Chinchilla liver issue

[Cole1987]

Hello, I brought my chinchilla Clive in for a check up and they drew blood and said his liver counts were 2 to 3x more than normal. He seemed find then ( that was a week ago) and they gave me Ciprofloxacin. Tonight, he was very lethargic and would not eat his treats and when he came out for play he would just sit in my lap and put his head down. He has been fine since the initial diagnosis but now it seems like he is sick. Does anyone have any experience with this? I believe they said that his akaline phosphatase level was high. Any help would be appreciated .

 

[Amethyst]

I can't help too much as I've never experienced that, but I know liver issues can cause them to not feel good and not want to eat. It looks like Ciprofloxacin is an antibiotic? So they are thinking the liver count is up do to an infection? Antibiotics tend to also kill appetite and should normally be given with a probiotic to help replenish the good gut bacteria. Normally you give the probiotics a couple hours after the antibiotics.

How is he eating otherwise? and what is he eating, for pellets, hay, and treats. One common reason for liver disease can be from improper diet. I know a lot of foods on the market say they are for chins, but most are filled with things that chins shouldn't have.

 

[Cole1987]

Thank you for the quick response . The vet said it could be an infection. She doesn’t really know. He eats Timothy hay and orchard grass hay and Oxbow essentials chinchilla pellets.

 

[Amethyst]

Ok, well if he was doing fine before it could just be the antibiotics are upsetting his stomach a bit. The probiotics that seem to be most common is the Bene-Bac, you can get it at some pet stores as well as online at places like amazon and chewy.

Most specifically about the diet though, you didn't mention what you are giving as treats, but what I was thinking of was things like seeds and nuts, as well as things with oils (coconut oil, vegetable oil, sunflower seed oil, olive oil, etc) can lead to fatty liver disease.

 

[Cole1987]

For treats, I usually give him a few oats or a piece of shredded wheat.

 

[Amethyst]

For treats, I usually give him a few oats or a piece of shredded wheat.

Yeah, that's not the issue either, those can cause gas in some cases, but not liver problems.

 

[Phil]

Are you using pine woodshavings in the cage? This is the most common cause of liver issues in all cage animals unless a lot of ventilation is available.

 

[tunes]

Are you using pine woodshavings in the cage? This is the most common cause of liver issues in all cage animals unless a lot of ventilation is available.

I've used kiln-dried pine shaving for 15 years with no liver problems. I've actually never heard of this before. Can you provide some research for people to read? Thanks.

 

[Amethyst]

I've used kiln-dried pine shaving for 15 years with no liver problems. I've actually never heard of this before. Can you provide some research for people to read? Thanks.

The issue tends to be rodents and other animals (rats, mice, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, etc) that live on and/or burrow in shavings. Here is one study AFRMA - The Problem With Pine: A Discussion of Softwood Beddings

I'm not totally convinced it's as big or common of an issue for chinchillas though. Since it's normally advised among pet owners (breeders opinions differ), to keep them in large, multilevel, well ventilated metal cages (the double ferret nation for example is the most commonly recommended), and even breeders keep them in metal mesh cages that, although small, still allow for air flow, so it likely comes down to how they are kept.

 

[Cole1987]

Update, I had to take Clive to the vet and he is in a slow recovery but getting better . The Ciprofloxacin seems to have totally disagreed with his stomach causing GI stasis. I’ve been giving him Cisapride and Critical Care all week and it seems his poops were getting back to normal. Today, his poops have gotten smaller again, he is going to the vet tomorrow for a check up. Has anyone had experience with GI stasis recovery?

 

[Amethyst]

It's not uncommon for hand feeding to cause gas, have you been giving gas drops? If not that would be a good idea. Here is some good info dealing with constipation and stasis Constipation

 

[Cole1987]

I have not been giving him gas drops but doing some research it seems that that might not be a bad idea. I thought he was getting better but then his poop got small again.