Greenwood Chinchillas

Mastitis

 

Mastitis is a common problem in mammals following a birth.  It generally occurs 3-4 days after the birth and once  female has suffered from it once it often reoccurs.

 

The first signs likely to be noticed are a mother running away from her kits when they try and fed, or nipping at them or crying in pain as they try and suckle.  Most often mastitis will only affect one side at a time – or one single teat  When the kit goes near this one is often when the female can become snappy.

 

If you catch the female and examine the teats (find them by running your fingers VERY GENTLY along the fur on her sides, you will find them enlarged after giving birth), be careful in doing this as if there is a problem they will be sore and you do not wish to cause the mother more distress.

 

General signs once you have found the teat are a swollen base to the teat, redness, there may be broken skin or scabs where a kit has nipped at enflamed areas.  When in this state the milk produced from the teat is vastly reduced or stopped and is often stringy and lumpy – not effective for feeding growing kits.

 

(picture courtesy of Cookie Chinchillas)

 

Mastitis can be easily cured with a course of antibiotics (Baytril is most often used with chinchillas) – this may be administered via the chins water, orally or in extreme conditions may be injected.   Baytril in the water will not have any adverse affect on the kits if they also drink from it.   Generally the inflammation and infection takes a few days to clear, in this time it may be necessary to supplementary feed the kits if the mother does appear to attack them.

 

Chins have 6 teats in 3 pairs, two either side and 2 down in the groin.  The teats generally only produce milk upon demand – so if there are only two kits then two teats are likely to produce and be more enlarged than the others.  When one teat is infected the kits (especially if only one) could feed from the other teats unhindered – the problem is they often will approach the sore teat which can make mum jumpy.    If the female is very friendly and used to being handled it may be possible to take both her and the baby from the cage and keep in your lap.  Place the kit to the side that is not infected and it will hopefully suckle.

 

If this does not work, try placing a small piece of natural fruit baby food (no added sugar or preservatives) on a good non infected teat to encourage the kit to suckle there.

 

If mum does appear to keep running away or does attack the kit then the only option may be hand feeding.

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