Message : Hi, we have a male (his name is Parker) and we think it best if we surrender him to someone/some place that will give him the care he needs.
Here is his story: one of our daughters is an Activities Director at an assisted living facility and one of the elderly residents had an alcohol addiction problem. The resident lived alone at the facility so for companionship she would routinely get a pet of some sort. She owned a cat and then a dog prior to obtaining the chinchilla. Because she sometimes overindulged her drink, her cat or dog would get out of her apartment and roam the halls. The cat and dog had to be confiscated so the resident bought a chinchilla.
She ended up going into rehab so my daughter and the facility management took away the chinchilla since he was unattended for several days. She asked my wife and I to look after him while they searched for a suitable home for him. They never did find anyone to take him so we gave him a home and purchased a ferret cage so he'd have plenty of room to jump around. The kids named him Parker.
I think he's about 4 years old and about 2 years ago, I noticed that he would swipe at his cheeks when he ate so I took him to the vet who ended up doing dental work to remove "spurs" from his molars. All was well until 2 weeks or so ago when I noticed Parker had stopped eating so again he went to the vet.
They removed pieces of some of his back teeth and said he may have other issues with other teeth and/or jaw bone, and that a vet that specializes in exotic animals would need to see him for further treatment. His recent issues cost us almost $600 and the vet guessed it would be over $1000 more at the specialist. I am retired and on Social Security so we can't afford the treatment he may need.
We have been feeding Parker a special formula by hand through a syringe and giving him antibiotics and anti-inflammatory meds since he came home from the vet but he still doesn't take the food willingly and it needs to be administered several times a day. We can't continue in this manner and don't want to have Parker put down if it can be helped in any way, but we are also concerned about his quality of life.
So, I searched the internet and found your website. Is there any way you could take Parker or, being that we are in Illinois, do you know of any facility like yours more local to us who would be willing to give him a home? I would provide his cage and the food and meds we currently have if they are wanted or needed.
Thank you.
And this is my response:
This is Ashley with NWI Chinchilla Rescue, I received your message about Parker and what he's been going through, health-wise. I understand what you're saying about the cost of his care, and the quality of life. Honestly, when the chinchillas have dental issues like what you described, the kindest thing for them is to put them down. Treating the dental issues with the constant filings (they usually get to be about 1x a month or more frequent, as the dental issues progress) and constant feeding of the critical care is very stressful for the chinchillas. The anesthesia is hard on them, as they are not an animal that does well with anesthetics, especially that often. There's no research that specifically says how much is too much, but the research that does exist, says that they don't tolerate anesthesia well, and it is hard on their little bodies. Further, the constant filings and handfeeding significantly reduces the quality of life of the chinchilla, and the best way I've come up with how to put it is it's sort of like terminal cancer -- you can extend their life, yes. In the end, though, it will be what kills them. Similar to how some cancer patients choose to forego chemo, because of the side effects and the fact that it doesn't always extend life that much, doing the filings has side effects and is painful in the meantime, and may not actually do much to extend life, or more importantly, quality of life.
Think about it this way -- the reason for the handfeeding -- after filing, the teeth are painful for the chinchilla to eat on. So, you get filing done, handfeed for awhile... but since the chinchilla is not eating the pellets, just the critical care mush, the teeth are not being worn down... so by the time the chinchilla does feel well enough to eat, the teeth are already overgrown again (and that's just the surface... nothing can be done about the roots), so you get a little time of the chinchilla eating on their own, but then you need another filing... and the cycle continues.
There's really no quality of life in that. Don't get me wrong, I have taken in chinchillas and gotten their teeth filed, handfed, and repeat... many times. Never was the outcome any different... the chinchilla always continued to decline and eventually had to be put down, due to the dental disease. It's heatbreaking, and I wish there was another option to save these little guys, but I would rather end their suffering a minute too early rather than a minute too late. When we get in a chinchilla like Parker at the rescue, or one that we determine has dental issues, they are put down to end their suffering. I'm sure this is not what you want to hear, but I've been doing this now for 15 years, and after all the chinchillas that have come in with similar stories and unfortunate outcomes, this is what it's come to. I'd rather them go out, without experiencing bad quality of life, and enjoying what time they had. They all get lots of treats (if they will eat them) before they go, since at that point, it won't matter if they cause ill health problems... but there unfortunately is no "fixing" dental issues.
As far as other facilities like you asked about, the reputable facilities I know of have similar policies. Quality of life comes before anything else, and unfortunately, even with a high quality of life, it is about impossible to find an adopter willing to pay $300/month (filing cost at the specialist vet in Chicago) for the rest of the life of the animal, for continued treatment. There's one place that I know of that probably would take him (but I would not recommend -- I'm letting you know so you don't take him there), it's called FurryLovables in Wilmington. I would, under NO circumstances, ever take a field mouse there. They are basically known as the pond scum of the rescue world... They would probably take him in... but not treat him. They are very money-focused, as they breed their rescue animals, without thought to health / genetics / etc. I know of several people who have adopted out terminal chinchillas from there, that the organization said were perfectly healthy. For the adopters, well, they took the chins to the vet, who told them basically that these issues did not develop overnight, and any normal person would have known they were going on. Unfortunately, they were lied to. One that I know personally (who I met long after this happened), adopted a chinchilla with such bad dental issues that her whole mouth was abscessed and filled with puss that was dripping out. The roots were overgrown as well. The vet found no traces of food in her stomach (on necropsy) and said the chinchilla looked dehydrated and starved... basically, that no one could have not noticed that she wasn't eating and wasn't doing well, but this organization not only adopted her out, but adopted her out as being in good health. When this person contacted them after the vet visit (where the chin was put down), the organization literally said, "oh, sorry for your loss," and that was it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not for badmouthing other organizations... but this one is one I wouldn't recommend for anyone. They put on a good front, online and in person, but in reality, they have no concern for the welfare of the animals, and that's something I personally have no tolerance for.
If I can help you further, don't hesitate to let me know.
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