Chinchillas are interesting rodents, with very soft dense fur. Originally grey in colour, they now come in many different colours known as mutations. Give them a lot of attention and they will be delightful and amusing pets: very cheeky and demanding but so appealing that this is overlooked. They are very agile and will chew anything, given the opportunity. Because of their thick fur they are able to squeeze into tiny spaces.
Although basically nocturnal, chinchillas adapt to their surroundings quite well and will crash around their cage most of the night and then sleep during the day. But theywill wake up if something interesting happens as they are very nosy.
Chinchillas make a variety of noises, for instance when they are distressed or talking to their babies. But on the whole they are quiet.
They are practically odourless but do make quite a bit of mess by chucking rubbish out of their cages. You can't be too house-proud with a chinchilla. If the cage is too close to the wall they can and will chew a hole in the wall! A couple of mine have a nasty habit of urinating out of the cage and down the wall.
You really need to do your homework before getting a chinchilla. A lot of people see a lovely ball of fluff sitting quietly in a pet shop (normally in a cage far too small for them) and think they are no harder than a hamster to look after. That is why a lot of chinchillas end up in rescue centres. Although they are not difficult to look after you have to have a routine and stick to it. They are sensitive to changes and can get stressed if their daily routine is changed too much. They tend not to bite, though they will give a little nibble to see if you are edible or not. If frightened or cornered a female will stand upright on her back legs and spray you with urine, usually getting you in the face!
Quito - a male black velvet looking a little frayed when he arrved!
A chinchilla cage should be as big as you can afford: the bigger the better. They are very agile, so need space to run and jump. I prefer taller cages with different levels and wooden shelves. Any wood in the cage will be chewed, so it should be renewable. The wire should not be any bigger than 1inch square. If using the cage for breeding the wire needs to be smaller as new babies will be able to escape! In the cage a bed is needed, either a wooden or a cardboard box in which I like to put hay. A cardboard box will need replacing every week as it will get chewed very quickly. A wooden one will also get chewed but will last longer. It is a good idea to have a spare wooden nest box, then you can take it out to wash and leave to dry, replacing with the spare. Plastic should be avoided in a chinchilla cage.
Toys are very important as chinchillas need to be kept amused. They like tubes to hide in and things to chew. Branches are very popular but only from "safe" trees such as unsprayed fruit trees. Wooden parrot toys are good as are dog rawhide chews.
No matter how big the cage is they will still need to come out for exercise. They need a chin proof room (mine is the kitchen), where they can run around being daft. I have found mine are very good toilet-wise when out. They will drop pellets everywhere but as the pellets are solid they vacuum up easily. They never urinate on the carpet, always waiting to go back to their cage. My cages all have wire floors, which is an obviously preferred toilet.
A very important piece of equipment is the dust bath. Chins love it and would sin for a daily bath. Because of their dense fur they should not get wet, instead they love to roll in a sand bath. Buy only special chinchilla dust/sand from the pet shop. This they can have daily for about 10 minutes. If it is left in to long they will either use it as a toilet or clog up their fur with dust. The mess after a bath is unbelievable, so try and get a hooded container if possible. I make my own out of 5 litre plastic squash bottles. Cut a piece out near the nozzle the size for a chin to get in and away you go. Unless you have a show chin were every hair is important don't worry about rough edges as they will nibble it anyway.
I have chosen to pair off my chins and leave them together to mate when they are ready.
The gestation period is quite long at 111 days. The babies are born fully-furred, with eyes open and they are running around within hours of birth. The babies are playing and climbing within days, even fighting over mum. You must make sure that all the babies are feeding and the fighting is just fun rather than hunger. Feel their tummies to make sure they are full.
The female is in season straight after birth and will be mated again. She will not carry this litter if she is not ready, and will reabsorb it and be re-mated next time she comes into season.
The babies must stay with mum for at least 8 weeks but up to 12 is better. They look like gerbils when born and can be handled straight away if the mum is OK with this. The litter can be between 1-4 babies. Four is a big litter and mum may not be able to raise them on her own so a hand may be needed with the feeding. Kitten formula milk or diluted tinned evaporated milk is good alternative. Feed using a needless syringe every couple of hours.
Keeping dad in with the litter is a great help to the mother. He will help raise the babies and is very protective of them. He is very attentive and it is lovely to watch the family group. Some breeders prefer to remove the male when the litter is born so the female isn't mated again, then rest her for a while before introducing the male again. This can cause problems with reintroductions as the female may not accept him back.
After mating you may find a waxy mating plug in the cage. I have only found it a couple of times, so don't worry if you don't find one. If you do, count 111 days from the day you found it to give the due date. It can be difficult to tell if a chin is pregnant or not. Some people weigh them regularly and can tell if the chin is pregnant from the weight gain. I don't do this as I can normally tell by gently feeling the tummy. If pregnant it tends to be more solid than fat. As the pregnancy continues the female will get fatter and her nipples will become more obvious. By the end of the pregnancy she will look fed up and spend a lot of time sleeping especially on her side. She will be eating more and it is very important that she has unlimited food and water. I have never known a chinchilla to over eat. When the babies are born she will eat even more and drinks lots of water to turn into milk. Raising a litter takes a lot out of her and by the time they are ready to leave home she will be glad to see them go. Depending on the size of the litter She will have lost quite a bit of weight and her fur will have been chewed. The fur will grow again and the weight goes on remarkably quickly, but this is why some people prefer to rest their girls between litters. I believe that she will not have another litter until she is ready to and if she has been mated will reabsorb the litter at any stage she is not happy or healthy.
Learning about chinchilla genetics is fascinating. There are so many different mutations and depending how they mate can produce some interesting babies. I am very thick when it comes to genetics, so I just stick to the basics. If I need to know more I ask. There are some very good web sites about chinchilla genetics.
I have been told many times that chinchillas have a sensitive digestive system and that you have to be very careful what you feed them. I haven't found this. Perhaps I have just been very lucky.
Basically they eat a specially prepared chinchilla pellet. There are a few chinchilla mixes that contain a selection of dry food. These should really be avoided as the chinchilla will pick out the "nice stuff" and leave the healthy bits behind. They also must have meadow hay or alfalfa hay constantly available.
I give mine a selection of treats. These include raisins, veg., fruit, grass, dandelions,
Rose-hips, and they love a small piece of toast. All of the above must be given in very small amounts. For example 2 raisins or one dandelion leaf. And not all at the same time. Remember they are treats: they get everything they need from the pellets and hay. Fresh water should always be available.
A calcium supplement is also important, especially to breeding chins. Something as simple as a cuttle fish bone is all they need. They love to chew it and it is cheap and healthy. Other things are available as well, such as Tums indigestion tablets but I haven't tried mine on these.
All in all chinchillas make brilliant pets, though better for adults than children. My kids love mine but are not able to handle them the same as a hamster or a guinea pig, so could quickly get bored with one as a sole pet.
It is important when owning a chin to have a sense of humour, be prepared to spend money on proper housing, have a good vacuum cleaner and not be too house-proud. Apart from the money I have all these qualities!
I do occasionally have babies for sale. If you're interested drop me a line and see if I have anything. At present my chins consist of standard greys, beiges, a black velvet, a violet and a lovely new white boy who looks like he could be a mosaic. He's still very young and developing his colour.
