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[Kathy R]

Hey everyone, My name is Kathy, and I am a first time chinchilla owner. I have a standard grey chinchilla which I received as a Christmas gift from my boyfriend. When he gave her to me we believe that she was between 6-9 months old, but we aren't sure. she's the cutest little thing, and I have learned to love her the same as my cat! We named her Killer Khloe Colon and she is just a joy to be around... ANYWAYS! Last night Khloe decided to jump from my arms and landed on my bureau, not a safe place for her because I have a lot of things there, well she seemed to have cut her front left paw with a photo frame that I have. As I was inspecting the wound it didn't look big or bad, it's a small scrape and it  bled for a only a few minutes. But I'm concerned... she's still running around and occasionally licks or nibbles the area, I honestly don't know what she's doing to the wound. She's not putting to much pressure on it and when she sits up she pushes that paw back. Everything I read says to let her be and it will heal itself to just keep an eye on it, one place said to clean the wound and add some neosporin ( thought that was crazy), another one said to put some alcohol (thought this was cruel), and the last one said to get her dust bath, put new dust and let her bathe in it. It's so much that I feel overwhelmed and don;t know what to do, and I can't help feeling guilty and worried that something bad is going to happen. Can anyone please give me some insight on what I should do next, or if I'm over exaggerating .

[GrayRodent]

Without actually seeing it I'm reluctant to say which way to go. If it's a just a minor cut on the foot it should heal up. I've experienced that myself with what I considered to be a deep cut.
Do not use alcohol to clean wounds of any kind animal or human. This can damage the wound and prolong healing.
Don't dust for a week. The dust can get into the wound, prolong healing, and increase infection risk. I'm not sure why anyone would advise otherwise because keeping wounds clean until they are closed up is basic first aid.
The most problematic complication is infection so you should check the wound every day for swelling or changes in color or redness.
If you see any new bleeding or swelling increasing or red discolored skin there you may want to at least discuss it with a veterinarian.
Your pet may groom the fur off the area. Just make sure it looks like it healing. If she is damaging the area and re-opening it go to the vet.

[Snickerdoodlesmom]

Maybe posting a picture would help. When you touch the wound, how does she react?
Don't feel guilty. Chinchillas are curious and silly little animals <3 Just monitor her carefully, make sure she's eating, drinking, and pooping. My Doodle has actually bled multiple times from wounds and has been fine (hope I don't sound like a bad chin mom--- he just has very very dry feet and sometimes they crack ). Also, just a tip: you might want to consider making a room chinchilla- proof. I personally do something CRAZY (I live in a 1200 sq. ft. apartment in NYC): I set up a dog run gate in the living room. Doodle and I play in that tiny area. I cover it with a bedsheet because chins can jump super high!!
Anyway, good luck with your little girl, and welcome to the community
--- Dvora

[kageri]

If you want to put something on it to help prevent infection I would suggest betadine or chlorhexadine diluted in warm water.  Not sure the dilution for the chlorhexadine but we use betadine all the time here and I was always just told to make a weak tea looking solution.  Stick the foot in, rub it a little, try to keep it there as long as possible, dry it off, and return to the cage.  Betadine and chlorhexadine do not cause pain like rubbing alcohol or iodine, are not toxic to ingest like neosporin and many other antibacterial ointments, and has been shown in studies to promote healing the best and do the least damage to healthy tissue increasing wound healing times.  The only thing you have to watch for is excess drying of the skin around the wound.

Aside from that keep the cage extra clean, check the paw for redness and inflammation which would mean she probably needs an oral or injected antibiotic from a vet, and try to keep her from bothering it too much.  Maybe some extra chewy toys this week.  Some chin sites sell woven willow items and we once entertained katsu, our really hyper chin, for 3 days with a 2' long willow hay basket.  Complete mess all over the fleece and didn't hold hay for long at all but he didn't think about the fact he sprained his leg and he didn't go jumping about leading to squealing every time he thudded on the cage floor.

[Kathy R]

Thank you so much guys!!! I checked it today and it's looking pretty good. She's just not fully putting pressure on it, but she still walks, runs and jumps as usual. I'll try to get a picture of it, but I'm glad to say that it's smaller than I thought it was!  I'm a bit calmer now, and I'll definitely just keep watch and monitor her healing process! Thanks again!

[Jasonred79]

AFAIK, minor wounds and cuts only cause trouble if they get infected, and AFAIK anyone with a little medical knowledge can recognise an infected wound, so if you have any friends or colleagues who seem knowledgable in that field, call them over for a drink at your place and while there ask them to take a look at the wound?

... Also, if it bothers you too much, then bring her to a vet... not for your chin's health, but for your own mental health! ... sometimes, I get so stressed out thinking of what MIGHT be wrong, that I find I might as well bring in my sick pet/ relative/ myself, get told "yes yes, nothing is wrong at all, thanks, pay the consultation fee on the way out"... it's not really a waste, since even if it doesn't make me better, it makes me FEEL better...

[Kathy R]

***UPDATE***

Khloe has been healing exceptionally fine! She hasn't been nibbling on the area so that's a huge plus. The  cut already has a scab and is pretty clean. Like I stated before, she has been jumping and running around normally, the only thing that she doesn't do at the moment is put full pressure on the paw, which of course I'm aware that this is going to be taking time. But my hunny bun is doing good!! Thanks again to all the put in some input and gave me comforting words!!!

Kathy