Bloat?

[Crazy]

Hey guys...i have a question..my chinchilla yesterday I went to get her water and the water level was higher than usual so she didn't drink much and today i'm not sure if she drank much at all if any. I don't believe she is eating her pellets and her tummy felt awfully inflated and squishy. I picked up some baby gas drops and have been rubbing her tummy and she started having some round light brown droppings. The bloat has gone down a good amount now but she still has no interest in food.
I'm rather certain this is bloat since she is grinding her teeth once in a while and seems more sleepy than usual. She comes out and plays like normal but....
I actually have reglan on hand due to my other chin having issues before. Should I give her some of that? and hmm...maybe force critical care and water down here? she hates having her tummy rubbed and wiggles :| now i have scratches..

 

[Crazy]

K im not so sure its bloat anymore...she doesn't do any of the laying on her belly or stretching out and shes busy screaming at my other chinchilla telling her off :|
So what exactly does it sound like..what should i do? its sunday you know...god chinchillas love to get sick in the middle of the night or on the weekend -.-

 

[Chinmama]

Is she caged with another chinchilla? That will make it harder to tell how much she is eating, drinking or pooing and/or peeing.

 

[Crazy]

no she is caged alone. She's sure is spunky though....I gave her critical care and had her against my chest and of course she got it on herself from wiggling around so i wiped her with a towel and she didn't like it so she bit my face.

 

[equusus]

When giving CC it helps to "coccoon" them in a towel so that they can't wiggle around. Sorry about your face......

 

[Crazy]

bah it's fine. I'm just trying to get her to hold on till tomorrow when her vet is in.
Would reglan be okay to give her? she has a very minor heart murmur.

Oh, I've been giving her infant gas drops every 4 hours is that too much?

 

[Chinmama]

http://www.bio.miami.edu/hare/ileus.html

This article is written about rabbits, but is very informative.

 

[ticklechin]

Chin should go to the vet today if the symptoms are still evident, bloat can turn into stasis very fast.

 

[Crazy]

She seems to be much better but when I was trying to give her water I was trying to be careful but I guess I did too much at one point and she choked on it. She did a sort of gagging and then sneeze/cough thing and sneezed a couple times and now seems fine. I'm freaking out right now! Will she be okay? She doesn't seem to be having trouble breathing either and hasn't sneezed again once. I hate myself so much right now for messing up. Could there be water in her lungs? What should I do? She's acting fine and is awfully mad at me.

 

[Chinantics]

Why haven't you contacted a vet

 

[Crazy]

Hmm probably because yesterday was sunday?
and its only 9:27 am on monday here? So...I called three different places with either no vet in for days or booked for days....:|
I'm at a loss here.Thank God it doesn't seem to be an emergency at least >< or so I hope at this rate....
/shakes fist
-__- they are ALWAYS not there when I need them and going to an emergency vet is...well I'd rather not. If I see any slight change in her behavior though I'm jumping in that car faster than anyone can sneeze >.>
I seem unable to stop staring at her and poking her :/ that seems to be getting me bit.

..not to be rude ..seriously not trying to be but why state the obvious? i did kind of ask for advice on what I can do MYSELF before a find a vet. Seems like she'll have to wait though...last emergency vet did nothing helpful anyway. Since, she has a heart murmur and her regular vet knows her VERY well I think it's best to wait for her at this point anyway. It's really frustrating. Please don't go throwing lack of care comments at me..cause seriously they get more attention than my boyfriend :/
Just don't know what to do vet wise at this point.
4 vets in town one is on the other side of town which is an emergency vet like 45 mins away. The other doesn't come back to town till friday, then the other two including her vet are booked.

 

[caiti]

Maybe see of you can just get her regular vet on the phone to ask what to do between now and your appointment? It would take up less of their time to call you for 5 minutes than to make space for a last minute appointment. And then your vet may be able to tell you if they think it's an emergency and be able to contact the e-vet so they are more helpful.

 

[ticklechin]

There are two types of bloat-a gas episode which results in a doughy belly and can be taken care of with simethicone and belly massages, then there is gastric dilation or severe bloat and it is not the same as a gas episode. With this type of bloat the stomach becomes extremely hard and grossly distended which can cause the blood supply to be cut off from the cecum, stomach or intestines and result in torsion or twisting of the digestive tract and result in death. When you have dealt with bloat a few times you can tell which is which and know when to "self vet" and know when the chin needs emergency vet care.

 

[Crazy]

Ah thank you. Her belly when she stands up feels perfectly normal. When sitting down she has a little bit of a squishy belly then. It was never hard. She just ate some pellets on her own
No, the vet office was so unhelpful I wanted to drive over there and slap the receptionist. I was asking if there was ANY way to contact her today and they were like no...not on her day off...can u call her? no... -__- I'm complaining to the vet the next time I go in. Ive spent thousands there. You think they could at least do a little favor for me.

 

[ticklechin]

One thing I forgot to mention, you do not treat gastric dilation with belly massages or exercise, the chin needs to stay on a one level cage-there is risk or rupture of the digstive tract that can be increased with those activites, its treated with strictly motility drugs, sub Q and pain relief.