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[chinchillagrl06]

I am babysitting my friends herd right now, she brought them over on Saturday night. I have gone from 3 to 23 chins!  It's fun. My chins are all in my bedroom and her chinnies are in the dining room. She told me to check on Lexi every morning because she was due any day. I am so excited about having so many chins around I have been talking to them all and just staring at them anyways, but no babies when I got up on Sunday. We decided last minute to head down to San Diego and go to the zoo for the day.  We had a great time and were there for about 8 hours.
Guess what I heard when I walked back into the house.... baby squeeks!!! I figured it might be some of the older babies, but I ran to the new cage and there was mama and then right behind her was a small black tail. So I reached in and pulled out 1 little ebony kit. It's a male. I didn't breed these chinnies, but I feel like a proud parent. This was the first chinny birth I've ever had. It's amazing how tiny they are. I am going to pick up a scale today on my way home from work to get a weight. I did go ahead and do a 50/50 water apple juice mix to help mama get some milk in.    This is sooo exciting.

[Jo Ann]

CONGRATULATIONS

Warning: Now you MUST have little kits of your own ...................................... or so you think!
Isn't he precious!!!  I love all chins, but a new little one melts my heart!  Just wait till you see how active they are.  Their antics keep you rolling.     How long are you going to get to enjoy them?  Are you already thinking about adopting this new little one?   
 

I am going to pick up a scale today on my way home from work to get a weight. I did go ahead and do a 50/50 water apple juice mix to help mama get some milk in.

  My husband just said "Your friend is very lucky to have you looking after her herd while she is gone.  It is obvious she chose the right person."  I agree.  Not many people would go out of their way to do what you are doing. 

 
Jo Ann[/i]

[chinchillagrl06]

Thanks!

My plan is to breed someday, but I still have a lot of learning to do. I have 6 kits at the house right now. It is amazing. I can't wait until I get a mate for my boy. 2 of the kits at the house are his and they are just beautiful. I can't wait until they can be shown. LOL I told my friend she may be missing a few. LOL I just love having them here. 

[Jo Ann]

You learn everything you can, but it is never enough.  Once you start breeding, you find out just how much more there still is to learn.  With each new thing that happens, you learn more.   I'd give anything if I could go out to CA Chins' Research Center and spend about 6 months to a year.  There is so much new stuff being learned each day.

You have to give the ranchers their due ... if it were not for them, the chinchillas would be extinct by now.  But, before they were introduced in the pet world, they were not exposed to all the normal human environments and other animals, foods, etc, that they are now.  We are finding out more dos and don'ts every day with them.  Many exotic pet vets have never worked  with chinchillas and know little about them.  Except in certain areas of the US where they are abundant as pets.  My original vet, who is now in Florida, was great.   She did all kinds of extra research on them, because of my heard. 

Did you know distemper (cat pneumonia) is highly contagious to chinchillas?  Someone can touch a sick cat or another animal can pick it up by walking the the same area a sick cat has been and bring it home to the chinchillas.  It can go through a whole heard in 24 hours or less ... it is fatal for most chinchillas.  I will not let someone adopt one of mine unless their cat is up-to-date on it's shots and is an inside cat.   Just simple information as that, can make a huge difference to your chin's health.

I have an "E-mail me with your questions about chinchillas." at the bottom of each page on my site. It helps other people, but I am also being selfish in my own way ... I can learn so much from those that write in, and help others with the information I have learned from helping the ones that write in.  If I know the answer, or can find the answer in one of my reference books, it's easy ... if not ... that means I have to research it ... I'm learning more to help all chinchillas, without my chins having become ill or injured to teach me.     That's another reason I love this forum! 

 
Jo Ann

[chinchillagrl06]

I about had a heart attack yesterday. I went to my apartment for lunch @ about 11 am. I had lunch until 12 pm and went back to work. Within an hour my b/f called and told me that the A/C had stopped working. I couldn't believe it. He said it wasn't too hot in the house yet and he brought out a fan and put it near the chins. So I told him to start freezing bottles and make sure all the chinchillers were in the fridge cooling off. I made it home in record time and we covered the windows to keep any extra sun out. It helped a little bit. I put a huge bag of ice in front of the fan for the chins and kept a close eye on everyone and the temp. Thank god we were only without air for about 1 1/2 hours. I was ready to start the cars and drive chins around to keep them cool. Turns out our filter needed changing and the A/C was overworking, they said it happens a lot and the pipes get frozen and have to defrost to start working again, the maintenace man changed the filter and everything is good as new. I went into full panic attack mode there for a while though.

[Jo Ann]

Hi All!
     
      Chinchilla Grl06, chinchillas do not perspire/sweat, so blowing a fan directly on them does not help them, as a matter of fact, it can make them sick.  Never put your chin where they get a direct flow of air from a fan, or a heat or airconditioning vent/duct.   

      Covering the windows to keep out extra heat/light was very good.     As far as the ice bag in front of the fan ... good idea ... IF you make sure the fan is blowing on the bag/container of ice, to cool the whole room or section of room the chin is in, but do not let the fan blow the air directly on the chinchillas.   :-[

      Yep, this is the time of the year we have to watch the airconditioners extra close.  If you normally change your filters once a month, change them twice a month ... the airconditioners are under a strain and need to be helped in any way you can do it.  Free/not restricted air flow is a must ... it can also keep the motor from burning out and blowing the whole unit.

      For new chinchilla owners ... check your filters often ... chinchilla fur is very fine and will clog the filters.  Chinchilla dust in the air will clog the filters.  When you have chins, there are many more cautions to take ... for their safety and yours!

     I am going to start a new thread in breeding 101 concerning ideas to keep your chin cool.  Please check it out and add any ideas you might have!   We are going to have a hot summer and hurricane season is also here ... be prepaired for your chinchillas as well as your family (2 and 4 legged). 

      Glad to hear your A/C was up and running again fairly quickly.  Had someone not been home, you could have lost them.  It's never bad to have someone check on them during the day, if possible.

ChinchillaGrl06, if you don't mind, I will copy and past your last post to the beginning of the new thread.  OK?

Didn't take all those extra chinnies into consideration when it came to the air filter!   

 
Jo Ann

[chinchillagrl06]

I sure didn't. I have never even thought twice about the a/c filter... infact, to be quite honest I didn't even know it needed to be checked, I did make sure that the maintenance man showed us how to check out filter, so now we know.

We are lucky, my bf and I work opposite shifts at work, so there is always sombody home. I don't even want to think about what would have happened if one of us wouldn't have been there I was not supposed to come home for hours! Scary.

I did remember not to have the fan directly on the chins, I actually had it in the center and ocillating to keep that part of the room cool.

[chinclub]

Ugg that is my worst favorite job.  With 110 chinchillas we have to clean our filters every other day.  GROSSSS.  It is always filled with hay and dust.  By the time I am finished with all 4 a/c's I'm covered with hay and dust!

[Jo Ann]

Yep ... Every day it's: Sweep the floor to begin with ... at the end of feeding and watering ... run the shop vac ... in the chin room & over the airconditioning filters!   Change/wash filters after every dust bath session! 

How's that little ebony kit doing?  How much does he weigh?  Does your friend know yet she has a new kit?

 
Jo Ann

[chinchillagrl06]

64 grams! 
And a female... I got a better look while I was weighing her. 
My friend did come over that night to visit and see the new little one. This is S16 for her. I am actually going to be keeping her S1 standard girl. I have named her Mouse. She's a doll. I'll have to take some pictures, she has got the longest tail I've ever seen.  :-[

[Debbie.nl.ca]

Aww that's a fine size kit.
Yes pics please.

[Chins To Love]

Congrats to you and your friend.  I fall in love with all my new babies, wish I could keep them all.
I was wondering...................... are you available to sit my chins, 
Wish I had someone like you around!

[Misskitz]

Please pictures! I want to see her tail!