Need Advice on Chin Injury, Please!

[LannyCoop]

Hi, so I am a fairly new chinchilla owner, I have had my little Kiefer for almost three months. And two days ago he got a little scratch under his leg from one of my cats. they were not in the same room, but from under the door my cat got a little nic on him. It bled for a short time and is not a scap. He was being careful with the leg for a few days and I have not let him out in case he overdoes it and breaks the scab. I was wondering if this is the right thing to do? he is going a little crazy in his cage not being let out but I give him attention and try to let him be in a quite room to rest. And there is no sign of infections. Am I being a good owner? Has anyone experienced something like this? Please any advice would be greatly appreicated. I worry so much about my little guy!

 

[Laurie]

Lanny you are going to hear a lot of things which will not make you happy, I'm sorry. Are you a good owner--probably not--right now, but if you listen to the people on the forum in time you can be. It is NOT okay to let your cat and chin be out together or be able to get at your chin. Even though they are not out at the same time, your cat, with it's claws still in tact could have caused very serious damage to your chin. Chins are very small and a cut such as that could have gotten infected and your chin actually could die from such an infection. The only time your chin should ever be out of his cage is with supervision--with you monitoring his every move. It doesn't sound like that happened as your cat was able to reach under the door to get him. In the future you should try to have some blu-kote on hand for chinchillas scrapes and cuts. The best place to allow your chin out of his cage for playtime is honestly your bathroom. It's most of the time the best room in the house that can cause a chin harm--not wires to chew or places to hide underneath and get trapped or hurt.
It is very good you've joined the forum to learn about your chin--listen to what everyone has to say to you about this matter but remember you may hear things that hurt your feelings about this, but learn from it and go forward.

 

[Parkerspetchins]

My concern is that cat nails can harbor a lot of bacteria and that bacteria could have been transfered to the cut on your chinnie's leg. Without looking at it and seeing how bad the scrape is I am not sure whether a vet check is warranted. If he were my chinchilla, if I thought the scratch was very superficial I would clean it with peroxide and then coat it with Blu-Kote. If it looked like the chinnie could potentially get an infection then I would bring him to the vet for the vet to decide whether or not antibiotics were necessary to fight off potential infection.

You are not a bad chin owner, accidents happen, but it is great that you joined the forum so that you can learn from others' mistakes and others can learn from you too!

 

[JennyBug]

Try using the bathroom as your chinchilla free-play room. If there is a space large enough for a cat's paw to fit under below the door, try pushing a towel up against it to block access. You're not a bad owner, you're just really new at this (like me!) Good for you for joining up and wanting the best for your chinnie!

As far as the scrape/cut itself, I agree with Jean. Make sure it's been cleaned really well (I have cats, and I know how gross their claws can get from walking in a litter box, etc.), and if anything but VERY superficial, off to the vet with you! Regardless, keep a close eye on it for at least the next few days, in case something develops.

 

[Jenn]

I agree with the others. Your cat is going to be curious, at the very least, and you can't have your chin anywhere close where he can be injured. What ever area you use as a play area has to be totally chin-proofed. From stuff on the floor, wires, other animals, etc. I agree with putting a towel under the door to keep cat paws out, or to shut your cat in another area of the house during chin play time.

Keep a very close eye on his leg. Any signs of slow healing or infection, any signs at all, and get him into a vet that knows how to properly care for chins. A lot of vets don't have enough knowledge to treat chins effectively.

Good luck and if you have any other questions, don't hesitate. There is a lot of good information here and a lot of people that can help you prevent making any dangerous mistakes.

 

[LannyCoop]

Oh they werent in the same room together...
I don't mind learning and people can say
I am a bad owner or not, I just needed
some advice about how long i should wait to let him out again
, but dont worry I never let them both out
at the same time, in the same room... this was
just a accident I didnt think a claw could
get under the door... but i learned

but yeah I will make sure she is in another room with the door
shut, but they are never in the same room when they are both out
thanks for the advice... he is actually better now
the cut healed up and he is using his leg...
thanks for all the help though!

I was kinda confused here on how the bad chin
owner came in haha.
I really try hard, this was just a accident..

and i didnt say i was or not hahaha..

but really i appreciate all the advice, and
its been 3 days and no signs of anything
he is back to normal now

woops sorry i keep wanting to re-word things
cause.. well... I keep just sending it and not i dunno
anyways I am sorry, I really am just wanting the best
for him, I honestly didnt know a cat could get under my door
and it was just a accident. I will know and make sure there
are never any cat near the door when i let him out
I am always watching him carefully. and am with him the
whole time he plays
sorry this is getting to me defending it when i know
it happened and was an accident.. but I will
maybe try the bathroom and see...

really thanks for all the help..
again. sorry for the many
stupid posts haha

 

[Parkerspetchins]

Am I being a good owner?

In order to clear up your confusion...this question is how the "you are not a bad owner" comments came about . You pretty much asked, it just got reworded a bit LOL.

Accidents happen, sounds like you learned from it and all is seemingly well.

Just a note, you have several minutes to edit your posts so you don't have to make multiple ones minutes apart . They may not be showing up right away because you may be on monitored status until you have made a few more posts.

 

[LannyCoop]

ohh okay sorry, i got confused..
I see it now there... sorry!
thanks for clearning that up
I am really sorry I get it now haha
and ohhh okay makes sense now
on all fronts... thankss

 

[Parkerspetchins]

No worries :thumbsup:.

 

[LannyCoop]

I will get the hang of all this eventually.
this site and my chinny too
I will just be definatly more careful
Thanks too all for the advice