It's been awhile since I've posted on here, but I I just took in another rescue chin.
This chin came to me in a tiny cage with a plastic hidey house, plastic shelves, plastic bowl, etc. She had never had a dust bath in her life, and she is 8 months old. The previous owners were feeding her mystery pellets, and had just run out. Since I didn't know what she was on before I had to switch her right to Oxbow, which is what I use for my other chinchillas.
She was fine for the first few days, but then she started frantically squeaking when I picked her up, when before she enjoyed being held. So I checked her out, and she did feel a little bloated, and I could hear/feel gas bubbles when I massaged her stomach. She is still eating, drinking, and pooping normally.
I've been giving her simethicone every 6 hours for 2 days now, and giving her belly rubs. She is not as bloated as she was when I first noticed, but there is definitely still some gas in there. Should I continue with the simethicone and see how she does, or should I take her to the vet to see if there is something else wrong?
This chin came to me in a tiny cage with a plastic hidey house, plastic shelves, plastic bowl, etc. She had never had a dust bath in her life, and she is 8 months old. The previous owners were feeding her mystery pellets, and had just run out. Since I didn't know what she was on before I had to switch her right to Oxbow, which is what I use for my other chinchillas.
She was fine for the first few days, but then she started frantically squeaking when I picked her up, when before she enjoyed being held. So I checked her out, and she did feel a little bloated, and I could hear/feel gas bubbles when I massaged her stomach. She is still eating, drinking, and pooping normally.
I've been giving her simethicone every 6 hours for 2 days now, and giving her belly rubs. She is not as bloated as she was when I first noticed, but there is definitely still some gas in there. Should I continue with the simethicone and see how she does, or should I take her to the vet to see if there is something else wrong?