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[nlmax]

Heya! I'm kinda of new here so I hope i'm posting this is the right place And i'm also kinda new to the whole world of chinchillas, I don't OWN one but i'm in the process of trying to convince my parents to letting me have one , I just have some questions, Like, How often do you give them dust baths? What is a "good" cage? how clean or how much do they smell? (my parents dont like stinky animals, ever since i had a rabbit    ) What do they eat and also just some basic things to know. AND would you prefer male or female? As in are males more aggressive? And also do you prefur getting from a breeder or a pet store? or does it matter?

Thanks!

[QTPie61282]

Never from a pet store.  They may be all cute, and the workers try and convince you they have a good deal better than any breeder.....they are wrong.  Because you still spend the money in vet bills when your pet store chin ends up sick or dies.
Ive had two pet store chins die on me from genetic problems and one has a heart murmur.  So you never know the background of your chin if you get from a store. Always from a reputable breeder who has a pedigree (history of parents and grandparents) and can tell you if there is hereditary illnesses in their background.
A lot of breeders can teach you a lot on chinchillas as well.  pet store emplyees or owners dont know anything, they think they do and make it sound good but they dont.  Pet Store employees are probably just highschool kids working anyway.

Chins should have a dust bath about twice a week, some people put the dust in there all the time.  But I dont like to because it makes such a mess and they poop and pee in the dust which is just wasting it.
I do my chins about 2 or 3 times a week unless they really need it.
Show chins are dusted almost everyday.

They are not smelly. Just make sure you clean their cages.  I have mine litter trained to pee in a corner litter box (litter consists of pine shavings, not the balled stuff that ferretts or cats use), so I usually only have to clean these frequently bc the pee is what smells.  The poop isnt smelly at all. 

Male or female is probably just preference.  Just dont house them together unless you want little babies running around.  And dont just put a male and male together who havent gotten to know one another or havent grown up together, in the same cage.  They will fight.  Same with two females, I think females are worse in a cage together unless they have grown up together.

Chins eat pellets, you can get good quality food at some stores, or on line. I feed a brand called Mazuri.  One of the quality brands out there.  You can also get Oxbow chin pellets or traditional feed that breeders over the internet sell.  Dont fee the pet store styles like Charlie Chinchilla, Kaytee and so on.  Most of these have treats, pellets, veges and all sorts of stuff mixed in.  Chins shouldnt have treats as a part of their meal.  It should be just a "treat" a few times a week.  So i dont like those foods.  Juts plan pellets for me. And lots of Hay, Timothy Hay is the best.  Alfalfa hay is good too, but very rich so not good to feed all the time for long periods of time.  I just stick to Timothy Hay.

Cage should be fairly big, enough for them to jump, have a few floors or layers, or shelves to perch on.

If you have any other questions you can check out my website www.fortheloveofchinchillas.com
or talk to some other breeders on here and check out their sites as well.

Welcome to the Chin Club!

[mikasauntie]

Some more questions from another newbie...I looked for an appropriate place for each one and didn't really find just the right one, so I thought I'd append this general one. 

1.  How do breeders give all those kits the attention they need to be well-socialized when they go to their new homes?  The breeder near us has over a thousand chins.  How do they do it???   

2.  I've seen notes on chin rescue sites that the boys have been altered.  Curious - does it change their behavior?  Seems it would be a more dangerous procedure than it is for a cat or dog (size, stress susceptibility).  Correct?

3.  I see lots of comments about putting your arm in the cage and letting the chin climb out onto it.  I am CERTAIN that if we had let our Mika climb out she would have fallen right off.  We always let her out of the downstairs door right onto the floor.  Was she just klutzy? 

Thanks all the great info on this site.  You all have answered so many questions already!

[Jenova]

Breeders can't really give the babies all the attention they need to socialise with humans, that's why it's best to get them when they're young so you can get them to bond with you better.

Couldn't tell you about castration, although I know it is a lot more dangerous to anaesthetise chinchillas.

And what I do is open the top of the cage (mine open from the top as well as having side doors) and just put my arms in for my little baby to 'explore'. Arms can be kind of slippy and babies haven't practised their balance skills a lot. I guess you should leave it up to the owners discretion if they know their chin best.

Some of the other more experienced members of the site will no doubt be able to give you better information than me. 

[Asikovsek]

Everything that QTpie said in response to nlmax is what I would have said also...but nlmax there is just one thing i always let newbies know is that you really have to think about the responsibility of a chinchilla....they are nothing like rabbits they are considered an "exotic animal" and im sure everyone can agree with me that chins are A LOT of responsibility for about half a lifetime....they can live really long lives, so you have to think about, if you are young where you are going to be in 20 + years.  Chinchillas are very sensitive to things and sometimes depending on the chin need a lot of vet care...I have some chins that I have only taken to the vet once and others is a bi weekly thing....even when buying from breeders like us, we can't tell you what that chin could develop overtime.  We can only give you the history of their parents and grandparents and so on.

1.  How do breeders give all those kits the attention they need to be well-socialized when they go to their new homes?  The breeder near us has over a thousand chins.  How do they do it???

To answer mikasauntie:
answer to question 1:
some breeders don't give the kits a lot of time because they do have so many chins, but if you tend to go to a smaller breeder they usually have been very hands on with their kits.....Me personally I am a breeder and I always make sure that all of my kits are VERY hand friendly.  My chins, although I have many, do not constantly have kits like some breeders....I give my mothers a lot of time to rest after they have their litters, and this gives me a lot of time to really spend a lot of time with the kits, and all my customers who have bought kits from me are amazed at how friendly they are...I let anybody who is interested in buying a kit from me make an appointment to come to my house and spend time with the kits and then make their decision on who they want....I know many breeders who wouldn't min letting you come spend some time with their chins before you decide if or who you want. It all depends on who you go to. If you are looking for a real hands on baby, go to a smaller breeder who spends more time with their kits.

Question 2:
yes it is a very dangerous procedure, smaller animals have a hard time with anesthesia.  Usually if the chin is hardy are has no medical problems it is possible...I find it easier to get males neutered then females tied.  Males are not such an intense procedure and they seem to do better with it.

Question 3:  You have to find what works for your chin.  In my case I don't ever put my hands or arms "inside their cage" because that is their safe place...a place where they don't ever have to feel stressed, and putting your hand or arms inside for not an immediate reason will stress your chins out and sometimes scare them, and maybe even cause a panic, my one chin if i was to do that would start running and jump and kicking litter everywhere lol....I let my chin come to they door and hop into my hands (they are really confortable with me)...and it takes time and patience..the more patient you are the more rewarding it will be when you chin is trained.  Using treats is a great way to get your chins to come to you quicker...ask everyone here bribery always works..lol


So just shop wisely from breeders...Don't just jump and buy...shop around a little...find the chin that best suites you!!

[mikasauntie]

Just as I thought - about the boys and neutering.  Sounds like not a good idea if its avoidable. 

Yep, we tried to keep Mika's cage as her safety zone, especially her little wooden house.  That was definitely off limits for hands.  Maybe one little scratch and a blueberry, but that was it for invading space. 

We got her from that really large breeder, but she was returned to the breeder by her previous owner.  Don't know the "real" reason, just the excuse given.   Once we adjusted our expectations to exclude cuddling and any touching we all got along just fine - and wouldn't have traded her little personality for any other.  Now that its time for a new chinchilla I'd like to find one that will accept a little cuddle now and then...maybe.  Maybe its time to check out that really small breeder in the neighborhood.  Or go for a baby instead of an older chin. 

Thanks again for all the great info and stories.

[QTPie61282]

Neutering chinchillas isnt a real huge deal, it is a real quick procedure, if you have the right anesthetic protocol (meaning the right veternarian) and the right post-op care, there really shouldnt be any problems.
Sure, they are very much more sensitive to anesthesia than cats and dogs, just because of their size.  This is why you have to make sure your vet chooses the right anesthesia.

I am a veterinary Nurse and see neuters all the time (cats and dogs) but I have studied anesthesia in chinchillas, since I do anesthesia in dogs and cats I wanted to learn how different it would be for a chin.
Masking with a gas anesthetic is the best way.  No injectables from what Ive read.  Usually in cats and dogs we use an injectable induction agent and then maintain them on a gas, but since chins are so small and a neuter is just a 5 minutes or less procedure, masking is just enough to keep them under for the perfect amount of time in order to get it done.

Of course doctors will recommend doing bloodwork first to make sure the bloodwork isnt showing anything that would make anesthesia any more risky.  With altered liver and kidney values, it will make them more sensitive to anesthesia.
So bloodwork would be a good thing to do.  The will put the chin on antibiotics most definitely.  And use a closed method of neutering.

But i would definitely research it.  Some vets wont even do them, or will tell you there is a good chance they will die.
Theres a chance that anything can die under anesthesia....even humans, cats, dogs, ect.   Our vet does them a lot and ive never seen any complications.  As long as you have the right veterinarian, protocol and post op care, you should be ok.

I would definitely not spay though, way more risky.  Its an invasion of the entire abdomen, as opposed to an external procedure like the neuter.
Spays are way to invasive and they need to stay under longer which means you will need injectable drugs, which also stay in their system much longer, so it could affect their organs.

So No Spay, Ok Neuter  (depending on the circumstances).

[Asikovsek]

yea if you are introducing a new chin to your current chin, your best bet is to get a baby because older chins seem to take to babies a heck of a lot easier than to older chins...they are more caring and understanding to a kit....also it gives u plenty of time to get the kit used to being touched and handled...also I have noticed that my chins who were not super friendly in the beginning really warmed up to me after they seen the kit i put in with them cuddling up to me...chins if they see their mate or friend being cuddly they will not see it as a threat and more than likely change their personality....sometime to the good and other times I have had the opposite...it all really depends on their personality....and I do agree that you should see about going to a smaller breeder for more hands on kits

[mikasauntie]

Here's something else I've been wondering about for a couple of years...Sometimes I see photos or references to chinchillas with stuffed animals in the cage.  We were afraid our girl would chew it up if we gave her a buddy in her cage.  Wished we could because there was nothing to cuddle against in there.  Are there certain sizes or types of stuffed animals that are ok?   I would think a Beanie Baby with its "bean" stuffing would be off limits for sure.

[Jenova]

Wow I was just thinking the same thing myself last night.
Sometimes when I stroke Cheech and he's all sleepy he crawls up only my hand and falls asleep on it and I just don't have the heart to move, so I sit there for fifteen mins with my arm in the cage. 
I folded up one of my tshirts to put in there for him and he did cuddle up on it but he started chewing it so I took it out because I didn't want him getting cotton stuck in him tummy. So I was wondering if there was anything safe to put in a chin's cage for them to snuggle with.

[Asikovsek]

it all depends.....bean bag toys deffinitly a no...they could eat the plastic little beans and not digest them and cause constipation....regular stuffies for animals such as little dog stuffed toys are ok....but make sure there are no ribbons or any extras on it...keep an eye on it...if your chin starts to nibble here and there it is probably because it is interested in it...(chins nibble to see what things are or to see if they are edible).....but if your chin proceeds to tear it apart then its not a good idea to keep it in there. If your chin thinks of it as a cuddle buddy then thats great!!...it all depends on the chin really...sum of my chins can have them in it and others cant...all you gotta do is just see what happens...