Red Feet (Again, I know!)

[Zahrii]

*Sigh* here we go again. The redness on the heel of my two chins' feet is still not gone. To be exact, the redness on their heels doesn't cover the whole heel, just the center mainly. There's also no scabbing, scratches, heat, bumps, puss, etc. All there is, is some slight normal callusing here and there. The heels are also a little bit wider than normal. I've tried basically everything. Vet advice, cushioning almost every inch of the cage, perches instead of ledges, bag balm for a few weeks, no bag balm for a few weeks. All within the past 2 or so months. No improvement, it just stayed the same or looked slightly better one day but went back to the normal the next. They've been without a wheel since mid-late February because of a few minor foot injuries (all accidents, early 2020 has just been filled with bad luck).

I'm afraid if I put in the wheel the redness will get worse, but at the same time the poor chins have been bored, especially the more active one. Some of the cage bars have been chewed quite a bit, and I caught him chewing on one of the metal grommets on his hammock which he normally never does (hammock has been removed). The toy fund has been cut short due to the Coronavirus, and I can't seem to catch up with the toy buying with how fast they go through them because of the lack of the wheel. If anyone has any cheap and long-lasting toy ideas, please let me know.

Does anyone have any advice for this situation? Is there a solution to the redness or is it just a forever thing? Should I put the wheel back? Again, cheap toy ideas? Thanks in advance.

 

[Amethyst]

If there is no sores or anything and it comes and goes I wonder if it might just be normal redness simply from blood in their feet. Chins cool through their feet and ears, so if they are a bit warm (like walking around on fleece "carpet") they would have blood going to their feet (and ears but not as noticeable on greys until it's really red) to try to cool themselves down. Do they have any cooling tiles to stand on? Even ceramic tiles can work, but granite tiles (like chinchillers) hold cold better. The heels being a bit wider could just be their new normal now too after all the issues.

I would try putting the wheel back in now but watch closely for any issues. There isn't a lot for cheap toys that last, most of my ideas are for temporary until you can get more kind of ideas. Things like popsicle sticks are cheap, but they can splinter and chins can chew through them quickly. The long lasting things would be harder wood, if your guys will chew on it, as well as pumice stones not the lava chews but actual pumice stones. Bulk toy parts can be cheap, one place I can think of off hand that people have been talking about recently is ChinchillaCity Home They have bulk pieces for reasonable prices, but I do understand that with lack of money even "reasonable" can be too expensive. Another option if you are handy at all is to buy some chin safe wood boards and cut it into chunks and use that as chews.

 

[Zahrii]

If there is no sores or anything and it comes and goes I wonder if it might just be normal redness simply from blood in their feet. Chins cool through their feet and ears, so if they are a bit warm (like walking around on fleece "carpet") they would have blood going to their feet (and ears but not as noticeable on greys until it's really red) to try to cool themselves down. Do they have any cooling tiles to stand on? Even ceramic tiles can work, but granite tiles (like chinchillers) hold cold better. The heels being a bit wider could just be their new normal now too after all the issues.

I would try putting the wheel back in now but watch closely for any issues. There isn't a lot for cheap toys that last, most of my ideas are for temporary until you can get more kind of ideas. Things like popsicle sticks are cheap, but they can splinter and chins can chew through them quickly. The long lasting things would be harder wood, if your guys will chew on it, as well as pumice stones not the lava chews but actual pumice stones. Bulk toy parts can be cheap, one place I can think of off hand that people have been talking about recently is ChinchillaCity Home They have bulk pieces for reasonable prices, but I do understand that with lack of money even "reasonable" can be too expensive. Another option if you are handy at all is to buy some chin safe wood boards and cut it into chunks and use that as chews.

The issue is that to my knowledge the redness is pretty much constant. Sometimes it looks like it's getting better but the next day it goes back to the normal redness. I'll try chinchillers and see if those help any, if not I'll put the wheel back and monitor.

 

[Zahrii]

Alright, so, it's been a day since I put the chinchiller in. One of the chins' feet has improved slightly, still some redness, but not as much I think. The other chin however has stayed the same with the redness, no improvement. Still no negative changes though, no unusual warmth or anything when I touched his feet. Should I wait more and see if there's any improvements or put the wheel back now?

 

[Zahrii]

If there is no sores or anything and it comes and goes I wonder if it might just be normal redness simply from blood in their feet. Chins cool through their feet and ears, so if they are a bit warm (like walking around on fleece "carpet") they would have blood going to their feet (and ears but not as noticeable on greys until it's really red) to try to cool themselves down. Do they have any cooling tiles to stand on? Even ceramic tiles can work, but granite tiles (like chinchillers) hold cold better. The heels being a bit wider could just be their new normal now too after all the issues.

Alright, so, it's been a day since I put the chinchiller in. One of the chins' feet has improved slightly, still some redness, but not as much I think. The other chin however has stayed the same with the redness, no improvement. Still no negative changes though, no unusual warmth or anything when I touched his feet. Should I wait more and see if there's any improvements or put the wheel back now?

 

[Unicorn777111]

Alright, so, it's been a day since I put the chinchiller in. One of the chins' feet has improved slightly, still some redness, but not as much I think. The other chin however has stayed the same with the redness, no improvement. Still no negative changes though, no unusual warmth or anything when I touched his feet. Should I wait more and see if there's any improvements or put the wheel back now?

Tile is a good idea. Swee Swee, my little girl, is a gray. One summer her ears were warm to the touch and veins were dilated. I wrapped a cold pack (hard plastic for picnics) in a towel and put it in the bottom of her cage in the corner,on be top of the tile. She would sit either on the tile or the cold pack and she would cool down. I observed her ears were cool to the touch and veins were constricted. I don't know if that helps you. It worked for Swee Swee

 

[Hmarie]

*Sigh* here we go again. The redness on the heel of my two chins' feet is still not gone. To be exact, the redness on their heels doesn't cover the whole heel, just the center mainly. There's also no scabbing, scratches, heat, bumps, puss, etc. All there is, is some slight normal callusing here and there. The heels are also a little bit wider than normal. I've tried basically everything. Vet advice, cushioning almost every inch of the cage, perches instead of ledges, bag balm for a few weeks, no bag balm for a few weeks. All within the past 2 or so months. No improvement, it just stayed the same or looked slightly better one day but went back to the normal the next. They've been without a wheel since mid-late February because of a few minor foot injuries (all accidents, early 2020 has just been filled with bad luck).

I'm afraid if I put in the wheel the redness will get worse, but at the same time the poor chins have been bored, especially the more active one. Some of the cage bars have been chewed quite a bit, and I caught him chewing on one of the metal grommets on his hammock which he normally never does (hammock has been removed). The toy fund has been cut short due to the Coronavirus, and I can't seem to catch up with the toy buying with how fast they go through them because of the lack of the wheel. If anyone has any cheap and long-lasting toy ideas, please let me know.

Does anyone have any advice for this situation? Is there a solution to the redness or is it just a forever thing? Should I put the wheel back? Again, cheap toy ideas? Thanks in advance.

Not a toy per se, but chewable material....we have a pecan and a sycamore tree in our yard. Both are safe woods. We boil them and scrub with a brush then dry well (in the oven). They are always excited to get fresh sticks and it is free! You could probably find a park with trees that are an acceptable wood. You want to get fresh sticks, not ones that have been laying on the ground a while and might have fungi, etc.