Q: my chin is losing his appetite... HELP!!!!

Answered by kate flynn on 11/15/2005, 2:32 pm

A: Very Small Correction :-))

> > i do give him normal diet, as in alfalfa and timothy hay
> > alternately each month. and i do give him pellets daily i
> > bought from singapore every month and bring those in.
> >
> > those treats i mentioned are the ones i will give him
> > occassionally when he is behaving himself whenever i let
> him
> > out for 3 to 4 hours in my bedroom under my supervision.
> coz
> > i don't want him to chew on something important. coz it
> had
> > happened once that he chewed on one of my most important
> > paper lying on the floor when i wasn't around. hehehe...
> >
> > will X ray stress him? from the info i got around here,
> most
> > of the vets deal with rabbits lousily... as in, when the
> > rabbits get a small sickness, they will just give a
> > suggestion of putting him down... i was quite angry with
> > those though. but couldn't do a thing.
> >
> > anyway, i tried to keep the puppy away from him this
> > wholeday and prevent the puppy from barking for the whole
> > day. the result is quite amazing as he ate more of his hay
> > today. hopefully will improve tomorrow. is there any way
> to
> > improve chin's appetite?
> >
> >
>
> I am confused, do you give him hay only once a month or do
> you give it daily??
>
> If your pellets are alfalfa based he needs to have Timothy
> hay exclusively. Most pellets are alfalfa based. Too much
> alfalfa is not good, it's very rich.
>
> Secondly, that is too much free run time. 30 minutes to an
> hour is PLENTY and of course he's going to chew, that's what
> Chins do. You need a Chin safe room, no painted wood to
> chew on, no cords, no fabric, no blankets, etc...
>
> The bathroom works well as long as the drains are covered,
> toilet seat down, and no holes he can escape in to and get
> stuck. And again NO painted woods...
>
> Any visit outside the house will stress him but if it's
> necessary it's necessary!!
>
> Keep the puppy OUT!!! Chinchillas are a prey animal, they
> don't like any prey animal and they prefer the quiet.
>
> His appetite will improve if his environment improves and
> his feed improves...
>
> Pellets daily (good quality pellets, Tradition, Oxbow,
> Mazuri, or the equivalent of those if you can't get them).
> Hay daily, and water always. NO MORE TREATS!!
>


What CuddlyCrittersExotics meant to say was that chinchillas are prey animals and they do not like PREDATORS!! Even if your puppy is small and friendly, he is still a predator by nature. It is very possible that the puppy made him lose his apetite, as your chin has to constantly be on his guard and may have lost the will to eat.

This is also why chinchillas are so good at hiding illnesses. Most often if a chinchilla is sick, they will not show any signs until they are near death. If chinchillas did not have this trait, it would make them very easy meals in the wild :)

Kate