Fiona had a rough day - heck.. Rusty Rake Chinchillas is having a rough day.
Fiona delivered 3 kits today but only this feisty little girl survived.
Welcome to the world R5- 42 grams.
Sophia lost one of her boys this morning (the smaller of the boys).. we suspect a freak accident of some sort. I hope to know more in the coming days.
If you’ve ever considered breeding - please know that though the rewards are rich.. it’s also fraught with tragedy as well. Most breeders see about a 25% casualty rate on average.
Sophia is day(s) away from delivering her first litter and she still has moves!
Just shy of 1200 grams.
What did we do this weekend?
Well, among other things we successfully smooshed five young females into the same cage.
Cute little sorority settling in
Emma and Oscar RRC P1
Happy New Year! Emma and Oscar just brought a beautiful little girl into the world about an hour ago!
Welcome to the world and 2023 RRC P1-
(Fluffy photos will be in the comments once her parents get her dried off)
Emma and Oscar welcome two healthy kits -
Standard female (N10) at 49 grams
Standard male (N11) at 57 grams
Blossom and her sister Petal are about three weeks old now.
From the start- Blossom wasn’t interested in really thriving so she was syringe fed. It was a struggle at first but she slowly started to realize that living was the best option she had.
Today we have officially graduated to a hanging bottle. She’s gained 5 grams just today.
Go Blossom Go!
This little one is only a few hours old- this is why shorter cages are necessary when you have kits.
Positive thoughts are needed for Olive. She has an injured paw and is in labor. As soon as she delivers we can get antibiotics and pain meds in her.
Positive thoughts are needed for Olive.
She has an injured paw and is in labor.
As soon as she delivers we can get antibiotics and pain meds in her.
Removing Mats
It is important to remove mats when you find them. If you leave them, there is potential of skin irritation and/or infection.
Firmly hold the base of the tail with one hand and grasp the mat tightly- then give a quick tug.
The fur will slip painlessly and it will quickly grow back.
When you cut a mat out- you risk cutting delicate skin and it takes forever to grow back fully.
Stuart has an awful lot to say this morning..
My chinchilla interpreters have told me he demands breakfast in bed and daily foot rubs from a bevy of fluffy chin girls..
Tomorrow is Oscars last day of Baytril and he’s doing so much better!
He will continue to receive Critical Care for a few days as we wean him off his favorite pastime- being a couch potato. He’s decided kicking back, sucking on a syringe and watching Netflix is where it’s at.
Come on Oscar - we need you in loving shape so you can get back to wooing Emma.
Folks had asked for a demonstration of how I get a chinchilla into an ear hold so I can administer medication and feed Critical Care.
To maintain weight they need 60ml - you need to spread that over 4-6 feedings in a day.
Oscar was involved in a fight with another chinchilla due to an unfortunate cage (or operator error- ME).
He was injured on his lower eyelid; we managed to get that to heal. He had developed an abscess under his eye as a result.
So- Oscar had a vet visit where he was prescribed Baytril and the abscess was drained.
Baytril wrecks havoc on a chinchillas GI and decreases their appetite.- so here I am feeding him critical care mixed with his probiotic.
Needless to say - I am proud of him.. he’s doing well and actually seems to be participating in his feedings.
As I plunge food in- his building up a pile o’ poo...
Came across an older video of Luna practicing for the Chin-lympics..
In my defense it was a long day, and I wanted to watch something that’s make me smile… Chonk doing the truffle shuffle fit the bill! It’s amazing that we forget just how big she is sometimes, and then the queen of snack attack reminds us with a display like this.
All hail 1000+ grams of flailing fluff!
Sophia, or as we like to call her, “Chonk”, really didn’t think she’d been getting enough treats. So she started chewing “her” nails… and since chins seem to claim everything in the house as theirs…
While it’s 100+ outside, Emma decided to take the kits to the pool. Diego wasn’t so sure about it, but Doogie seems to enjoy it!
Thank goodness for AC.
