Instinct
Active member
On Wednesday, I noticed Gadget was sneezing a little when he woke up. I checked his nose and eyes which were clear and figured he was just having a small sneezing fit. I kept an eye on him and he seemed to be normal the rest of the day.
On Thursday, I woke up to a wheezing and crackling sounding chinchilla. I checked his eyes which we now slightly crusted and his nose which was discharging this yellowish mucus. He definitely wasn't acting normal and seemed lethargic. I called our local exotic vet, that I have taken my chinchillas to before, but they couldn't get him in until Monday. I took that day but once I hung up I was thinking, "What if he doesn't make it to Monday?" I tried calling around but I could find any sooner times.
Today rolls around and Gadget is just laying on the bottom of his cage. I know he needs help right now and even then it might not save him. Called for a few hours and found someone that could see him at 6pm. Great, but at the time I called it was 8am and I wasn't sure if he was going to make it that long. Around 5:40pm, I headed to the vets office and after quite a bit of waiting Gadget was seen by the veterinarian. She's very worried about his condition, he has a URI as well as GI stasis. She couldn't hear any of normal chinchilla stomach sounds either. The vet took him in the back to inject some fluids into him and when she returned to bring him back to me he looked like he already passed away. Not moving and shallow breathing, I wasn't sure if he was going to make it out of the vets office alive. The doctor prescribed Baytril as the antibiotic, 0.06 ml by mouth every 12 hours and Buprenorphine 0.1 ml by mouth every 12 hours. She also gave me some Oxbow Critical Care to hand feed him.
Gadget is home now, I can hear him wheezing and making crackling noises but he seems to be a little bit more attentive then when he was at the office. I'm hoping and praying he makes a full recovery but right now the future is still uncertain. I do however, have a few questions that I'm hoping some of you might be able to answer.
I'm sorry for the long post, I'm just trying to add everything I can think of. Thanks in advanced!
On Thursday, I woke up to a wheezing and crackling sounding chinchilla. I checked his eyes which we now slightly crusted and his nose which was discharging this yellowish mucus. He definitely wasn't acting normal and seemed lethargic. I called our local exotic vet, that I have taken my chinchillas to before, but they couldn't get him in until Monday. I took that day but once I hung up I was thinking, "What if he doesn't make it to Monday?" I tried calling around but I could find any sooner times.
Today rolls around and Gadget is just laying on the bottom of his cage. I know he needs help right now and even then it might not save him. Called for a few hours and found someone that could see him at 6pm. Great, but at the time I called it was 8am and I wasn't sure if he was going to make it that long. Around 5:40pm, I headed to the vets office and after quite a bit of waiting Gadget was seen by the veterinarian. She's very worried about his condition, he has a URI as well as GI stasis. She couldn't hear any of normal chinchilla stomach sounds either. The vet took him in the back to inject some fluids into him and when she returned to bring him back to me he looked like he already passed away. Not moving and shallow breathing, I wasn't sure if he was going to make it out of the vets office alive. The doctor prescribed Baytril as the antibiotic, 0.06 ml by mouth every 12 hours and Buprenorphine 0.1 ml by mouth every 12 hours. She also gave me some Oxbow Critical Care to hand feed him.
Gadget is home now, I can hear him wheezing and making crackling noises but he seems to be a little bit more attentive then when he was at the office. I'm hoping and praying he makes a full recovery but right now the future is still uncertain. I do however, have a few questions that I'm hoping some of you might be able to answer.
Does that seem like the correct dosage for a 5 year old chin that weighs 530g?
- What should the temp be in the room? Vet said to keep it warm but how warm?
- Tried to hand-feed Gadget and he hates it. How much should I give him at one time and how often? I don't want to stress the poor boy out.
I'm sorry for the long post, I'm just trying to add everything I can think of. Thanks in advanced!
Good luck!
