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Chinchilla - Care
Chinchilla Health
Chinchilla care for the most part is very easy as they are healthy little rodents; however, they are exposed to omni-present fungi and bacteria. The sooner a problem is detected the easier it can be corrected. It is important to maintain a good supply fresh water, good food and keep the cage nice and clean. Usually the first sign of a sick chinchilla is weight loss.
A happy healthy chinchilla will have: eyes bright and shiny, be eating well and have a dry chin, be alert with have normal stools.
Chinchilla Grooming
Chinchilla care includes grooming and it is as easy to keep them clean as it is their cage. They have no noticeable odour and their fur is too thick for insects or parasites to make a home in. Up to 80 hairs per follicle. They do not need regular baths with water. In fact most hate water, however, they use a finely ground powder known as "Chinchilla Dust” as a dust bath. This is an all natural dusting powder which protects the chinchilla's coat by eliminating extra oils and moisture, leaving it healthy and clean it can be purchased at most pet stores.
Put a depth of 5cm in a bowl and let your chinchilla have a dust bath session, about five minutes is sufficient. Do not leave the dust in the tank permanently. When finished they will throw it out or defecate in it. They can be given their dust baths twice a week, or more often if you have humid conditions.
Chinchilla Diet
Understanding a chinchillas' dietary needs is important. Remember they come from the arid regions of the high Andes. The food that they find there, to a degree, consists of desiccated plants, grasses and seeds. This helps us to understand why the ideal chinchilla diet is nutrient-poor and high in roughage.
Chinchillas themselves are extremely hardy little animals but they have a delicate digestive system. A chinchilla's diet plays an important role in maintaining a healthy and alert animal. The ideal diet can be divided into four parts: pellets, hay, supplements (including "treats") and water.
Pellets: these can be purchased from most pet shops. While the actual contents of the pellets may vary depending on brand, the basic ingredients should include wheat germ, oats, molasses, soybeans oil meal, maize, with added vitamins and minerals.
Chinchillas eat with their hands so chinchilla pellets are usually longer than guinea pig or rabbit pellets so that the chinchilla has something to get hold of. If, for some reason, chinchilla pellets are not available, rabbit or guinea pig pellets can be substituted. Just make sure to get whichever is high in fibre and low in fat. For example, guinea pig pellets may be better than rabbit pellets, but a low-fat rabbit pellet might be better than guinea pig pellets.
If you have to change pellet brands, bear in mind that chinchillas are creatures of habit and have a delicate digestive system. Make the change over as gradually as possible, mixing the new pellets in with the old ones. Each day add slightly more of the new ones to the mix so that after a couple of weeks you have made the change over. Chinchillas may actually refuse the new pellets at first but eventually it will get used to them.
Adult chinchillas will eat about two heaped tablespoon full of pellets per day. Chinchillas will not overeat, so over-feeding is not usually a problem. Pellets can be fed in either a hopper attached to the side of the cage or a ceramic bowl. The advantages of the hopper feeder are that it won’t be tipped over plus it's easy to fill from the outside of the cage. If you offer food in a bowl, a shallow ceramic bowl is best because it is heavy enough to prevent being tipped over and can't be chewed.
Hay: Hay provides the necessary fibre. It is important that the hay is free of all chemical sprays. It must be sweet smelling, free of mould and be fresh (properly dried and cured.) To ensure that the hay continues to remain free of mould, it must be stored in a dry place.
An adult chinchilla will eat about a handful of loose hay a day. Since chinchillas will only eat as much hay as they want, you don't have to worry about giving them too much.
Supplements: Chinchillas only need their pellets and hay. However, part of the fun of owning a chinchilla is giving it treats occasionally. There probably isn't a chinchilla owner who doesn't give treats. Just remember the word "moderation", less than one teaspoonful a day only is recommended. Any more could easily upset your pet's digestive system, will result in it being overweight and may also shorten its lifespan. It's hard to say "no" to a chinchilla who knows just how to beg. Please remember that many chinchilla health problems are related to an improper diet. If there is one thing that most chinchillas love, it is raisins. Half of a raisin is a great training aid when teaching a chinchilla particular behaviour. There isn’t much a chinchilla won't do for a half raisin. Only three or four large raisins per week, and less for young. An occasional raisin helps prevent constipation in chinchillas.
Other treats, include things like a small bit of orange, a small slice of apple (about as much as the size of a sugar cube), a grape, a strawberry, and a small carrot or celery slice. Rolled whole oats and a spoon size shredded wheat are ok too, however,too many rich treats if may result in your pet showing signs of diarrhoea.The raw black oil sunflower seeds available for bird feeding are a great treat and can add sheen to a chinchilla's coat. Some chins eat the shell and all, without any adverse effects.
 Maize, cabbage, and lettuce are not to be fed as they cause flatulence and are hard on a chinchilla's tender digestive system. |
Chinchillas are rodents and have strongly recurved incisor teeth that grow
throughout their lives. A chinchilla needs to constantly gnaw to keep these teeth
worn down. Wood is both soft enough that chinchillas won't damage their teeth,
and is yet hard enough to keep teeth worn down to proper size. The best types
of wood are untreated white pine and apple. In fact, a large piece of pine in
the cage can serve a dual purpose. Giving a chinchilla something to gnaw on as
well as somewhere to sit. Another nice thing about white pine boards is that
they can be found in any D.I.Y. store.
Certain types of wood are poisonous to chinchillas and should be avoided. These woods include cedar, cherry, eucalyptus, fir, plum, plywood or spruce. |
Some owners provide their chinchillas with a pumice stone, but wood is probably more usual. Many pet shops now sell "flavoured" wooden chewing blocks for small animals, which includes chinchillas.
There will be times when a chinchilla's diet does require special attention: when very young, pregnant, nursing, or recovering from an illness. These special situations are beyond the scope of this discussion. You can get additional information about these special situations from your vet or from specialist chinchilla books.
Water: Chinchillas need fresh water. Changed at least
every other day. Water can grow bacteria that if not changed are harmful to chinchillas.
They can drink water from a bowl, but this really isn't practical. The chinchilla
will foul this or tip it up. A water bottle that hangs on the side of the cage
is much more preferable. Additional vitamins should not be necessary. Vitamins
added to water also accelerate bacterial growth in the water. It is suggested
that nothing be added to a chinchilla's usual tap water unless some dietary supplement
is actually called for.
Conclusion: Feeding chinchillas really is simple and certainly isn't expensive. A little care on your part, and moderation in treat giving, can provide your chinchilla a long and healthy life.
Chinchilla Handling
Chinchilla care in respect of handling is not really difficult as they rarely bite. However, you should still be careful when handling them though, due to the risk of "fur slip".
Fur slip is the shedding of patches of hair that occurs when the fur is roughly
handled. To avoid this condition, always grasp the base of the tail (close to
the body) with one hand, while supporting the body on your opposite forearm and
against your body.
As with other rodents Chinchillas can be held around the thorax.
Although they rarely bite, they still are capable if agitated. More likely, they
will urinate when annoyed. As with any pet, you should always be in control when
holding or restraining yours, to avoid injuries to either you or your chinchilla.
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