Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Jenova]

Hi,

My boyfriend and I are first time owners of a beautiful new Chin and we've only had him for three days. He seems to be settling in fine and gets livelier every day. We have asked for lots of advice and have a book on basic care. The only think we're not too sure on is exactly how much exercise he needs/ wants. At the moment we're just letting him out for a little bit at a time and he usually runs around like a crazy little thing and then stops for a rest before he's off again.

Some information sites say that they shouldn't come out for more than around an hour or they can over tire themselves, but ideally we'd like to give him as much exercise as he wants. What are your views?

[FluffBall]

  ::silly::just keep him cool i am not sure on the exact amount of exersize i let mine out for a while and he goes back in his cage when he is needs to relax and then I usually close the cage for the night they usually go for 30 min and hop in for a quick break and then are at the door begging to be let out again but when it is hot i like to let them relax as much as possible i do have a/c though

[Jo Ann]

As long as it is cool in the house/apartment ... 30 minutes a day is a minimum ... an hour or more(total) is fine ... as long as you chin is not running constantly and getting to hot AND you are spending this time with it (undivided attention ... no distractions)  so you can keep an eye on how it is feeling.
   The veins in the ears will enlarge and/or you can see them getting pinker (most of the time) ... this means he/she is hot and needs to settle down ... preferrably inside the cage ... holding him/her is only adding to the body heat ... UNLESS you are in the process of cooling it down with a cold DAMP cloth over the ears & feet.
   Place a jar full of ice with a metal lid screwed on tightly, to keep it cool and provide extra water from the condensation that forms on the outside of the jar. And/or get the marble/ceramic squares and put them in the frig to chill for the chins.   

 
Jo Ann

[tinabeana]

My chinchilla LOVES the stone tiles after she's out for a run. She digs a little on them and rolls her face in them before flattening her body out on them.

[Jo Ann]

In one since I lucked-out, but in another my husband was about ready to kill me...
     I ran into a "special deal" on some marble 12 x 12 tiles that were ordered incorrectly ...
the thing about it was that I had to buy all of them to get the "special price" ... all 300 tiles ...
 
  I didn't realize how much room that took up,  or how big an area it is going to cover    300 square feet ...

 Bill says he hopes I'm going to enjoy the nice cool office floor in my chinchilla building 

 and there will still be enough left for the cages.   

 
Jo Ann

[Jenova]

Okay my boyfriend's mum just got all the furnature moved up to this house from her old one (finally!!) and in included some lovely leather seats. Cheech didn't know what had ahppened when we let him out he just sat there for a few seconds taking it all in, but I have to tell you the sound of little chinchilla feet on leather is awesome. And he didn't attempt to chew them once! 

[Jo Ann]

 Hi Jenova, 

Okay my boyfriend's mum just got all the furnature moved up to this house from her old one (finally!!) and in included some lovely leather seats. Cheech didn't know what had ahppened when we let him out he just sat there for a few seconds taking it all in, but I have to tell you the sound of little chinchilla feet on leather is awesome. And he didn't attempt to chew them once!

Not YET ... just give him time!  
 Keep an eye on Cheech so you won't get on the bad side of his mum.   

 
Jo Ann[/i]

[Leslie]

I got some marble tiles from the hardware store but i find after they have been in the freezer, they condense too much and get all wet and my chins don't go near them (and if they did their fur would get soaked).  What kind of tiles does every one else use?  Is the material porous?  Mine have a glaze on them that makes them super wet.

[Stacy]

I have the marble tiles also but I put then in the fridge to cool them not the freezer.

I have another question. I am laughing as I am typing this because this might not really happen anyway. I saw this on a movie 1 time and I don't know if it was for real or not, but a little boy put his tongue on the flag pole and it got stuck. Could this happen to a Chin if it licked something that had been in the freezer? I had been freezing can goods, but then I taught about that movie and now I am scared to put them in the cages.

[Jo Ann]

We keep the marble in the frig also, not the freezer!  They are plenty cold just from the refrigerator. 
   
 

... a little boy put his tongue on the flag pole and it got stuck ... I had been freezing can goods, but then I taught about that movie and now I am scared to put them in the cages.

     Could a chin's tongue freeze to the frozen can?  I've had a moist hand try to freeze to metal ... I wouldn't even attempt to find out. 


Don't the cans swell?  I would think they might bust ... and/or I'm not to sure I would want to eat the food inside them afterwards.

 
Jo Ann [/i]

[Stacy]

Well I have only done it a few times but no the cans don't swell. I just got the cheapest caned good I could find. I don't even remember what is in them.  I hope my husband don't open the can 1 day that may be a little nasty.

After I thought about that movie I have not put them in there again. It only got hot enough for them to need them 1 time so far. Now I will just stick to the fridge.

[Jo Ann]

I'm surprised it didn't swell, but maybe because it's vacuum-packed it won't ... who knows? 

  Bill and I talked about it ... he said he'd eat whatever it was in the cans, it should not hurt it ... of course, he'll eat most anything.   

  The first marble I got was from Lowe's, they had what they call a Marble Threshold.  It was 36" long and about 3  inches wide and very thick.  It was $9, but was chipped, so I got it for $6 and I got them to cut it into 6 pieces (cost 25 cents a cut after the first two cuts), so they came out just a little over $1 a piece. The refrigerator makes them feel like they came out of the freezer and they keep the cold for a while.
   When I first put one in a cage, the chins would smell of it, then pounce on it and try to "dig" in it like they do before they flip over in their dust pans.  I laughed till my side hurt.   
    Most of the 12" x 12" tiles are much thinner and will cost $3+ each.   

 
Jo Ann

Jenova, how's your little one doing now?  Did you get him some marble?

[Summer]

Hi we have marble to they just Love it, they take their noes rub on them and roll around it is too funny

[Debbie.nl.ca]

I'm busting a gut here
Jo Ann I love a good buy
babytaz0028 I have a picture in my mind of a chin stuck fast just begging for a cup of warm water.

Most chins are quite capable of getting enough exercise right in their own cage if they want.
Some of the hyper ones just never stop, and I have one I have to take out of her cage so she'll get some.
The thing is the length time out you give him he'll expect  all the time, and be very disappointed if he doesn't get it. So stick with a manageable time frame at the same time every day.

[Jo Ann]