Burst Abcess? Respiratory Infection??

[Embyr]

My seven year old male chinchilla "Mr.Chin" has been being treated for malo problems for the past 6 weeks or so. He went to the vet about five weeks ago and had his first teeth grinding. His problem is mostly in his front incisors, he also had a few small spurs on his molars.

He recovered from the grinding well, and had since gained back a lot of the weight he had lost. Hes still not eating solid foods, just nibbleing on pellets. Ive been making him a mixture of crushed pellets, critical care, and lifeline, which he eats moist.

He went back to the vet this past Friday to see how much his teeth had grown in since his last visit. The vet checked out his teeth and recommended coming back in two weeks to have another grinding. She also said he had a small abcess that they hadnt seen the last time he was there, but that he should be fine untill his next visit.

I gave him his food this morning and he looked normal. I got home from work around 4:30 and almost had a heart attack. His entire chin and chest looked wet, he was pawing at his mouth, and had barely eaten anything all day. I called his vet, and they were closing at 5. I called the emergency vet in my area, who mainly treats dogs and cats, and they told me to call back in an hour when there was a vet there that has some experience with "pocket pets" and might be able to help me. The receptionist said he could deal with "basic" probelms with "pocket pets". Not sounding to promising to me.

I have about four doses of left over baytril, so I gave him a does of that. The wet looking fur on his chest is actually mostly dry, but hes still pawing at his mouth. At first I thought some kind of repiratory infection that had come on really fast?? But hes not sneezing or wheezing... So I am wondering if maybe the small abcess the vet noticed on Friday has burst?? I dont see how it could be normal tooth pain or discomfort since she just saw him.

Anyway, I have not called the emergency vet back yet. I am going to try to get him into his normal vet tommorow morning. They're extremely booked up this week and are short a doctor, but said they try to get him an emergency appointment. If not, there is another vet in my area that treats exotics that I will take him to. I dont like the idea of taking him to someone who doesnt know what their doing, especially since its over an hour away and will stress him out. I figure the most someone who doesnt treat chins can do would be to prescribe an antibiotic, and I already have enough baytril for tonight and tommorow if neccessary.

IDK, any advice or thoughts would be welcome. This is so upsetting... he was recovering really well, and now I dont know what the heck is going on... Also, he hasnt eaten since I got home and gave him the baytril. Should I force feed him critical care and life line if he doesnt eat soon?

 

[alli713]

So, is the wet area discolored?

Pawing at the mouth means he's feeling discomfort in his mouth. Is he on pain meds?

Have you had x-rays done?

 

[Embyr]

I don't think its discolored at all, though his chest is white and gray so its kind of hard to tell. Also, the wetness has pretty much dried up since I got home. Hes still pawing around at his mouth though... I dont know if its from discomfort in his mouth, or just discomfort from having dried up fur on his chin and chest?? And I dont know why the heck it was so wet and now its dried up? You would think if he was experiencing some kind of tooth pain/discomfort he would still be drooling....?

No, he's not on any pain meds. He recovered from his first teeth grinding very well, and was drinking normally, eating his moist food, and some hard pellets. He'd also eat a shredded wheat.

He did not have x-rays. The vet recommended we try the grinding and grinding/maintenance before doing x-rays. She did not think his problem had progressed to the point where he needed x-rays.

 

[Parkerspetchins]

You just can't tell the severity of the issue without x-rays. IMO, if there is root overgrowth it doesn't make sense to grind the chin's teeth, it would not help with the pain and discomfort of the root growth. Unfortunately there is nothing that can be done about that and euthanasia is usually the kindest thing you can do. I have a chin that has malo and has had 3 dental procedures so I know what you are going through as well. I would definitely force feed as you do not want to have to go through gut issues in addition to everything else. Do you have metacam or meloxicam? I would ask for some to have on hand for emergency situations since your chin does have teeth issues. You need to have x-rays done though, then you can access your situation and make a plan of action. It's hard. Hugs.

 

[Embyr]

I just think its really odd that it came on so suddenly like this... I mean, he's been fine for five weeks since getting his teeth ground. Before the grinding he WAS drooling some and pawing at his mouth, but he hasn't been for five weeks. I saw him this morning before I left for work, and there was no drool, and he was not acting uncomfortable.

Do chins that experience pain from root growth not like you touching around the sides of their face? Or is it just painful inside their mouth?

 

[Parkerspetchins]

I don't know anything about abscesses except that they can burst so it is a possibility but I do know that the drooling can seem to come on suddenly so I am not surprised. I have had a similar situation. I would see a vet as soon as you can, get x-rays while you're there even if it is the abscess that caused the wetness so you can have as much information about your chin's situation as possible.

ETA: I would imagine their whole jaw area would be tender inside and out but I really have no way of knowing this. My chin does not have root over-growth (I was told - am in the process of getting a second opinion) which is why mine has had so many procedures...

 

[Embyr]

Well hes still enjoying being scratched around his chin and head, and not acting like its causing him any pain at all.

I syringe fed him some critical care and lifeline, which he was actually pretty good about. He likes critical care.

I'll be calling the vet again in the AM. Guess theres not really much else to do untill then.

 

[Parkerspetchins]

I hope it all turns out well for you and Mr. Chin ).

 

[Embyr]

It turned out well and not so well.

His malo problems had previously been mostly in his incisors, but when I brought him in today he had two spurs on his molars that had to be ground down. She also said his teeth are misaligned, in the front and the back.

So the wetness was more than likely him drooling from the discomfort from the spurs. She also said that they can sometimes get food stuck in between their back teeth, which can cause discomfort and drooling, as the body tries to flush the food out of the mouth. Because it was kind of weird, he was drooling like crazy, then he stopped and didnt drool for the past two days.

Anyway, hes got some metacam for any pain he might be in after his grinding, and in case of emergencies. He has to go back in five weeks, and we are going to take it from there... I'm pretty sad, I kind of have the feeling that he will probably have to be put down sometime in the not so distant future... unless he does better this time then he did after his last grinding, but I know the chances arent all that great once malo starts...

One good thing is that yesterday Mr.Chin decided that he actually LIKES to eat critical care out of a syringe! He'll just sit there on one of his shelves and eat it. So at least its not such a struggle to get him to eat.

 

[Parkerspetchins]

I am sorry, still no x-rays? I seriously think your vet is doing a disservice to you by not x-raying before doing any work. It makes no sense to put a chin through grinding (or to pay loads of money for it) if there is root elongation. No amount of grinding on your chin's teeth is going to stop that. Like I said, I have a chinchilla with malocclusion so I understand how difficult it is.