Thinking of getting a chinchilla...any advice appreciated!

clairemck12

lowis wrote: »

are chinchillas affectionate?

Mine are still babies at the moment so they just want to get into everything and aren't very cuddly. I think as they get older they can sit at peace for longer than 2 seconds.

dontone

clairemck12 wrote: »

Hi I've recently just bought a couple of male chinchillas they are so lovely and still very young. I have done quite a bit of research online so think i now know roughly what they need in terms of food and bedding etc, but i would really appreciate some hints and tips from anyone who has chinchillas on things like treats, toys, chews and exercising them etc. Someone also mentioned in a post quite a long time ago that you can freeze ceramic pots for them to sleep in, does anyone know about this?

Thanks for any help offered.

Congrats on getting two chinnies. We have two males that are twins which we have had since they were around 6 months old (they are 7 now). Unfortunately the testostorone has got too much and we have now had to seperate them and buy 2 new cages as one was injuring the other badly.
That is one thing to consider in the future as they mature.
My two have never been keen on cuddles although it's not through lack of trying to cuddle them (I think it's because when we got them they weren't used to human contact) but they do come up and nibble our fingers and are rather curious. They also never want to play outside of the cage too, prefering to leap about on their ledges etc.
I would recommend getting a couple of those marble slates to put in their cage as they like to cool off on those, also lots of cuttlefish for their teeth and they are full of good calcium. My two also like those wooden chews that hang down on a chain and lots of willow sticks and rings etc.
The best advice so far has been not to feed them that Charlie Chinchilla stuff as it is bad for their hearts.
best of luck with them and chinnie fun

clairemck12

Hi dontone, Thanks for the advice. We were a bit worried about putting two males together as they are not brothers so fingers crossed that they continue to get on ok. Quick question - What do you use in the bottom of your cage? Someone mentioned that wood pellets are better than sawdust as is tends to smell less, I'm using sawdust at the moment and it does smell quiet a bit.

UKTigerlily

dontone wrote: »

Congrats on getting two chinnies. We have two males that are twins which we have had since they were around 6 months old (they are 7 now). Unfortunately the testostorone has got too much and we have now had to seperate them and buy 2 new cages as one was injuring the other badly.
That is one thing to consider in the future as they mature.
My two have never been keen on cuddles although it's not through lack of trying to cuddle them (I think it's because when we got them they weren't used to human contact) but they do come up and nibble our fingers and are rather curious. They also never want to play outside of the cage too, prefering to leap about on their ledges etc.
I would recommend getting a couple of those marble slates to put in their cage as they like to cool off on those, also lots of cuttlefish for their teeth and they are full of good calcium. My two also like those wooden chews that hang down on a chain and lots of willow sticks and rings etc.
The best advice so far has been not to feed them that Charlie Chinchilla stuff as it is bad for their hearts.
best of luck with them and chinnie fun

I know nothing about Chinchillas but are they both castrated? Also, Xtra Vital Chinchilla should be a good food, it's excellent for rats (The rat version)

borderlakland

clairemck12 wrote: »

Hi dontone, Thanks for the advice. We were a bit worried about putting two males together as they are not brothers so fingers crossed that they continue to get on ok. Quick question - What do you use in the bottom of your cage? Someone mentioned that wood pellets are better than sawdust as is tends to smell less, I'm using sawdust at the moment and it does smell quiet a bit.

i use newspaper on the base of my girls cage, sometimes for a change i use a hemp based substrate as i always have it in for the rats cages.they always need lots of good quality hay.
can't help with the boy question though. our girls can be affectionate(but on their terms, when they want to be)

dontone

clairemck12 wrote: »

Hi dontone, Thanks for the advice. We were a bit worried about putting two males together as they are not brothers so fingers crossed that they continue to get on ok. Quick question - What do you use in the bottom of your cage? Someone mentioned that wood pellets are better than sawdust as is tends to smell less, I'm using sawdust at the moment and it does smell quiet a bit.

Our cages have a wire mesh that seperates them from the wood cat litter. I have heard that chinnies can get bumblefoot from wire bottom cages but mine have never had any problems (touch wood):p. I prefer these cages because they can't come into contact with any moisture from urine that can make their fur damp and can make them ill. The cat litter is far better than sawdust because it traps odours so there is no smell.
On the getting on ok, both ours did until about a year ago when the problems started. they aren't castrated because until then there was no need to because they were quite loving and nice to each other. I suppose that age and macho hormones have got the better of them.
Both are now happily living in their own spaces and are side by side so they can see other but they can't get at each other which suits Chilly (the really placid and shy one). It's just something to watch out for when your two get older.

I also get my two the alfalfa hay blocks to gnaw on instead of loose hay, because it makes them work harder for the reward (and helps their teeth) they also really like strawberry, blackberry and dandelion leaves. - I order those specially from a chinny website as well as loads of willow and wooden chews. As long as they have something to nibble, they are quite happy.

Hope this helps

clairemck12

Yeah we use the same type of cage but we have a couple of wooden shelves for them to sit on, just in case they do get sore feet. I will try the cat litter thanks for that. I'm glad your two are happy now with their own space.

dontone

Hiya

I wanted to add a little more advice on this thread as we have had a bit of a crisis here because one of my chinnies is unfortunately quite poorly and he had to have an operation on his teeth today.
The vet bit has come to at least £100 so far, and although it doesn't matter how much it will cost because I want him to get better, I would advise to anyone who has a chin to consider having a little savings fund tucked away (I know that sometimes circumstances and the current finanical climate may prevent this) or just get some insurance if you can.
We are lucky in that we had some money put aside and have paid the bill but I just wanted to warn you in case the unthinkable happens.
Also if you have to pay the vet a visit they may not have any consulation/ treatment fees for chinchillas.As not many ppl keep chinchillas they are classed somewhat as an "exotic pet"
Please make sure if this is the case that they class your chinny as a "small rabbit" because the price difference between wabbit sizes is unbelieveable.
Hope this helps in case you should have any problems. I can't complain about my two because we have had them all this time and this is the first problem we have had. Quite robust are chinnies, but I'm a bit upset that one isn't well. Just wanted to help someone out and get it off my chest a bit.

bluedog

Welcome to the world of chin-slavery!!

There are some excellent websites where you can get help and advice about chinchillas and the forums are really friendly. I currently have 3 girls and a (neutered) male .... and would get more if space permitted .

http://chinwags.invisionzone.com/index.php?

http://www.chincare.com/

http://www.chinchillas-unlimited.info/forums/index.php?

http://www.chinquest.co.uk/

http://www.cheekychinchillas.com/index.html

I think most of the main pointers have been mentioned by others but I just want to add a couple of others bits. Plastic is a big no-no for chinnies and can do serious internal injuries if they eat it. The same applies for rope and other similar types of "fabric" as it can get tangled in their guts and the results of that don't bear thinking about. Unfortunately, there are many toys and cage accessories on the market that are made from these materials so please be careful what you buy for them.

Chinnies are junk-food addicts and will readily scoff anything and everything that is bad for them copiously. Keep treats to a minimum, no matter how much they look at you pleadingly! Apart from good quality pellets, chinchillas need hay so that they chew correctly and help keep their teeth in good shape.

I give mine a bite-size shredded wheat as a treat. They look so cute as they hold it in their paws and munch on it.

dontone - sorry to hear your wee furball isn't well and hope he gets better soon.

Clairemck12 - Charnwoods pellets only seems to be stocked in stores in northern areas of the country. It is highly recommended by breeders so I've been looking into getting it myself. A chinchilla eats about 1kg of pellets a month so a 20 kg sack of pellets will feed my lot for about 6 months. I currently feed mine science selective which has been going up and up in price over the last few months and the last one I got was £7 for a 2kg bag. I've figured that so long as mine will eat it, it's a no-brainer from a money-saving aspect (and will hopefully keep my chins in good health too) as including delivery, a 20kg sack is around £17. Do you know anyone else with chinnies that you could possibly split a bag with?

dontone

bluedog wrote: »

Welcome to the world of chin-slavery!!

There are some excellent websites where you can get help and advice about chinchillas and the forums are really friendly. I currently have 3 girls and a (neutered) male .... and would get more if space permitted .

http://chinwags.invisionzone.com/index.php?

http://www.chincare.com/

http://www.chinchillas-unlimited.info/forums/index.php?

http://www.chinquest.co.uk/

http://www.cheekychinchillas.com/index.html

I think most of the main pointers have been mentioned by others but I just want to add a couple of others bits. Plastic is a big no-no for chinnies and can do serious internal injuries if they eat it. The same applies for rope and other similar types of "fabric" as it can get tangled in their guts and the results of that don't bear thinking about. Unfortunately, there are many toys and cage accessories on the market that are made from these materials so please be careful what you buy for them.

Chinnies are junk-food addicts and will readily scoff anything and everything that is bad for them copiously. Keep treats to a minimum, no matter how much they look at you pleadingly! Apart from good quality pellets, chinchillas need hay so that they chew correctly and help keep their teeth in good shape.

I give mine a bite-size shredded wheat as a treat. They look so cute as they hold it in their paws and munch on it.

dontone - sorry to hear your wee furball isn't well and hope he gets better soon.

Clairemck12 - Charnwoods pellets only seems to be stocked in stores in northern areas of the country. It is highly recommended by breeders so I've been looking into getting it myself. A chinchilla eats about 1kg of pellets a month so a 20 kg sack of pellets will feed my lot for about 6 months. I currently feed mine science selective which has been going up and up in price over the last few months and the last one I got was £7 for a 2kg bag. I've figured that so long as mine will eat it, it's a no-brainer from a money-saving aspect (and will hopefully keep my chins in good health too) as including delivery, a 20kg sack is around £17. Do you know anyone else with chinnies that you could possibly split a bag with?

Hiya

Thanks but I'm afraid he passed away on the 8th, still very cut up about it but at least he isn't suffering any more.
Thanks for the message though :A