FRUSTRATING!...solution: Tinactin?

[BaxterJoy]

Sooo, I'm pretty sure my chin has a fur fungus. He had a small bald spot by his nose that didn't look scaly or irritated at all; Just bald. :hmm: Then tiny tuffs of hair were coming loose on his back- when pulling lightly on the hair, it wouldn't create a bald spot, it would just com loose. all the responses I was reading given to people who gave similar descriptions online, suggested that it wasn't a problem if the skin didn't look irritated. However, when I saw a small tuff of hair come loose on his forehead that wasn't there before, it was seriously obvious that whatever it was or wasn't, was spreading. I decided to put antifungal/athlete's foot powder in his dust bath. I bought some at CVS that said it was a treatment for ringworm as well. I had been doing that for about a week when I finally found one source online that said fur fungus/ringworm doesn't always reveal irritated skin- sometimes it just looks bald. so then I was encouraged to keep up the powder treatment. It seemed to be getting MUCH better after that week and by two weeks, he looked great. Then my husband and I went away for a few days leaving my brother to look after our chin. Although he did a great job feeding him and spending time with him, he didn't give him a dust bath. :impatient: When we got back, it looked like we had never treated him at all! His fur looked like it did when I started using the powder! I'm seriously frustrated and feel like we're starting at square one. :banghead: I feel like a lot has to do with the fact that we got a brand other than Tinactin and therefore may have just been fending the fungus off rather than curing it. I keep reading how Tinactin is the best you can get and I've looked for it at CVS and my grocery store. They do have Tinactin at CVS but they only have the spray which is why I decided against it. So here's what I need help with:

Should I keep looking for Tinactin powder?
If so, where can I find the powder?
Should I just settle on the spray, and if so, how do I use that effectively? I'm a little confused how to coat him properly with a spray.

ANY help would be FANTASTIC!

 

[tunes]

You should be able to find Tinactin powder at any Wal-Mart (at least, all the ones I've been to). If you can't, try googling it and ordering it on line.

The Tinactin cream works well too. You just rub it in the affected spots, but, it won't cover the entire body. I wouldn't be a fan of the spray though.

Have you tried Blu-Kote on the affected areas?

Have you taken him to the vet to have a scraping done to confirm fungus? When I've had a slight case of fungus, Tinactin in the dust bath for a week or two is usually enough. You shouldn't have to keep using it forever. It may be at the point now, though, where he needs an oral agent as well as a topical one, and only a vet can help you out with that.

 

[BaxterJoy]

surprisingly, the nearest Walmart around here is like, 45 minutes away... I think it's a New York problem. We have tons of Targets, and barely any Walmarts... do you think I could get it at Target? I'll check anyway. I want to at least try the Tinactin before going to the vet since it seems to be something that is controllable. Is that a bad decision? And does using the cream mean potential for matting his hair? What if he licks it? I'm pretty much going to listen to anything you say Tunes... 250 chinchillas... I think you know what you're talking about :bowdown:

 

[Essentia]

She definitely knows what she's talking about.

The store brand and the tinactin both have the same active ingredients so it shouldn't really make a difference there. He may just need something stronger, or something that will treat the specific spots instead of the entire body. I'm not familiar with fungus. Luckily I haven't had to deal with it yet (surprisingly since I live in a crazy humid area). There are a lot of really experienced people here though so hopefully someone will have some really good advice for you.

 

[tunes]

Fungus sucks. I'm the fungus Nazi, because my barn has a horrible humidity problem. I go from cage to cage, seeking it out, making sure no one has it. So far <knocks wood> we're good, even though it's raining buckets and gigundous humidity.

The cream is fine, you just rub it into the exposed skin. Don't bother with the furry areas, you're right, it will just make a matted mess. I personally prefer the Blu-Kote. It makes your chin an interesting color for a while, but it works better than the Tinactin, IMO, either powder or cream. I will throw the powder into the dust bath though, just to be sure.

If you think you can get it under control without a vet, go ahead and try. It can take a very long time to clear up. But if you get it cleared up, and it keeps coming back, then you need to look to the oral agents to help out instead of just the topical.

Store brand or name brand, as Crysta said, it's essentially the same. I know I've compared Wal-Mart's brand to Tinactin and it's the same. I don't know if I've seen Tinactin at Target before, but you could sure check. What about a pharmacy? Is there a Walgreen's or a Revco or whatever in your neck of the woods? They would definitely have it.

Ah, something I didn't point out before. If he does have fungus, you need to completely strip and clean his cage. Wash his fleece in hot water and bleach. Wash his wood products in boiling water, then lay them out in the hot sun to dry. Do the same with the cage. Hot water, bleach, dry it, then expose it to hot sunlight. Sunlight works wonders on fungus. Too bad we can't just let the chins tan a bit, eh?

 

[arf2184]

I personally prefer the Blu-Kote. It makes your chin an interesting color for a while, but it works better than the Tinactin

I agree. I use both Blu-Kote on the affected areas and Tinactin in the dust bath. I think the Tinactin helps keep it from spreading more than anything.

With that said, my white chinchilla has had a purple tail for over a year now from the Blu-Kote. It does look kind of neat on him as it has stayed a nice bright purple color. I think it's because its his tail fur...they don't shed their tail fur much. On the nose the color will typically be gone in a few weeks.

A little bit of sulfur in the dust bath works wonders on fungus too (a very little bit...1 cup flowers of sulfur for 50 lbs dust).

 

[Chinniechantel]

I agree. I use both Blu-Kote on the affected areas and Tinactin in the dust bath. I think the Tinactin helps keep it from spreading more than anything.

With that said, my white chinchilla has had a purple tail for over a year now from the Blu-Kote. It does look kind of neat on him as it has stayed a nice bright purple color. I think it's because its his tail fur...they don't shed their tail fur much. On the nose the color will typically be gone in a few weeks.

A little bit of sulfur in the dust bath works wonders on fungus too (a very little bit...1 cup flowers of sulfur for 50 lbs dust).

Where can you find sulfur, I have looked everywhere and no luck!

 

[Spoof]

Where can you find sulfur, I have looked everywhere and no luck!

Check your feed/vet supply stores, it's easiest just to call them and ask. Sometimes old pharmacies carry it, crack open the phone book and go down the list or use Google search, it displays within a certain radius of your house.

I go from cage to cage, seeking it out, making sure no one has it.

I go from cage to cage and it's like; yup, you've got it this week or oh good yours has cleared up. After Kermit broke in last week I've got three after 7-8 weeks of nothing.

I've used all kinds of things, legal and not. Tinactin takes about 4-6 weeks to clear up ringworm, how it works is it inhibits the growth while your immune system takes care of it. Sulfur works faster, 4-21 days depending on severity and I'm not entirely sure how it works.

 

[arf2184]

I found some on Amazon...lol. None of the pharmacies or feed stores I asked had any.

 

[BaxterJoy]

thank you thank you thank you! I just wanted to be sure I said thank you to all the input. I'm going to order stuff online instead of driving all over the state looking for what I need. The Blu Kote and sulfur sound like good things to have!