Sorry I have not been very active on the forum lately ... having some medical problems, but I was ask to see if I could add a little to what others may be saying. So far, I see some very good advice being offered by others. Good going!
Glad to see the vet is working with you, but personally, I would add a few things to what you are doing.
I'll list them all here, in addition to what you are already doing so there will be a complete list in one place.
1. When a chin's system slows down or stops that always means there can be
major problems very quickly, something that can not be ignored. Constipation for humans and most other animals is usually a bad discomfort ... for a chinchilla it is usually one of the early signs of illness or injury and must be dealt with as quickly as possible. When a chinchillas' gut stops, so does the rest of his system ... rather rapidly ... faster than any other animal I have come in contact with over my many years. (I'm a senior citizen now
)
2. If he is on antibiotics or has been on antibiotics the critical care and the yogurt are a must!
Do keep in mind the critical care must be refrigerated at all times.
If for some reason the critical care has not been kept refrigerated, please check out a health food store and get some acidophiles ... I buy the ones that are in the capsules. Once the bottle of assodiplous is opened it to MUST be kept refrigerated. I mix 1 capsule with each 1/4 cup of critical care and keep it refrigerated. You can make it into little balls, about the size of a raisin and hand feed them to him ... do keep them refrigerated in an air tight glass container!
3. The liquid you are mixing with the critical care is adding fluids for him and so is the yogurt ... this is a good thing.
4. Yogurt with fruit is good and they seem to accept it much more readily ... mine like the strawberries & the blue berries that are mixed with the yogurt. I use the individual serving size Activia and Yoplait sells. Yogurt is often an acquired taste ... they may refuse it at first and it may take frequent persistence on your part to get them to eat it. But, there are chins that will never accept it. If your little one runs away, turns around and around while trying it's best to wipe off the yogurt you got on his lips ... more than likely he will never accept it. Do not for it under these circumstances.
5.
VERY IMPORTANT: Offer him yogurt (or critical care) 1/2 way between the doses of antibiotics.[/b]
Do NOT give antibiotics and yogurt or critical care at the same time or within 2 hours of each other! Yogurt is a milk product and will cancel out the good the antibiotics will do for him. The antibiotics kill all the micro creatures in the chinchilla's system ... the bad and the good. The good ones are called flora and they help your chin to properly digest it's food. The yogurt and the critical care replace them ... but the meds and the flora replacement, both, must have time to do their job to make your chin healthy again.
6. Peylite is good, but must be kept refrigerated between refills, but is only good for 24 hours after it is opened. I use the one Gerber baby foods puts out. They come in individual serving size usually in a 4 or 6 pack ... this cuts way back on waste and cost. I use the apple flavored one ... they seem to love it! Caution: When it is time to get him back on regular water, it may take about a week of adding just enough to flavor the water and use less and less each day to wean him off of the apple flavored liquid.
7. When a chin is sick, it is often best to stick to the basics and give hay only and not the regular pellets of food. He needs the extra nutrients and fiber the hay has to offer him.
8. With the amount and time he has been stopped up, I personally, would go one step futher.
There is one time and one time only I will recommend giving a chinchilla a nut.
This is that time ... one unsalted almond ... wait 2 to 3 hours and give him a second one ... this should start his bowels moving properly.
9. Last, but definately not least, I am NOT a vet, but have been raising chinchillas for over a decade and have had 200+ chinchilla at one time on many occasions. What I offer you is my experience and what I have done and will continue to do with my own chinchillas, because this is what has worked for me.
Above all, if you trust your vet and his/her knowledge of caring for chinchillas, follow the instructions your vet gives you and use information offered you by others only as long as you feel comfortable doing so.
Possible reasons a chin gets stopped up:
1. Illness
2. Injury
3. Surgery
4. Medications
5. Pain
6. Food he should never be given such as:
a. Never, ever, ever give your chin meat or meat byproducts (such as a rawhide bone made for dogs) ... there systems can not digest these and will cause the system to stop up and will usually, very slowly and painfully kill your chin.
b. Veggies that cause gas ... such as broccoli, beans, melons (Gas for a chinchilla and and often does, cause a slow painful death.)
c. Fruits grown with a pit (peaches)
d. Watery fruits and veggies (watermelon, lettuce, celery, etc.) These will cause diarrhea ... which is just as bad as being constipated.
e. Fruit and veggies that have acid or citrus
f. Nuts are a BIG no-no! (except on very rare occasions) A chin that is fed nuts on a regular basis will usually end up with a fatty liver. Chinchillas' systems are not made to digest the oils in nuts, this is what gives them a fatty liver, which can complicate other problems and even cause death.
g. Processed foods contain dies, preservatives and additives never meant for a chinchilla ... do not feed them human foods on a regular basis.
h. Always know where the fruit and branches for your chin's pleasure come from ... they can NOT come from a tree or bush that has been sprayed with chemicals!
Well, the end of this 'lecture' ... hope it helps you and any other person in the future with their precious little fur ball.
Jo Ann
P.S. When giving water or any liquid with a syringe ... I strongly suggest a glass eye dropper or a plastic syringe used when giving an injection (without the needle, of course) and give the liquid one drop at a time on the lips of the chin ... not inside the mouth ... they have been known to suck so hard and quick unexpectedly, that they manage to suck the feeder all the way into the mouth, puncturing the throat. I suggest using a hand towel and wrap it like a papoose ... very snugly securing the front paws ... hold it at a 45 to 50 degree angle and give it the liquid slowly.