Rescued Chinchilla, Have fur and skin Q's.

[Radrachel]

Hi everyone, today my roommate rescued a chinchilla who is about two years old and we have a couple concerns.

First off, his fur feels very damp, and looks greasy. also there are areas where the fur parts and you can see his skin very easily.

Secondly, his ears are extremely dry. Almost scab like. We were wondering if there are any precautions we can take before we take him to the vet. (there is no vet in the area that has experience with chinchillas)

(I've had my chinchilla for almost a year and have had no health issues at all)

 

[obcsed]

Most likely he needs a good dust bath. Use good dust like Blue Cloud. It may take many days for the fur to get in better shape but regular dusting is the answer. You can use Bag Balm or vitamin E oil on the ears to clean them up. Again it might take some time to get them clean and soft again. Check his feet too. Chances are they are dry and cracked. Bag Balm will help them too. What kind if bedding are you using? Avoid things like cedar shavings as that will only add to the problems.