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1

Q & A / Re: Unwelcome new arrival

« on: October 08, 2006, 02:31:19 PM »

Thanks Jo Ann & Leslie

It's great to have good advice on hand. The only reason I didn't get another male was because I don't want to breed and I didn't want to have him neutered after what Timmy went through.  I couldn't go through that again.  I just hope in getting another female I haven't done the wrong thing by Lucy.  I will certainly try what you have suggested and keep you posted.

Yes Leslie, New Zealand is awesome!!  I have travelled extensively throughout the world and have also lived in Malaysia (2yrs) and England (4 yrs) and although I had some fantastic experiences I still loved coming home to my seaside village.  Then again, I suppose many people feel like that about home. 

Chinchillas are becoming reasonably popular pets here now but still not too many people have them.  I personally know of a few but it's relatively rare. 

2

Q & A / Unwelcome new arrival

« on: October 08, 2006, 04:02:54 AM »

My 2 year old brown velvet Lucy lost her friend Timmy a couple of months ago and since then Lucy and I have become much closer.  However, I couldn't help but feel that she was lonely at night when I went to bed because when I closed the bedroom door she would sometimes bark loudly and I would have to console her.  I took the plunge and got a 5 month old beige female, Scarlet, as a companion for her yesterday.  I have them in separate cages pushed together in "Lucy's room" in order to slowly introduce them to one another.  As soon as I put Scarlet in the room Lucy went ballistic and tore about her cage which I half expected anyway.  She is normally clean and tidy but this morning when I went in to see her she had spread her hay everywhere and had gobbled up every morsel of food.  I think she was afraid the new arrival might get some of it.  She is very jealous when I spend any time with Scarlet and attempts to seek my attention as soon as I walk into the room.  When I put my fingers through the bars of Lucy's cage she puts her tiny paws onto my fingertips and snuggles up closely.

Although she has calmed down a bit she is demonstrating rather aggressive behavior toward Scarlet who doesn't seem at all bothered with Lucy.  Scarlet is so calm and friendly.  Already she is walking up my arm and onto my shoulder.  She lets me scratch her under her chin and I can pick her up with absolutely no fuss.  She seems to enjoy a cuddle.  She has had a short wander around the room and casually hopped back into her cage.  She is an absolute dream.  This is the first time I have attempted to introduce two chins so I have no idea whether I am doing things right.  I am hoping they will eventually accept one another but then again, I know there are no guarantees.  I will keep my fingers crossed and given time I hope they will be great buddies.

3

Board Requests & questions / Re: What's missing?

« on: September 01, 2006, 02:21:38 PM »

Thanks, time now changed.  I'm not too computer literate somtimes.

4

Board Requests & questions / Re: What's missing?

« on: September 01, 2006, 05:02:10 AM »

I would love to know how to change the time.  The time here in New Zealand at the moment is 11pm but our local time on this site reads 6am.  I'm never up that early in the morning but from what I have posted so far must indicate a very sad existence.  My postings seemed to have occurred in the very early hours.  By the way, my husband works in Guam so that's the only reason I am logged on at 11pm  !!

5

General Chat / Re: What Treats are Acceptable?

« on: September 01, 2006, 03:09:55 AM »

Hi Jo Ann    How do you know if treats are going to have any long term effects even if they don't have any effect at the time?  I got my chins from someone who fed them three raisins and one or two peanuts per day plus one whole apple every three days which in any chin owner's book is really excessive.  Even as a newcomer I knew this was not acceptable .  As you will know from my input in Q & A my Timmy died after an operation but I still have Lucy  .  She has been weaned off her high sugar and fat diet and now has alfalfa or a dried cocktail mix (berries, bark, etc) for treats.  Since I have had her she has had one fingernail sized piece of apple.  She is so much more responsive and I can't help but wonder whether it was her diet that made her sluggish.  When I tried to interact with her initially, she would not do anything unless there was a treat involved.  She is now out of this habit which I managed in about three weeks.  She only gets a treat when she goes back into her cage after her playtime.  She wasn't on good quality pellets either but now I have got her on a high quality brand.  I am still very much in the learning stages of what is good and what is not, and wondered whether some things that might not initially effect them, may not be the best for them long term.   I tend to work on the fact that their natural habitat consists of dried food only. Correct me if I have this wrong - I live in the sub-tropics and could have this completely wrong.  I have also heard of some owners treating their chins to what we call Porky Chews - dried pork ears - really high in fat and used as a dog treat.  Would really appreciate any opionion. 

6

Board Requests & questions / Re: What's missing?

« on: August 31, 2006, 05:58:05 AM »

Hi there Great site.  Really enjoying it but how do I change the time?    I am in New Zealand and the clock is waaaay out.

7

Q & A / Re: Chin chewed himself

« on: August 31, 2006, 02:42:50 AM »

Thanks Karen.  The emergency vet provided an Elizabethan collar but all too late I'm afraid.  I believe that if the exotics vet that performed the operation had provided or suggested any preventative measure I would have taken his advice and the outcome may have been different so I would have to argue that he was not at fault to some degree.  Although the operation went well, I trusted in his expertise and was given no post-op advice.  We have exchanged a few angry words but, of course, he is not taking any responsibility.  After Timmy's op I was keeping a close vigil but he managed to chew through in the time that it took me to get ready for bed and I now regret having left him alone.  Whether an Elizabethan collar would have prevented him chewing overnight while I was sleeping is questionable as he could have slipped out of it, but surely a deterrent of any kind could have assisted in preventing such a tragedy.  I have had to let go, forgive myself and the vet and get on with helping Lucy who is turning out to be a real little darling.  I love her to bits. 

Thanks to everyone for your sympathic ear and words of encouragement.  It all helps tremendously and is very much appreciated.

8

Q & A / Re: Chin chewed himself

« on: August 30, 2006, 05:14:09 AM »

I tend to sit with her for at least an hour every night.  I have just come from her room and she has been all over me, running over the top of me, sitting on my shoulder and running in and out of her cage.  I have carpet inner tubes that I have placed everywhere - from her cage to the floor and into my daughter old dolls house and up onto our spare bed.  Every time I go past her room I chat to her to let her know that I'm there.  I would love to move her into the main part of the house to be with us but it's winter here and we have fires and heaters going so its too hot for her.  The spare room is cool.  She seems really happy and is far more relaxed than when I first got her.  Even the sight of my hand used to send her running.  I am amazed at the difference in her in the 6 weeks that I've had her.   Considering what she has been through - moving house & getting used to us, losing Timmy and she had an ultrasound because she had shown signs of having been pregnant (swollen genitals, excessive cleaning, blood stained vagina and soft poo).  I emailed photos of her genital area to the Chinchilla Rescue Center here and they confirmed that she would have given birth over the past 2 days.  They said she would have eaten the evidence as the kits would not have been formed.  I haven't a full understanding of the velvet to velvet pregnancies but knew enough to know it is a dangerous scenario.  So Lucy must have been so stressed, however, I have handled her each day over the period that I've had her and she has learned not to fear my hands or me.  She has come a long way and I'm so proud of her.  She's a real little trooper.   

9

Q & A / Re: Chin chewed himself

« on: August 29, 2006, 06:29:58 PM »

If I knew then what I know now I probably would never have got Timmy neutered and would have separated him and Lucy.  Then again he and Lucy had been together for a year with their previous owner.   As it stands, they've been separated anyway, sadly.  It was a hard decision to make and one that went terribly wrong.    Knowledge of chins here in NZ is scarce, probably more so than in most countries.  There are a few vets that have dealt with chins in the UK but not to the extent that they have full knowledge of what is required.  I searched around Auckland for an exotics vet who said he was able to do the op.     Obviously we did not get the desired outcome.   On a happier note, Lucy is doing great and for a chin that had never been out of her cage in 2 years, she is now waiting at the door for her evening outing around her room.  Yes, she has her own bedroom   She runs up my arm and loves her scratches.  She is a real escape artist (aren't they all?) and I often hear her sneaking out of her cage at night while she thinks I'm asleep.  So, up I get to find her playing in my daughters old dolls house and running through her cardboard tubes.  I put her back in her cage and yes, of course she tries again.  After a couple of attempts she will stay in her cage until morning.  Her cage already resembles Alcatraz but she finds an escape route.  She seems really happy and I'm thrilled with her.  She's my companion at night while my husband is away....(and when he's back)!!  He thinks he's been replaced 

10

Q & A / Chin chewed himself

« on: August 28, 2006, 06:25:29 PM »

I had the cutest black velvet named Timmy who, prior to me getting, was placed in the same cage as a brown velvet named Lucy    I only had Tim a couple of weeks and decided to get him neutered so these 2 chins could stay together.  The op went well, I got him home and within a few hours he had chewed through his stitches and muscle and had punctured his large intestine which had spilled out.  Despite doing all we could to save him he died at the vets the following day.     Has anyone heard of chins doing this?  I am still trying to find out why. 

11

Breeding 101 / Re: WEIRD PREGNANCY

« on: August 25, 2006, 07:45:56 PM »

Hi Abigail,

My vet had never heard of that extent of chewing happening before and didn't suggest anything to prevent chewing when I picked Timmy up after his neuter.  I got upset with them but they have said its unusual.  I'm not so sure now.  Even though they are exotics vets I'm not so sure how many chins they have actually operated on.  Will investigate further.  Thanks.

12

Breeding 101 / Re: WEIRD PREGNANCY

« on: August 24, 2006, 10:53:46 PM »

This may be right but I was informed otherwise.  Must read more about it.  I am new to this but have been in touch with a lovely lady from a rescue centre here in New Zealand.  I recently purchased 2 velvets (male & female) from someone who had them together for a year!!  Lucy ended up giving birth 2 weeks ago.  I couldn't work out why she was cleaning herself excessively so took some photos of her genitals and sent them to Sarah at Chinchilla Rescue.  She recognized the signs from the photos and said she had delivered in the past 2 days.  I took her for an ultrasound immediately but she's fine thank goodness.  Having these 2 chins together was really stupid.  Prior to this I had taken my black velvet in to be neutered to stop this happening again and ended up losing him.  For some unexplained reason which I am still questioning, he chewed his stitches once he got home and also chewed through muscle to the point where his intestines spilled out.  You can imagine my shock when I found him like this.  I immediately rushed him to the emergency vet at 11 o'clock at night but he died the following day.  I was devastated because he was such a gorgeous little guy.  Still getting over it and spend a fair bit of time crying.  Nobody seems to have any answers.

13

Breeding 101 / Re: WEIRD PREGNANCY

« on: August 24, 2006, 08:12:45 PM »

She wasn't mated with another velvet was she?  They carry a lethal gene which will produce deformed or dead kits.  These will be eaten by the mother at birth as they do in the wild to ward off predators.  Any remaining kits or placentas will not naturally be aborted but will rot inside mum with fatal consequences, so if she was mated with another velvet get to the vet asap.  Good luck!!