Chinchilla Community Forums
Chinchillas => Health => Topic started by: Squirrel_Butt on November 27, 2013, 02:22:26 PM
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Hi I have kind of a unique situation here. My girlfriend and me just moved into our own condo and well she hats the "smell of them" . ::) I clean the cages regularly and do not smell anything until the cages need to be cleaned. But anyway she goes and sprays the stuff in their room. I ask her to not do that in there and she just gets all defensive and crap....Anyway is it safe to spray that in their room? It is a pretty small room that contains only the chins and the cages.
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It is not safe to spray anything like that around chinchillas. It can kill them fairly easily by causing acute pneumonia. Swapping the newspaper bedding with pine chips as discussed earlier should help immensely.
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OMG she has sprayed already in there quite a few times. how quickly will they develop Pneumonia? Is thre anything I can do to stop it from happening? Im definitely throwing out the glade on her.
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It can happen at any time the spray is inhaled by the animals and symptoms will usually occur within a couple of hours. It is caused by an allergic reaction to the substance and it can have a cumulative effect as well so if the irritants build up in the system it can reach a point of no return. The danger is compounded when the room is small and not well ventilated. The same goes for birds and any small animals. This includes scented candles, scented chinchilla dust, and even cedar chips with natural scents and unfortunately I know of deaths caused by these things in both chinchillas and birds and these are lesser things than sprays.
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Should I open the window in their room now? Will it help? Nothing was sprayed today. Or is it already in them? And how will I know if they are suffering form pneumonia?
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What's done is done. Just make sure they don't get any more of it. If it still smells strongly of air freshner it wouldn't hurt to open the window for a few minutes. If it does happen again move the animals to a place with clean air, open the window, and run a fan and try to blow the room out if possible.
Actual pneumonia usually presents with severe depression, rapid, labored breathing, convulsions, and usually death within minutes. If it happened you would know because it is not subtle and you really can't do anything about it.
The effects of irritation that can lead to pneumonia can include coughing and rapid breathing, watering eyes, runny nose, etc. and would present within hours of exposure to the irritant. In my experience with birds this can be within 24 hours of exposure.
The risk of symptoms do become higher with each subsequent exposure so the best thing you can do is prevent it from happening again any time soon.
If you find your pets easily get out of breath or act like they are having problems breathing you might want to go to the vet for medications to reduce the inflammation. This is true for birds and other small animals. It is not something to mess with.
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;) Chinchillas are from the Andes Mountains where the air is clean and clear naturally, their lungs were not made to handle man-made perfumes or other chemical odors/compounds. Pneumonia is usually the eventual result of exposure to these man made odors. Your friend/roommate could easily kill your chinchillas by spraying chemicals, powders or using any other "man-made" items in the same room as your chin, such as, but not limited to, bath powder, air spray, sented candles, perfume, cleaning chemicals, bug spray, cat litter with an 'odor controller', and cedar wood chips, just to mention a few.
If you clean your chin's cage weekly, there should be no real noticeable odors to most people. But, some people have sensitive noses. You might want to 'gently suggest' your roommate not go into the room where your chinchillas are kept and keep the door to that room closed, as not to offend your roommate's nose. If this does not work for your roommate, you might think of getting a new roommate OR finding your little ones a new home. (Sorry, but, as a breeder of chinchillas for 20+ years, I'm 150% for chinchillas. :D )
Keep us posted on what you decide to do. Hope all works out for the best (especially for the chinchillas). ::nod::
::wave:: Jo Ann
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Are the Airwick things that plug into walls that are placed in a different room any risk to them? I keep the door to their room closed a all times. can it travel under doors the automatic dispensers?
I have aspen shavings in the drop pans now with baking soda at the very bottom. My girlfriend is so stubborn...but I love her. and I love my chins.
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Personally, I would not do that because of our pet parrot and chinchilla. Like JoAnn says, the scent may be undetectable to us, yet may be irritating to the animals. As a result we are sure to run fans or open windows when we detect odors from cleaners.
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I have a bad sense of smell. But the dispenser is across the hall I nthe bathroom and the other one is in the family room which is dow nthe hall from the closed chin room. Will they be ok?
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Using scents of any kind is a gamble. You don't know how much the animals are getting. Moving them through the house will also result in exposure. It is a bad idea.
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I agree with Jo Ann. Just ask your girlfriend to stay out of that room. If she cares for you she will do it. Does she like the chins? If her nose is that sensitive why does she go in the room to begin with? I'm not trying to sound mean.
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SHe HATES them. She thinks their scent travels thru the walls or doors. she goes in there to spray it. Looks like I have to get rid of her.
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I should add that the door to the chin room is always closed. when opened it is closed immediately. Can the scented stuff that harms them travel under doors?
I unplugged the Airwicks last night and she had a fit.
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Yes it can. Typically heating and air systems draw air in from the main part of the house and blow it out the vents in all the rooms as well.
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:) Depending on what type of central air circulation system you have will decide how much of the smell/scents/deodorizers move from one room to another via the central air system. The frequency in which you change the air filters to your heating/cooling system will also have an effect on how much of the 'fumes/smell' travel from one room to another, since you keep the door to the chin's room closed. (Also, changing the filters frequently tends to lower your utility cost and causes less strain on your heating/cooling system while making it work more efficiently.) Nothing works 100%. During the spring, summer and fall months, we often are able to open the windows to 'air-out' the house. Air pollution inside most homes is worse than the air pollution outside, especially in the winter months, because the lack of fresh air circulating within the home itself. I usually keep at least two windows (one upstairs and one downstairs) in the house cracked year round. Only 1/4 inch to 1/2 inch can be a huge help in supplying fresh air in your home without changing the temperature or heating/cooling bills drastically.
Keep in mind germs from the flu or a cold (and other sources) not only survive, but thrive, in the normal temperature in most homes. Everyone needs fresh air! ::nod:: And, yes, chinchillas are capable of having the flu or a cold or anallergic reaction ... but ... their lungs are very tiny and are not developed to withstand exposure to these viruses. When others are sick, do not let them near your chins. If you are sick ... wash your hands, wear a mask and have an apron or cover you can wear over your clothes when you enter their room to care for them. They are much like little babies and you are their parent(s). Protect them. ::silly:: ::silly:: ::silly::
Keep us posted!
::wave:: Jo Ann
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Well the girlfriend and me have reached a compromise. I put a draft blocker against the door crack. This will not solve the problem entirely due to the central air and heat system in place, but on the warmer winter days I can crack the window in their room open. She continues to complain about them just being in our unit. My parents have offered to let me move them back to their place but she doesn't like that idea..... ::)
Anyway regarding colds and flu, I was told by the exotic vet that chins are immune to human cold and flu. They certainly did recommend not coughing on them though.
One night girlfriend comes to my workplace and tells me Bonnie was barking so she went in to investigate and she is sprayed with urine. She then grbs Bonnie and holds her while she is squeaking. I took her to the vet the next day and was ok physically. Just emotional trauma. She's doing better now but growled last night when Rachel came into the room. Raisin just recovered from conjunctivitis, but aside from that all chins are happy and healthy. I just filled their stockings this morning ::chinhappy::