Possible Chin Allergies and Questions?

[klw0223]

This is my first time posting on this forum, but everyone seems knowledgeable so i figured i would give it a try.

1. Does anyone deal with chin allergies?
I purchased my chin 2 days ago and either my seasonal allergies are acting up or he's causing me some issues. i am not sure which. for the first night i kept him in a cage with no bedding or hay just to see if i was allergic to him and not something else. I purchased a bunny a few weeks ago and was deathly allergic within an hour.

2. Hair missing?
I purchased my chin from petsmart and he is already very sweet but still timid he spends most of his time in his house. I can handle him just fine and he actually likes to cuddle unlike everything i read about chinchillas. He gets nervous when i go to put him down. his back legs are almost bald and it almost looks like some hair on the top of his head has been cut. The pet shop said he had gotten a little too hot. Does this sound common for a chinchilla thats gotten too hot? Or has been stressed? Does anyone think he pulled his own hair out? Will it grow back?

 

[comtnmama]

I haven't but my friend just brought her new man friend over the other day. He is allergic to rabbits and he was a MESS. Like went home and slept with his epi pen in his hand.

 

[RDZCRanch]

1. Does anyone deal with chin allergies?
I purchased my chin 2 days ago and either my seasonal allergies are acting up or he's causing me some issues. i am not sure which. for the first night i kept him in a cage with no bedding or hay just to see if i was allergic to him and not something else. I purchased a bunny a few weeks ago and was deathly allergic within an hour.

Chinchillas themselves are hypoallergenic so you can't be allergic to them. I have heard of allergies to their urine, feces, hay, bedding and dust. There are ways to go about those to keep the allergens down. Switch to fleece liners for bedding and change them often, use hay cubes instead of loose hay and dust with an alternative to reduce allergies. Cornstarch can work well and most people are not allergic to it. There is also a horse stall freshener called Sweet PDZ, but the long term health effects of it are unknown.

2. Hair missing?
I purchased my chin from petsmart and he is already very sweet but still timid he spends most of his time in his house. I can handle him just fine and he actually likes to cuddle unlike everything i read about chinchillas. He gets nervous when i go to put him down. his back legs are almost bald and it almost looks like some hair on the top of his head has been cut. The pet shop said he had gotten a little too hot. Does this sound common for a chinchilla thats gotten too hot? Or has been stressed? Does anyone think he pulled his own hair out? Will it grow back?

No, this does not sound like a too hot chinchilla. Can you take a picture? Did he have cagemates at PetSmart? The spot on his head could be a chewed spot, the same with his back legs. The spot on his head would have to have been done by another chinchilla though he could do the back legs himself. If the back legs are just missing fur and don't have shorter fur, he more than likely slipped fur when someone grabbed him improperly. Pictures of the questionable areas would help a lot. Chinchilla fur will grow back, it just takes a couple months.

 

[Dawn]

According to my allergist one can be allergic to an animals dander, saliva, and even urine...and surely in hay, bedding and dust. As of last month he stated there wasn't an allergy test yet available for chinchillas..but he was pretty darn sure if there was I'd be positive to that too:cry3:

I'm allergic to all of the above and normally have on occassion asthma attacks (wheezing, can't breathe) and your run of the mill allergy attacks that more times than not turn into sinus infections (sore throat, cough, stuffy nose).

and NO I won't get rid of the kiddos pets...I simply try to work around what I can:
1) (keep them out of my bedroom and put them in his- he's not allergic)
2) use fleece liners that are washed every 3 days which doesn't enable them to "toss" bedding everywhere,
I only use carefresh in their litter pans due to it's ability for absorbency.
3) use hay cubes rather than fresh loose hay (can't breathe if I'm in the same room as fresh hay)...and am about to try switching to the hay pellets
4) use a tall'ish dust container to help contain the dust more (glass anchor jars at walmart) http://www.walmart.com/ip/Anchor-Hocking-Heritage-Hill-1-Gal-Jar-with-Lid/16486706
5) Vac. daily with a hepa filter (dyson)
---
and when possible get someone else to "clean" the cage and accessories...I normally will use baby wipes or dial antibacterial foam soap for wiping cage/accessories.

 

[Dawn]

Ps. I purchased our male ebony (Kong) with missing fur on his nose..turned out it was a fungal infection and healed within about 2 weeks using antifungal foot powder (which was placed in his "dust")...I now always add a pinch with their dust to prevent it from ever happening again.

 

[Godofgods]

allergies can be a royla pain. I doubt anyone here knows that better then me. I had allergies to begin with, but after suffering a disabliatating injury and being left out to dry, it realy weakend my immune system. Which made my 'allergic' to cigerette smoke. And that bacily makes you highly vulnerable to all allergies. Youll even have issues with things your not allergic to. Iv had some attacks bad enough that iv gone through like 15 rolls of tp in like 2-3 days. They can get brutal.

That being said, their are things you can do to help. Most of which was listed in the posts above me.

You can also get a good Air filter with the UV light for infront of their cage. A dust mask can help a lot to when dealing with any potental problems like hay or litter. The big one for me however is their sand. Thats the one that can cause me some real issues. So i give them their sand right before i go to bed. I put their bath house in their cage and usaly go back in my room for like 15-30 min. Come out and get rid of the dust in a plastic bag and seal it up. Then crank up that air filter over night. (all with a dusk mask of course). By the time i wake up its pretty much all out of the air and i dont have problems with it. - Its actuly not much more to do, take an extra 5 min at best.

 

[Chin_Parent]

I don't think dander should be a problem with chins in most cases, their fur is too dense for it to come to the surface and irritate those with allergies, hence chins being seen as hypoallergenic. That being said, dust and hay are a pain sometimes, though I think I mostly have issues with the dust. Currently Chinchy has an open dust container, and I think I'll be getting a glass jar from Walmart soon to contain the dust so I don't breathe it in. Cleaning frequently, keeping dust contained, and vacuuming the room a couple times a week (you'd be surprised what a great distance dust from his cage travels) should help a lot. I have mild to moderate pet allergies and I'm allergic to a certain extent to all my pets, some nights I just go to bed with a couple of benedryl and I'll be fine in the morning.

Slightly off topic, but this may be helpful also. I find that with my cat if I'm around her for a couple weeks and constantly exposed to her dander, fur, etc, my allergies are much more mild. Once I went home for summer after college, and my allergies were so bad from the cat that I lost my voice. With pets and allergies sometimes you've got to bare with it, and hope that it gets better.