Fur Chewing Discussion

[Essentia]

Thank you Menagerie for posting my question into this separate thread. It is very interesting and I know much more information now. Thank you everyone. I really appreciate it.

For those of you that have fur-chewing chinchillas, do they need any supplement/other food since they have so much fur in their stomach? I've heard of papaya/papaya supplement but I've also heard some say it's not necessary. What do you guys think?

I know mine eats his fur as I have never seen any in his cage at all. I don't supplement anything and he has done fine, though I have also wondered this question. I can only hope that some of that fur has been digested considering I can't imagine how full of fur his stomach is otherwise.

 

[ticklechin]

I never gave Dante anything, he never had a problem in his 17 years.

 

[Anna]

Furby chews his fur, at first it weirded me out, but I gave him a bigger cage, a ton of toys and he gets a lot of attention.... and he just keeps fur chewing. I don't know if it's genetic or not, but sometimes they just do it, I guess.

 

[Essentia]

Dawn, how serious is Dante's chewing? I never realized you even had a chewer.

 

[ticklechin]

Bad, I call him road kill since he looks like a dead animal found on the side of the road!

 

[Sandi]

Bad, I call him road kill since he looks like a dead animal found on the side of the road!

Aww, poor baby!

 

[caiti]

Bad, I call him road kill since he looks like a dead animal found on the side of the road!

Ha!

But on another note--I think it will be decades before we even have an inkling into what it may be or how much of what factor contributes. Some mutations are conditional, like temperature sensitive ones that are only expressed under certain environmental circumstances. So what may look environmental could be genetic and what may look genetic could be a coincidence and be environmental. No one will know until they isolate the genes and experiment with them, or do not find any genes that affect fur chewing. Which will take forever or never even happen. Ah well, such is life.

 

[ticklechin]

Another article, this points back to genetics and a certain gene.


http://cellnews-blog.blogspot.com/2010/05/obsessive-compulsive-behaviour-in-mice.html

This link does show a gene that was isolated in mice who barber.

 

[caiti]

This link does show a gene that was isolated in mice who barber.

Well go me for not reading any of the links--I guess I walked into that one.

That's a wicked interesting article. I wonder if it's known whether chinchillas have the same gene and the same mutation of it. Maybe I'm underestimating what the the government will give grants for and what IACUC will approve. It does make sense when you relate it back to studying human neurotic diseases. I just figured that there are so many traits in humans that we don't know if they have a genetic component or how much of one yet, but obviously it's not like we're going to go do a bunch of studies to genetically modify people to find that out. It would be on animals first, likely rodents. I guess I misspoke. But I do think it will still be years before we find out either way. That study has to be replicated and then done on chinchillas and then replicated.

 

[Essentia]

Here is what we call "Lion Chin".

 

[tunes]

I had one worse than that that I got from Tamara Tucker Crysta. She had NO fur anywhere on her entire body except her head. She was absolutely awful. Loved her to death personality wise, but I have a hard time looking at fur chewers. They make me feel like I've failed at something. Their care, their environment, whatever. She went to live at Auntie T's. She put her in a cage with some other little girls and she promptly buzz sawed them down to nothing. We used to joke about how she was going to start focusing on a new mutation, the lionhead chin.

 

[Essentia]

I have a hard time looking at fur chewers. They make me feel like I've failed at something. Their care, their environment, whatever.

Yes. Every time I look at him this is how I feel, especially since the older he gets, the worse he gets.

I think if Chula could reach any further he would. Even his stomach is furless. Maybe he's not as nimble and loose as the girlie you had.