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[Toyger]

I just rescued two females from poor condition by buying them of a bad home from a site similar to craigs list. From the photo I could see they where kept outside (it's below freezing here) and lacked of everything. Upon delivery I was told they used to have a male and are most likely pregnant, and far along. I can find their tits, they are long and easy to find on both.

The two girls are sisters and 2.5 years old. They are very close and lovable with eachother. Can they stay together when giving birth and rasing the little ones? Or is there a big risk to the babies?
We had bunnies when I was a child and the two sisters there had their babies together lovingly, but this is my first experience with chinchilla babies. So any guidance will be apreciated.

What I know so far is remove the after birth and no sand for 10 days for both baby and mother. Temperature in the room is a comfortable one, calm room and no drafts. The bars in their cage is half an inch or less, so no escapes

[GrayRodent]

Sounds good. Chinchillas are fairly easy to deal with that way. I recommend feeding alfalfa instead of timothy. You may want to sprinkle some calcium powder as well over the hay or pellets. If they have been neglected calcium deficiency can be a big problem. A vet exam is advised for a health check, basic visual check of the teeth, check of the pelvic width, and a basic wellness exam. Having a vet lined up for emergencies is advised. Because the breeder was not reputable and you don't know the background be prepared for things to not go well. That doesn't mean you will problems either but risks of complications are higher for chinchillas that do not have cultivated lines where animals that have problems are not removed from breeding and those problems get passed down.

I don't think the risk is unacceptable to keep them together. However there will be an increased risk so I recommend separating them. The biggest risk is from the kits themselves. They can attack each other in certain circumstances. The cage should be all one level for the kits. Chinchillas are much more active than rabbits and much more wild.

[BLS Chins]

Some chins can be left together and others can not. Its a risk and would require careful monitoring from you if you choose to keep them paired. Another note, they can dust as usual. There is no need to wait 10 days. Thats an old piece of misinformation. I will often dust during labor to help the kits drop for a quicker birth.

[Toyger]

I found a decent priced used cage I could afford. Is the spacing ok for the babies? It's just slightly more than the half inch. This cage can also close the floors, separating them and making it a one floor which was best for babies. I keep them together untill one gives birth and separate them durring night and any unsupervised time before that. And how long should they be separated?

[GrayRodent]

That's a good bar spacing. Definitely separate the two sections. Make sure there are no shelves or things in the cage that can allow the mother to separate from the kit.
You probably won't know exactly when a kit will be born. It could be very late at night.
I don't know how to answer that but if I were to guess I'd separate them at 90 days gestation.

[Toyger]

Oh thats great! I'll keep the cages simple when it comes to items
Unfortunately I have no idea how far along they are, which is why I separate them when I'm gone, including nights. I let them together under supervision, as I can easily separate if I notice something is happening.
But what I ment was how long after till they can be reunited? How big should the kits be before getting together and be alowed to have two floors?

I also consider keeping most if not too many. At what age can they be introduced to the males if boys? And what is max they should stay with mum to be sure they can't make her or sisters pregnant?
If they need to be separated earlier than introduced to the adult boys I have the old cage from the mothers. I feel it is small, but works for a while (and is technically sold as a Chinchilla cage only, I just don't like the size)

[GrayRodent]

Most chinchillas are weaned after 6-8 weeks. After they are weaned (whenever that is in that range) then the male kits must be separated from the females. Then you should be able to group them together as you please. But you do need to be careful combining kits to adults to make sure they are compatible. I did that with my two pets and ended up having to separate them because the older one bullied the kit to the point where it couldn't eat, and was losing weight. So keep track.

I would make sure they're fully grown, at least 12 months, before putting them into a multi level cage. And make sure opening between the levels is small enough to minimize the risk of them falling from the top to the bottom as that can be fatal, even to an adult chinchilla. Once you know how many chinchillas you have and how many kits survive to adulthood you can figure out your cage situation then. Chinchillas do not need massive cages and will do well on one level.

[BLS Chins]

Can you tell what kind of wood that is made of? Many commercial cages are made of cedar which is not good for chins

[Toyger]

It is made out of Norway Spruce.