[CAChinsRescue] Newsletter - March 2007

[Lori Cope]

CALIFORNIA CHINS and ChinchillaRescue.Org
 
Newsletter
 
March 2007
 
 
 
We are starting off this month with a number of chinchillas coming to us for
re-homing. At the moment, there are 13 chins that are potentially scheduled
to come into Rescue within the next week or two. Our thanks to the people
that are helping us get these chins into foster care!
 
 

EVENTS
======
 
We have nothing scheduled at the moment.  Taking in new rescues and doing
adoptions is keeping us very busy!
 
 
RESCUES
=======
 
We received 8 new chinchillas in need of re-homing last month.  We currently
have 23 chinchilla in foster care.
 
 
Available for Adoption
----------------------
 
 
All adoptive homes must agree to our adoption policy.  To see our policy, go
to http://www.chinchillarescue.org/adoptmain.html.
 
Pairs or Groups:
 
- Buster and Belle ­ a dark TOV beige neutered male and a nice standard gray
female.
- Snow White and Yvonne ­ a mother and daughter pair of light tan/beiges.
- Chief and Trouble ­ an adult gray male and young beige male pair.
- Blitz and Ash ­ a 5+ year old pair of males.  One tan and one gray.  They
cannot remained paired if there are any female chins in the same household.
- Percy and Topper ­ a pair of standard males about 6-7 months old
 
Single Males:
 
- Oliver ­ gray male about 2 years old
- Peekaboo ­ a beige male about 3-4 years old
- Rong Rong ­ a 5 year old gray male
 
Single Females:
 
- None available at this time
 
"Special Needs" Chins:
 
- Sally is an emotionally traumatized standard gray female.
- Kaya and Nataani are a pair of sisters that are about 3 years old.  Kaya
is a violet that has struggled with periodic diarrhea and Giardia.  Her
sister, Nataani, is gray and has never had an intestinal issues.
 
 
Adoptions
---------
 
We had 8 chins adopted in February.
 
- Whiskers
- Padme, Patty, Barney, and Sydney
- Sophie
- Jane and Brandy
 
 
TIPS, TRICKS, or INFORMATION
============================
 
Since heart murmurs are the most frequent health issue we find at our annual
Health Day held each February, I thought I would include a little
information about them.
 
Heart Murmurs 
-------------
 
A heart murmur is where a valve of the heart, or the heart muscle itself, is
weak and allows the blood to flow backward as well as forward, or does not
pump properly. One of the reasons can be weak valves, or valves that are
narrowed. The Heart Murmur Scale is 1 to 6, with 6 being the worst murmur.
 
Not all heart murmurs detected with a stethoscope are ongoing murmurs
indicative of a heart defect or disease.  Some chinchillas may have a
detectable heart murmur once and then never have one heard again.  These are
considered ³benign² murmurs which can be caused by stress, such as the
stress of traveling to see a veterinarian.  Until you know what type of
heart murmur your chinchilla has, we recommend having your chinchilla
checked periodically to monitor its heart.
 
If your vet finds a murmur in a young chinchilla, CA Chins suggests putting
the animal on a combination of Vitamin C, and Calcium with Calf Manna mixed
into the pellets.  We do not know if murmurs in the young are a cause of
poor nutrition, but we believe that the above will not harm and in fact
helps young animals. Since Vitamin C is an antioxidant we believe this will
strengthen the heart, until further studies prove otherwise.  Some young
chins diagnosed with a heart murmur may have the murmur disappear as they
mature.
 
If the murmur is in an adult, we recommend that you do not breed the animal.
Some heart defects may be hereditary, and could be passed on to the next
generation.  Pregnancy could also be dangerous for a female chinchilla with
a serious heart murmur.
 
Chins with ongoing heart murmurs may live for a very long time and have a
very good life. To ensure this, reduce the sweets and fats [few nuts] given
to the animal and provide a wheel for exercise.  This course of action may
just strengthen the heart.
 
We suggest that you have a chinchilla checked for murmurs before you buy it,
if possible, or if your chin seems to be getting tired or weak for no
reason.
 
If you have some tips or tricks that you would like to contribute to future
newsletters, please contact Lori (lori at chinchillarescue.org)
 
 
CONTACT INFORMATION
===================
 
Lani Ritchey - calchins at aol.com
Lori Cope - lori at chinchillarescue.org