A mom with a dying chin =(

[angeling]

We called the vet for the blood test, the vet said she got some intestine infection, glucose level high, white blood cell too much... etc.... ( my bf called... that's what he told me) Now my daughter willing to eat Mazuri by herself, and some hay... but she still have water poop (so I guess at least she willing to eat, so it's better)
For the xray part, you think I should just call them and ask for Xray copy instead of going there to meet them up??? (cos it's gonna be another hundred dollar) and so far she doesn't seem getting much improve from that vet... But so far I heard there is not any blockage...

I was so thankful that I could take off from work just to give all my time to take good care of her...

Thank you all for replying me... at least she is getting better now somehow... I was so upset everyday before about her by seeing her lost weight everyday and worry that I wont' see her if I go to sleep... now at least she start eating a bit... even tho it's water poo, but it's actually better than beore (no poop)...

 

[Riven]

I would call the first vet to make sure there is not blockage, just to be sure. That will really affect the best way to treat. I would simply say that you're getting a second opinion and you need to know if the xrays showed any signs of blockage. If asked they should send the xrays to the other vet if you want.

If her glucose level is high you need to cut out any sugar, no honey, no fruit, no raisins, no nothing, that will add to the problem. If you want to give a treat burnt toast or a plain shredded wheat is the best thing right now ( and about any time if you want to give treats IMO )

If the problem is the GIT infection then you need to do :
antibiotics
high fiber, the Metamucil will work fine ( to help the watery poo)
Probiotics ( to replenish good bacteria)
and make sure she is eating at least 30 grams of pellets per day, if not then you need to hand feed the Critical Care. The best way to do this is to weigh her food in the morning, and again the next morning, be sure to tare the scale with the bowl on it so you don't add the weight of the bowl!

It figures kind of like this:
If she eats 5 grams of pellets, you need to give her 50 cc's of CC
If she eats 10 grams of pellets, you need to give her 40 cc's of CC
If she eats 15 grams of pellets, you need to give her30 cc's of CC
If she eats 20 grams of pellets, you need to give her 20 cc's of CC

Something important is you need to give the probiotics at least 2 HOURS AFTER the antibiotics. Just like they sounds anti and pro, they will counter act each other if given too close together or at the same time and you'll stay stuck here. Make sure she is hydrated and getting plenty of water, remember NO SUGARS so no 1/2 apple juice or anything, just water. If she's not drinking enough she'll need the SubQ fluids.

I'm sorry you're going through this, but you are doing a good job of trying to find out what you need to do to pull her through, keep up the hard work.

Another thing you should do is try to think of what caused this, did you recently get new food? New hay? Give her anything different? Treating her won't do any good if you have contaminated hay or food because she will just keep getting sick from it. Keep us updated and we'll help you as much as we can.

 

[Riven]

Any updates?!

 

[angeling]

We went to the vet today again. The vet said our daughter got constipation.
She tell us stop all medicine and continue with Reglan,
but I think today she is getting bad.
She is all the way so tired and she barely able to stand by herself.
I'm so upset but to keep taking care of her and give her as much of hug as she need.
My little daughter love to sleep on her side on my lap,
that's all I can do for her......

I search online for a bit,
and I think my chin has giardia instead of all other sickness the vets said.
http://www.chinchillaz.org/health.html
She got all the symptom this site mentioned.

Have any of you heard of Thiabendazaole?
http://ukpmc.ac.uk/pagerender.cgi?artid=841946&pageindex=1
Is that safe for my daughter to use?
I'm betting on my last hope on this,
and I plan to try what I can do by myself,
since I 'm not sure if the vets found what's going on yet,
and my daughter can't really wait any longer...

Can anyone help please?

 

[angeling]

Also thank you for everyone who check on our update, we were too busy to take care her (force feeding) and a lot of thing going on in our life...

 

[eroomlorac]

Did the vet test her for Giardia? I am feeling so sorry for you. It seems like you are having trouble finding a vet who knows what to do with a sick chinchilla. If she has not been tested for Giardia, tell the vet you want her tested. I hope you get the help you need and the right medicines for your sick chinchilla SOON!

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

I probably should of chimed in sooner but honestly I didn't really read this till now.

One thing I noticed in this thread is a whole lot of medicines given for a diagnosis we don't know. YOU need to call your vet who YOU are seeing and ask what your chinchillas diagnosis is. Your vet should be able to talk to you over the phone without charging you. YOU already paid for the services-now you just need an explanation. There are many many diseases that can cause a white cell count to be high. Glucose can go up if the chin was stressed while blood was taken-how high was it?

In my opinion, you are giving way to much stuff. Her most important needs right now is fluid therapy, critical care, and probiotics. My reasoning is-fluid therapy-the gut won't work properly if her electrolytes are imbalanced and she is dehydrated. Things can't move if her guts are dehydrated. Fluids should be given twice a day sub q. Critical care is high in fiber. She needs lots of that. Cut out the metamucil. Critical Care is far better than that and will get the same result. Probiotics because you already knocked off her normal flora.

Treating her with antibiotics has it's place but if you don't understand why you are treating it then what good does it do you. Does she have a fever? Get a fecal run.

You've got some good advice but do us all a favor and call the vet. Find out what the diagnosis is. Constipation-I don't buy it. That's pretty generic. My son is constipated alot. He doesn't need an antibiotic for that. He just needs to drink and eat his veggies.

 

[Riven]

Constipation does not describe the poop running out of her behind.

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

Where are you in NY. My husband sees exotics. I would recommend seeing him. He works in Burnt Hills.

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

IMO, I think there is more going on than just bloat. Bloat won't cause a high white count. It won't cause the glucose to be high. It won't cause diarrhea. It will cause pain, distended belly, little to no poops, not eating/drinking, weight gain initially, and lethargy.

I think we could paint a better picture if we could see the lab results, xray results, and get an accurate history (IE-what do you feed, use for bedding, where is she housed, is she housed with others, is their a new animal in the house, have you been sick, has anybody else been sick, what types of toys do you have in her cage, how often do you change her bedding)

We aren't seeing the whole picture and can't help you in the correct way without knowing basic things.

Jessica

 

[allchins]

Just a note, but I wouldn't recommend activated charcoal if administering any meds, as it can prevent absorbtion of those meds.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Any updates on this?