ate eraser - help!

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MikaelaW

Well-known member
Joined
May 23, 2012
Messages
47
Okay I was dumb! Petting my chin through her cage and had my encil (eraser side) near the bars. She stuck her nose through and grabbed it in her teeth with force and I got it back as fast I could but she ate it. A small bite but I'm nervous. Its a pretty soft eraser. But still!!! I'm so stupid. What do I do. She's in her travel cage so I can observe her. Happened like 10 minutes ago. Pooping normal, eating hay & mad about being in the cage \ keeps moving - so normal behvior. Suggestions/advice....see a vet? I'm lost she's never been to a vet or sick. How long do I watch till I'm in the clear?
 

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Keep a close eye on her (if being in a carrier makes her anxious or stressed, I'd suggest just cleaning the cage really well and keeping a close eye on her there so she doesn't ave any further issues from the stress).

Honestly, looking at the picture, I had an incident awhile back with one of my boys who ate almost an entire eraser (much more than it looks like she had). He ended up passing it with no issues what-so-ever. As long as she's eating, drinking, pooping, activity level, etc. all looks normal, she might just pass it.
 
I agree. Put her back in her cage and just watch her. It doesn't look like she got a big piece and should pass it.
 
Thank you so much! I'm sure you know how reassuring fellow owners accounts/advice can be in these situations. I called uw madisons emergency vet line and talked to a vet - not a chin specialist. She said she would likely be okay. She got my name/info and will have the chin vet call me in the morning to check up/give me advice. I put her back in her cage - cleaned it so I can see her poop levels. She's been popcorning & jumping like normal. Nothing out of the ordinary so far. I'm hoping she passes it. Will I know if she does? Like is there some time frame? Will I see it in her poop?
 
I never saw it in Cotton's poop... I just figured after about 24 hours of no changes in his behavior that he'd probably passed it and was fine.

And I totally understand the comfort of having a community... This is a wonderful place to find help and advice!
 
Okay! Ill just keep an eye on her behavior & what not (so far there are a lot of healthy poops & she's her normal self. I offered her a rasin & she went ballistic jumping all over, so I know she's herself! Ha).

Ugh, I wish chins came with a health indicator bar/icon so we could know when they were healthy!!
 
Update - she is doing great this morning. There's a lot of poop in her cage so I'm hoping she passed it. The chinchilla vet called & said she sounded fine. I added a picture of her from this morning, she was burrowing in my blankets and that's her "why are you bothering me & taking pictures" face! Ha

Thank you everyone for your help!
 

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Raisins are not a healthy treat for chinchillas, and especially so if there is a possibility of illness or injury. It could make things worse.
 
Raisins are not a healthy treat for chinchillas, and especially so if there is a possibility of illness or injury. It could make things worse.

Thank you for the advice. I had thought I read on here somewhere that raisins were okay, thankfully she only got a few ever. But I've completely stopped & she will no longer get any! :)
 
One of my girls LOVES erasers...found that out the hard way, lol! My daughters like to do their homework on the floor during playtime and Miss Fuzzbutt grabs a pencil and runs every chance she gets. Fortunately, it's hard to hold a pencil in your mouth and move very quickly if you're a chinchilla, so we've caught her every time since the first one. And we are careful now to avoid leaving pencils where she might get them.
 
One of my girls LOVES erasers...found that out the hard way, lol! My daughters like to do their homework on the floor during playtime and Miss Fuzzbutt grabs a pencil and runs every chance she gets. Fortunately, it's hard to hold a pencil in your mouth and move very quickly if you're a chinchilla, so we've caught her every time since the first one. And we are careful now to avoid leaving pencils where she might get them.

Hah, I've learned to never underestimate the trouble a chinchilla can get into with the simplest objects. I never would have thought she'd even notice the pencil in my and while I was trying to give her skritches. Hahah, they're clever and sneaky like that. I've definitely learned my lesson, lol. :)
 
I wouldn't feel too dumb. I was sitting on the floor during play time and my cheekier chinchilla ran up, bit off a big piece of my leather belt and then ran away. She was holding the leather like 'what?' She did not want to let it go.

They're fast and they're sneaky :)
 
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