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[chinca1]

Hello,

I have a 14 year old chinchilla with no history of dental problems in the past.  14 days ago it appeared he poked his mouth with a piece of hay and immediately began to paw at it.  He spent 5-10 minutes in obvious pain.  His behavior and appetite was normal before this.  He has not eaten hard foods since then (pellets, hay, treats, or use of the water bottle).

I’ve seen two vets.  One of which is very reputable with exotic animals and the other is experienced as well.  Both sedated him and could not find anything wrong with his teeth or gums.  Both said the x-rays are fine (or some minor irrelevant misalignment).  One vet did file down some sharp points on the molars but there was no sign of laceration on the cheek/tongue.  She did not think these points are the underlying issue.

At first his appetite was strong but now he’s fighting me on the critical care.

Has anyone else seen this type of problem?  A mouth issue but no evidence of the problem?

I appreciate any advice…

Thanks

[Flint]

The minor irregular misalignment is the worrying thing. Spurs on teeth are in most cases secondary to something else going on with teeth. Did either vet mention root extension/elongation? I can't view the x-rays for some reason. Can you repost them?

[chinca1]

On the misalignment, the vet said chinchilla teeth are never perfect and the x-rays taken from the other vet didn't have his head positioned just right.  At least that was the inference.

She said the roots look good.  I double checked on that concern. 

Here are the x-rays:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/xoij6mkpm38p2jh/1405979-1-X-00000842-3.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/3l02z5td7mlbje1/1405979-1-X-00000843-3.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/fc5ozzba10yok37/1405979-1-X-00000844-3.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/o9e1f1hv7r61fsc/1405979-1-X-00000845-3.JPG?dl=0
https://www.dropbox.com/s/mj1b9dux5llh7j0/1405979-1-X-00000846-3.JPG?dl=0

Thanks for taking a look.

[Flint]

I still feel that the issue is teeth related. Have you had bloodwork carried out to rule out any infection or organ problems? Is your chinchilla still eating hay in normal quantity?

[chinca1]

I agree completely on the tooth/mouth issue.  His other behavior is still indicating that for the most part.  (He is chewing on a few hard items but sometimes I feel like he's doing that when he's in pain). 

Plus, I am 90% sure the problem started instantly when he was grabbing at the new hay I was putting in his cage.  There's a small chance he may have slowed down some of his eating for a few days leading up to this but the "hay incident" was followed instantly by him refusing all food/water bottles.  I am just second guessing everything at this point.

I should have the chem panel, CBC, urinalysis, and fecal gram stain results today.  Although, they typically would have called already if something came up in those tests. 

[Flint]

All I can suggest is that you keep watch for any of the teeth related symptoms, weepy eyes, drool, mouth pawing and much quieter, lethargic behaviour. Maybe another set of x-rays done by a chinchilla specific vet may help.

[chinca1]

Thanks.  My 2nd vet who specializes in small animals just called and said the fecal gram stain test was not normal.  Something about 20% rods.  I'l need to get the details written down when I go to their office this afternoon.  They want to put him on an antibiotic. 

Something about the urinalysis was slightly off too.  But the cbc and chem panel from blood was all normal.

I believe she wants to do full body x-rays in addition to re-doing the mouth if all else fails.

[Flint]

I'm really sorry to hear this, and I truly feel for both you and your chin. Please would you post again with the details, as this can be of great help to other chin owners in the same situation.

[chinca1]

Thanks and I appreciate your support.

I will follow up for sure.  I've only see 1 other post like this and the owner said their chinchilla start eating 2 months later and they never found the cause.

My best hope now is that his discomfort with his gums is healed (after poking himself with hay) but his appetite is gone given he has some kind of bacterial GI issue.  I guess that could explain why he is also now refusing CC whereas he was taking it willingly the first week.

[Flint]

You are very welcome ref support. Bless you both.

[Flint]

Any update Einstein?

[chinca1]

No change unfortunately.  But I am able to keep his weight maintained fairly well.  We're on dose 2 of the antibiotic. 

Is there any chance Chinchilla drool is cold, clear, neutral/no smell, and not slimy?  i.e. like cold water.

As I was hand feeding him, I thought drool came out of his mouth but it honestly felt like water.  Could have been from the syringe I guess. 

I only bring it up because the only other time I ever saw this was day #1 of what I thought was the incident where he poked himself with hay.  There was a lot of cold/clear liquid on his underside.  It was to the point where I thought he must have come in contact with water and at first I was concerned with him getting too wet.  I got the impression it must have rapidly squirted out of his mouth.  Not a slow drool.  As far as I know, it could have been condensation dripping from an AC vent or contact with his water bottle.

[Flint]

It could be drool. Just keep monitoring and checking by feel under the jaw and down the chest.

[chinca1]

It could be drool. Just keep monitoring and checking by feel under the jaw and down the chest.

It seems like I caused the drool to come out when I was syringe feeding him.  Otherwise, he's been looking good under there so far during these two weeks.

He is continuing to occasionally grab hay, bite it in half, spit it out, and rapidly grab another piece.  For a moment, it looked like he was poking the same two pieces (one in each hand) into his mouth.  It does appear he's frustrated based on my interpretation.   We may have to go for round 3 of being sedated, get an inspection, and maybe better x-rays next week or so.

[Flint]

What you describe ref hay eating, I have observed exactly the same behaviour with chins with teeth issues, and the frustration due to not being able to eat it. I still feel that you chin has an as yet undiagnosed teeth/root issue. Please keep us updated.