Critical Care Feeding Techniques

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ArmyWife

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Sep 13, 2011
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I'm looking for some help and advice on how to hand feed my male chinchilla critical care. Yesterday he was neutered and since then he hasn't eaten much. I see a few droppings in his cage and I've tried mixing some critical care and water and syringe feeding but I don't think I'm doing it properly. Should the mixture be watery or like a paste? I've tried the spoon method but he just turns his head away. What size syringe should I be using? I tried using a small syringe that you use for administering medication but it keeps getting clogged so only the water is being sucked up. Should I be using a larger syringe? He'll eaten some out of the syringe but not nearly enough. He's been moving around occasionally, right now he's actually in his hanging house sleeping. I've been administering .15ml of metacam twice daily. Should I try burritoing him and force feeding it? Is it ok to burrito him since he was just neutered?
 
The minimum size syringe I use is 10 ml. Larger is better. I start feeding with fairly runny CC and gradually thicken it up for subsequent feedings until I find the consistency each animal likes. Try top loading the syringe. I have never been able to draw it up. Just too thick. I also make mine warm. They seem to take it better if it is warmed up a little. It is fine to burrito him but he isn't going to like it. Sometimes after a few feedings, they decide they like it and will take it from the syringe while in their cage.
 
obcsed said:
The minimum size syringe I use is 10 ml. Larger is better. I start feeding with fairly runny CC and gradually thicken it up for subsequent feedings until I find the consistency each animal likes. Try top loading the syringe. I have never been able to draw it up. Just too thick. I also make mine warm. They seem to take it better if it is warmed up a little. It is fine to burrito him but he isn't going to like it. Sometimes after a few feedings, they decide they like it and will take it from the syringe while in their cage.
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Thank you soooo much for this info!! I went to petsmart and bought a bigger syringe. Mixed up some runny CC and top loaded the syringe. I burrito wrapped him which he didn't love but did an amazing job staying calm and eating. He guzzled it down like a champ! He even pooped twice while I was feeding him. How many hours in between should I wait before feeding him again?
 
you have to get 70-100 mg a day in him until he eats on his own. Divide that up into at least 3-4 feedings. If you can get the food to the consistency of pudding that would be best
 
I usually feed about 20-25 mls each feeding and feed 4 times a day. Also be aware that he will be getting plenty of water with the CC and may not drink much from his water bottle.
 
obcsed said:
I usually feed about 20-25 mls each feeding and feed 4 times a day. Also be aware that he will be getting plenty of water with the CC and may not drink much from his water bottle.
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I am going to try 20 mls when I feed him again tonight. Thank you for the advice everyone!
 
I got him to eat 20 mls last night and again this morning. He definitely put up more of a fight this morning and kept trying to get out of his burrito. He appears to be very alert though and I keep finding droppings in the towel once I'm finished feeding him.
 
Honestly-

He may have been to painful/droggy the first couple of days from his surgery to even consider eating. I usually don't jump the gun on force feeding till the 3rd day. That way I get an idea on what he is doing and not doing.

I use a 12 ml feeding syringe and usually manage to get 24 ml 5 times a day. I would also double check on your metacam dosing with your vet. Metacam is meant to only be given once a day.
 
Godins Chinchillas said:
Honestly-

He may have been to painful/droggy the first couple of days from his surgery to even consider eating. I usually don't jump the gun on force feeding till the 3rd day. That way I get an idea on what he is doing and not doing.

I use a 12 ml feeding syringe and usually manage to get 24 ml 5 times a day. I would also double check on your metacam dosing with your vet. Metacam is meant to only be given once a day.
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I waited it out the first day with not feeding him but then I started to panic when I read about GI stasis. I'm assuming that his droppings are going to be smaller than usual? They aren't that much smaller but I of course notice a difference. They don't appear to have any mucus on them, they are very firm. Should he be pooping just as much as he used to or should there definitely be a decrease in droppings?

I wasn't aware that metacam is only to be given once daily. When I picked my chin up the vet definitely said twice a day and the paperwork clearly says twice daily. I am going to call my vet and double check because I don't want to be giving him too much. Thank you for that info.
 
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yeah I would call. Steve-who is my vet...also hubby-gave me a good hollaring when I did twice a day dosing on one of mine by accident. It didn't hurt her but he is adament about only giving it once a day.

What goes in must come out. So if he isn't eating as much he's not going to poop as much. It won't hurt to force feed but I am finding that one of mine has become lazy and will not eat as well unless I am force feeding. He will eat his supplement all day if I gave it to him. I think he just likes the attention.
 
Godins Chinchillas said:
yeah I would call. Steve-who is my vet...also hubby-gave me a good hollaring when I did twice a day dosing on one of mine by accident. It didn't hurt her but he is adament about only giving it once a day.

What goes in must come out. So if he isn't eating as much he's not going to poop as much. It won't hurt to force feed but I am finding that one of mine has become lazy and will not eat as well unless I am force feeding. He will eat his supplement all day if I gave it to him. I think he just likes the attention.
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Ok that's good to know.

My hubby was able to give him 15 mls of CC so I'm going to give him a couple more feedings when I get home and through the night. When I checked his hay and pellets this morning it doesn't look like he touched them. He's usually a hay piggy. I'm hoping that when I get home tonight the pile will look like it was munched on. How many days is it until they usually start eating on their own? He's been doing a lot of sleeping but he's still moving around and he even got into his hanging house.
 
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I have used metecam short term max dose and long term dosages meaning years and always use it twice a day on many many chins with no issues. I use it with famotidine if the use is longer than 20 days.
 
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He is going to be unlikely to eat on his own as long as he is full of CC. I don't feed through the night and that is usually when I can spot them eating on their own. Then I start reducing the number of feedings and the amount I feed. He isn't a dental chin that will need supplementing for a long period of time. He just needs to heal a bit and get over the anesthesia. Unless you have him on an antibiotic that might decrease his appetite, give him a chance to get hungry. It is a balancing act and you may just want to watch his weight. If he is pooping, peeing and not losing weight, the hand feedings can be decreased For my dental chin, I only feed twice a day just to help maintain his weight. My guess is you will be able to stop feeding him after just a couple of days or until he is off the pain med.
 
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obcsed said:
He is going to be unlikely to eat on his own as long as he is full of CC. I don't feed through the night and that is usually when I can spot them eating on their own. Then I start reducing the number of feedings and the amount I feed. He isn't a dental chin that will need supplementing for a long period of time. He just needs to heal a bit and get over the anesthesia. Unless you have him on an antibiotic that might decrease his appetite, give him a chance to get hungry. It is a balancing act and you may just want to watch his weight. If he is pooping, peeing and not losing weight, the hand feedings can be decreased For my dental chin, I only feed twice a day just to help maintain his weight. My guess is you will be able to stop feeding him after just a couple of days or until he is off the pain med.
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Should I still be trying to get that 70 - 100 mls of CC in him though? I am going to weigh him when I get home and then weigh him again tomorrow. How quickly will you notice a weight difference? I don't want to force feeding and then have him not eat any hay or pellets because of it. Maybe I should let him go through the night and give him a chance to eat on his own? I just don't want my guy going hungry or mess with his GI tract.
 
I've had experience with two neuters and a bladder surgery. I have found that once they feel good enough to move around well they do fine on their own. I do get some weight loss but keep an eye on it. If they either lose more than 20 or 30 grams, stop producing poop, aren't drinking or eating, then I supplement. I rarely have to do it for long. They bounce back quickly. Yours sounding like he needed a boost because he wasn't pooping much. If you can see that he is able to eat even a little on his own, start cutting back on the hand feeding. Just watch for any indication he isn't eating or eliminating and go from there. Lets face it, I'm sure he will be much happier if you don't have to handle him so much anyway.
 
Alright that's good to know. I'm going to weigh him tonight before hand feeding and then let him go through the night and observe in the morning for pooping or eating. Then I'll hand feed him more depending on what I observe. Thank you everyone for the guidance and reassurance. I feel much better now.
 
He's continue to poop... not as much as usual but I'll take what I can get! I also saw him grab a pellet and munch on it as well as nibble on a strand of hay. I hand fed him last night and once again this morning. He only took 10 mls from me before he refused to eat any more. I weighed him and he weighs 638 grams. I'm going to have my husband feed him twice during the day before I get home after work.
 
Yay poop! Only chin people get so excited about poop :) I'm glad he's doing better.
 
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