retained placentas

[Cuddlebug]

Hi everyone, I have a guy in Turkey who recently started breeding chinchillas about a year or two ago. He started out with 100 chinchillas and very little information. He emails me for advice every now and then. I just received an email describing a problem he has had recently and I am at a loss to explain.

The problem he has is this.

In the last couple of months, he has had 4 females retain the placenta after birthing and then die a short time later. Have any of you seen anything like this or do you know of a cause? Could this be genetic? I am thinking that maybe the females could be from the same line.

Any advice and knowledge you could send my way would be helpful and greatly appreciated.

Thanks for letting me bend your ears.

 

[Dreamlite]

In cattle I know it can be genetic and we found it was due to a lack of minerals in the diet. Do you know what he is feeding? Are the females related? How old are they? We found that 1st time mothers and older ones (last time breedings) had the highest risks. After adding minerals and pulling certains lines we were able to eliminate it. But I'm not sure if that applies to chins aswell as cattle.

 

[Vyxxin]

I'm with Brea, honestly I'd look at genetics and diet. If they're not related, whatsoever for a fact...check what he's feeding. If they are related, he could try switching diet for any further animals from that line but I personally would cull the whole line...

 

[Cuddlebug]

Thanks for the responses. I know that his feed is made by him. Originally, he had some ingredients like corn, seeds and nuts, that I told him to remove. I will ask him if he can give me a list of his ingredients for you to check out. I will also ask him if the females are related and their ages and pass on your advice.