My Glider Chipi has been making weird noises with her nose lately.

I can hear hard breathing when she wakes up, like she's forcing air in and out of her nose really hard. But it's only for a moment.

Her health seems fine. She's very active, she is eating fine, her eyes are bright, her ears are perky, her fur is smooth. No diarrhea, no vomiting.

Her cage is next to the boys' cage and they seem to heavily scent mark the side closest to the cage she's in so I'm wondering if it might be that.

The only other time this has happened was when I had her in a room that smelled like cats when I went to lay down with her.



Do you think it's respiratory related?

I lost my job last month and I already had to borrow rent money from my roommate. I got denied for care credit so I really can't take her to the vet even though I want to so very badly to be safe.

You've basically said it all as far as the vet, which would be the first recommendation.

What is the temperature and humidity like in your home? I know in some places it's getting pretty cold and the heaters are going all the time.

How long has she been doing this?

The thermostat is set on 71 degrees F, but I think it's very dry in my home.

If you have a humidifier try using that in the house to raise the humidity to a comfortable level (if it's good for you it's good for them). Our own skin and nasal passages dry out during the winter especially due to heating.

If you do not have a humidifier (these can be found in the pharmacy section of walmart, etc.) simply put a large pot of water on the stove at a slow simmer...enough to see it giving off steam. Keep a CLOSE eye on it so that it doesn't run dry and I wouldn't suggest leaving it unattended when you aren't home. This is something I learned from my husband's mom. She did this and to add a little holiday cheer she would toss in orange rinds and such.

When the nasal passages dry out and crack...that is what leads the way for sinus/respiratory infection. I would get your humidity level up. Give the cages a good cleaning to rid any possible infectious gunk. Change out all of the pouches and other materials as well, but try using some that have only been soaked in boiling hot water instead of whatever your normal wash routine may be. This way you can kill any germs but not introduce smells in the fabrics that he may be sensitive to at this time. Of course, this will set them all into hyper scent marking mode, but that's better than possibly passing around an illness.

Really, it's all I can think of at this point...if it is related to any of this. I really do feel that it is humidity related. If you've caught it soon enough you may have dodged a bullet. If she gets ANY worse...just try to plead your case to a caring vet. A tiny bit of antibiotic in the beginning stages can make ALL the difference in the world to these tiny critters.