gus's cage into that room and set them up near eachother. I would then let the boys play at separate times taking turns. When one(the one out) would approach the other's cage(the one in the cage) they seem too not got along. They would nip at each other and there was much tension but then they would run away and jump off the walls as though it was playful. well after a few days it seemed to get more mild so i tried to let them out to play together again. at first it was ok but then they just went straight for eachother and there was a tumbling ball of chinchilla rage. I seperated them as fast as possible but felix seemed to lose a few clumps of hair. at first gus seemed fine but then he layed on his ramp (like he usually does to cool down, or when he enjoys the AC after running around my room). the room wasnt hot so i got concerned. I started massaging him behind his ears and neck (he lets me pet him but not nearly as much as he did THIS time) and i noticed he was kind of whimpering. I think that Gus really wanted a friend and was upset and possibly a little heart broken about the fight. There are no signs of physical injury and no blood was shed. (i sustained a scratch but ill live) I also noticed that Gus lost a little bit of hair but really not much at all. Felix seems fine, hes as shy as usual but he doesnt seem started or upset at all. Am i being too relaxed about this situation? I don't think a vet is necessary but does anyone disagree. then finally there is the matter of Felix. Felix was bought from petsmart which has a 14 day return policy. I'm well within the time frame for a return. I feel so sad and guilty about taking him back but Gus is my baby boy and i refuse to put him in harms way. Should i stick it out and just be slower about letting them play together? if they never get along i would prefer for felix to go back. I DO want to get Gus a buddy. should i be more determined and stick it out with felix or try again in a few months after Gus feels 100% secure again. I'm even considering getting a female (though I'm not sure im ready for kits)

feedback would be much appreciated.

7

Health / Gus and Felix scuffle

« on: November 21, 2008, 10:57:05 PM »

so i got a new chinchilla because i thought Gus was getting lonely. I let them play together too early(i know im stupid) and Gus tried to assert his authority by jumping on felix, they ended up barking at eachother so i immediately separated them (i moved felix into another room) after 2 days i moved Gus's cage into that room and set them up near eachother. I would then let the boys play at separate times taking turns. When one(the one out) would approach the other's cage(the one in the cage) they seem too not got along. They would nip at each other and there was much tension but then they would run away and jump off the walls as though it was playful. well after a few days it seemed to get more mild so i tried to let them out to play together again. at first it was ok but then they just went straight for eachother and there was a tumbling ball of chinchilla rage. I seperated them as fast as possible but felix seemed to lose a few clumps of hair. at first gus seemed fine but then he layed on his ramp (like he usually does to cool down, or when he enjoys the AC after running around my room). the room wasnt hot so i got concerned. I started massaging him behind his ears and neck (he lets me pet him but not nearly as much as he did THIS time) and i noticed he was kind of whimpering. I think that Gus really wanted a friend and was upset and possibly a little heart broken about the fight. There are no signs of physical injury and no blood was shed. (i sustained a scratch but ill live) I also noticed that Gus lost a little bit of hair but really not much at all. Felix seems fine, hes as shy as usual but he doesnt seem started or upset at all. Am i being too relaxed about this situation? I don't think a vet is necessary but does anyone disagree. then finally there is the matter of Felix. Felix was bought from petsmart which has a 14 day return policy. I'm well within the time frame for a return. I feel so sad and guilty about taking him back but Gus is my baby boy and i refuse to put him in harms way. Should i stick it out and just be slower about letting them play together? if they never get along i would prefer for felix to go back. I DO want to get Gus a buddy. should i be more determined and stick it out with felix or try again in a few months after Gus feels 100% secure again. I'm even considering getting a female (though I'm not sure im ready for kits)

feedback would be much appreciated.

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General Chat / ecotrition snak shaks?

« on: August 15, 2008, 08:42:50 PM »

hey so i dont know why i just bought this little snak shak from ecotrition but i did!. i dont know if its safe for my little guy to eat. its the 8in1 snak shak activity log and its made with fresh alfalfa and honey. the box said its for rabbits and guinea pigs. is it safe to leave it in his cage? im going to take it out in the mean time until i get some more advice. anything you guys can let me know would be awesome!

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Q & A / bedding over or under?

« on: July 09, 2008, 12:21:51 AM »

i have the wire mesh bottoms (1/2"x1/2") and i dunno if i should do the bedding over or under. on the display its under the wire, but i have heard that its best to put the bedding over the wire. any suggestions?