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1

Health / Re: are these treats safe?

« on: May 26, 2015, 05:59:32 PM »

Chinchillas dont need treats. They are given to make us owners happy. Think of your chin as a diabetic. No sugar anything. The raisin debate can get heated at times. I never give raisins to my chins. I have seen it cause bloat and death. The only 'treats' i offer are different types of hay and wood chews. Cherrios can be given (in the US) as an occasional treat. Do not feed papaya or pineapple. The more simple their diet is the more healthy your chin will be. How old are the chins you are getting? no treats at all should be offered until a chin is over 6 months old

I guess I won't give them raisins or dried fruit!  I'd rather not risk it. I will probably feed them oats, cheerios, and maybe some herbs occasionally, just to help train. One is 4 and one is 1 1/2, so treats would be fine 

2

Health / Re: chemicals/fumes?

« on: May 25, 2015, 05:16:22 PM »

Yeah, we are going to paint outside as much as possible. This would probably be a rare thing. I was just wondering what I should do if somebody needed to paint while the chinchillas were in the basement. Thanks!

3

Health / chemicals/fumes?

« on: May 22, 2015, 07:43:55 AM »

Hi,
Sorry I've been posting a lot lately! I want to be sure I'm ready when I get my 2 chinchillas next month. I think I am all set now except one question that I thought of today.
I'm putting my chinchillas in the basement, as it's the only sufficiently cold place and there's also room for me to make their play area right near their cage. I know chemicals from cleaners and such can be really bad for chinchillas, so I'm not going to use any cleaners down there. The only thing is, sometimes (usually in the winter) my family paints stuff, like furniture, in the basement. Are the paint fumes going to be harmful to my chinchillas? If they are, should I take the chinchillas out during the painting, and how long should I wait till I can put them back? Thanks so much!

4

Health / Re: are these treats safe?

« on: May 21, 2015, 12:16:55 PM »

Personally I usually don't give treats. Chins don't need them and unless you're taming a chin that doesn't like anyone I recommend leaving them to their normal diet. Otherwise unsweetened oats us ok, raisins is okay but controversial. I've fed oats, rose hips, cheerios, don't reccomend fruit but it's commonly given. Absolutely do not feed salt, toast or any kind of seeds or nuts including sunflower seeds. Cuttle bone is okay. I don't feed herbs but if you do consult with someone who actually does. Alfalfa is the safest and can be part of their regular diet in addition to timothy hay but probably isn't going to have the same effect as a piece of raisin. It is very common to feed a chin 2 raisins a day without problems. As always never feed treats to a sick or stressed chin. They have very sensitive digestive systems that if they are disrupted can have fatal results. Treat responsibly.

Thanks so much! I'm glad to hear 2 raisins a day are fine; the chinchillas in my classroom always get raisins after we clean their cage and I'm glad it's not unhealthy
I thought salt lick sounded kind of funny, but I heard chinchillas like them. That's why I checked on here, the internet can say some funky stuff! I heard of someone who fed her chins a sunflower seed once a month, but I won't feed it if it's dangerous.
Thanks again! I was so scared of feeding them something harmful just cause I read it was okay 

5

Health / are these treats safe?

« on: May 21, 2015, 10:47:19 AM »

Hi,
I'm getting 2 chinchillas in about a month! I'm very excited. I've done a lot of researching on all their needs, and I think (I hope!) I'm ready to take care of them. (:
The only thing I wanted to be sure of was treats. There are a lot of conflicting opinions on treats. I know you should only feed them 1 or 2 small treats a day. Here's a list of what I'm planning on feeding my chinchilla for treats. Are they all safe?
Raisins (only occasionally, maybe once a week. I know they're high sugar.)
Oats (old-fashioned, not quick oats)
Rose hips
Cheerios? (I know some people say not to feed these, but other people do. Are they okay?)
Alfalfa hay (given small amounts like a treat with their regular timothy hay) or alfafa hay cubes
salt licks
Sunflower seeds (only about once a month since they are high fat)
Dried papaya
Craisins (instead of a raisin, not in addition to)
Dried pineapple

I've also heard they like toast, and cuttle bone (like for birds). Are these okay?
Thanks so much for your time! Do you know of any safe treats that I'm missing, too? (I know you can feed them dried herbs, but there's so many kinds you can give them and a bunch you can't so I find it a bit confusing!)

6

Q & A / Re: Chinchilla Newbie! A few questions about care

« on: May 20, 2015, 09:51:45 AM »

thanks grayrodent! We have a big dehumidifier in the basement to keep it nice and dry, and I have handled chinchillas a lot in my classroom so I know how to hold them (:
We don't usually use cleaners in the basement, I'm just going to clean out where I'm keeping them because it's dirty down there, but I'm not getting them for at least a month so I'm sure the chemicals will be aired out by then (:

7

Q & A / Re: Chinchilla Newbie! A few questions about care

« on: May 18, 2015, 04:40:05 PM »

Thanks so much! I'll look into getting a timer (:

These chinchillas were taken care of properly, the girl who had them just has to go away to college and can't keep them anymore, sorry for the confusion! To my knowledge they are in excellent health & properly cared for.

I'm so excited! I accidentally spent almost two hours today reading how to take care of them and watching videos about them on youtube... oops!

8

Q & A / Chinchilla Newbie! A few questions about care

« on: May 18, 2015, 08:16:22 AM »

Hi, I'm going to be getting 2 chinchillas in about a month from somebody who can't take care of hers anymore. I have taken care of classroom chinchillas at my school, but I'm sure I don't know everything about taking care of them! I just had a few questions.
I know they're nocturnal. Now, I have a hedgehog, and they're nocturnal. For hedgehogs, you must have light 12-14 hours a day to make sure you don't throw off their schedule. Do chinchillas need a light schedule? I'm probably going to get them some sort of lamp since they're going in the basement where it's dark all the time, but do I need a specific time schedule?
Also, I know they need to run free outside of their cage every day/every couple days. I wanted to make them a corner in the basement near their cage, but I'm not sure how to block it off. I know they can jump really high! Does anyone have suggestions for kind of blocking a chinchilla corner in, or do I need to find a small room they can run around? (I'm not sure I can...)

Thanks for your time!
p.s. I know putting them in the basement sounds like I'm shoving them down there because I don't want them, but it's really just the only place that's cool enough in the summer without me running an A/C for them constantly (: