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[chinca1]

So, with two chinchilla vets and one being extremely reputable, I believe this must be a problem that is hard to spot.  I will call tomorrow to get into that 2nd vet again so that she can do x-rays herself including full body x-rays for the first time.  I might not be able to get an appointment with her for 7+ days.  She books up fast.

In the meantime, his activity level is normal.  He is playful.  But, we're at 100% forced feedings, which I feel bad about.  However, we're keeping his weight up at a good level.

[Flint]

It could be the very beginning of a root problem. BLS chins can read x-rays really well. Try PMing her and see if she can see anything.

[chinca1]

My vet prescribed Gabapentin to help with the pain.  Going to get back in at the end of the week assuming he's not eating on his own by then.

[Flint]

I hope you are able to find the cause of this issue. Please keep posting updates.

[chinca1]

Will do.  I might be overreacting a bit but I am going to take him back in for a re-check on Friday.  That's a little less than 2 weeks since he was last in but 21 days since this all started.  I hate to put him under again but re-checking his mouth makes sense to me plus a new set of x-rays that include his whole body.

With any luck, this new pain RX I get today will make it where he actually wants to eat. 

[chinca1]

I am pretty sure the first dose of Gabapentin helped.  He drank a LOT of water from a bowl for the first time in 18 days.  He also accepted some EFL mixed up on a spoon and really went after it.  He had done that maybe twice when it was brand new to him last week but hasn't touched it since then. 

I guess this helps prove he has an undiagnosed mouth/tooth/gums/jaw issue.

[Flint]

I suspect there is an underlying tooth issue Einstein. It's heartbreaking to watch a chinchilla suffer this. I hope you are able to find the cause, and are able to make the right decision for your chin. Please keep us updated.

[chinca1]

I don't know that he is suffering in the typical way you'd expect.  It seems he only has pain during and right after eating.  Otherwise, his activity level is fairly normal.  He wants out of his cage, begs to get out when someone walks by, and wants to do the normal things he does. 

With the new pain medicine he's taking food and water willingly.  Still no pellets or hay.  I am going to be optimistic that one more look in his mouth and having my preferred vet take her own x-rays will turn up some evidence of a problem.  It's really hard when you have two opinions and both turn up nothing found as being wrong.

[chinca1]

Quick note:  he was just chewing on the bars and it looked like one of his top incisors was shorter than the other like part of it broke off.  I could be wrong.
 It's hard to see both sides at once.  Previously, they were even, straight, and flat.  Maybe he cracked an incisor during the incident where I thought he just poked his gums and it broke off sometime after my two vet visits.  Now I have to clean everything and see if I can find a piece of tooth... assuming it really did break.

[Flint]

This would account for the reluctance to eat. I hope it is something as simple as this. Is he getting the correct amount of calcium in his diet? What pellets and hay do you feed?

[chinca1]

I feed him Oxbow pellets and a variety of timothy hay.  I have a rabbit who must only eat hay as his diet for medical reasons.  So, I usually have a nice variety of farm fresh timothy hay on hand.  Einstein mostly only eats the softer 2nd or 3rd cut. 

I also buy small apple sticks that he chews on by the pound.  He was going through a good number of them each week.

I could be wrong about what I saw in his mouth.  I'll find a way to get a better look when he wakes up later.  Two more days until the follow up vet appt. 

Whatever it is, it would most likely be something hard to see visually or hard to detect on x-rays.  I feel pretty comfortable that between the two different vets I have the right expertise helping me. 

[Flint]

Both the pellets and hay you feed are top quality, so I don't feel a calcium issue is present. Other than a teeth/root issue, possibly age related, I am at a loss what to suggest. The teeth issues I've experienced have been manifest in far younger chins, been genetic in origin, and ended in euthanasia. Please keep posting as things hopefully become clearer. You are both in my thoughts.

[chinca1]

Thanks for keeping us in your thoughts.

With the new pain RX, he's taking CC/EFL on a spoon every few hours.  It's an entirely different situation in terms of his willingness to eat.  The metacam just wasn't cutting it before apparently.   I even think his activity level is even higher.

I've read cracks in the incisors don't show up on x-rays before.  Other than that, I don't know what else is hard to spot.  Maybe we get lucky.  I recall one post where their chinchilla started eating after 2 months and lived another 6 years.

[Flint]

I sincerely hope this is the case with your chinchilla.

[Flint]

Any update on Einstein?