Smelly furr?...

[BlahBlah]

My chin for the first time (few weeks ago) had fur missing under his mouth around the chin area and lower. I believe it's from him getting water on it when drinking. I gave him a dust bath and I do clean his cage weekly and his water bottle is fine.

But after a few weeks the furr started getting better but then he got it bad again, it's missing, abit sticky and yellow

My sister thinks its from him sleeping on his fleece and sweating, I'm not sure.
But I'm holding him now and that area has a cheese like smells its not a strong smell but he never used to smell like this.

Any advice on what I can do? For the smell and to get his fur from that area normal again?
I try to take a picture but can't manage to take a good clear one.
Thankyou!

Edit: could the smell just be his breath?...
Oh! And it's not that green or sticky to be fungus, the tips of long hairs and stuck together and are hard

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

Sounds like your chin has teeth problems - hence the drooling . It is probably his breath from his bad teeth or worse he is going in retinal failure because he isn't eating/drinking properly. Also chins do NOT sweat. Take your chin to the vet immediately if you want a chance that he might survive. He is in bad pain now also

 

[BlahBlah]

Hmmm I top his food bowl up everyday, he's eating fine his poo is fine I've seen him eating perfectly too.

He takes it alot of water from the bottle that then does down to his furr he doesn't do this alot but when he does it ruins his furr and I've looked at his teeth too they are not too long or the wrong color

 

[andreya]

I had a malo (malocclusion, major teeth issues) chin that could eat just fine. Eating doesn't mean that he -isn't- having problems with his teeth. Even if he is a messy drinker it should not be yellow or matted under his chin and it would not have a cheese smell.

Also, just because you looked at them and they look fine does not mean that they aren't growing up into his head or that he isn't having issues that you wouldn't know to look for. He needs to get to a vet ASAP.

 

[Cuddlebug]

Please take this chin to the vet. The smell and the yellow means that there is probably some sort of infection going on. This is not something that you can self vet. What yo think is water, could very well be drooling due to teeth issues. You will not be able to tell just by looking yourself.

 

[BlahBlah]

Yeah your right, ive never took him to the vets neither did the breeder I got him from Because there's not been a reason too but I'll find the closest Vets that deal with chins and get him checked out as soon as I can, would he be okay in a transport cage? I'll have to buy one first and would he be okay with the new environment ? Just worried don't want To stress him too much

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

yes he will be fine in a carrier (I guess that is what you call a transport cage). Yes, it is stressful but he needs to see a vet. Truth is only xrays of the mouth will tell you the real truth. That is the only way you will know if his roots aren't causing major problems or will soon. Also while 'under' the vet can check for any teeth problems and fix if need be Drooling is often the sign of root/teeth problems. Water dripping would NOT smell.

 

[Dragonflye]

A transport cage will be fine as will the new environment. He definitely has something going on, so even if he is stressed travelling, the pros of going to the vet outweigh the cons. I hope he feels better soon.

 

[BlahBlah]

okay thank you everyone for the help! I will get him to a vet asap ill try for monday. About the carrier i remember seeing plactis ones, will that be okay for this one time? Here are some pictures, sorry if the size of them come up wrong

 

[mim0saBones]

Poor baby! It looks like he really has tooth issues. You mught want to try going to a teaching hospital for a good price, because these issues can be expensive and force painful choices... My pet recently got treated for a less serious problem (broken toe) for only $50 at the Small Animal Teaching Hospital in my area. The vets might have been young and inexperienced, but most vets are inexperienced with chinchillas anyway...
As for carry-cases, anything with a plastic edge exposed is not ideal, because the chinchilla can chew it, swallow it, and become impacted. Personally I use a wicker basket with fleece to get mine around. Yes, he chews the basket, but it's just twigs so I figure it's okay.
I hope you get good news at the vet!

 

[andreya]

That is definitely not dripping water. A plastic carrier is fine, just watch that he isn't trying to chew through it. I have plastic carriers for mine and have never had an issue. You want to put something soft in the carrier for him to lay on and I usually give them a hay cube or something to distract them. The sooner you can get him to the vet the better.

 

[Jaina_Organasolo]

Where are you based? I can have a look on the UK forums and see if I can find a recommended vet local to you.

Pets at home sell some suitable plastic ones or a cat carrier will do.

 

[mim0saBones]

What happened at the vet? *Hoping it turns out okay*

 

[BlahBlah]

Hello everyone! Okay just got back from the vets, I bought a metal wire carrier cage from the guy who made my chinchilla cage good thing I did because my chin was terrified at the vets! I had to sit in the car with him because the dogs barking scarred him alot.

I wasn't happy with the vet, she seemed inexpericed but she said theres no teeth problem it might be an olsour in his mouth and she can give some medicine for it but she's not sure :/ she also said I can have him put under anaesthetic and get a better look to see what's going on inside,so I decided to get him looked at properly so on friday he will be going to get that done, the vet said there is a risk with small mammals under anaesthetic, am I doing the right thing here? I just have a feeling there going to look at him and not find anything out and he'd have to go through all that for nothing.

And I found a vet very close to where I live but Thankyou anyway I just hope they find out what's wrong with him so he can get better, I'm still surprised at how normal and okay he's behaving if he really does have something wrong with him.

 

[momenteller]

I would Jaina up on her offer to find an experienced vet, if you weren't happy with this one. If you are going to put the chin under anesthesia (and pay the bill that goes with that), better to use someone who knows what they're doing? Just my two cents.

 

[mim0saBones]

BlahBlah, did she charge you for saying "I don't know?" That sounds like a really unsatisfying visit. Hopefully you get someone with more chinchilla experience on Friday.
As for anesthetic, I too have heard that chinchillas can have a bad reaction to that. When I asked my vet about it, he looked at me like i was stupid and asked what "blog" I had read it on. So I guess opinions are divided on that one.
Good luck!

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

ANY animal (including the human kind) can have a bad reaction to an anesthetic

 

[BlahBlah]

I had a different vet that looked at him while he was under the anesthetic, droped him off this morning and just got a call hes woke up fine and can pick him up in two hours and ill hopefully be told what was wrong with him!

oh and i was researching around because once my chins water bottles metal tip had a green color, perhaps a fungus? i cleaned it off straight away up but its tough to reach it at the end of the tip, could this have given him a bacterial infection? what do you guys think but ill ask the vet too when i go.

And yes any animal can have a bad reaction but its higher for chins compared to dogs and cats thats why i was hesitant.

 

[ticklechin]

I have had many many chins put under 100s of times and of all that only one issue in a 17 year old chin. There is a risk, but of all the chins I have come across on the net in the 11 years I have been on forums along with my own animals if its gas that is used its pretty safe, better than the alternative which is pain and slow death.

 

[pudding]

For the carrier, if you don't have time to order from online store, a small bird cage from local store is okay for chin as long as he cannot reach the plastic base.