weird noise and convulsions. video included!

[menagerie]

Make sure to get an x ray for bloat and teeth, just to be safe.

Most vets anesthetize for x-rays Which is not a good idea for a chin that is having respiratory issues. Respiratory animals often suffer from collapsed lungs after anesthesia and don't survive.

I would get him on antibiotics, possibly some oxygen and nebulzing and wait until he is stabilized before having any x-rays taken. I would also suggest subcutaneous fluids as he is probably a bit dehydrated.

 

[Claire D]

Make sure to get an x ray for bloat and teeth, just to be safe.

IF there are respiratory issues the vet will probably want to stabilize the chin first - anaesthetic may be counter productive since it can cause more problems.

Since we are working on assumptions as to what is going on I will say this:
He may need oxygen therapy and/or nebulizers, sub-cut fluids, and injectable antibiotics.

<3chinbaby best of luck at your vets

 

[feistychins]

I'm happy your were able to find a vet who would see you today. Hopefully, he can give you more answers.

You are in our thoughts.

 

[mishellyshel]

good luck today, please let us know the results later. i will keep him in my thoughts.

 

[Sandi]

I am so sorry your baby is going through this, I just saw your last video and poor baby . I'm also glad you were able to get a different vet today. Please keep us posted, my thoughts are with your little guy.

 

[aznmexaggie]

The sounds and sneezing noises your chinchilla is making sound very similar to that of the rats and hamsters we had at the petstore (my old job) that would come in with bad upper respiratory infections (URI's). I hope the antibiotics kick in soon and I hope the new vet you're seeing is more helpful!

 

[Cuddlebug]

Any updates?

 

[<3chinbaby]

So our trip to the vet yesterday was much better than our last vet. He was much more knowledgeable and said that my little guy has URI. He has heard the same noise other chins make. Turns out that the dosage the last vet prescribed was too low (0.05mL of 5% baytril). He told us to give him 0.1mL of baytril and so far we've been seeing far better results with a higher dosage. The only problem seems to be his appetite which has gone downhill. I tried feeding him his pellets and hay but he rarely takes them from me. He usually takes shredded wheat sprinkled with acidohpillus from me, but this time around he doesn't anymore. I tried giving him yogurt but he seems to dislike it. I ended up dissolving acidophilus in water with a tiny bit of sugar added and fed it to him my syringe. He took it and I'm waiting to see if this will give him more appetite. Any suggestions on what to do? He hasn't eaten much since yesterday...

 

[<3chinbaby]

Oh, the vet also gave us a helpful tip to clear my little guy's sinuses. He said we could purhase a vapor mask of some sort at a pharmacy of turn up the shower in the room and bring him in there for a few minutes. He said this will help clear up his sinuses and make it easier for him to breath. I think the same goes for humans. I usually use a humidifier outside in the living room when I have a cold.

Oh yeah, and he said that we can rest assured that it isn't a bloat or anything else. Just a case of URI ^_^. I hope the baytril will start working soon but in the mean time, I will just have to worry about his appetite.

 

[AZChins]

You can use a humidifier near him, that will really help as all that gunk in his nose dries up.

If the Baytril is really slow going, you could always request Gentamycin eye drops and give him two drops a day in each nostril. That really seems to help kill off infections in the nose and sinuses. The chins absolutely hate it...but it works when the Baytril doesn't seem to work fast enough.

www.chocolatechinchillas.com is the place to order Life Line. Mix it with a little water and some acidophilus to feed with a syringe. That has been the best thing I have used with chins on oral Baytril in getting their appetites to come back and to help prevent their intestines from getting to inflamed. Also, I like using dried peppermint to help soothe their stomachs...that works very well. Just a little pinch twice a day helps.

I'm hoping your little guy doesn't need the Baytril for too long. You had him on a dose that was probably enough to keep the infection from progressing...so I imagine that you will see a difference in a couple of days.

 

[aznmexaggie]

Oral baytril often causes a decrease in appetite as you are seeing. If he is not eating on his own, you need to handfeed him. Do you have Oxbow Critical Care, the herbivore handfeeding formula? If not, you can crush pellets and moisten with water to make a paste for now until you can purchase some Critical Care either from your vet, online, or from menagerie here on the forum. It is very important that you get food into him whether he likes it or not because a lack of food in the G.I. tract can turn into stasis (basically no movement of the intestines and a shutdown of the system). Also, it's good that you are giving the acidophilus. It should be given between the antibiotic dosages rather than at the same time.

I would be very careful about the humidity... Yes, humidity can help with sinuses but combined with moderately warm temperatures, can also cause a chinchilla to overheat.

I'm glad the dosage has been increased. 0.05 ml is the dosage that is generally used for smaller rodents or small chins. Hopefully you will start seeing an improvement soon.

 

[<3chinbaby]

Uunfortunately, I don't have critical care on more or anything that is used to feed sick chins. I just bought life line at chocolatechins but i don't know how long it will take to get it. In the mean time, I tried crushing the pellets and adding water as you said and got him to eat a little. I tried adding a tiny bit of apple juice and he consumed it much more quickly. I will try to refrain from adding any more sugar into his diet because the baytril has it and I'm not sure if the pain killer (medicam i think it was called) has any sugar in it either.
Are there any other helpful tips in getting him to eat. I also grind acidophilus and give it to him but he hates it. He doesn't take any treat with acidophilus on it so I ended up disolving it in water with a little apple juice.

 

[Chinniechantel]

Use a coffee grinder for the pellets, it helps grind it better than anything else. I would ask Menagerie to next day you some critical care, or get it from your vet. You need to force feed him, you can't trick him into eating, but after each feeding you need to force feed some CC to get the taste out of his mouth. Hopefully that will help get him to eat, otherwise you need to step in.

 

[mishellyshel]

I grind up my pellets very fine, add filtered water, and some baby food squash. since my chin does not eat really any pellets, i am his sole source of food. i notice if i dont add the baby food the pellet paste gets too clumpy and he actually gags on it.
so i make it more on the watery side. things i have tried and were recommended to me from 2 different vets was in addition to or in place of the squash, you can use plain pumpkin (the squash jars are smaller so they are easier for me to deal with), also baby food green beans, which i add about 1 tsp of to give it a thinner consistancy.
initially he would not touch anything, but now i hardly have to add any baby food to get him to eat. he also fought me tooth & nail.....literally! and now he just sits there & eats.
i wrap him in a thin dish towel or burp cloth so that the mix doesnt get all over him. he did not like being wrapped in a big towel and he did not like big syringes. i finally found the right food mix, syring size & towel method & now i get between 36 & 46 cc's into him at each feeding, which is 3 times a day since that is when he gets meds.
good luck. every chin is different and you need to see what works for him & you.

also i give him the life line mix at each feeding.......i give it to him in the beginning before his meds, so it sorta coats him, than meds, than food and than a little more lifeline at the end, so he has a good taste in his mouth.
i have to grind up the lifeline too, because the little seeds of bee pollen make him gag, but i just mix that with a little filtered water and he really likes it.
the lifeline is a lifesaver for me! i bought the huge container and i use it every day.

 

[amberlin]

where are you in LA? I have a never opened CC available if you need. I am in No Ho/Burbank area...

 

[<3chinbaby]

Thank you for all of your help. I tried just grinding mazuri with a spoon and adding water. He seems to take it in more. He has already stopped his baytril after 2 weeks and is recovering very well. Haven't heard the noise anymore. We've let him out during play time and he is healthy as ever.

 

[AZChins]

That's wonderful!!

 

[mishellyshel]

thats great news!

 

[Mt. Zion Chins]

absolutely wonderful

 

[Sandi]

Aw, that's great news )!