Is this normal Chinchilla breathing?

[oshixx]

Hello all, my chinchilla, Tutu, have been with me since early 2009, she's been healthy the whole time with the exception for some eye discharges when the weather changes, but that haven't happen in a long time.

I was taking her out to weigh her today (I do it about two times a week) and was suspicious that her breathing was a little different from her normal breathing. (I am paranoid about my pets since my guinea pigs have not been so well lately, so maybe it's just me being paranoid)

I have posted a video that I recorded on Youtube. The video was taken right after I weighed her and put her back into her cage.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mQNFh8RCzo&feature=youtu.be

As you can see from the 0:35 to 0:50 on this video, she started breathing harder for about two seconds and then stopped.


Other than this, everything else is normal, she's eating ok, pooping ok, drinking ok, jumping around ok, and her weight have been stable in the 700-730grams range since I started weighing her back in August.

Have you seen this in your Chinchilla? Do you think this is something normal?

 

[AZChins]

It's normal. They breathe like that sometimes. It isn't really labored breathing, they just speed up a little for a short time. I wouldn't worry...I have seen chins do this literally thousands of times.

 

[Cheech]

Your chinchilla is okay. I've seen mines breath like that here and there.

 

[oshixx]

It's normal. They breathe like that sometimes. It isn't really labored breathing, they just speed up a little for a short time. I wouldn't worry...I have seen chins do this literally thousands of times.

It was the sudden change in breathing that worried me...

Anyways, I took her to a vet today just to have her checked.

I had her since 2009, and never brought her to a vet before, so it's probably a good time for a general checkup too, plus I will be out of town for about 20 days starting from next Friday, so it's better to be safe. (I'm going to leave her with my sister or a friend, normal care such as food, water, cleaning will not be a problem, but they won't be able to monitor her that well since they don't know her behavior pattern, so having her checked by a vet is worth the peace of mind.)

The vet seems to be knowledgeable about Chinchillas, and she claims that she have seen chins as old as 20 years old before! After carefully listening around my chin's chest and back, she said everything sounds normal, just SOME of the breaths are slightly louder than normal.

She said my chin COULD have some minor infection, as minor infection in the respiratory system could cause the louder breathing, but since she's not hearing the louder breathing all the time, she's not 100% positive on the infection.

She said she could give us some mild antibiotic so I can give my chin for a few days just to be safe, and we got some TMP/SMZ. She suggested giving her one dose of 0.3ml every 12 hours, for maybe 4-5 days, and also provide my chin with probiotic after the medicine.

Overall I felt a lot better knowing it's not something very severe, and my chin's been acting totally normal after her first dose of TMP/SMZ earlier today.

 

[sassyandclassy]

My chin breathes like that sometimes too. I think it's kinda normal.

I've had my chin for a few months now and was considering taking her to the vet just for a general check up.

However, I am a college student with little funds and I'm concerned about the price of a vet visit.

How much did your visit cost? (minus the antibiotics!)

 

[Riven]

Looks like normal chin to me. I personally avoid taking my animals of any sort to the vet unless it's completely necessary. People take their very sick animals into the same rooms as you bring in a healthy animal for a check up. They wipe down the tables and such, but not the floor and chairs and everything else a normal dog, etc would be sniffing and snotting on.

I'm not anti-vet, I just like to avoid unnecessary exposure to my pets.

If a person, pet, or anything that breaths take a deeper breath it will be louder. That's why at the doctor they tell you to take deep breaths so they can hear your lung sounds better.