chinchillanerd
Active member
I am new to the forum and not to sure where to put this thread--you can move it if you want to mods <3 but unfortunately I lost one of my chinchillas today.
I first saw Lilo on the Second Chance Chins rescue site around the time or shortly after adopting Lupin from SCC. (Im a rescue chin mom <3) I had always read up on Lilo because he was always on the new rescue page because of his teeth problems. One day while doing my internship at my (amazing--and not so bad on the eyes ^_~) exotic vet Mya came in with Lilo and one of her other chins. She was giving our doctor an update on the little man <3. I held Lilo and absolutely fell in love. I think he wanted me to because he marked (peed) on me that day-lol. He was doing alot better and had been gaining weight and wasn't having teeth problems (at that particular time) and so he was ready to go on the available chin area.
I had been wanting a second chin for a while and so Mya and I made arrangements for Lupin to try and find a friend. We found out that Lupin liked to play with other chinnys but not have a cage mate. So we made some arrangements and got things ready for Lilo--because I wasn't giving up on the chance of getting him. Dan made my dreams of getting Lilo true by helping me get all the space needed for another cage as well as the funding for another cage. Dan got me Lilo for valentine's day back in 2009 (feb 13 to be exact). Best gift ever. Lilo was really shy with us in the beginning but when it came to treat time he didn't care if we were new to him or not. Lol. It's really funny because Lilo was supposed to be my chinchilla but he took to Dan more.
I knew getting Lilo that there was always going to be teeth problems and I was willing to do anything for him no matter how many vet visits and dental procedures he needed. Well this procedure took a lot out of my lil man.
So Lilo went to the vet because he was losing weight and was drooling again. Lilo always has teeth problems and gets his spurs taken off whenever he needs it. It varies between 3-8 months at a time. Well when Dan picked him up from the vet and told me the price I was like WHHHHHHHAT?!
and he explained to me that our vet had extracted his tooth (which was odd because I never got a call for the permission). This made me angry because I wasn't asked before the doctor extracted it--eventhough I would've done it regardless. So I called the vet to see what was going on. The tooth that causes the most problems was loose and he thought that it might cause Lilo less problems to not have it because of how often he was going under anesthesia and causing all his pain. I agreed with him and said I would've agreed to the extraction just notice next time would be appreciated. Lilo was given Baytril (twice a day until gone) and Metacam (until gone).
I was making critical care in a paste form and Lilo seemed to nibble at it--he was then trying to eat his pellets but they seemed to be very hard for him.
Yesterday he was just not acting himself...he's been sleeping at the bottom of the cage more (which is NOT like him at all) and just really out of it. I was very worried--I called the ER clinic that deals with exotics in my area. And they said to not give the Metacam because it may be making him out of it. So I stopped giving the metacam today and he seemed to be a little more himself.
He just wants to sleep all the time and isn't really moving around--his fur is horrible from all the drooling he did before and definitely after the surgery he won't dust himself...he just sits in his house.
I softened about 15 pellets and put them on a small tray about 8:30 pm and by 9:00 pm they were all gone. I gave him his papaya treats and it took a while but he did manage to eat it but it took him a while. I put another tray of soft pellets down and he hasn't eaten any of it yet he just keeps laying in his rocket and sleeping...He's still drinking and going to the bathroom and i mean hes barely eating but its something.
Sunday night about 11:30 pm I took Lilo to an emergency clinic that sees exotics. I called before to make sure there was someone to see chinchillas because it is about an hour drive and I didn't want to stress Lilo out and then have no one see him. Well we (Dan and I) get there and give as much info to the technician as possible. She then takes our little man to the back to take the vitals and tell the vet whats going on. Well the vet comes in and doesn't really seem to know much about chinchillas at all. I told her the same thing I told the technician. She told me that chinchillas usually live 9-15 years and eventhough Lilo is on the low end (10 yrs old) that it could be his time...then after saying this she said she needed to check on medications and things to see what we can give him to make him eat and not be in pain because he didn't want her looking in his mouth. She then came back after reading a chinchilla forum saying that the baytril can cause anorexia and to stop it and see how he does--but put him back on the metacam for pain...(keep in mind I called the night before and they said to stop the metacam). She also recommended Sub-q fluids. I agreed to the fluids because I just wanted Lilo better and fluids can be a quick pick me up. Lilo perked up a little tiny bit but not much. Leaving the ER clinic they told me that I should check up with his normal vet ASAP (which was Tues--because that's the soonest the Dr. that sees him would be there)
So Monday comes around he's doing a tiny bit better but not much. I syringed him about 12 MLS of critical care through out the day and kept soft pellets and paste-like CC in his cage to let him eat as he pleases. At this point he still wanted nothing to do with dusting or grooming himself. He was more alert and running around more--and talking up a storm <3
Tues morning finally comes and I take him to his vet. I told him that there was a tiny bit of improvement but not as much as I would like. My vet was very concerned because Lilo was down to 420g and that was the lowest he has every been. So he recommended doing supportive care by doing 25-30ML of CC daily and Sub-q fluids at home for a couple of days. He said that if he doesn't improve or gets worse--then it might be his time...I pretty much lost it at that point. Thank goodness I had Dan and Mya (secondchancechins) with me for support I couldn't get through this without them. I am a pessimitic person so having them be optimistic really helped. So the doctor and tech gave the first Sub-q fluids in the clinic to show me how to give them to a chin (because even tho Im a tech I didn't really know where to give fluids on a chin) and show Dan how to hold for me. So when we got home I gave Lilo about 8 MLS of CC because that's all he would really eat because it was his sleepytime LOL. I also made a paste-like plate of CC for him to nibble at because he likes that too.
So later on that night I took Lilo out and he was SOOOOOOOO active--better than he has been. He weighed about 464g before I gave him his sub-q fluids for the night. I fed him about 12 MLS of CC and he was begging for more--so I gave him another 12MLS he wanted more but I didn't want to over do it. I offered him his dust bath and for the first time in 2 weeks he dusted himself. Which was a huuuuuuuge improvement in itself. It gave me hope that my little man is going to pull through this.
Lilo weighed in at 454g before fluids and food. He was fighting me and Dan about giving him fluids which is a great sign lol because that means he feels that he doesn't need them. He ate about 8 MLS of CC and then didn't want anymore--I can't blame him because that is his bed time. He did dust himself more and then I put him back and he went to sleep.
While I was at work Dan called our doctor and let him know the good news-the doctor was VERY happy for us and was glad that Lilo has made such a turn around in a short time. He said to give the fluids once a day instead of twice a day for the next two days and continue giving the CC until Lilo is 500+g. He said when he gets back up in his weight he should be able to start eating his pellets again. I will do whatever it takes to get my lil man 100% healthy.
Lilo weighed in at 446g and was acting like a spaz. Lol. Very active lil man tonight. He dusted himself a couple times (you may be wondering why Im offering so many dust baths--its because he looks REALLY rough--and I know he needs the dust lol). He ate about 12 MLS of CC and wanted more so I filled up about another 6 MLS and he was still biting and the syringe for more. So I gave him another 6 MLS and then I offered him more but he didn't want it--so I know he filled himself up lol. He was running around talking to mom and pooping all over lol which is good because I wanted to make sure they were normal poops and they were.
I am so glad that I had so many people to help me through all my panic attacks and keeping my spirits up and their prayers. I will continue to give updates--but promise to not make it as long as this was lol
Lilo started getting worse and so we took him to the vet and he had an abscess form on the opposite side of where his extraction was. Our vet told us that we could try medications to get rid of the abscess if that didnt work he would have to go in and extract all the teeth associated with the abcess as well as cut into his jaw bone--after saying this the vet also told us that he didn't think Lilo wouldn't survive another major surgery and it would probably be his time. we decided to take the meds and go from there. we were giving meds and that seemed to be helping he got his weight back up to about 450g. well a couple days ago he started drooling HORRIBLY again. Saturday he was at 450g and then Monday dropped down to 425g and has been clicking his teeth alot. I talked to our wonderful chinchilla vet yesterday and he said that we've done all we can do and it's just Lilo's time. I think Lilo was holding on an extra week with us because he didn't wanna leave just yet but I think he is done now. I also think Lupin knows something is going on to because he isn't acting himself and keeps yelling at Lilo for attention. I don't know how this is going to effect him.
He started going on an up and down rollercoaster--ranging from really bad to getting back to normal. Last week he was doing amazing and well starting Sunday (9/9/12) it all started going downhill again. He drastically has lost weight in the past 3 days and he has been drooling so much he is soaked...he doesn't even look like himself--eventhough I've given him 2 dust baths today. He has also been clicking at his teeth and rubbing it on his wood...I explained the drooling and weight loss to my vet and he said that he knows its a hard decision but we've done everything we can and the best thing for Lilo would be to end his suffering which is what I'm going to do because of how much I love him.
I think he wanted to spend another week with me and Dan because he just didn't wanna leave us yet and I think he knew on some level that I wouldn't be able to handle it. I have come to the realization that this unfortunately his time and the best thing I can do for him now is to let him go and to not let him suffer anymore. As much as I have come to this realization it's not making it any easier. I have cried myself to sleep the past 2 days and have been crying throughout the day in random spirts. Everytime I see him I just wanna cry but I'm trying to be strong so he doesn't think he did anything wrong. I gave him the best two years of his life with us that I could I just wish it could've been longer. I think Lupin knows somethings wrong because he's not really acting himself and literally tries to scream for Lilo's attention--but Lilo never really answers or talks to him much now. I hope Lupin will be ok after this.
This morning I will be taking my lil man to the vet and saying my goodbyes...it was the best thing I could do for my baby and he is no longer suffering.
I think I'm going to stop writing because I can barely see my computer screen through all the tears. Thank you for everyone that took the time to read this.
R.I.P little man--Lilo (jan 2002-sep 2012)
I first saw Lilo on the Second Chance Chins rescue site around the time or shortly after adopting Lupin from SCC. (Im a rescue chin mom <3) I had always read up on Lilo because he was always on the new rescue page because of his teeth problems. One day while doing my internship at my (amazing--and not so bad on the eyes ^_~) exotic vet Mya came in with Lilo and one of her other chins. She was giving our doctor an update on the little man <3. I held Lilo and absolutely fell in love. I think he wanted me to because he marked (peed) on me that day-lol. He was doing alot better and had been gaining weight and wasn't having teeth problems (at that particular time) and so he was ready to go on the available chin area.
I had been wanting a second chin for a while and so Mya and I made arrangements for Lupin to try and find a friend. We found out that Lupin liked to play with other chinnys but not have a cage mate. So we made some arrangements and got things ready for Lilo--because I wasn't giving up on the chance of getting him. Dan made my dreams of getting Lilo true by helping me get all the space needed for another cage as well as the funding for another cage. Dan got me Lilo for valentine's day back in 2009 (feb 13 to be exact). Best gift ever. Lilo was really shy with us in the beginning but when it came to treat time he didn't care if we were new to him or not. Lol. It's really funny because Lilo was supposed to be my chinchilla but he took to Dan more.
I knew getting Lilo that there was always going to be teeth problems and I was willing to do anything for him no matter how many vet visits and dental procedures he needed. Well this procedure took a lot out of my lil man.
So Lilo went to the vet because he was losing weight and was drooling again. Lilo always has teeth problems and gets his spurs taken off whenever he needs it. It varies between 3-8 months at a time. Well when Dan picked him up from the vet and told me the price I was like WHHHHHHHAT?!
and he explained to me that our vet had extracted his tooth (which was odd because I never got a call for the permission). This made me angry because I wasn't asked before the doctor extracted it--eventhough I would've done it regardless. So I called the vet to see what was going on. The tooth that causes the most problems was loose and he thought that it might cause Lilo less problems to not have it because of how often he was going under anesthesia and causing all his pain. I agreed with him and said I would've agreed to the extraction just notice next time would be appreciated. Lilo was given Baytril (twice a day until gone) and Metacam (until gone).I was making critical care in a paste form and Lilo seemed to nibble at it--he was then trying to eat his pellets but they seemed to be very hard for him.
Yesterday he was just not acting himself...he's been sleeping at the bottom of the cage more (which is NOT like him at all) and just really out of it. I was very worried--I called the ER clinic that deals with exotics in my area. And they said to not give the Metacam because it may be making him out of it. So I stopped giving the metacam today and he seemed to be a little more himself.
He just wants to sleep all the time and isn't really moving around--his fur is horrible from all the drooling he did before and definitely after the surgery he won't dust himself...he just sits in his house.
I softened about 15 pellets and put them on a small tray about 8:30 pm and by 9:00 pm they were all gone. I gave him his papaya treats and it took a while but he did manage to eat it but it took him a while. I put another tray of soft pellets down and he hasn't eaten any of it yet
he just keeps laying in his rocket and sleeping...He's still drinking and going to the bathroom and i mean hes barely eating but its something.Sunday night about 11:30 pm I took Lilo to an emergency clinic that sees exotics. I called before to make sure there was someone to see chinchillas because it is about an hour drive and I didn't want to stress Lilo out and then have no one see him. Well we (Dan and I) get there and give as much info to the technician as possible. She then takes our little man to the back to take the vitals and tell the vet whats going on. Well the vet comes in and doesn't really seem to know much about chinchillas at all. I told her the same thing I told the technician. She told me that chinchillas usually live 9-15 years and eventhough Lilo is on the low end (10 yrs old) that it could be his time...then after saying this she said she needed to check on medications and things to see what we can give him to make him eat and not be in pain because he didn't want her looking in his mouth. She then came back after reading a chinchilla forum saying that the baytril can cause anorexia and to stop it and see how he does--but put him back on the metacam for pain...(keep in mind I called the night before and they said to stop the metacam). She also recommended Sub-q fluids. I agreed to the fluids because I just wanted Lilo better and fluids can be a quick pick me up. Lilo perked up a little tiny bit but not much. Leaving the ER clinic they told me that I should check up with his normal vet ASAP (which was Tues--because that's the soonest the Dr. that sees him would be there)
So Monday comes around he's doing a tiny bit better but not much. I syringed him about 12 MLS of critical care through out the day and kept soft pellets and paste-like CC in his cage to let him eat as he pleases. At this point he still wanted nothing to do with dusting or grooming himself. He was more alert and running around more--and talking up a storm <3
Tues morning finally comes and I take him to his vet. I told him that there was a tiny bit of improvement but not as much as I would like. My vet was very concerned because Lilo was down to 420g and that was the lowest he has every been. So he recommended doing supportive care by doing 25-30ML of CC daily and Sub-q fluids at home for a couple of days. He said that if he doesn't improve or gets worse--then it might be his time...I pretty much lost it at that point. Thank goodness I had Dan and Mya (secondchancechins) with me for support I couldn't get through this without them. I am a pessimitic person so having them be optimistic really helped. So the doctor and tech gave the first Sub-q fluids in the clinic to show me how to give them to a chin (because even tho Im a tech I didn't really know where to give fluids on a chin) and show Dan how to hold for me. So when we got home I gave Lilo about 8 MLS of CC because that's all he would really eat because it was his sleepytime LOL. I also made a paste-like plate of CC for him to nibble at because he likes that too.
So later on that night I took Lilo out and he was SOOOOOOOO active--better than he has been. He weighed about 464g before I gave him his sub-q fluids for the night. I fed him about 12 MLS of CC and he was begging for more--so I gave him another 12MLS he wanted more but I didn't want to over do it. I offered him his dust bath and for the first time in 2 weeks he dusted himself. Which was a huuuuuuuge improvement in itself. It gave me hope that my little man is going to pull through this.
Lilo weighed in at 454g before fluids and food. He was fighting me and Dan about giving him fluids which is a great sign lol because that means he feels that he doesn't need them. He ate about 8 MLS of CC and then didn't want anymore--I can't blame him because that is his bed time. He did dust himself more and then I put him back and he went to sleep.
While I was at work Dan called our doctor and let him know the good news-the doctor was VERY happy for us and was glad that Lilo has made such a turn around in a short time. He said to give the fluids once a day instead of twice a day for the next two days and continue giving the CC until Lilo is 500+g. He said when he gets back up in his weight he should be able to start eating his pellets again. I will do whatever it takes to get my lil man 100% healthy.
Lilo weighed in at 446g and was acting like a spaz. Lol. Very active lil man tonight. He dusted himself a couple times (you may be wondering why Im offering so many dust baths--its because he looks REALLY rough--and I know he needs the dust lol). He ate about 12 MLS of CC and wanted more so I filled up about another 6 MLS and he was still biting and the syringe for more. So I gave him another 6 MLS and then I offered him more but he didn't want it--so I know he filled himself up lol. He was running around talking to mom and pooping all over lol which is good because I wanted to make sure they were normal poops and they were.
I am so glad that I had so many people to help me through all my panic attacks and keeping my spirits up and their prayers. I will continue to give updates--but promise to not make it as long as this was lol
Lilo started getting worse and so we took him to the vet and he had an abscess form on the opposite side of where his extraction was. Our vet told us that we could try medications to get rid of the abscess if that didnt work he would have to go in and extract all the teeth associated with the abcess as well as cut into his jaw bone--after saying this the vet also told us that he didn't think Lilo wouldn't survive another major surgery and it would probably be his time. we decided to take the meds and go from there. we were giving meds and that seemed to be helping he got his weight back up to about 450g. well a couple days ago he started drooling HORRIBLY again. Saturday he was at 450g and then Monday dropped down to 425g and has been clicking his teeth alot. I talked to our wonderful chinchilla vet yesterday and he said that we've done all we can do and it's just Lilo's time. I think Lilo was holding on an extra week with us because he didn't wanna leave just yet but I think he is done now. I also think Lupin knows something is going on to because he isn't acting himself and keeps yelling at Lilo for attention. I don't know how this is going to effect him.
He started going on an up and down rollercoaster--ranging from really bad to getting back to normal. Last week he was doing amazing and well starting Sunday (9/9/12) it all started going downhill again. He drastically has lost weight in the past 3 days and he has been drooling so much he is soaked...he doesn't even look like himself--eventhough I've given him 2 dust baths today. He has also been clicking at his teeth and rubbing it on his wood...I explained the drooling and weight loss to my vet and he said that he knows its a hard decision but we've done everything we can and the best thing for Lilo would be to end his suffering which is what I'm going to do because of how much I love him.
I think he wanted to spend another week with me and Dan because he just didn't wanna leave us yet and I think he knew on some level that I wouldn't be able to handle it. I have come to the realization that this unfortunately his time and the best thing I can do for him now is to let him go and to not let him suffer anymore. As much as I have come to this realization it's not making it any easier. I have cried myself to sleep the past 2 days and have been crying throughout the day in random spirts. Everytime I see him I just wanna cry but I'm trying to be strong so he doesn't think he did anything wrong. I gave him the best two years of his life with us that I could I just wish it could've been longer. I think Lupin knows somethings wrong because he's not really acting himself and literally tries to scream for Lilo's attention--but Lilo never really answers or talks to him much now. I hope Lupin will be ok after this.
This morning I will be taking my lil man to the vet and saying my goodbyes...it was the best thing I could do for my baby and he is no longer suffering.
I think I'm going to stop writing because I can barely see my computer screen through all the tears. Thank you for everyone that took the time to read this.
R.I.P little man--Lilo (jan 2002-sep 2012)
