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1

General Chat / Re: Chinchilla Dreams??

« on: January 08, 2008, 02:36:58 AM »

I've had this with several of my pets. Is your chin's cage somewhere within eyesight of your bed?

Typically, you end up having these types of dreams about your (usually caged) animals because they're one of the last things you see before you fall asleep. Also, people usually open their eyes several times while they're asleep. Although you're not actually awake, your brain records the data your eyes are sending to it, in this case, your chin.

For me, it was a prairie kingsnake that I've had for a long time. His cage was on top of the armoire next to my bed, and so coincidently I would end up having dreams that with him in it about 4 times a week...

2

Q & A / To eat or not to eat? The Chin menu question.

« on: December 02, 2007, 11:15:01 PM »

Alright, when I let my little guy out of his cage, of course he's going to want to run around and explore/bite everything...I realize that. Thing is though, my chin and I share a room. I have lots of strange odds and ends lying around my room, and I always try and clean up before I let him out. However, he always seems to find his way into things I clearly don't approve of. So, my question is, out of the following list, which things, if any, are detrimental to my little pal's health?

Paper - Just regular white computer paper, no ink or anything else, completely untouched.
Coins - Particularly pennies. He's never even picked at one for more than a second however.
Guitar strings (steel/nickel)
Cardboard - I presume the cardboard isn't a big deal at all, just so long as it isn't real old cardboard that might contain bacteria
Cords - I know all chins chew on these, I just want to know how much/little of an effect they would have on him if I didn't catch him in time
Leather boots
Incense cone - the stinker really seemed to like the one he found. Albeit I snatched it from him as soon has he took his first nibble. I clean these things up asap when he gets out.
Molding - particularly along the bottom of the walls and along the doors. I imagine the threat of him consuming the paint is the worst
Bra Straps - He seems to love my girlfriends bra straps, although I don't think he's ever really taken a big bite out of one
Mouse food - mainly the sunflower seeds. he loves these, and I've given him one or two before when I was out of treats. are these okay?

Alright, enough with the potentially dangerous things he (attempts) to get into, now I have a few questions about his regular diet.

I currently have been giving Tait "Sunseed" brand "Vita + Plus Chinchilla Formula," which contains condensed pellets of an entire cocktail of grasses and meals, ranging from compressed alfalfa meal, soybean meal, oats, ground flax, choppsed timothy hay, and a ridiculous variety of vitamins. The bag description screams healthy, but I thought I'd see if any of you more experienced owners have ever tried it.

As far as hay goes, I still have KAYTEE brand Orchard Grass that came with him...is this acceptable?

Thanks in advance!

3

Q & A / Re: Wanting out...

« on: December 02, 2007, 10:49:03 PM »

Well, as I type this, his little butt is sprinting around my room at high speeds.

He's gotten a bit better now...he still wants to get out every time I open the cage, but he's become a lot easier to control. Thing is, I let him out fairly often, but IMO, not enough. Now I have him on a fairly regular schedule of getting out, and it has seemed to have helped.

4

Q & A / Re: Wanting out...

« on: November 29, 2007, 08:31:47 PM »

As in update, he's running around the room right now...We let him out to change his bedding for almost 40 minutes, and when he reintroduced him, he immediately turned around and tried to dart out of the cage.

The little guy has escaped 4 times in the last 20 minutes...

He's become infatuated with the window in my room. He stands on the window sill and whines, acting like he wants to go outside.

Any suggestions on getting him to stay in his cage?

5

Q & A / Re: Wanting out...

« on: November 29, 2007, 07:21:01 PM »

Well, we've tried letting him out on a more regular schedule now, but it hasn't really helped.

Now the poor guy sits in his cage and whines at us to let him out (which is hard to resist...he's freaking adorable.)

6

Q & A / Wanting out...

« on: November 26, 2007, 03:55:02 PM »

Hello all.

Almost exactly a month ago I purchased my first chinchilla for my girlfriend and I to take care of. All in all, he's energetic, well tempered, and cute as hell.

When I first got him, he warmed up to me putting my hand in his cage after a day or so. I'd set a raisin in the middle of my hand, move it up some, etc. However, I still haven't got to "hold" him unless it's by the base of the tail.

I ended up letting him out to explore my room a day or two after getting him. At first, he would run around the room, climbing and jumping, letting out all of his energy, then eventually returning to his cage on his own accord. Now however, I feel as though we've let him out far too much without letting him get used to us first.

Now, as soon as I open the cage to pet him, clean, feed, etc, he tries to get out. Every time he gets excited, he runs to the side of the cage and sticks paws at the air furiously, wanting to get out. It seems as though he no longer will pay us any attention unless we're the magical hand that's letting him get out of his cage.

So, my question is: How can we get him to stop instantly darting for the cage door as soon as we open it? ... and Secondly: How can I get him to warm up enough for me to hold him without him frantically trying to get down so he can run around?

It's not that he acts scared or tries to hide from us, it's just that he simply seems to rather run around than let us play with him personally.

Thanks in advance!