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searchand_dstry

Well-known member
Joined
Jan 31, 2009
Messages
209
Location
Parma, OH
I'm taking Baxter to the vet on Thursday for his eyes. I suspect he may have problems with his teeth & had a few questions.

First, some background! I've had problems with Baxter getting watery eyes every now & then, but they would always clear up, come back, clear up again. Now it's continuous and seems to be worsening. It also only used to be in one eye and it is now both. They are not crusty or red or anything, just very watery. I'm going to have the vet do an eye stain to check for any scratches if he doesn't suggest it to see if it could be his eyes causing any problems.

Second, I'm not sure if any of you remember this back on the old forum, but Baxter is my chinchilla who contracted the herpes virus. I know it can cause eye problems and generally show up in the eyes, but I was never told specifically ( and never asked) what kind of eye problems? Would it cause watery eyes like this? Crusty eyes, swollen eyes? If any of you have any experience with this & know, it would be very helpful! & How would I know if it was this virus showing up again? I don't want to wait to find out, but I don't want him on unnecessary medications either.

Lastly, if we don't find any of the above the culprit I want the vet to check his teeth and do an x-ray. I've never been to this vet before, but it's the closest to me who I know has some chinchilla experience. I was told to go by my old vet who no longer treats chinchillas. When he checks the teeth what should he be looking for? I know this seems like a silly question, but I want to be sure he checking everything correctly!

Thanks in advance!

EDIT:: I just wanted to add that he has not lost any weight & is eating/drinking/pooping fine!
 
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What kind of bedding do you use and are there any flowering plants near his room? Just curious, I have one who in the spring gets watery eyes and the vet diagnosed it as allergies, all other diagnostics came back negative.
 
What kind of bedding do you use and are there any flowering plants near his room? Just curious, I have one who in the spring gets watery eyes and the vet diagnosed it as allergies, all other diagnostics came back negative.

No plants in the room & he uses aspen or pine. I switched from KD pine in the beginning, to carefresh, to aspen, back to pine ATM. The only thing I have left to use is fleece liners. I'm switching to fleece liners after I remodel the cage, but this has been going on too long for me to wanna wait, you know?

I will ask the vet about allergies though!
 
If it was a herpes infection, it can recur just like it does in humans. The infection goes latent and upon stresses it can become lytic again. Maybe that is the cause? I had a similar scare with Loki and after he had recurring eye infections, and the vet thought it could possibly be the herpes becoming lytic again. Though thankfully with new drops the infection hasn't come back *knock on wood.*

Though, you can always get some xrays done to rule out the malo possibility.

I'd check him for scratches, do xrays on his teeth, rule out all those possibilities first. If it's all clear, then maybe it is in fact a recurring herpes infection.
 
Just wanted to do a qucik update if anyones interested...

I took him to the vet today (which was a surprisingly good, knowledgeable vet) & he thinks the most likely cause is allergies.

He did do a thorough check on his eyes & teeth.. he did a few things with the eyes, including a stain.. no scrathes or anything. He also said his teeth look perfect. He says they are very healthy & worn down well. He felt along his jaw line, said it felt good. I talked to him about it possibly being his herpes infection, but he said it would be much more severe and he said it's not a URI obviously, because of the length of time it has been going on.

I opted not to do x-rays after talking to the vet. I was told to switch him over to fleece liners to see if maybe it's a bedding allergy, see if they are worse after dust baths, and flush his eyes with saline solution more often. He also said it could be seasonal because it does go away and come back. He think if it were the teeth (and I agree) it would not go away. It would be constant and with other problems which Baxter doesn't have. He eats like a horse, chews fine, no drooling, no pawing at the mouth, no teeth grinding.

If he continues to get worse or it becomes constant I will do x-rays. It was getting worse & when I brought him in today the watering was almost non-existent. So here's to hoping it really is just allergies!
 
You cannot tell a chin's teeth are perfect by just looking at them! I am so sick of vets not doing x rays when they are obviously needed. He needs x rays to rule out teeth problems.
 
You cannot tell a chin's teeth are perfect by just looking at them! I am so sick of vets not doing x rays when they are obviously needed. He needs x rays to rule out teeth problems.

I know that & he didn't say "don't get x-rays". The only reason I did not do them was because he is not showing any other problems. This has been going on for so long that I would think something else would be going on as well if it is root elongation. Like I said, he eats like a freaking pig, no pawing at mouth, no teeth grinding, no drooling.. I was originally going to have x-rays done at this visit, but I decided to make a few changes in his environment first & if nothing changes or worsens, I will get them done.
 
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