We have studied magnetostriction in single crystalline using the strain gauge technique in magnetic fields up to 12 T at temperatures 4.2 K < T < 35 K. We have observed giant transverse magnetostriction (of the order of at 4.2 K) for magnetic field and longitudinal magnetostriction (of the order of at 4.2 K) for orientation. Pronounced jumps in transverse magnetostriction have been observed in the temperature range between 4.2 K and 8.5 K. Experimental magnetostriction results are compared with magnetization measurements using a vibrating sample magnetometer and gradientometric Hall sensors measurements. The calculations were performed on the basis of a pinning-induced mechanism of magnetostriction. The simple adiabatic theory seems to be insufficient to describe the observed flux instabilities.