Excessive drinking/peeing

[greychins]

One of my adoptive homes contacted me about their chinchilla excessively drinking and peeing. I've never dealt with this before, so I thought I'd pose the question here -- is this something to worry about? Something to watch? Something to go to the vet for?

Here's the relevant part of the message:

Dusty has drank his entire water bottle in one day (this has never happened before) and he has peed everywhere, even in his house which he likes to keep clean. He normally does not drink anywhere near this amount of water, and does not pee this much either. I have also noticed that he has been eating a lot more lately...or so he seems to be eating more..when I check his food dish I notice a lot of dust, like he's just crushing up the pellets with his teeth more and leaving it there? He has many chew toys, a full bag of hay at all times, and he gets applewood sticks daily so he should not need to waste the pellets to file his teeth. I'm just a bit concerned with all the water he's consuming. Do you have any thoughts on this? This is out of the ordinary for him.

In spite of all the water he is drinking and the peeing, he seems fine, happy, and healthy. I have read that the excessive water consumption and peeing can be a sign of him being diabetic, but he hasn't lost any weight..if anything he is gaining weight...he is jumping around as usual.

This all happened today for the first time and I thought it was really odd. As of right now I'm watching him closely, and he is still drinking a ton of water. I just filled up his bottle since he emptied it, and he's already gulping it down.

Thoughts/help are appreciated.

 

[ticklechin]

Chin needs a vet to test for diabetes-the three main symptoms are polydipsia (excessive thirst), polyuria (excessive urination) and polyphagia (strong desire to eat).

 

[EMSChins]

Possibly diabetes. No experience with it in chins but I know it is a possibility. Seen lots of it in my human patients.

 

[Anna35]

My Tinkerbell is a big water drinker and one thing I notice with her is that she eats like a pig...lol And Wakka eats about average I guess..lol and doesn't drink as much as Tinkerbell. But I guess what I'm getting at is I have been told that when they eat more they drink more because of their diet but I am not a really experienced chin owner I have only had chins for about a year this is just what I have seen with my girls the more they eat the more they drink. But it isn't always as simple as that with chins I have learned... Also from what I have seen with my girls the ones I have under a year are big eaters and drinkers maybe because they are growing babies..lol
I hope that helps a little...

 

[Anna35]

Dawn,
Tinkerbell has always been like that is that something I should have checked out or are there other symptoms that come with it? I have had her since June of this year..

 

[ticklechin]

The reason this is alarming is these are new symptoms, not something the chin has always done. A whole bottle of water and urination everywhere along with excessive eating are important symptoms and they should not be ignored or chalked up to a thirsty hungry chin.

 

[greychins]

I was thinking of diabetes as a possibility as well, but I wanted to see if others thought so too, so I wouldn't unnecessarily worry her if I was wrong. Alrighty, well I sent her an email with this info. Will let you know what happens when I hear back.

 

[Anna35]

Ah ok I understand now. Just wanted to make sure I didn't miss that with mine... I am a little obsessive with their health now since the recent loss of Yazy and Binx

I hope dusty is ok though..

 

[javachin]

Out of curiosity, do you know the size of the bottle? I'd take the chin to the vet for diabetes testing as well.

 

[greychins]

I don't know the size of the bottle off the top of my head -- this wasn't a recent adoption so I don't know if they got the bottle from me or elsewhere. I asked, will get back with that info.

Here's what she said:

Oh no! I hope that isn't the case, but I'm defiantly going to take him in to get checked out. Thanks so much for your quick response. Ill keep you updated.

Just curious.... is there a cause for diabetes in chins? Is it genetic? Bad diet?

 

[javachin]

I don't know much about it, but I think its hereditary.

 

[greychins]

Water bottle & update:

I use the big glass superpet chew proof bottle (24oz), I don't fill it all the way though, only a little more than half since its a huge bottle. Yesterday was the first time he has ever done that though, and we have moved his cage from one corner to another over the weekend so I'm hoping maybe it was just stress. He drank all of that water though, and peed so much I had to empty out his cage and give him a dust bath right away because it smelled so bad. So far today he seems to be drinking normally and I haven't noticed the excess urine. I plan on refilling the water bottle when I get home and marking the water level so I can get a more accurate idea of how much he is actually consuming. After monitoring him over the weekend I'm going to call and make an appointment for him to see Dr. Clarkson to run tests. Thanks for your support, he means the world to me. He's so social, fun and loving..he's a great chin. I would be heartbroken if he has something severe like diabetes

I believe it's about 12 ounces (the amount she filled) and Dusty seemed to have drank at least 6oz in a day. I want to do more research though to be sure. Since I've just changed the bedding I can now get a better idea if the soiled bedding is urine or wated water. Although, I do know for a fact he has been eating a lot more over the past month. 5 out of 10 times I check on him during the day he's eating.

So far today he has been fine, water intake and urine seems normal. He's jumping around as usual too. I'm keeping a close eye on him.

He is still eating a lot though.

Not sure if it would make any difference, but this is a male chin, around a year old.