Not doing anything...?

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Rebecca1122

Rebecca1122

Charged By Chins.
Joined
Jun 13, 2011
Messages
335
Location
New York, NY
I just noticed that my chinchilla is not doing anything. He won't eat or drink or move, really. He's just staying in one corner of his cage, lying down and sprawled out in his corner, nudging his nose in the corner of the cage, on his chin chiller. I don't know why he's acting this way. He doesn't seem to be hot or dehydrated. I did just switch his food from the breeder's food to Oxbow because the breeder's food is not good for him.
Also, he's been biting/checking "down there, and I'm afraid he has a hair ring. And when I go to check, he just squirms.
Any advice with all of this?

Thank you.
 
How long has he been lying down? What is the temp of his room? He prob wants his junk food back...when did you switch? Don't cave in and give him that crappy food. Mark the level of his water bottle to see if it's going down. Hit the water nozzle to see if it's working, sometimes they don't work and he could be dehydrated. How old is he? A baby is unlikely to have a fur ring.
 
addictedtochins said:
How long has he been lying down? What is the temp of his room? He prob wants his junk food back...when did you switch? Don't cave in and give him that crappy food. Mark the level of his water bottle to see if it's going down. Hit the water nozzle to see if it's working, sometimes they don't work and he could be dehydrated. How old is he? A baby is unlikely to have a fur ring.
Click to expand...

He seems to be okay now. But last night he would lie down for around 5 minutes and then go to another corner and lie down. The temperature of the room was probably around 68 degrees. I did a cold switch of his food today. It seems that he drank and ate hey, but his food was untouched. And he is 6 months old.
 
Update - Oliver seems better now. I did my first successful hair ring check, which was tricky at first. He did have a little piece of hair stuck, so that might have been bothering him.
 
Thanks. Oliver's poops also seem to be pretty small. Do you think that could be because I switched his food?
He also hasn't eaten any of the Oxbow pellets yet...
 
I've been looking online and trying to call some places. The only petstore near me is a Petco, and they don't seem to have it. Is there anywhere else I could get it? Also, would I get capsules of acidophilus and break it and sprinkle that onto the Oxbow?

Thanks.
 
You can get in in the human part of a grocery store or drug store. Yes, get the gelaten sp? capsules, pull the two ends apart and sprinkle on top the pellets.
 
Okay, thanks. I'm not sure which will be available in the store, but I will look for one with a high count that is not expensive.
Dawn, I will take a taste before I give it to Oliver. What should it taste like in order to be able to give it to him?
 
I went to a local Duane Reade and got the capsules. The count said over 100 million, so I guessed that that was okay.
I put it on Oliver's Oxbow. He has been starting to eat the Oxbow a bit, so that's a good sign. He doesn't eat a lot, though. I sprinkled half of a capsule of acidophilus on his pellets. He ate a few, but not much, so I sprinkled the rest of the capsule into my hand and he ate it. He really likes that stuff!
Just out of curiosity, how much is too much for chins to have of acidophilus?

Also, Oliver has still not had a drink of water, which is concerning...
 
Are you sure the nozzle is working?? I found out the hard way (no chins died) but if the nozzles are working and they can't drink, they will stop eating also. I check my nozzles every day now
 
I have checked it and it does work. The ball at the bottom does seem to be a little off, but it works and water comes out.
 
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