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[Sillychinchilly]

I haven't introduced myself, but that's next on my list of things to do.

We got a Chinchilla recently, he's so sweet and he's healthy, which is great. But I want to know about some stuff that I'm afraid might affect his health.

1) I love candles. I obviously wouldn't put them any where near his cage, or have them burning during play time, but what about any other time? The scents won't hurt him, will they?

2) When I vaccuum (every other day) I use this powder stuff that goes on the carpet and then you vaccuum it up. Will that hurt him floating in the air? Should I maybe take him out of the room for a bit while I'm doing that?

3) My fiance thinks its great to give him little pieces of what ever he's eating. I've told him not to, but he won't stop!! What can I do to make him understand that he can't do this??

[Jo Ann]

Hi Silly Chinchilly,

    Do you live within driving distance of Roanoke, VA ... if so ... I will personally come over and choke your boyfriend until he turns blue!      Not really, but, I would give him a very good lecture about chinchillas and what can easily kill them!  Me, I'd kick the boyfriend out and keep the chinchilla.   

   Most of a human's diet is lethal to a chinchilla.  Chinchillas are exotic animals and can only have the food that is especially made for them ... they are not a domesticated animal like a cat or dog. 
1)  Meat and meat by-products will kill a chinchilla ... their system is not made to digest meat and it will block the digestive tract.
2)  Nuts can not be properly digested by a chinchilla and will, eventually, cause a fatty liver, which can kill them.
3)  Any animal fats (such as butter) is considered a meat by product.  If you use margarine ... it is only 1 molecule away from plastic, you can imagine what that does to humans, let alone a delicate little chinchilla.
4)  The spices, salt and sugars that we put in our food are not good for a chinchilla, they can kill.
5)  Only certain veggies and fruits are good for a chinchilla ... others can be very bad for a chin.
6)  A raisin, in compairson to size ... would be about the size of a basket ball to us.  What human foods that are good for a chinchilla should be given in very small portions and not very often.
OK, now that I've put a jinx on your boyfriend ... lets get to the other questions.   

#1)  The scents, especially the man-made ones, can often cause a chinchilla to have a bad respiratory infection in the lungs ... much like pneumonia ... I won't even wear perfume around my chinchillas.  The scents/fumes given off by cedar can kill a chinchilla.

#2)  I would definitely take him out of the room when putting down and vacuuming up this powdered stuff ... if it has an added fragrance to it ... I would not use it at all.   Vinegar and water cleaning a rug and/or Arm & Hammer baking soda will usually do very good to clear away any bad odors in the rugs/carpets.  Neither of these have any artificial scents added to them and both do wonders for rugs and carpet.

 

3) My fiance thinks its great to give him little pieces of what ever he's eating. I've told him not to, but he won't stop!! What can I do to make him understand that he can't do this??

#3)  Check out the above answer at the beginning of the post.  If he will not stop, I strongly suggest that either he goes, or you find a better home for your chin ... eventually, if both stay, and he continues, the chin will die.

  If this offends you, I will apologize for offending you, but not for what I have said.  I am very blunt and honest in what I say, especially when it comes to the proper care and raising of a chinchilla.   My words are aimed at your boyfriend, not you.  I hope and pray, he will take this seriously and stop feeding the chinchilla the food he is eating.


Jo Ann   

[Sillychinchilly]

Not offended at all. As much as I love my BF (actually fiance, but the wedding isn't for a LONG time) he does stupid things. I made him read your post and then told him to save the people food for doom (our dog)

Unfortunately, no we don't live any where near you, but we are moving in IL in January.

Thanks for the advice. I'm glad I've found someone who actually knows what they're talking about.

[Deeliteful]

Congrats on your new chin.

Tell your BF that hes killing your new baby by doing that . I had to break my husband of his habit too . He kept giving my chupers 2 or 3 rasins a day . I didnt know he was doing this . He said the fluffy butt is so cute and gives him that "LOOK" everytime he passes the cage . I said stop it your killing him hes got soft poop (yes we talk alot about poop here and its a good thing).

Joann is awesome she gives the best advice and when she speaks i surely listen.

[Nefarous]

Hi Sillychinchilly, welcome to the forums! And Congrats on the new Chin!!!I am a new owner myself! There is so much to learn about these little guys eh!!

I guess I have my bf well trained! LOL He asks me everything regarding the pets, especially our new chinny! lol

I hope your bf can resolve this habit!  People food is not dog friendly either as its often too fatty, or even toxic. Feeding table scraps can lead to obesity, digestive disorders, begging, stealing and finicky eaters for a few examples!

I realize we are talking about chins here, but proper nutrition for all animals is just one of those things that I feel is essential!! I hope I did not offend you!

[Jo Ann]

   How about an up-date?  How's your little one and the two mutts (the 2 anf 4 legged males in the family) doing.   (heheheh)   Just kidding!   

Have a great weekend!

   Jo Ann

[Sillychinchilly]

Pixel is doing great. She had her first annual check up to the vet... being a paranoid mama, its probably going to happen about every 1-2 months... I do the same thing to my dogs, and they hate me for it. lol
She's getting more and more used to me. The other day she got out of her cage and crawled up the sheets to our bed to snuggle with me. It was adorable, though she scared the living poo out of me. She still doesn't want to crawl all over and play with Aaron, but I think its more because he's never home than anything else.
She has gotten to the point that she gets MAD when the frozen waterbottle we keep in her cage gets warm. She knocks it around and bangs it against the bars of the cage. I can't say I blame her... AZ is HOT!!
We can't find an apartment in the area of Illinois that allows exotic pets, so it will be a while before we move. We're having a house built in a new development not too far away from Aaron's parents, which will be nice.
I made Pixel a hammoc out of a piece of scrap fabric, some eyelets, and those binder-holder things... she loves it.
Doom is also doing well. He got into a nest of hornets last month and had to be rushed to the vet because of a severe allergic reaction. I made my dad fence off the area that it happened, because I don't want him over there!!!

Well, lookie there, I've written a book! lol

[Jo Ann]

   Hi Annie,   Good to hear from you again ...

  

The other day she got out of her cage and crawled up the sheets to our bed to snuggle with me. It was adorable, though she scared the living poo out of me.

Sorry, but I am laughing with you, not at you ... the same thing has happened to me more than a few times ... you need to get an extra lock for Pixel's cage door ... the snap-hooks you see that hook on to things are usually good for this.

Of course, we had a ground hog that we found one day (the mom and been hit and killed by a car)... we took it in and raised it ... one day it got out of it's cage, came up stairs and crawled into bed with my husband ... now ... if you can emagine waking up to a 20 pound groundhog setting on your chest and nose to nose with you, you can emagine what happened next.  LOL

Back to your little one.  Wellness check-ups are good, it gives your chin and your vet a chance to get aquainted and your vet to have something to compare to, should Pixel get sick.   

I can understand why she bangs the bottle around after it is no longer cold ... I would, too ... she isn't just a wee bit spoiled is she?     Don't forget to put pictures of her and of Doom in your profile album for us to see. 

Hornets are definately no fun ... give him an extra treat and kiss from me. 

   Jo Ann

[Sillychinchilly]

Thanks JoAnn.
Glad to know that I'm not the only one who's woken up to a silly animal that wants to cuddle. We have a water bed, without the heater on, at the moment, because its too hot, and she loves to play on it. lol

So, in a way, I guess being a paranoid mama is OK? And yes... she's spoiled, but a little doesn't even begin to cover it. We took my old rat's cage and modified the cage she's in, so now its three stories high... She's a pampered little princess. lol

Doom would rather someone play fetch with him than be given a treat. He'd play fetch until he died if someone would throw the ball that long, but I'll give him your love.