Chin Health Qs

[stormyhogs]

As I posted before, I'm babysitting my friend's chinchilla who had very overgrown teeth and his back teeth were/are rotting away because he fed him too many raisins. I have noticed that when I'm feeding him critical care he seems to get the hiccups. Is this normal or am I feeding him too much/too fast? Also, his chest/chin fur is all hard and gross from drooling, etc. He also seems to be missing some fur there. He is grinding his teeth too, especially after feeding him, but he still doesn't seem to be eating on his own yet. Is there anything I should be doing for him?
He's in a multilevel cage with wire mesh bottom :O - I put some fabric down on most of the bottom. He's in a room that is fairly cool between 60 and 70F. I've been giving him timothy/grass hay, but I can't tell if he's eaten any of it. It doesn't look like he has touched his food, granted its the worst food - Nutriphase with tons of fruit and nut junk in it. Half of it is oats. I've tried picking out most of the junk, but I'm going to order him to switch his food asap. I've been syring feeding him 4-5x a day, about 2-4ml at a time (syringe fulls). He's still pretty lethargic though. Usually he's bouncing off the walls, but he just pretty much sits in the same spot in his cage. I've taken him out and let him in my family room and he has hopped around a little. He's also taken a couple dust baths, which he wasn't doing before. Any suggestions/advice on what else I should be doing would be great. Thanks.

 

[jmdebb]

Personally, and I could be wrong, but I thought chins couldn't get the hick-ups like they can't cough either, but I could be wrong.

But when you feed him, make sure you put the syrnge in the side of his mouth so the food doesn't go down his throat, and you may know this already, but just in case.

His fur could be hard from the CC drying on it. I've had that problem, so now if I have to force feed someone I try to wipe it off their fur. Do you ever notice it dripping down on the chest when you are feeding, if so, that's probably why the fur is hard.

As for grinding, I know mine do it and they have nothing wrong with their teeth, they just do it sometimes. But if this one has problems with his teeth I can't speak for the one you are taking care of, but did want to mention it.

If he's lathargic much longer, I would bring him to a vet to make sure there isn't anything wrong with him, because they can die very quickly. But i'm not a pro like some of these other people so you might get a better answer.

Best of luck,
Jean

 

[stormyhogs]

thanks. he was just at the vet saturday and he gave him meds and said to syringe feed him baby food - im sticking with the Critical Care though. He is a little more active than before, but still not himself. His fur is hard and gross from before his teeth were trimmed - they were so long he couldn't eat so he just drooled everywhere. I tried cleaning it today, but didn't have any luck. Is there any way I can clean it?

 

[searchand_dstry]

For his chest you can use a non scented baby wipe everyday to try and clean the fur. If you have a small slicker brush (like for dogs & cats) you can try that as well. I use the slicker brush we have on my dog if he gets anything sticky and dried in his fur. It really helps to loosen it up!

Definitely stick with the critical care if he is eating that. He doesn't need baby food.. And until you get better food for him, I'd pick the treats out of his pellets.

As far as teeth grinding go, mine do it for various reasons. Baxter does it when he's angry, Smush does it a lot of he eats something he loves, and Murphy seems to do it when he's sleepy. It could also be a sign of pain as well.

 

[Laurie]

Stormy I wish there was someway you could keep this chin. You are obviously do so much for it than the previous owner. Overgrown teeth are not a good thing at all as well as the raisen consumption.

 

[Chinniechantel]

I am so happy you are taking such good care of this poor guy. I have found that really dirty chin's chins (haha) need to be cleaned with a warm wet washcloth and lots of time. Letting the warm towel soak on the crusty hard hair for a few minutes, then gently wiping it off, helps more than anything. Baby wipes are ok, but take forever and sometimes make a bigger mess than help. Make sure to dry the fur completely, I just dry it very well with towels. Critical care or milk (when hand feeding a kit) can make a huge hard crusty mess, so prevention after you get him clean is key. Make sure to clean him after every feeding and then it won't ever get so bad. Since it has been there for a long time now, it will be hardest the first time.

How much are you feeding him per day? I think we did more than what you are feeding him with a full grown chin...about 80 grams a day I think. Well 80 of whatever is on the side on the syringe, cc's maybe? Anyway, Good luck, poor guy I hope he feels better soon.

 

[stormyhogs]

thanks for everyone's advice. he's a little more active. ran around my family room a little bit and then urinated on the carpet. lol. i had my mom pick up some rosehips at Whole Foods. All she could find was Rosehip tea, but it is 100% organic rosehips, so I just opened up the teabag and put a little in a dish. He sniffed it and looked like he licked it a little. my friend is supposed to come back on thursday, but my mom wants me to see if i can keep him longer to nurse him back to health lol. i hope he gets better soon. i feel so bad for him. thanks again for all the useful advice.