Congenital Kidney Disease

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andreya

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Sep 2, 2009
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Does anyone know anything about congenital kidney disease/kidney failure in chinchillas? I have a chinchilla that started out with a UTI and had been treated with Baytril for it. Last week he started peeing blood. I took him into the vet that night and the vet thinks he has congenital kidney disease and is having kidney failure. She said all I can do is try to get him to gain some weight back that he lost on the Baytril and keep him comfortable...

She gave me some Pepcid AC liquid for his stomach and Ben-a-Bak probiotic as well. She suggested increasing his alfalfa intake and putting him on Mazuri. I bought the Mazuri and have mixed some into his food but am told that because it has a higher protein intake than the food he is on it is going to make it harder for his kidneys to process it. Per her suggestion I have also been giving him Critical Care and he is eating some of it. Should I be doing anything else? I don't want to lose him. :(
 
Hello Andreya,

unfortunately I have not had this experience, but I am terribly sorry to hear that your chin is sick. I hope that you can get some advice from some of our more experienced members.
 
Thanks Chinnie.

Both vets that he has seen have said that it isn't a stone. His initial urinalysis had struvite crystals and she treated him for a UTI. At that time she also did an x-ray and said that there were no bladder stones. When I took him in on Tuesday (when the bleeding started) they did another urinalysis and that vet said that there was no sign of infection and to stop the Baytril. At that point he had had a full 10 day course of Baytril and had stopped peeing on himself for a couple weeks before he started again. So the vet had me start him on another course and after about a week and a half of that one I noticed he was starting to lose a lot of weight so I stopped the Baytril and had planned to take him in for a follow up before Tuesday. The day I made the follow up I came home from work and found him peeing blood.

He hasn't had any more blood in his urine that I am aware of. He has been peeing on himself since he was two weeks old; he will be a year old on February 3rd. At first I was told it might be an anatomy problem and that maybe he would grow out of it when he got older. He didn't. He was on Tribessen at first and it would get a little better when he was on it and then as soon as he was off it, it was back to his normal peeing, which is when I knew it wasn't his plumbing. Then the UTI and Baytril and weight loss. The only other symptom he is having besides the weight loss is that he definitely seems more sluggish. When I have him out he will still run around and try and get into everything (supervised) but he just seems more tired.

He lost a little over two ounces during the Baytril treatments but has gained a few grams back since Tuesday when I stopped the Baytril and added the Pepcid and Critical Care and have made sure he has had more alfalfa and oat supplement. So he is eating fine. Other than being skinny he looks fine.
 
So, I weighed Ari today and he has gained 12 grams since Tuesday. I also have a call in to his normal vet to see what she thinks, since the last vet he saw I had never seen before and wasn't the one who was treating his UTI.
 
God - Thank you. So do I. More than anything.

Honestly, today he seems fine. He is 523 grams, up from 511. He's running and jumping and climbing everywhere. He is making nice big poops, as opposed to his little dry ones he was having. He is eating. His butt is even nice and clean, not something that has happened often for my little one. All I can do is hope that vet #2 was wrong about his kidneys failing.
 
The only way to know for sure is to run labwork on him. I know it can happen in chins but its fairly rare especially in a chin that young.
 
Dreamlite - I haven't heard back from my vet but was going to ask about blood work. I wasn't smart enough when I was in there last week and the vet I saw kind of made it sound like it didn't matter what I did, that he was on his way out... I was completely useless after that.

Godin - Yes, very sure. I'm used to the darker urine, this was bright red. They didn't do labs. I was caught off guard. I went in expecting another med for his UTI and then was told his kidneys were failing. Give me a people emergency and I'm fine, if it's one of my pets, I'm a wreck. Ugh. :(

He is 531 grams today though. He is, I noticed, squatting and pressing his penis down against the bottom of the cage where the pine shavings are when he pees. I'm not sure if that is a sign of anything?
 
I'm sorry Andy :-( It sounds like you need to find a vet who can give you some concrete answers based on blood work.

andreya said:
Dreamlite - I haven't heard back from my vet but was going to ask about blood work. I wasn't smart enough when I was in there last week and the vet I saw kind of made it sound like it didn't matter what I did, that he was on his way out... I was completely useless after that.
Click to expand...

Don't feel too bad, I've left so many vet appointments wishing that i had been more assertive. Any updates on your baby?
 
Thanks Brittany. :) I have an appointment for him to see his regular vet and have blood work on Friday, which is the soonest she is in; she is often the emergency vet and works overnight. She agrees that if it is his kidneys there isn't much we can do but said his urine was weird (she actually said something far more greek than that but I got the jest of it) and is wondering if it could be something else.

Today he was 545 grams, so he has gained 7 grams since yesterday. He has been gaining almost exactly 7 grams a day and isn't peeing on himself. =)
 
Thanks. I will try, I promise. I'm in the middle of moving and they are supposed to hook up my internet on Friday by 8 p.m...I hope to know something on Friday to tell you.
 
Thanks Susan. =)

So I just got my internet working today and Ari had his blood
work done today as well, since the vet he saw on Friday couldn't get the vein. The blood work confirms that he is having kidney issues and is slightly anemic, probably due to his kidneys not functioning properly. She said we could do an ultrasound to get a better look at his kidneys and see if perhaps there are any other issues with his anatomy but at this point the treatment would be the same. She recommended blood work in 3-6 months to re-check his values and to see how quickly (or slowly - cross your fingers) it is progressing, assuming he doesn't get worse before then.

He is maintaining his weight and is still eating good. She also recommended mixing Mazuri into his normal diet (Purina Rabbit Chow Show), which I have been doing, but not going completely onto Mazuri because of the higher protein content. I still have all of his "sick medicines" should he need them and a good supply of Critical Care.
 
Aww man, I'm sorry Andi :-( I wonder if Tanya, at fuzzies kingdom, could recommend some herbs that promote healthy kidney function? I hope this is something that will work itself out. Sending some healing vibes for your little man.
 
If he is having kidney issues, avoid protien as much as possible. Kidneys porcess the protien so make their job as easy as possible. With correct diet and a few changes, most case are managable to a point. I had a chin that had slight kidney issues for 6 yrs before he got too bad.
 
Maybe you can contact Dawna at Chocolate Chinchillas for some Lifeline it will only do good, there is also Fuzzies Kingdom you can get in touch with
 
Andreya, who is the vet you are seeing? I can maybe recommend someone better. I don't think it should be a wait and see attitude with this. There are things you can do and I would think the vet would have been more helpful.

No clue why the first vet would recommend Mazuri and alfalfa hay, especially since alfalfa is higher in calcium which would not be benefical to this chin. Mazuri is way to high in protein and there are other pellets that are much better for him.

If you want to pm me your phone number I will be happy to talk to you and help in any way I can.
 
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