I imagine the cost would vary depending on the prices of the items you would normally buy and what kind of cage setup you have.
But it has proven to be way cheaper than owning a cat or dog.
Here would be an estimated cost based on these items over a 15 year estimated lifespan:
Initial Costs
-cage $200.00 assuming it will last 15 years.
-watering system (industrial watering system) $25.00
-hanging toys with replaceable wood $15.00
-lamps, floor mats, food containers, and other things that make care more convenient about $100.00
-modifications to cage (I've made many but I'll consider the average owner will probably pay about $30.00 for a tray for a FN cage)
-cost of reservoir (recycled soda bottles) and water and filtration excluded
-cage furniture such as granite slabs, and a j-feeder $20.00
-travel cage $25.00
-gram scale $15.00 (If you don't have one in your kitchen)
-food (pelleted diet) $30.00 for a three month supply ordered online
-tim. hay about $15.00 for a months supply.
-shelving (home built incl. hardware but not tools) $30.00
-chinchilla dust (can be obtained cheaper in larger qty but I usually get mine at petsmart for about $10.00)
-dust bath container. I'm assuming most owners will find something around the house so unless you buy one outright it's free
Optional initial costs:
Portable air conditioners are popular. Mine was $400.00 which turns into a recurring cost of power demand but this will vary widely depending on the air conditioner rating.
Emergency first aid kit and recovery diet $40.00.
Optional distributed costs:
Pet insurance. $300.00 year ($4500.00 over 15 years)
Some properties require a pet deposit that can vary but oftentimes you won't have to put one down unless you have a cat or dog. If damage does occur if your chinchilla is out that can be a cost incurred depending on the extent. If you're like me and keep your chin closely supervised that won't happen.
Re-occuring costs
-shelving (home built incl. hardware but not tools) $30.00 I'll assume mine will be replaced once every two years minus reusable hardware ($300.00 over 15y)
-replacement parts for industrial watering system (overhaul kits are about $6.00 and I'm assuming we'll want to overhaul the valve once every two years) over 15 years $50.00 incl shipping
-cost of bedding. For me I use puppy pads (tray is below floor so chin can't chew them) so I couldn't give an estimate of bedding for average owners that don't have that luxury. My expense in that might be $5.00/mo x 180mo lifespan = $900.00 very rough estimate
-pumice stone (I get mine from Petsmart and they can be obtained cheaper once a month for $6.00) $1080.00
-misc chew toys that I buy probably pay too much for as well about $6.00/2 months x 180mo $540.00
-chinchilla dust (I replace mine every 8 weeks) = $10.00 at 90 months = $900.00 however dust can be boiled and recycled if you're cheap.
-pelleted diet for me about $5.00/mo
-hay about $15.00/mo
-misc maintenance (painting cage, replacing misc hardware, etc.) $40.00 over 15 years.
Vet bills
Chances are you will take your chin to the vet at the end of its life when it gets sick, and maybe one or two times for freak accidents or odd infections if you're a good pet owner. More if you're not too careful. I'll estimate 3 vet visits, call it $600.00 for visits and meds and possibly euthanasia and cremation (cremation seems to be what most vets do nowadays). That is based on the vet I used who has reasonable rates. If you're someone who's insanely attached to your pet you might want to up that to include yearly checkups and additional treatments for more mundane kinds of things. The cost of the vet will also change depending on pet insurance you may obtain. You can expect a good insurance to pay about 80% of the cost for annual checkups and treatments for serious illnesses or injuries. However quite often you won't need a vet at all. In those cases the animal will stay healthy through its life expectancy and die peacefully so as to not prompt the owner to euthanize it. Now for the really pet crazy people they might add the cost of a plot and burial at a cemetery. (That's not something I'd ever dream of doing)
I may still be forgetting something so maybe someone will have something to add. For the most part my month to month costs are very low and they can be lowered significantly if I were to order things in bulk online. Also I have included things that are luxuries that are not necessary so you can strip those out if you're looking for a bare minimum cost.
