Author: Jamie Huggins
of Huggable Pets-Chinchillas
Understanding Quality Chinchillas
I have heard pet breeders say that because chinchilla quality is based on pelting requirements it’s not that important for our animals. I disagree. Even as pet breeders we should constantly be striving to breed the best possible animals. It’s our responsibility as breeders.
When choosing chinchillas for your herd you should look closely at quality and use the best possible animals. If you already have chinchillas it’s a good idea to evaluate their strengths and weaknesses. Pair your chinchillas in such a way that the strengths of one will help correct the weaknesses in another.
In this article I will try to explain some of the basic areas of quality to help you in choosing and evaluating your animals. Before you can understand fur quality you need to understand the composition of chinchilla fur. There are many different hairs in each follicle. Each of these hairs shows bands. The bottom band is called the underfur, the next is a white band called the bar, and the top band is called the veiling. There are also longer single hairs called Guard Hairs.
You will see them below in my hand drawn example which by no means shows the true number of hairs per follicle which can number around 60.
Chinchillas go through phases where they lose old hair and gain new hair. When a chinchilla has completed one of these phases it is said to be in prime. The best time to evaluate a chinchilla is when it is in full prime. You can not properly evaluate a young chinchilla. It’s best to wait until they are around 7 months old. Be sure the chinchilla has had regular dust baths before you try to determine fur quality.
It’s important to note that the fur on the neck and the hips is usually not as good as the fur on its back. Ideally you want to breed for the most uniform overall body hair. Its best to first check the fur on the chin’s back when checking for the following fur qualities as this should be the best area for your chinchilla.
The first thing you want to look at is color. If you are looking at a mutation color chinchilla you will need to do some research as to what the desired look is for that color. Since there are so many different colors of chinchillas I will only discuss standard grey in relation to color. An important item to check is the bar. (Note the picture above for where the bar is located) The bar should be a bright white color. Ideally, the bar on each hair should be about 1/7th of the total fur length and have even edges where it meets the underfur and the veiling. The next place to look is the chinchilla’s belly. The belly color should be a nice bright white with no off-color such as yellow, grey, or brown. The white belly and the grey sides should form a reasonably straight line where they come together.
The next area to focus on is veiling. The veiling is determined by the top band on each hair. The veiling will differ depending on mutation color; however, in a standard the veiling should be black or carry a bluish tint. Ideally, the veiling tip should be the same proportion on each hair throughout the body. It won’t be the same size since chinchillas have longer fur on their hips and shorter fur on their necks. It should be a gradual change from dark to light from the back to where it meets the tummy line and should not look blotchy.
Next we come to fur density. This is how much hair your chinchilla has. You want your breeders to have nice thick hair all over their bodies. The easiest way to judge density is to blow into the fur. The more skin you can see when you do this and the longer it takes the hair to stand back up, the less dense the fur is. Ideally, you want to see little or no skin when you blow into the fur. It’s ok if the fur doesn’t close back up completely but it should bounce back and show only a slight disturbance in the fur. You can also cup your hand around the chinchilla’s rump to feel the fur. A chinchilla with good fur density will fill cushiony. Chinchillas will have less dense fur on their hips but it should be only a slight difference from the body. The fur on the hips should stand up straight and not lay open.
Fur length is equally as important. Long hair can look shaggy and short hair won’t have that flowing overall look. Chinchillas have different hair lengths on different areas of their body. The overall look of the hair should be smooth with no obvious, abrupt changes in fur length.
Texture of the fur can be hard to determine. You want your chinchillas to have fine textured hair that looks soft and flowing. Coarse hair will not give the chinchilla a smooth look. Blowing across a chinchilla’s fur should help you determine its texture. Fine hair should ripple while more coarse hair will lie down.
Finish is also very important. This is the overall appearance. The chinchilla’s fur should look smooth with no lines, swirls, or other blemishes. The fur should stand up and guard hairs should be present. You can easily see the guard hairs by holding the chinchilla at eye level and looking across its fur. These hairs are longer than the rest of the fur (as much as ½ an inch in some animals) and help give the fur its springy look.
Finally we come to size and conformation. You want to choose large chinchillas with a blocky conformation. Ideally you want your chinchillas to be close to the same width at the shoulders as they are at the hips. They should appear to have little or no neck and have a lot of space between their ears.
As pet breeders, many of us tend to sell our babies at a few months of age. It’s very important to keep some of your kits to watch them grow. Only by evaluating these offspring can you truly see how your herd is doing. Whether you are a small hobby breeder or a large rancher you owe it to the chinchillas to continually strive to produce the best chinchillas possible.
I hope that this article has helped to give you some idea as to what makes a quality chinchilla. Think about these areas when buying additions for your herd. Evaluate your current animals to find their strengths and weaknesses. If you have one chinchilla that, for example, doesn’t have the best density you may want to pair her with a chinchilla that excels in that area. By pairing your chinchillas in this way you will be sure to produce the best possible animals within your herd.
Happy Breeding!
Resource:
King Chinchilla Mannual
authors Jay Thompson & Kathleen B. Mihalcik.
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