no parasites-chronic mushy poop

[CrystalH]

so...you can relay to my older posts if interested in my chinchilla travails...but as the title said. we've been experiencing coming and going of soft (not runny) poop. it is mushy and the consistency seems rough. i've noticed some holes in his more healthier poos too. i've taken him to the vet several times. we've had gi and parasite checks twice both---both negative on two counts. i'm bummed out. he seems normal otherwise...altho today he was making a soft whimpering noise that to my paranoid ears sounded different from his comfy curled up squeaky noises. the vet i took him to specifically to check for the giardia/parasites test today didn't seem like a specialist (not the usual out of town vet i usually take him to)...he rec'd metronidazole WHICH i heard was damaging to the system...so i passed for now. (opting to go to the other vet for other opinion if symptoms go downhill) he also made the observation that the chinchilla might have something wrong with stomach--cysts or something?? but recommended an x-ray which is gd expensive on top of today's $121. what do you guys think? should i splurge for this...cyst issue?? is that common?

ps. still on oxbow diet. timothy free feed. not a big eater of timothy hay...could this be the problem? he'll nibble sometimes but not eat as much as i feel other chins do. what are ways to encourage eating without reducing/taking away pellets?

 

[obcsed]

I recently went through the same thing here with three of my chins. Although I was reluctant to use metronidazole, it cleared up the mushy poops. Like you, 2 different vets and a vet school were unable to identify any parasites or abnormal bacteria but the antibiotic did work.

 

[ticklechin]

Flagyl has a reputation for issues that was based on nothing, the original group that screamed there were issues with the liver retracted their statements, its as safe as any of the heavy duty antibiotics can be. That said, I would if this was my chin I would use a course of it and see what happens before I went on to aggressive testing-IMO a ultrasound would be more useful as a diagnostic tool than a x-ray-it will show if there is any abnormal anatomy and the peristaltic action of the GI tract, chronic slow peristalsis can cause this type of issue in otherwise healthy chins. Chins can also be wheat intolerant like humans and this can cause all kinds of GI issues, I had a father and son who were both wheat intolerant and had to be on a 100% timmy only pellet and timmy and alfalfa hay. The wheat in the regular pellets wreaked havoc on their digestive tracts. My vet has seen a few cases of it.

 

[CrystalH]

Flagyl has a reputation for issues that was based on nothing, the original group that screamed there were issues with the liver retracted their statements, its as safe as any of the heavy duty antibiotics can be. That said, I would if this was my chin I would use a course of it and see what happens before I went on to aggressive testing-IMO a ultrasound would be more useful as a diagnostic tool than a x-ray-it will show if there is any abnormal anatomy and the peristaltic action of the GI tract, chronic slow peristalsis can cause this type of issue in otherwise healthy chins. Chins can also be wheat intolerant like humans and this can cause all kinds of GI issues, I had a father and son who were both wheat intolerant and had to be on a 100% timmy only pellet and timmy and alfalfa hay. The wheat in the regular pellets wreaked havoc on their digestive tracts. My vet has seen a few cases of it.

he does seem to be losing weight. not visibly but i don't know if the vet measured differently than the exotics specialist...but he is now 1.4 lbs when he was measured a month ago for 1.5. is there a way to test for gluten allergies?? is oxbow too rich then? i have stopped every treat and only feed him hay/oxbow diet. should i switch foods on him to an only alfalfa based pellet???

 

[CrystalH]

the troublesome poop looks like this: light brown, roughage a little undigested, shiny stuff on it (dried mucus or dust from cage...idk), sometimes one or two small holes in it..., soft--doesn't hold together well when i squish it between fingers, tear shaped.

 

[ticklechin]

I used a 100% timothy pellet and alfalfa and timothy loose hay. This was a few years ago so I have not researched if there are gluten free rabbit or chinchilla pellets avaliable now. I see you have already tried albon and panacur, with no success, it might be worth a try.