Fleas!! ARGH!

[ErinsChins]

So about a month ago, I took in a chinchilla as a rescue that had fleas, they weren't terrible and one dustbath fixed that. Well, the same lady surrendered another chin to me (she said she only had one the first time, so I do not know where the second one came from) about a week ago. He had a ton of large more than quarter sized bald spots, like down to skin. I also noticed tons of wounds in these bald spots, it literally looked like he bit himself. Within minutes of inspection I found on his neck a spot of about 30 fleas. They all scattered and were no where to be seen. I gave him a dust bath and let him settle in for the night. I kept checking on him and he seemed to be doing better, fur growing back, fleas reducing, wounds healing, etc. However, tonight the fleas are back more than ever and he seems to have pulled out some more fur. I know that with kittens you can give them a bath in dawn and it will basically suffocate the fleas and kill them without any harmful chemicals. Could I do the same thing with him? Usually with water baths I use johnson and johnson, but that isn't as concentrated as dawn. My regular vet is out of town until Friday, so if it progresses I will have to find another vet before then, but as is now, he seems ok as far as overall happiness and eating. Here are some pictures, but they show absolutely nothing. Any advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Essentia]

That poor baby. Luckily I have never gotten a chin here with fleas. I can't even imagine how infested her house is if that little chin has so many. As long as you don't get the dawn in the mouth, eyes, or nose I don't see where it would be a problem. They use it on kittens and puppies for the fleas, and then on wildlife to get oil off, so it can't be too toxic.

 

[sheltiefan]

I read somewhere that chin dust kills bed bugs becasuse it soaks up the wax off there body. I wonder if that would help giving him more dust?? I know fleas don't like garlic powder but not sure how safe that would be on the chin. I hope you get rid of them and give him some relif from those buggers

 

[Snickers]

If you have to give him a wet bath I used to use liquid Dial hand soap on our dogs and cats. Also Avon "Skin-So-Soft oil base" a few drops in the water will kill fleas. I use the Skin-so-Soft as a pesticide I know it sounds weird but it works. If you know someone that sells Avon products ask them for a list of the items it can be used for.

 

[RDZCRanch]

I would use Dawn...try to find unscented for obvious reasons. Be very careful and avoid the head if possible. Rinse THOROUGHLY and make sure he gets nice and dry. Give a dust bath when he's almost completely dry to help with the drying and to kick off any existing eggs or dead fleas. Also, change the bedding in his cage and scrub it down before putting him back in there.

 

[catem777]

Wow I was under the impression that chins could not get fleas, that there fur was too dense...I guess this proves that it was wrong.

 

[RDZCRanch]

Wow I was under the impression that chins could not get fleas, that there fur was too dense...I guess this proves that it was wrong.

Chinchillas with normal fur coats cannot and do not get fleas because of the density. As you can see from the pictures, this chinchilla has very sparse, thin fur which allowed the fleas to get in the coat. Density is a huge factor and not all chinchillas have strong enough density of their coat to deter fleas.

 

[Christina Noraas]

I know nothing about getting rid of fleas on chinchillas, but we did have fleas at our house and they infested it. Just from my dog. I was so happy to learn that chinchillas can't generally get fleas if their coats are very clean and stuff (sorry for the absence of a better word)

However, I'm guessing that your going to want to make sure that they don't get in and around your house every where, I mean when we had them my legs looked like I had the chicken pox again. I consulted a vet to make sure that it was safe for chins, you mix half and half Borax Powder and Salt you put it in your blender until it is really fine and powdery you can put it on your furniture and carpets, you leave it sit for 24 hours and vacuum it all up it kills the living ones and will kill off most of the eggs in the carpet and fabrics. Keep vacuuming where you put the powder mixture for 3-4 days and you should be in the clear. That is if you haven't already found a way to get rid of them in your house. I don't like bombing.

I'm sorry I couldn't help with the ones on the chins, I hope they start to feel better soon!

 

[AZChins]

The Dawn would work really well at getting the fleas out without putting anything toxic on the chin...that's great advice.

Chins can get fleas, but it's rare... I feel so bad for that chin. He looks awful. I just wonder how the fleas got on two chins like that. That's so strange!

 

[Anna]

poor little bug! i hope he gets better and the dawn works! so glad you're helping him :heart5:

 

[Rimbaum]

That poor baby. ... I can't even imagine how infested her house is if that little chin has so many.

One of the things I remember reading first about chins was that they rarely got fleas just because the density of their fur pretty much suffocated the pests. I feel so sorry for that chin and the conditions it must have lived in, as well as any other animals that still have to live there I've had to resort to flea-bombing once, because they were eating me and my cat alive. I wish you luck and hope that you don't have to resort to that. The borax-salt idea christin.a.bnormal suggested should work if the fleas aren't horribly bad yet.

 

[Tillygizmo]

I just want to tell you how awesome you are for taking care of this baby. Not everyone would take on a difficult situation good job and im happy your here with us

 

[ErinsChins]

Thanks for the replies everyone! Just wanted to post an update, I took him to the vet today. It wasn't an emergency, nor was it my regular, but I just wanted to do a ringworm check and other things also. The vet said it looked like previously he may have been a chewer (obviously!) and that wherever he came from obviously has many MANY fleas for them to have resorted to a chin. She said that the bald patches are most likely due to him pulling at the fleas and the hair coming out completely. She also said that he probably caused the bite marks himself. She said that ringworm is negative as well as any ear problems (which I wasn't even concerned about, but good to know!). She said the best bet would be to give him a bath in dawn, clean his cage, and leave a dust bath in his cage at all times for 72 hrs and then come back if that didn't work. So this is what I will do! I did indeed find unscented dawn and will be giving him a bath after I eat! Thanks for the help guys!

 

[cindyv3737]

Erin you will also want to get your house treated for fleas. Fleas multiply fast and are probably everywhere.

 

[ErinsChins]

Since we don't have any carpet and our dogs are on flea/tick medicine, the vet said that once the chin is good, they will leave, but if they do hang around we will.

 

[menagerie]

Since we don't have any carpet and our dogs are on flea/tick medicine, the vet said that once the chin is good, they will leave, but if they do hang around we will.

You will need to give the chin regular baths to keep the fleas down. Flea egg incubation is 5 - 7 days. If left untreated, you will have a whole new crop of fleas in a week. The dust will only work on the adult fleas as it clogs their pores and suffocate, it will not affect the eggs.

 

[ErinsChins]

You will need to give the chin regular baths to keep the fleas down. Flea egg incubation is 5 - 7 days. If left untreated, you will have a whole new crop of fleas in a week. The dust will only work on the adult fleas as it clogs their pores and suffocate, it will not affect the eggs.

So basically give him a bath once a week or so until his fur gets enough density? How will I keep his skin from drying out? I know that the Dawn can dry out the skin.

 

[starleomach]

i would bathe once a day for a while

 

[ErinsChins]

i would bathe once a day for a while

With the dawn? I can do that, but i'm still concerned with the skin getting dried out, could I follow up with some sort of baby conditioner or something?

 

[starleomach]

I meant a dust bath, lol sorry