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15 Mar 2015

Common Chinchilla Ailments

Posted By : Guest

Filed Under : Chinchillas | Veterinary News

Chinchillas are popular small pets in South Africa, but by virtue of being housed and caged in our homes vets will often see some recurring problems in their clinics.

Some of the more common issues vets will see include;

Dental disease

Chinchilla’s have continuously growing teeth. They need to grind both the incisors and cheek teeth by eating high fibre diets. They may often be presented with swellings around the face and mouth, drooling saliva, anorexia and weight loss. If you see any of these problems, check the dental anatomy, looking for spurs, bleeding cheeks/gums and swellings along the mandibular jaw line. Vets will use lateral, oblique and dorso-ventral x-rays to look for abnormal changes. A great resource for comparing normal and abnormal dental anatomy for vets is ‘Clinical Radiology of Exotic Companion Mammals’.

Gastrointestinal disease

As with all fibrevores, digestive diseases are particularly common, with constipation, diarrhoea, bloat and stasis being common presenting signs. Abdominal radiographs for vets are useful as identifying and differentiating the signs, particularly when looking for evidence of gas or faeces. Most GIT disturbances are triggered by either stress or inappropriate diets, so vets will want to know who’s looks after the pet, which other animals are in the house, what food concentrates are offered and how much good quality hay is provided.

Check our client link to chinchilla nutrition >

Fur slip

Like rabbits, chinchillas are prey animals and have important survival mechanisms to help them escape from predators. Their skin is particularly prone to slipping if pulled or trapped. It’s not uncommon to find the skin pulled off the end of the tail through inappropriate handling by an owner. This needs to be dealt with immediately, but sadly is usually beyond repair. Careful suturing of the skin back in place is unlikely to work, and without treatment, necrosis of the end of the tail and secondary infection of the bone and muscle will develop. Faced with this problem, amputation of the tip of the tail is usually the most appropriate course of action.

Hyperthermia

Always consider overheating when presented with a depressed or hyperactive chinchilla. The normal body temperature should be around 36C to 37.5C, with the ideal environmental temperatures being between 10C and 20C.

Typical signs to look out for include;

Tachypnoea (in excess of 100 breaths /min )

Weakness

Salivation

High rectal temperature

Restlessness

Treatment options may be as simple as cooling the animal with ice bags, or in more critical cases careful using cold water enemas and water baths.

Barbering

If bored, stressed or unwell, chinchillas may over groom and chew their fur.

Check for signs of hair loss, scabs or blood.

Common areas chewed are the belly, tail and inside of the legs.

Vitamin deficiencies

The commonest cause of vitamin malnutrition is inappropriate or poor diets being offered. Many owners may choose to feed a ‘muesli’ based pet food diet or even rabbit food. Vets will emphasize the importance of feeding plenty of hay and using a species-specific diet. The best chinchilla diet available in South Africa is Burgess Excel Chinchilla Nuggets.

Hypovitaminosis A and E are the most common problems vets see, and this is usually attributed to overfeeding seed based diets and underfeeding good quality hay.

Aural haematoma

The skin and blood vessels of the chinchilla are very delicate, and aural haematomas are commonly seen. As with dogs and cats, they can be quite frustrating to treat. Drainage of the haematoma may be attempted with compression being applied afterwards. Vets will try to find the cause of the haematoma to prevent recurrence.

Arthritis

Chinchillas are no different to other mammals. They can get painful joints through degeneration and osteoarthritis. Vets will check for all the typical signs such as;

i) Lameness
ii) Reluctance to move
iii) Lethargy
iv) Chewing or licking over joints

Some of the common anti-inflammatory and analgesic drugs available include meloxicam, carprofen, buprenorphine, butorphanol and fentanyl. A good resource for checking available dose rates of these drugs is the Exotic Animal Formulary.

Heart disease

Cardiac disease is relatively common in chinchillas. The signs include weight loss, rapid breathing, pale gums and loss of appetite. Vets will check for any abnormal rhythms, murmurs or tachycardia. The normal heart rate of the chinchilla would be in the region of 100 – 150 bpm. A cardiac ultrasound is highly recommended.

Tags : Common Chinchilla Ailments In South Africa