Sorry in advance for this long story. I just want to be able to tell you guys everything that this chinchilla has been doing. I have been to the vet several times with him, and have been talking to the Vet about twice a week. I guess what I'm hunting for is advice on what I should do with my little guy, or personal experience with what could be wrong with him. This is my first chinchilla sickness, so bare with me, I'm a worried little mother!
I got this chinchilla about a month and three weeks ago. I already have another male chinchilla. I notice my two chinchillas were very vocal to one another talking across the room. I waited a month to make sure the new chin wasn't sick. Then I decided to introduce my guys in playtime ( to make playtime easier on me). They took to each other very well with very little fighting, I started out for 20 mins for playtime then as they started playing with one another, I started getting them their full hour together. So about two weeks of playing together with no fighting, I decided to try to home them together. While I was cleaning their future home, Mama was watching them play. My chinchilla ( Piper) is potty trained that in playtime he pees on a puppy pad, so Zeke (my new chinchilla) figured out to pee on the puppy pad too. Mama said Piper pee'd on the pad first and Zeke went to pee on it and it was bloody. I notice he was also breathing rapidly and sneezing. So we rushed him to the Vet along with Piper for company. They did a fecal exam on Zeke and a full exam over both the boys. Through the fecal exam they found that Zeke had giardia and carridia ( two parasites) and the vet thinks he might have a UTI but it is very rare in male chinchillas. So he treated the parasites first. He put both chinchillas ( since they played together) on an antiparsiteical and said to keep an eye on Zeke's urine. On the 5th day of the meds with 3 more days to go, Zeke is started to pee a lot of blood and really dark without any urine showing at all. And his poop started getting rounder and a light color. He did run a fever once but he was still eating and drinking normally. So I called the Vet back and he told me to stop the antiparsiteical and come get an antibiotic for 10 days. Okay so since Piper still had 3 days of antiparsiteical and Zeke is now off of the antiparsiteical and now on antibiotic and I wasn't sure if all of Zeke's parasites were gone so I didn't let Piper and him play together that way Piper could not catch anything else. Zeke is on day 5 of antibiotic that night we finally see a difference in the urine it's is now light blood ( which the doc said was a good sign) and eventually he had about three good normal pees without any blood. So we were excited, the doctor said to continue the antibiotic for 10 more days then 5 days of no meds to give his tummy a break and then the 3 days of antiparsiteical then come to see him. Well two days later ( which is today) Zeke has quit eating, drinking very little, and his poop is so tiny! But he is pooping still. He is now back to the light blood and still regular urine but the pee spots are tiny. He is also peeing all over his cage ( which is not normal for him). He is getting aggressive but I'm guessing it's the meds cause it smells and is like chalky. He isn't playing since I separated him and Piper, he just sits and crys for Piper (Piper does the same think in playtime). So I'm fixing to call the vet again, but idk what else he can do. So any advice or expertise would really be helpful. I'm really worried about him. I don't know much about his previous home but they do seem to love him. He was on a food that had corn, raisins, etc. in it so I slowly started introducing it to him Oxbow ( this is wen I first got him) but he would just pick all his previous food out of it. But since he has quit eating, the doc said to give him whatever he wants so I went back to the other food. He was also on red cedar bedding but I switched him over to Aspen. I also don't think he got much playtime due to when id sit in there with him he couldn't even jump on my shoulder, which Piper does effortlessly. Zeke is super friendly on the 2nd day of having him, he was already wanting me to hold him. The vet even told me how much of a difference in muscle tone that Piper had then Zeke. So I don't know of any of that could be related? The vet does seem confident these meds will work it just seems like he got a little better then went back downhill fast! So any advice or home remedies or whatever! I'm desperate for answers and I want this little guy to get better! And again I'm sorry for the length of this!
I got this chinchilla about a month and three weeks ago. I already have another male chinchilla. I notice my two chinchillas were very vocal to one another talking across the room. I waited a month to make sure the new chin wasn't sick. Then I decided to introduce my guys in playtime ( to make playtime easier on me). They took to each other very well with very little fighting, I started out for 20 mins for playtime then as they started playing with one another, I started getting them their full hour together. So about two weeks of playing together with no fighting, I decided to try to home them together. While I was cleaning their future home, Mama was watching them play. My chinchilla ( Piper) is potty trained that in playtime he pees on a puppy pad, so Zeke (my new chinchilla) figured out to pee on the puppy pad too. Mama said Piper pee'd on the pad first and Zeke went to pee on it and it was bloody. I notice he was also breathing rapidly and sneezing. So we rushed him to the Vet along with Piper for company. They did a fecal exam on Zeke and a full exam over both the boys. Through the fecal exam they found that Zeke had giardia and carridia ( two parasites) and the vet thinks he might have a UTI but it is very rare in male chinchillas. So he treated the parasites first. He put both chinchillas ( since they played together) on an antiparsiteical and said to keep an eye on Zeke's urine. On the 5th day of the meds with 3 more days to go, Zeke is started to pee a lot of blood and really dark without any urine showing at all. And his poop started getting rounder and a light color. He did run a fever once but he was still eating and drinking normally. So I called the Vet back and he told me to stop the antiparsiteical and come get an antibiotic for 10 days. Okay so since Piper still had 3 days of antiparsiteical and Zeke is now off of the antiparsiteical and now on antibiotic and I wasn't sure if all of Zeke's parasites were gone so I didn't let Piper and him play together that way Piper could not catch anything else. Zeke is on day 5 of antibiotic that night we finally see a difference in the urine it's is now light blood ( which the doc said was a good sign) and eventually he had about three good normal pees without any blood. So we were excited, the doctor said to continue the antibiotic for 10 more days then 5 days of no meds to give his tummy a break and then the 3 days of antiparsiteical then come to see him. Well two days later ( which is today) Zeke has quit eating, drinking very little, and his poop is so tiny! But he is pooping still. He is now back to the light blood and still regular urine but the pee spots are tiny. He is also peeing all over his cage ( which is not normal for him). He is getting aggressive but I'm guessing it's the meds cause it smells and is like chalky. He isn't playing since I separated him and Piper, he just sits and crys for Piper (Piper does the same think in playtime). So I'm fixing to call the vet again, but idk what else he can do. So any advice or expertise would really be helpful. I'm really worried about him. I don't know much about his previous home but they do seem to love him. He was on a food that had corn, raisins, etc. in it so I slowly started introducing it to him Oxbow ( this is wen I first got him) but he would just pick all his previous food out of it. But since he has quit eating, the doc said to give him whatever he wants so I went back to the other food. He was also on red cedar bedding but I switched him over to Aspen. I also don't think he got much playtime due to when id sit in there with him he couldn't even jump on my shoulder, which Piper does effortlessly. Zeke is super friendly on the 2nd day of having him, he was already wanting me to hold him. The vet even told me how much of a difference in muscle tone that Piper had then Zeke. So I don't know of any of that could be related? The vet does seem confident these meds will work it just seems like he got a little better then went back downhill fast! So any advice or home remedies or whatever! I'm desperate for answers and I want this little guy to get better! And again I'm sorry for the length of this!
rayer:
