Chinchilla Community Forums

Chinchillas => Health => Topic started by: ob on July 10, 2013, 11:05:33 AM

Title: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on July 10, 2013, 11:05:33 AM

So to make a long and very infuriating story short, my boyfriend's dad gave all 8 of my chins cat food while I was asleep because he couldn't find their food. All I've been able to find about it is not to do it, but what damage can it do if they ate any of it and how do I counteract it?

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: GrayRodent on July 10, 2013, 11:21:07 AM

It can actually be quite poisonous to them. How much did they eat? If they chowed down on it you might want to locate a vet as soon as you can and discuss it.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: GrayRodent on July 10, 2013, 11:23:58 AM

You need to monitor their health very carefully and look for any signs of change in stool or loss of appetite and be ready for hand feeding as it can result in severe gastric and intestinal distress and may have an effect on the liver and blood chemistry depending on how much was consumed. Again I recommend you talk to a vet who specializes in chinchillas right away.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on July 10, 2013, 03:29:07 PM

I have no idea how much they ate, if any, but so far they all seem normal. I've been keeping an eye on them pretty constantly and I'm looking for a vet right now. If I can't find a vet, how long should it be before they're safe?

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: GrayRodent on July 10, 2013, 05:27:59 PM

I'd expect that if there's serious trouble you'd see it in about 4-5 hours later in the stool which is about the time it takes for the bowels to process what is in the gut. I would say if you don't see any abnormally loose stool or depression in your chinchillas by tomorrow morning you're probably okay. I am not an expert but this is my reasoning. Hopefully they didn't identify it as food and just left it alone. Even if there is loose stool you probably know that doesn't mean there is a problem but if it becomes liquidy or is expelled in large volumes that would constitute an emergency.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on July 11, 2013, 03:15:40 AM

So far they all look fine, no diarrhea but a couple are acting a bit funny; I don't know if being more social than usual would be a side effect of cat food.

I'll keep watching them over the next week or until I can find an exotic vet I can afford.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: GrayRodent on July 11, 2013, 06:16:22 AM

No I think you're fine. It would be much more severe if they were being affected. I think you don't have anything to worry about.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on July 11, 2013, 08:02:39 AM

Ok, thank you  :::grins:: I'm still going to be a bit nervous about it for a while, but the worst I've noticed is one of the youngest girls is bloated a bit & one of the older boys is looking a little more tired than usual so hopefully after a little extra care they'll be back to normal.

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: Snickerdoodlesmom on August 18, 2013, 01:15:48 PM

How are they doing?

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on August 20, 2013, 03:30:42 PM

Everybody is back to normal except one that is just a bit friendlier so I guess it all worked out ok... ::shrug::

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: Snickerdoodlesmom on August 20, 2013, 05:23:11 PM

Friendlier? Lol I wonder why that happens!

Title: Re: cat food -_-
Post by: ob on August 21, 2013, 02:09:03 AM

Maybe like a near-death experience...my grandma got a lot nicer after having a mini-stroke so maybe it's the same principle  rofl