Chinchilla Community Forums

1

Q & A / bedding suggstions?

« on: November 27, 2013, 02:53:55 PM »

Hi I have a question about what bedding is suitable for chins. I am using newspaper now but that can smell after a while. Im used to it but my girlfriend complains that she can smell it even with closed door and cages washed . Even has the nerve to call them rats!

: grumbles: Im going to try to use the wood shavings but want to know what type is safe for them. Certain woods can have adverse effects on chinnies.

2

Health / Is it safe to spray Glade or air wick in a room occupied by chins?

« on: November 27, 2013, 02:22:26 PM »

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.

3

Q & A / pumice chew block

« on: May 02, 2013, 12:32:32 PM »

Hello all

I just have a question regarding cleaning a pumice chew block. They are exposedto the shelves in the store and I like to make sure my chins toys are clean before I give them to them. If I submerge the pumice block into boiling water and pat it dry will microbes grow inside of the center?

4

Q & A / Oldest chin is missing hair on 2 sides of his tail

« on: September 14, 2012, 11:05:54 PM »

Hello.

Last night I noticed Chip had a patch of hair missing from his tail on both sides, directly opposite of each other. There is no redness or any scaling. he does not have a history of fur chewing. I have had him for a little over 10 years. he has no signs of chewed fur on hsi body. Its just the coarse tail hair that is missing. I'm brining him to the vet this comming Friday. Could he be doing this from stress or boredom? I'm very worreid about him.

5

Q & A / Chin accidentally went without water for an unkown amount of time.

« on: July 12, 2012, 11:47:10 AM »

How long can a chin survive without water? I got home from work today and noticed that Chip's watter bottle was totally empty.

I'm not sure how long it was but hew did have water last night. I refilled it and sryinge fed a small amount of water through the cage bars. He is acting normal as he is not appearing lethargic or anything. He took a treat from me but didn't drink afterwards like he sometimes does. Its mid afternoon here. I'm concerned that he will think that the bottle no longer has water in it even though it does now. Should I bring him to the vet?

6

Q & A / IS it normal for hay to be a greenish color?

« on: June 04, 2012, 04:01:30 PM »

I went and bought Kaytee timothy hay cubes yesterday and when I got home I noticed that they were greener than I am used to seeing. I went and bought another pack today and this one was the familiar brownish color that I am used to seeing. A number of other bags of the cubes had the unfamiliar greener color. There wasn't any unusually odor or anything. They feel normal. Should I allow my chins to eat this?

7

Q & A / COncerned about Raisin

« on: May 24, 2012, 01:57:14 PM »

Hi

2 chins are showing signs of weight loss. Raisin is a year and a half and went from 796g in April to 762g today. Her son Clyde who is 9 months went from 594g in April to 592g today. I'm more concerned about Raisin's loss as a 2 gram fluctuation is normal.

Raisin's daughter Bonnie went from 590g in April to 634 g today.

Other than ramped up monitoring, should I take any other action right now?

8

Q & A / Common to have a hole in ear?

« on: April 09, 2012, 01:21:24 PM »

Yoday I was sniffing noses with clyde and I noticed a small puncture in his ear. It is about the size of a needle end. I never noticed it before. He is in his own cage so I have no idea how that could have got there. There is a little brown spot where the hole is but it isn't flaky or scaly or anyting. It isn't even on the edge of the ear. Its as if he had his ear pierced. Any ideas as to what caused this?

9

Q & A / Fur chewing

« on: March 28, 2012, 03:58:29 PM »

Bonnie and Clyde have revealed themselves to be fur chewers. Each chin has their own cage. I have talked to a breder and she suggested that they are either bored or have a skin irritation. If it is an irritation she suggested I put a tiny amount of athletic foot powder into their dust baths for a few months. Before I do that, I just want some feedback.

Also is there anything I can do to reduce the possibility of gastric hairballs?

10

Q & A / Strange odor comming from younest chin's water bottle.

« on: March 28, 2012, 03:55:22 PM »

Hey

For the last few weeks when I went to give Clyde fresh water, I noticed a smell comming from the bottle when I uncap it. I give each of them bottled water because the water is hard in my area so a water softener is in use. I know water should be changed daily, but my budget is limited as of late. I Give fresh water every other day ( Friday, Monday, Wednesday, Friday.....) so that I can do the next best thing.

The thing is Clyde's bottle is the only one that has this issue. I have got a new bottle for him too and it still does it. When i wash his bottle, I use dish soap and i use a bottle brush for the bottle and sipper tube.

His cage is located near a window but he doesn't get direct sun exposure at all. I keep my blinds closed all the time. I'm not sure if that has anything to do with it or not.

The vet checked his mouth and all seems well in there. Does anyone have any ideas?

11

Q & A / Normal for weight to drop by 4 grams?

« on: March 12, 2012, 07:22:31 PM »

My 2 oldest chins were weighed today. The scale indicates that they both lost 4 grams. The 2 youngest had an increase since the last weighing. On 2/29/12 Raisin was
786g. Today she was 784g.

On 2/29/12 Chip was 532g. Today he was 528g.

As for the kits:

Bonnie
2/29/12
542g

3/12/12
562g

Clyde
2/29/12
572g

3/12/12
586g

Is this difference in the weight of the adults normal? Rasin is a Giardia carrier but has not had any diarrhea. Rasin is 1 year and 4 months old. She is not as active as the youngest ones are. She usually takes chin naps in the evening and becomes active later at night. When I stuck my head in her cage she sniffed at me and stuck her nose in my ear indicating her normal curiosity. She still chews at her chew toys and is passing droppings. I just put a new toy in her cage now and she got up from her nap and bam! She grabbed her toy.

Chip is believed to be 14 or 15. This January is my 10th year with him.

Could it be that the way the adults were standing in the bowl on the scale? I'm going to reweigh all 4 on Friday

12

Q & A / Eliminating urine from desk top

« on: February 09, 2012, 08:32:37 PM »

My youngest 2, Bonnie and Clyde seem to miss their drop pan or it ricochets off and gets on top of the desk. What concerns me is the possibility of mold growing inside the wooden surface. I have a towel under each of my cages so that absorbs some of it. The spots that they already got I clean off. How can I reduce the possibility of microbial growth within the wood?

13

Health / Chip may have cancer

« on: January 16, 2012, 05:16:48 PM »

How well do chins do with cancer treatment?

14

Health / Oldest chinchilla is rejecting pellets, eating only hay

« on: January 07, 2012, 08:39:51 PM »

Last night I noticed my oldest chin Chip's poos were smaller than usual. Today they stopped completely. He is eating his hay cubes, and anything else but is not touching his pellets. I ground them up and tried to syringe feed, but he wouldn't have it. I then put some on my finger and he licked it off, but he stopped that after a while. He acts normal when he is running around my room, but when he is in the cage, he sleeps alot unless I put my hand in there and pet him. He still uses the dust bath. He has never had any tooth problems. Do elderly chins develope them out of nowhere? He is going to the vet tomorrow for an emergency appointment.

15

Q & A / choke or hiccup?

« on: January 07, 2012, 08:34:11 PM »

Tonight Raisin was drinking her water and all of a sudden she made a hiccup like sound. She then made sneeze sounds for a little bit. If it was in fact choking, is there anything I can do to prevent her from getting pneumonia?