Post-op Chin with bladder stone help PLEASE!

SaraTonin · Apr 22, 2011

A little background:
My 5 year old male chin Inka was diagnosed with having a large stone in his bladder earlier this week. Luckily my vet @ Derrydale Animal Hospital in Brampton does amazing work with exotics as well as common pets and we scheduled the surgery for Thursday.

So here we are, it's Good Friday, no clinics are open. the emerg here told me they have never seen a chinchilla when I called. I've placed my chin in his own smaller cage to prevent too much movement or him and his brother horse playing and causing damage to his incision. But he's bouncing off the walls! He's already ripped 2 of his staples out. I've only slept for about 2 hours because I've been monitoring him and trying to prevent any major trauma from occurring. He goes at it every 20-30min and I have to distract him constantly.

What do I do to stop him from ripping the rest of his staples out?

Any ideas with home remedies or natural products known to taste nasty to chins that would be safe and nonirritating to apply to the area?

I have Bitter Yuck spray I've used with my dog, it's water based, all natural, and can be sprayed on wounds it "claims". What do you guys think? Is it a Chin-Safe product? I'm afraid to hurt him or cause anymore irritation to the wound.

Do you think he's bored? Do I let him have a little outside cage playtime already? (It's just been 24hrs since the surgery now)

And lastly, dust baths.
To give or not to give?
I have read they help with the healing of wounds? How long should I wait before I give him one?

Thanks a million!
*s*

fanofdmb84 · Apr 22, 2011

It sounds like he needs an e-collar. I know there are a few people here who have made them and hopefully someone can link to those threads. He needs to be physically restrained from chewing at his incision, the bitter spray (safe or not) probably won't help. And he needs to be kept in that small cage like you are doing until the staples are removed. I would say the same for the dust bath. When Groo was neutered they told me 10 days before dusting.

Does he have wood chews and hay? Lots of things to chew on might help keep him occupied.

Laurie · Apr 22, 2011

Is it the jumping around that's causing his staples to come out or is he biting them to remove them?

If he's biting them then yes an e-collar should be used.

If he's jumping all around is there anyway you can get some fleece and wrap him up in it and hold him or cuddle him to get him to sleep?

obcsed · Apr 22, 2011

I'm 10 days post surgery with mine. He has invisible dissolving stitches though and hasn't bothered his incision. This is his second surgery for stones and I don't give dust until 10 days post op. You will probably have to wait until the staples come out. Best to get him a collar. Not only will it stop him from messing with the wound but it will also slow him down a lot and keep him from jumping around. If you have some fleece, it is easy to make one and use velcro to close it. Or call some vets and see if they have a soft collar for kittens.

tunes · Apr 22, 2011

If he can bounce of the walls, his cage isn't small enough. After major surgery, a carrier might even be too big. When I had a female with a leg amputation, she was in a cat carrier with half of it blocked off for the first week or so, until the stitches stopped itching. Then I opened it the rest of the way and she stayed there until her incision was completely healed.