Chinchilla Community Forums
Chinchillas => Health => Topic started by: LeapingLechuga on February 07, 2015, 09:06:13 AM
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We recently took in a chin that was abandoned at the clinic I work at (I'm a licensed vet tech) because she had a hurt leg. It ended up being a tourniquet injury and we had to remove the leg. She is through her post op treatments and pooping up a storm (yay!) but we seem to have a persistant problem. I don't have any contact information from whoever dropped her off, so I have no idea how old she is or what she was used to eating. Since we have had her she has never really eaten well. She will eat the oxbow pellets we bought her but she is not eating enough to maintain her weight. She's losing pretty steadily and we're looking for any suggestions from seasoned members with picky eaters. We tried a different brand last night mixed in with her normal food but it doesn't seem to help matters. We are supplementing with critical care feedings but we really need to get her eating on her own!
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If I remember right it's been less than two weeks since you've had her. I know with chinchillas they can be slightly off their diet for two weeks just because they are moved to a different home. I have a feeling it is pain and stress causing the problem more than anything at this point. I recommend trying another week of syringe feeding and carefully tapering off medication used to stimulate her bowels. The side effects of baytril can take a week to wear off as well.
At this point I think Oxbow pellets is the best diet considering most pet store diets are terrible and you really have to go out of your way to find the best food for chins. If she was on something different I doubt it was good. You can try different varieties of loose hay including alfalfa, bermudia, fescoe, and timothy. Loose hay should be the main portion of a chinchilla's diet although many chins will eat mostly pellets. I recommend alfalfa for a while and then switching to timothy or something less rich once her weight is up.
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How long ago was the surgery? She may still need pain meds. Chins hide pain very well. Is she still on baytril? That commonly will caus them to eat less or not eat at all. I would consid trying critical care and syringe feeding if needed to maintain her weight. She should also be on probiotics to repopulate her bowel (and may help with her apitite) for at least a week after the antibiotics end. Are you weighing her the same time every day? They can fluctuate quite a bit within a day.
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She has been through a lot. It will take a while before everything is regulated
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She has started eating well now and is gaining every day! She is off everything but her baytril (which ends on thursday) and her incision is healed enough for a much needed dust bath. We also got her a nice big cage and moved her to the family room now that she is healed enough to be active! She's so happy now, thanks so much for all the help and suggestions!
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Also, she's really loving her new cage, especially this new bed ::wub::
(http://i62.tinypic.com/10gmhs4.jpg)
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That is aweome. Thanks for sharing.