Rescuing a Family of Chinchillas

On the 8th of February, we took on 4 chinchillas. To make this post easier to follow, we will discuss each chinchilla in their own section.

Abraham:

Abraham was a 4-year-old male chinchilla. He was the Father to Amos. He was in good health when he arrived apart from having sore feet. Abraham was taken to the vet so he could have a look at his feet. The soles of his feet required topical Flamazine for at least 2 weeks.

Once his son, Amos, was old enough to leave his Mum, Amos was bonded to Abraham. The pair were inseparable from the get-go.

Once we were confident they were a stable bond, Amos and Abraham were fostered by a potential adopter for a month.

We're pleased to say that Abraham and Amos were adopted together!

Amos:

Amos was only one week old when he arrived. He was living with his Mum, Nemesis, and his sister, Justice. 

Whilst he was growing, Amos was feeding on his Mum and was given Alfafa hay and chinchilla pellets. He was kept in a single level cage much smaller than the typical recommendation for 3 chinchillas, however, we'd rather Amos was safe and bored than at risk.

As already mentioned, Amos was bonded to Abraham and then went into foster care where he was later adopted.

Nemesis:

As already mentioned, Nemesis was Amos' Mum. She also lived with her elder daughter, Justice.

Upon arrival, it was clear Nemesis was an avid fur-puller.

Nemesis' ribs also had poor elasticity which concerned us. The vet agreed chest X-Rays were prudent.

Fortunately, Nemesis' X-Rays were clear and chest auscultation was normal. Whilst under general anaesthesia, the vet noticed some developed mammary tissue on Nemesis' left-hand side which was also where she was fur-pulling.

After trailing oral non-steroidals to no avail, the vet wanted to perform an FNA. Microscopy of the FNA sample showed it was highly cellular which raised alarm bells. The vet advised we send a sample to cytology.

Nemesis looking extremely annoyed after having an FNA sample taken for cytology

Pinmoore Animal Laboratory Services Limited

Mr Struan Henderson Owner name: BACCHUS

Congleton Veterinary Centre Animal name: Nemesis

West Heath Retail Park Species: Chinchilla

Sandbach Road Breed:

Congleton Age: 10 Years

CW12 4NB Sex: Female

Sample date: 08/04/2020

Lab Number 124643 Received date: 09/04/2020

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MICROBIOLOGY

Exotic Cytology See report below

CLINICAL COMMENTS

CLINICAL COMMENTS

CYTOLOGY

Four submitted smears indicated to be aspirated from a swollen mammary gland

are examined.

DESCRIPTION

The slides are similar in appearance and reveal low numbers of nucleated cells

and mild erythrocyte presence evident on a pale eosinophilic vacuolated

background containing occasional anucleate squames/keratin bars and platelets.

The nucleated cells consist of leucocyte evident in haemic proportion. Rare

macrophages are also noted. Infectious agents and erythrophagocytosis are not a

cytological feature.

INTERPRETATION

Blood contamination/acute haemorrhage, mild, see comment

COMMENT

The cytological findings show the presence of a mild blood contamination or

very acute haemorrhage. However, no tissue derived nucleated cells are

identified to further assess for the origin of this lesion.

Further investigation will depend upon the index of clinical suspicion and

progression of the lesion. Histopathology may be required to establish the

definitive diagnosis.

The vet decided that the lesion was nothing sinister and no further investigation was prudent.

We're pleased to say that Nemesis has been well within herself. She is still a fur-puller. We suspect this is a well-learned stereotypic behaviour that may never be broken after 10 years of stressful living.

Justice:

Justice is approximately 1-5 years old and continues to live with her Mother, Nemesis. She's a timid chinchilla and has also had a few health concerns that needed investigating before being available for adoption.  

We had a minimum of 112 days before we could confirm Justice and Nemesis weren't pregnant after being housed with Abraham - an intact male.

Justice starting developing symptoms we'd normally attribute to diabetes mellitus. Diabetes mellitus is quite common in other caviomorphs such as octodon degus, but it is much rarer in long-tailed chinchillas (but not impossible).

Justice rapidly developed bilateral cataracts, polydipsia, and polyuria. Dipstick urinalysis showed negative glucosuria, positive proteinuria, positive ketonuria, and pyuria. This made diabetes less likely but wasn't definitive enough to completely rule out. We decided to admit Justice for blood tests.

Interestingly, Justice was hyperglycemic, however, she was incredibly stressed when at the vets which can give a false-positive result. The vet wasn't entirely convinced and advised a fructosamine test.

Fructosamine tests measure changes in blood protein levels. When hyperglycaemic over a long period, the high blood glucose levels cause glycation. This is a good way to determine the average glucose concentration over a longer period.

To throw a spanner in the works, Justice's fructosamine test results were within normal limits. As the vet was able to obtain a sufficient blood sample, we agreed to send it off a full blood count. Whilst waiting for the results, Justice was introduced to oral Baytril to treat any underlying infection.

Pinmoore Animal Laboratory Services Limited

Mr Struan Henderson Owner name: BACCHUS

Congleton Veterinary Centre Animal name: Justice

West Heath Retail Park Species: Chinchilla

Sandbach Road Breed:

Congleton Age: 1 Year

CW12 4NB Sex: Female

Sample date: 01/06/2020

Lab Number 126052 Received date: 01/06/2020

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BIOCHEMISTRY

Albumin 43 g/L (19 - 52)

Total Protein 59 g/L (31 - 66)

ALT 65 IU/L (6 - 98)

AST * 392 IU/L High (47 - 342)

Creatine Kinase 1991 IU/L (88 - 2928)

Urea 10.3 mmol/L (5.7 - 14.9)

Creatinine 55 umol/L (18 - 106)

Sodium 157 mmol/l (144 - 184)

Potassium * 10.5 mmol/l High (2.5 - 6.1)

*Overnight sample*

Calcium 2.44 mmol/L (1.73 - 2.85)

Ionised Calcium 1.12 mmol/l

Phosphorus 2.33 mmol/L (0.94 - 4.72)

HAEMATOLOGY

White Cell Count 7.86 10^9/l (1.2 - 15.6)

Haemoglobin 12.7 g/dl (10.0 - 18.0)

Red Cell Count * 8.98 10^12/L High (6.0 - 8.93)

PCV * 53 % High (28 - 48)

MCV * 59.0 fl High (39.2 - 58.7)

MCH 14.1 pg (13.5 - 28.8)

MCHC * 24.0 g/dL Low (26.1 - 64.3)

Platelets 260 10^9/L (200 - 482)

WBC Differential

Neutrophils 56% 4.40 10^9/l (0.26 - 13.3)

Lymphocytes 39% 3.07 10^9/l (0.108 - 10.3)

Monocytes * 3% 0.2 10^9/l Low (0.24 - 0.594)

Eosinophils * 1% 0.1 10^9/l Low (0.44 - 0.956 )

Basophils 1% 0.1 10^9/l (0.00 - 0.33)

Film Comment No polychromasia within erythrocyte series. Mild

neutrophilia noted but no toxic or macrophaging

leucocytes seen. Platelets appear normal on film.

CLINICAL COMMENTS

AST is marginally raised, which can be seen as a result of muscular or

hepatocellular damage (although the latter is less likely given that no other

hepatic parameters are raised). Hyperkalaemia can be due to underlying renal

disease, high dietary intake, muscular damage or sample haemolysis. The blood

glucose reported in the history would be considered to be normal for this

species, with the fructosamine at the high end of normal. These values are,

however, possibly worth retesting in 3-4 weeks time given the previous

hyperglycaemia, clinical history and cataract formation (assuming that this is

the same animal that you emailed about last week!).

Haematology is showing evidence of mild dehydration, with a raised red cell

count and PCV values. A mild neutrophilia has been noted on the blood film

which can be seen with stress and inflammatory or infectious disease.

Diabetes mellitus is characterised by a persistent hyperglycaemia, which makes

this diagnosis less likely in this animal. SG is low for this species, which

could make full urinalysis, including cultures if indicated, worth considering,

to fully evaluate renal function. Other causes of the bilateral cataracts to

consider could include a genetic or intraocular disease eg uveitis, glaucoma,

lens luxation or retinal disease.

Emily Hardacre BVM&S MRCVS CertZooMed

The blood results were mostly vague, but we were happy with how Justice responded to oral antibiotics. She is no longer polyuric or polydipsic, and we see no need to go ahead with further testing.

She's been off antibiotics for approximately a week and is still continuing to do well.