Tearing eyes problem

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pandabunny

New member
Joined
Feb 20, 2023
Messages
3
Location
New York
Hi everyone, I'm a chin mom since 2018. My chin's tearing eyes have been bothering us since the day we had him. I've taken him to different exotic vets and I was told he's perfectly healthy. They were thinking maybe it was some kind of allergy. I used Benadryl(doctor's advice) and changed the food brands, treats types, and his living environment (different houses), but none of them really worked. One time a doctor suggested we give him artificial tears one of his eyelids became really pink and he could barely open it. Once we stopped giving him the artificial tears, that eye has been better. The only time he had better eyes was a period I fed him some marigold flowers (I assume that was the reason). But it only lasted maybe less than one month, and it stopped working.
He normally wakes up with good eyes: no tears, white eyelids like in the first two pictures. However, after a while, his eyes will start to tear and his eyelids will turn red. In pictures 3 and 4, his current state, His eyelids are red. His eyes often are watery. He rubs/scratches his eyes very often.
I'm wondering if anyone has encountered this problem before. Thank you!
 

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What is the ventilation like in the room where your chin is? I have been told by several long term breeders, that barring tooth/infection issues, wet around the eyes can come from bad ventilation where the chin lives, though that's not usually accompanied by redness.

I see you have liners in your cage. Do you use scented detergent/fabric softener? If so, that could be an issue. Do you burn candles or have heavily scented things in your home? Again, could be an issue. You could try flushing his eyes with saline to see if that helps.
 
My 9 month old baby has a similar issue on occasion. I thought he had conjunctivitis at first but it was fine 2 days later. His ventilation is great and the only thing I've been able to come up with for mine is that, maybe when he's playing and simulates his dust bath rolls, he leaves his eye open and it gets irritated.
 
What is the ventilation like in the room where your chin is? I have been told by several long term breeders, that barring tooth/infection issues, wet around the eyes can come from bad ventilation where the chin lives, though that's not usually accompanied by redness.

I see you have liners in your cage. Do you use scented detergent/fabric softener? If so, that could be an issue. Do you burn candles or have heavily scented things in your home? Again, could be an issue. You could try flushing his eyes with saline to see if that helps.
Thank you for the suggestions! I'll try to open windows more often and see if it helps
 
My 9 month old baby has a similar issue on occasion. I thought he had conjunctivitis at first but it was fine 2 days later. His ventilation is great and the only thing I've been able to come up with for mine is that, maybe when he's playing and simulates his dust bath rolls, he leaves his eye open and it gets irritated.
Same here! I thought my baby had conjunctivitis and even used some medicines, which made it worse. I tied not to give him a dust bath for almost a week, but the condition didn't improve :(
 
Hi everyone, I'm a chin mom since 2018. My chin's tearing eyes have been bothering us since the day we had him. I've taken him to different exotic vets and I was told he's perfectly healthy. They were thinking maybe it was some kind of allergy. I used Benadryl(doctor's advice) and changed the food brands, treats types, and his living environment (different houses), but none of them really worked. One time a doctor suggested we give him artificial tears one of his eyelids became really pink and he could barely open it. Once we stopped giving him the artificial tears, that eye has been better. The only time he had better eyes was a period I fed him some marigold flowers (I assume that was the reason). But it only lasted maybe less than one month, and it stopped working.
He normally wakes up with good eyes: no tears, white eyelids like in the first two pictures. However, after a while, his eyes will start to tear and his eyelids will turn red. In pictures 3 and 4, his current state, His eyelids are red. His eyes often are watery. He rubs/scratches his eyes very often.
I'm wondering if anyone has encountered this problem before. Thank you!
Yes I did with my 20 year old chinchilla. Sometimes it could be the dust you’re using you may wanna change the dust. That’s what one Vet told me because my little guys one of the eyes always teared up and sometimes got infected and I use this ointment to help him and he suggested changing the dust. Also I’m not sure what kind of betting you use but I was told only to use Aspen
bedding.
 
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