Worried about our chinchillas, new owner

[Leo87]

I purchased my chinchilla Momo from a local pet store a little over three months ago. I weaned her off of her normal feed to Mazuri and she has been doing great. She recently got a growth on her ear which was treated with a topical solution. My dilemma comes when we bought our second chinchilla, Pooka, a week ago from Petsmart. She was apparently having diarrhea issues before we got her, but five days later, it worsened drastically. Initially she wouldn't eat anything but her own poo so we switched her to Timothy Complete. So far she has been eating normally but still has episodes of diarrhea. Our two chins only met once the day Pooka was purchased, but now Momo is having diarrhea problems as well. The only other factor that has been introduced was Kaytee Timothy Hay, which we started feeding to both chins a day or two before each got sick. Could that possibly be the culprit? They are both going to the vet tomorrow but we are pretty iffy about him - he seems detached and not very thorough... So we wanted to consult with people on the forum first.

Thank you
Leo (Momo) and Scarlett (Pooka)

 

[tunes]

Since this has been going on for so long for Pooka, I would have them seen by a vet. They need to have a stool sample run to check for parasites. Giardia is a definite concern as well. Diarrhea can also cause dehydration, so that is something the vet may need to address.

In the meantime, pick up some Oxbow hay. I know they have it at Petco, not sure on Petsmart. Take away all pellets and treats, give nothing but hay. Get some reverse osmosis water from Wal-Mart and make sure their bottle is cleaned with hot water and white vinegar or bleach (thoroughly rinsed) every day. Get some activated charcoal capsules from a local pharmacy, lightly dampen a bite sized, non-sugared shredded wheat, and roll it in the activated charcoal and offer it twice a day. It wouldn't hurt to include some acidophilus in with the activated charcoal as well.

If this is a parasitic infection, the above steps may or may not help, but they won't cure it. The chins need to be seen by a vet to see if antibiotics are necessary.

 

[Essentia]

The Petco by me doesn't carry Oxbow, but the Petsmart does, so I guess it varies by area.

 

[Leo87]

Thank you guys, they are both going to see the vet and I will be picking up some oxbow hay, Momo didnt make her appointment today....She was not in the mood and escaped my grasp, making me late to the appointment and by the time she made it into her cage it was too late. Quick question they pooped a lot, do I need to keep cleaning the cage and dispose of all their toys and buy new ones? I would hate to get rid of everything.... homes, nest, and all wood chews. I know plastic ones and metal can be cleaned....but I am not sure about the wood ones. I have already cleaned the cage and put in fresh water (reverse osmosis). I keep cleaning as much poop as I can, but she has some stuck to her , that made me terribly sad to see her that way when she is such a spunky bright eyed chin. Pooka looked so sad trying to clean herself up we did the best we could, but its just so hard to clean them.