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[sarahlydear]

i have a 7month old standard grey male chinchilla and im in school all day and then when i get home a 4 i go see my horses for tops 2hrs then i come home and usually hang out with him till midnight on and off, but i feel bad for leaving him alone all that time and i was wondering if i could get him like a hamster or something? i cant get another chinny because then id have to get a bigger cage and i dont have the room so what else can i do. Also he gets bored pretty easy any cheap entertaining ideas to keep him stimulated.

[chinclub]

You can't get him another type of animal, that wouldn't be safe.  I am sure he is fine.  He is sleeping all day while you are away anyway.  You are there during the time he is most active.

For toys try toilet paper tubes, or toilet paper tubes stuffed with hay.  Cardboard boxes make new hiding houses.

[cusunfireguy]

Anything new in the cage will be exciting.  They love any type of boxes or tubes.  Mine will go to town on apple tree sticks.

STeven

[olivia41]

yeah he is probably fine during the day as long as youre with him at night, thats when hes most energetic. you could play the radio softly for him or the tv just to give him a little stimulation and make him feel like hes not completely alone, but otherwise he should be okay. as long as youre giving him lots of tlc at night!

[Debbie.nl.ca]

I'd get him a teddy to cuddle. I found the cutest little Christmas ones that looks a lot like chins.

[olivia41]

oh yes i agree with debbie also. my one chinny liv has this little stuffed squirrel thats about the same size as a chinchilla and he loves it so much, sleeps on it every chance he gets! so sweet 

[Jo Ann]

   It's best not to try to mix the different animals ...

Chinchillas are naturally nocturnal and will sleep most of the day.  They will wake up on occasion ... if something is going on that is interesting to them, they will stay awake to watch, otherwise they will normally go right back to sleep.   

Mine tend to like the radio on (soothing music ... not hard rock or anything with loud or sudden noises, or high pitched sounds in it) and/or the t.v.   Some chins even have favorite programs they like to watch.  {The animal channel is not one of them ... tomany threatening noises.}

I get those 4" empty toilet tissue tubes from a local restaurant that saves them for me ... a couple of my chins have even learned to walk on the top to get to the j feeder.  They all like to play in them, sleep in them and chew on them.    

 

[sarahlydear]

hey thanks for the ideas, i did have an older teddy bear that i went ahead and put with him and he loves it, hes so adorable and tries to drag it around with him
 i do have some cardboard carpet tubes that i got from lows but i guess id just get bored palying with the same thing every other day(i try to switch it up)
also hes a really picky eater if its actual food, and i was told that i need to give him fresh veggies like twice a week? if so any ideas? to give you a clue his favorite treats are my erasers, i dont feed them to him he makes them appear no matter where i put them and runs off, but he hasnt died yet and acts fine and hyper so...but im getting better and keeping them out of my room too...anyway thanks for the help!

[olivia41]

chinchillas do not need fresh veggies, they eat dried fruits like raisins which all three of mine love. also a good idea is to give them oats, NOT quick oats like that you put in the microwave for oatmeal but oats that you buy in a tin. they also love wood of any type, non salted sunflower or pumpkin seeds, dried papaya and rosehips..all these things are good for them!

[chinclub]

No fresh veggies!!!   Did a pet store tell you that?    I can't believe that bad advice people give.

Fresh fruits and veggies are very dangerous for chinchillas and can cause deadly diarrhea.   Stick with raisins, dried papaya, dried banana chips  but only one piece of one choice a day.  (ok maybe 2 pieces if he begs supper cute)  But no more!


Sorry for the repeat. Olivia and I posted at the same time. 

[cadillactaste]

I'd get him a teddy to cuddle. I found the cutest little Christmas ones that looks a lot like chins.

You can leave them in the cage? Fluffy loves playing with this "tiny" McDonalds stuffed toy. He drags it around by it's tale when he's out to play. He does get barky when I take it away and put him back in his crate...didn't know they could have them inside the cage! So that means he can have it with him in his crate as well? Right!

[chinclub]

It really depends on the chinchilla and the stuffed animal. It your chinchilla isn't chewing on it and it isn't filled with "beans" , and it doesn't have plastic eyes its fine to leave it in the cage.  Otherwise you might want to give it to him supervised instead.

[cadillactaste]

It really depends on the chinchilla and the stuffed animal. It your chinchilla isn't chewing on it and it isn't filled with "beans" , and it doesn't have plastic eyes its fine to leave it in the cage.  Otherwise you might want to give it to him supervised instead.

Oh...gotcha! I'll look into possibly "baby" stuffed animals or see if they have any like that at the pet store.

[sarahlydear]

ok i want to thanks everyone for the advise but i have one more question this ones about handling, lil herb will climb on me and when he goes somewhere he knows hes not supposed to he waits a while for me to notice(if i dont he dissapears:P) and if i do he lets me pick him up and move him easily and when i do catch him he lets me hold him just fine, but if i need to put him back in the cage or move him because we're doing something in my room he takes off and wont let me catch him and then gets stressed and doesnt like me to move around him because he thinks in going to chase him which i dont always do, he just seems to only stop moving when hes doing something bad ive tried throwing a towel over him and he just runs out from under it, any other ways i can try to catch him, treats dont work either he just runs off with them

[chinclub]

Sounds like a typical chinchilla to me.    They seem to know the difference between picking them up to play and catching them to go back into the cage and they WILL NOT come if they know playtime is over.

Try saving the dust bath for the end of playtime and see if he will come to that.  Also save his favorite treat for the end of playtime.  It might take a few days to catch on but hopefully soon he will associate going back to his cage with fun dust and treats rather than just the end of a good time.

Also, hopefully Debbie.nl.ca on this forum can give you some tips.  She has managed to teach all of her chinchillas to go back home when a timer goes off.