Hi,

One of my chinchilla is diagnosed of having cataract in one of his eye and he has lost his eye sight in the right eye.
Have you come across that? He is 6 years old so is not old. The vet said that it is very common for rodents. Do you know the cause for that? Is there any way I can prevent that from happening to his left eye and to my other chinchilla?

Patricia

:welcome:

I'm not aware that there is a way of preventing cataracts nor why they form. Thankfully it shouldn't be a problem for him, chins adapt very well to poor or even no vision. They do tend to jump using their memory as to where things are, at the best of times, so it might be worth tryng to keep his furntiure in the same place.

Thank you for your reply. Were you also the owner of Lucky? I remember reading in another website that she also had cataract. So you have a handful of chinchillas? I only have two chinchillas and it is not easy to stop them from chewing the corner of the walls. rolleyes.gif

I give my chinchillas fresh fruits like grape, apple, cherries once in a while. Are these fruits too sugary for them? Should they take yoghurt drops at all which I do give them as treat? I read some members asking questions about diabetic and that is worrying. conf.gif

Have a nice day.

I had to laugh about your pic- thats EXACTLY how dusty sat on Dawn with their first run together!LOL rolling.gif

Anyway- Im not sure about the fact that cherries are good for chins, pieces of fresh apple and grape are fine , about the size of a raisin.

Try and check out websites like chinchillas2home.co.uk for the right treats for chins, as they will be able to tell you which things are OK to give and which you better leave aside.

I too have a chin with a cataract - NOT a problem for them - honest! (Just looks a bit spooky lol )

Yeah, cherries not good as treat but the others in moderation are fine. Cherry wood (tree, twigs) should be avoided, they can be poisonous to your little furballs, so I think I'd stay away from the fruit too due to the pit in the middle.

More pics please

Yes, I think we've met through e-mail? Lucky she did have cataracts something I stopped worrying about and pretty much forgot, here she is


Sadly Lucky left us in January after a brave fight wth tooth problems, sorry I haven't found time to update my site yet.

I have 6 wall chewing little monsters

"I'm not aware that there is a way of preventing cataracts nor why they form. Thankfully it shouldn't be a problem for him, chins adapt very well to poor or even no vision. They do tend to jump using their memory as to where things are, at the best of times, so it might be worth tryng to keep his furntiure in the same place"


I think you're right have you seen the oldest chin in the world? He's had cataracts for years (Blind for four) and he has no technical impairments (Movement, mobility etc)

Yes we have exchanged emails many times since last April.

Thank you for all your replies. Below is Bon Bon, the one with cataract.

Patricia

Should they take yoghurt drops at all which I do give them as treat?


I have to admit I used to give small animal yoghurt drops as a treat, I've got them on my banned list now preferring more natural treats like the dried rosebuds, rosehips etc.

She is gorgeous

Bon Bon is male.... laugh2.gif

The other one is Pepe. Also male but when my friend bought Pepe, she was looking for a galfriend for Bon Bon and Pepe was too young at the time and the pet shop got it wrong!

Hello Patricia,
just thought I'd tell you that we have had lots of Chinchillas with cataracts,many came from farms where they were fed a strict ration of hay pellets and water,I doubt you should be worried about treats,what often happens is an eye infection that wont clear with antibiotic topical cream or ointment may well turn into cataracts through the tooth root putting pressure on the eye orbit,this occurs commonly here,not every case but more often than not animals with tooth trouble do develop cataracts,lots have and do live for years with both conditions very happily.....Knowing the set up of their cage helps too,mine shoot all over the place with no effort.

:wave: Hey,

If your still concerned about cataracts check out this link -

Chinchat

Theres also a link at the bottom of the above page, that tells you about Bouncer - The record breaker chin he's 27!! : He's also got cataracts. (its about half way down the page)

Hope this helps, take care