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[CuteFoosa]

So yesterday I went to check on my chinchillas and one of them, E, was on his side shaking violently.  I took him out of the cage and started to stroke him.  He calmed down, so I put him back.  15 minutes later he was doing it again.
Around an hour prior, a bug man had sprayed the house.  However, he assured me that the spray was fumeless and didn't spray around their cage.
Though E was the only one who seemed ill, I put both him and the other chinchilla, Azumi, in a cage and put them outside.
I don't know if he continued to seize outside, but when I went to check on them he was shaking, though alert and moving around.  I brought them back inside.
He continued to have the strangest seizures.
Sometimes he would stand on his back legs and throw himself upwards, then start to shake and paw at his mouth.
Other times his back legs would shake VERY violently, then the rest of his body continued.
A few times he would start shaking and squeaking, then run across the room. [I had him out of his cage so I could prevent him from injuring himself.]
A visit to the vet was not possible.  He eventually quit.
All during the day I was trying to find out how he was having seizures, but the other was not.  I thought that it was either a calcium or vitamin B deficiency.  So I bought a cuttlebone last night, and they took a liking to it.
E has not been shaking at all today, nor have I witnessed a single seizure.
HOWEVER.  He is not acting like himself at all.  Before yesterday I had to constantly be on watch or he would get into something, and would jump on the side of his cage to get my attention.  Now, he seems afraid of me.  He's so calm, and I can keep the cage door open and he doesn't even try to leave the cage.  when I reach in to pet him, he smells me then retreats to his house.
What has happened to him?

[Jo Ann]

   #1  Most bug men have no earthly idea what reaction a chinchilla will or can have to bug spray ... of any kind.  I would notify the company and let them know you are going to take your chin to the vet and will hold them responsible for whatever happens to E should the vet say that the spray is the problem.  If they are any good at all, they should be more than willing to cover the vet bill, if the vet states E's problem was caused by the spray.  The man that did the spraying was representing the company he works for, there fore, they should be responsible since he told you it would not harm your chinchilla.

But, for future reference:  If a liquid is sprayed, spilt or painted on as it dries, there will be fumes in the air from the substance.  Some fumes are harmless (such as water vapor), but a bug spray is used to kill bugs ... it is poisonous ... therefore the fumes are poisonous.  If the man doing the spraying did not know this, the company should have informed him of it.

If a chinchilla has a seizure, and you want to protect it from hurting itself during the seizures, I would suggest lining the bathtub with quilts and laying it inside the padded bathtub to protect it.  Stay with it and do not leave it.

Allowing your chin/chins to run loose on the floor or at floor level where the spraying was done is only making the problem worse & exposing it not only to the fumes, but to also possibly allowing the poison to enter the chinchilla's body through it's feet/paws and mouth, as well as the lungs.

He needs to see a vet ... in the meantime, I would clean the bottom of the feet and paws with alcohol and get both of them out of the house you are now in, until it can be completely aired out ... windows open and fan going ... then mop, scrub and clean the areas where the bug spray was sprayed.  I would give them Pedialyte in place of the regular water.  I would get the small, single serving sizes Gerber puts out for babies.  Once the bottle is open, the pedialyte looses it's potency after 24 hours and is no longer good.  Gerber puts out the apple flavored for babies ... chinchillas seem to love this.

He needs to be in a separate cage from the other chin ... IF he has gotten any of the poison on his skin or fur, it could be transferred to the other chin if it grooms him.

Do not let any of the chins run loose until all of the spray has been cleaned/scrubbed away.

Since you got him out and put him on the floor ... where things got even worse ... he probably thinks you did this to him.  In his place, I would be afraid, too.  I have had seizures, they are painful (during and after the seizure), and not only "scary", but down right terrifying ... you have no control over what is happening and you do not know what is happening to you ... I am sure he is very frightened!

If he is normally playful, but is not now, that is a sign he is still sick.  Please get him to a qualified exotic pet vet a.s.a.p.

May I ask what reason he could not be taken to the vet when he was having seizures?

Jo Ann

[CuteFoosa]

Oh, wow, thank you so much.
I could not take him to a vet because I had absolutely no transportation and the nearest vet is not within walking distance in the slightest.
He is already getting back to his normal self, but still afraid of me.  It is my fault though, I will have to earn back his trust.

[Jo Ann]

     Your chin is feeling very frightened and needs lots of TLC.  I would spend as much time with him as possible, talking to him and being very gentle with him.  It will take time for him to feel 'safe' again.  The reason he will not leave the cage is probably due to the fact that when he left it, it got worse. 

I'm not fussing at you, but I do want you to think about this question: What would you have done had you walked in the room and your chin had caught it's foot in the wire and broke it's leg so bad the bone was sticking out of the skin and it was bleeding?     


   Jo Ann