Teeny chin?

[Mummypig]

Well, yesterday DH and I discussed the 'decision' and we thought that if after 5 days on antibiotics theres no improvement or if by tuesday Jasmine has lost more weight we'd lt her go. After dinner, I have her her critical care and weighed her and she'd gained a whopping 18g in less than 36 hours!! I thought she felt less frail, but wondered if it was me getting my hopes up!

As I went to bed she was tucking into her pellets too! Dont get me wrong, I know we are not out of the woods by any means, but its lovely to have a positive thing to focus on.

I want to buy a big tub of CC, the stuff the vets gave me is nearly gone, can I get it online? and if so, where's best to get it? x

 

[Claire D]

If Jasmine is bright, eating & has that spark in her eyes then I'd strongly suggest continuing on - if she was lethargic, miserable, not eating, wheezing, listless etc then it would be a different story. She's probably been brewing this little lot for quite a while as an underlying problem & I suspect that with everything else she needs time to improve. The fact that she is happily munching, gaining weight & still bright is all very positive. :thumbsup:

A good place to get fast Critical Care online is http://www.penstone-petstore.co.uk/. If you type in Critical Care into the search it will bring it up & you can buy a big 454g bag. I'm also pretty sure if you give them a ring they will ship it to you ASAP.
The other place I'd highly recommend is buying from Menagerie on here - she sells it to support her rescue work & my chins much prefer the Apple Banana Flavour she sells (which we can't get in the UK ).

Please do keep us posted on Jasmine's progress.

 

[Mummypig]

Oh yes! Sorry, I forgot to say that once I'd weighed her and felt her chunkiness (lol, she's still only 231g!) we decided that she's a feisty little madam and unless things change, we're going to commit to saving her 1000% she's started to get stroppy with me during the syringe feeds and tries to hop off which I think is an excellent sign. My only slight concern this morning is there seems to be less poop than normal, she's still going but there's less of it -do you think it would be wise to start her on infacol or skip that and ring the vet and try and get some motility meds?

Thanks for the links! I tried to look for the apple stuff but the UK is really not geared up for chinchillas is it?!!

As I type, (she's behind me by the radiator) she is munching into some of her food, despite me giving her 10 mls of CC an hour ago - methinks she's a little piggy! :thumbsup:

 

[Claire D]

Oh yes! Sorry, I forgot to say that once I'd weighed her and felt her chunkiness (lol, she's still only 231g!) we decided that she's a feisty little madam and unless things change, we're going to commit to saving her 1000% she's started to get stroppy with me during the syringe feeds and tries to hop off which I think is an excellent sign. My only slight concern this morning is there seems to be less poop than normal, she's still going but there's less of it -do you think it would be wise to start her on infacol or skip that and ring the vet and try and get some motility meds?

You could try increasing her fluids just a little - how much OCC is she getting per day ATM? What sort of size are the droppings? Are they small & less numerous or just less numerous? Is her tummy a bit bloated? Any bubbling sounds coming from the gut?
You could ask the vet for some oral Metoclopramide if you think her gut function is slowing - in the US they can get Cisapride which is an excellent gut motility drug but in the UK we can't (withdrawn from the market several years ago now, sadly ) but some vets are turning to Ranitidine now as an alternative. I've not used it myself but I know it is gaining a bit of a following in the rabbit world.

You can try a little gentle gut massage & Simethicone if you think she might be getting a bit gassy. Normally I'd also suggest a little exercise but you don't want her becoming breathless ........

I no longer use oral Baytril but I know that those who do use a chaser after the drug has been given - a little OCC (Oxbow Critical Care) or something like Cytacon (Vitamin B12 liquid) works well to take the taste away. You can use a tiny bit of sugar free Ribena if you like too.

Thanks for the links! I tried to look for the apple stuff but the UK is really not geared up for chinchillas is it?!!

Yes it can be very frustrating at times - both ways. LOL
Some things we can get here that the US can't & vice versa - I have to say I use a combo of OCC (Apple Banana) & Galen's Garden Nutri-Powder for my chins. Having said that, Tanya on here sells Essentials for Life syringe food which I plan on ordering - I had a sample & the chin I tried it on really enjoyed it & did very well on it.

As I type, (she's behind me by the radiator) she is munching into some of her food, despite me giving her 10 mls of CC an hour ago - methinks she's a little piggy! :thumbsup:

Excellent! Keep up with the munching, Jasmine. :thumbsup:

 

[Mummypig]

Righty ho, we've started the simethicone so fingers crossed if Jas is a little bit farty she'll feel better soon. Her poos are fewer but some of them are little. The ones I've actually SEEN her do are normal in size (for her, she's never been one to do a massive poop - not like Poppy, some of hers are HUGE!) she did one on me earlier when I was feeding her and she did another in her dust bath just now (that's pretty much the only form of excersise I'm letting her do at the moment, I want her to conserve her energy for getting bigger and beating this!)The dust bath never fails to produce a poop or 2! The ones I see in the cage are a little bit small and dry looking so I think I'll increase the amount of water I'm mixing the OCC with. I've been massaging her belly and it doesnt feel overly bloated - it feels fuller, recently its been almost concave but its finally looking a bit more like a normal belly.

Presently she is having about 45-50ml of the OCC which I know is not as much as she probably should be having, but she IS eating still - I've come home now to her with her face in the bowl again (personally, I think she sees me and goes to the bowl as if to say "I'm eating! I"m eating! Dont bring that syringe near me!!") and I dont want to take over her feeding too much so that she's not encouraged to eat. Plus she's also a much smaller than average chin - if it were Poppy I'd be more concerned she was getting the full whack. Do you think I should increase her amount? Obviously I really trust your advice and will go with what you think.

Might try the ribena chaser too :thumbsup: I'm sure she'll like that! Honestly Claire, I dont know if I could do this without your advice - you've been an absolute rock for me :hug2:

 

[Claire D]

Presently she is having about 45-50ml of the OCC which I know is not as much as she probably should be having, but she IS eating still - I've come home now to her with her face in the bowl again (personally, I think she sees me and goes to the bowl as if to say "I'm eating! I"m eating! Dont bring that syringe near me!!") and I dont want to take over her feeding too much so that she's not encouraged to eat. Plus she's also a much smaller than average chin - if it were Poppy I'd be more concerned she was getting the full whack. Do you think I should increase her amount? Obviously I really trust your advice and will go with what you think.

Good news that Jasmine is still pooping - she does sound like she is munching very well. For a <250g chin I'd say she's getting plenty of OCC, especially if she is troughing in between.
You're right that you don't want to fill the little squidge up so much that she stops eating on her own - it can be a fine balance at times - if she is eating on her own, gaining weight & pooping then I'd keep going with the mount you are giving - if her production of droppings decreases then you might need to go down the Metoclop route.
Sounds like you're on the right track though. :thumbsup:

Might try the ribena chaser too :thumbsup: I'm sure she'll like that! Honestly Claire, I dont know if I could do this without your advice - you've been an absolute rock for me :hug2:

You're more than welcome.

 

[Mummypig]

Todays weight is 242g which is pretty much what she was when I started weighing her :thumbsup: She has continued to eat all day, and I have given her OCC feeds too, she has had 2 doses of simethicone and I can happily report several lovely juicy (normal sized) poos this afternoon! and a big wee.

I dont want to be so bold as to think we might have turned a corner, but things are feeling less grim by the hour.

 

[menagerie]

Great news, keep up the good work. :thumbsup:

 

[Mummypig]

248g and counting :thumbsup: This is the heaviest Miss Jasmine has been now. I keep getting worried because she sits differently now to how she was before - when she was all hunched up. A minute ago I came round into the kitchen (she's still by the radiator in the kitchen) and she was lying down slightly on one side, with her feet stretched out behind her, eyes shut. I FREAKED out thinking she was dead and I opened the cage and she scuttled off under one of the perches. Its silly because Poppy sleeps like that all the time, but I've never seen Jasmine look so rested. I've just put an empty kitchen roll stuffed with Timothy hay in her cage and she thinks its Christmas all over again

 

[Claire D]

:clap: Excellent news. Is she looking a bit more round & less hunch-backed now?

I think we need some updated photos please.

 

[Mummypig]

She looks great! She's still a little hunched but nowhere near as much as before. She flattens down like a 'proper' chinchilla! I've moved her out of 'intensive care' by the radiator as she's 100% better. I've only done 2 small OCC feeds today, she has eaten really well, 2 handfuls of hay and lots of pellets. I ordered a load of Beaphar care before she got sick and it arrived today so i put a few in with her science - it was like chocolate to her! Weight this evening is the same - I had wondered if it would dip as I haven't fed her by syringe since lunchtime, but so far so good.

Pictures definitely to follow- I warn you, she looks all raggidy like a poor unloved rescue chin - but compared to how she looked on Saturday, she looks beautiful (I re read the weights from this week and Saturday at 9am she was a mere 213g ). I think I might need to cut some of her fur away around her mouth where she's dribbled CC - I was cleaning as I went but tbh my concern has been to keep her alive, it's a good sign that I am now thinking about how she looks! And yesterday was the first day Jasmine groomed properly. Tonight I was able to give her scritches and when I finished she groomed my hand - I like to think that was her way of saying thank you! Lol - I'm such a softie :0)