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[Chinchilla_lover1818]

Hi I'm a new chinchilla owner. I've had my chinchilla for about a day. I'm noticing something weird. He's eating well and he's really friendly with me but I don't think he's drinking his water. Only maybe two or three tablespoons of water is gone. It could have evaporated too. Am I over worried about this? How much should he be drinking? And also if he's not drinking enough, how do I get him to drink more? It's a 16oz glass water bottle by the way. I just don't want him to get sick. Any opinions and ideas would be really helpful. Thanks!

[GrayRodent]

Don't panic! Chinchillas typically drink most, if not all, of their water at night. Use a rubber band to mark where the water is at and compare it tomorrow.
With my water bottle the level drops about 1 to 2 cm by morning. Mine is smaller in diameter than most so you will probably see less movement depending on its dimensions.
Every morning and evening check your waterer by pushing on the ball and make sure it is dispensing. Most water bottles can be finicky with temperature and pressure variations so take care to make sure it is working each day. If you have a gravity fed waterer it is more reliable. Gravity fed waterers have a valve inside. Normal water bottles have a ball.
Also the first day or two after relocating a chinchilla it will be quite stressed and eat and drink very little. After the first two weeks it will start acting differently, more like its normal self.
I'm glad your pet is friendly. Try not to overdo it for those first two weeks.

If you confirm your waterer is dispensing and there is no drop in water level overnight you may have a problem. Typically if a chinchilla has stopped drinking there will be other serious symptoms.

Have fun with your new pet.

[Chinchilla_lover1818]

Okay thanks! I'll wait a week or so to see if he drinks more. The water bottle does work. I think I'm just overreacting a little bit. Thanks for your help!

[GrayRodent]

He should be eating and drinking normal amounts by tomorrow. You should see dropping scattered around in the cage every morning. If there is an absence of droppings in the cage after 24 hours consider that an emergency health crisis.
Make sure he has unlimited access to loose hay plus an alfalfa pellet based diet. There is much information available throughout our website.

[kageri]

They drink so little that sometimes it can be hard to tell.  Watch the activity level and dry food intake.  If they get dehydrated they will eat less hay and pellets to try to conserve moisture and they will become less active.  If they are playing, chewing, eating, and pooping normal they are probably getting enough water.   Watch the bottle over another day or 2 and the difference should become noticeable.

[Chinchilla_lover1818]

I saw him drinking today so I think he's okay. Thanks for the help everyone!

[jmdebb]

 you'll probably  notice, that there are days they will drink more than other days. also one thing you can do if you want to know for sure how much he is drinking, just mark the water bottle just fyi...