Amount of food per day?

Hello. I've heard mixed reviews of feeding chinchillas 1-2 taplespoons of pellets at morning, and same dosage at night. Then I've heard that chinchillas control their own diet and never overeat, so keeping pellets available 24/7 is totally fine.

Does anyone have any opinions on which method is correct?? Im currently keeping pellets available all the time, and it doesn't seem like my chinchilla overheats, but I also don't want him to become unhealthy from heating too many pellets.

Help!

Chinchilla Diagnosed with diabetes now loosing weight fast - HELP HELP

Hi There

I took my chinchilla to the vet yesterday as i noticed Elsa was loosing weight. She was 578grams at the beggining of april and is now 514, The vet done xrays, blood tests and urine sample and told me she was diabetic and had a blood glucose level of 14.3. Since then they gave me the recovery liquid feed to try and give her with syringe however she will not eat. I have weighed her food (science plus pellets) and she has had no food since yesterday also not touched the timothy hay, She has dropped 15 grams since yesterday. I took her to the vets tonight however they dont seem to really help. They havent told me how to increase her weight or if there is anything else i can do. Im pretty worried about her. She was injected with electrolytes tonight, and still wont eat.

Please can someone help me, she is only 1 year old (she has a sister however I have seperated them to monitor her food)

Bored Chinchilla

Hi all!

I adopted a 7 year old male chinchilla about 2 months ago. He seems totally bored in his cage. I let him out every single night for at least 2+ hours to run around the house. I have tried two different types of exercise wheels, and 1 flying saucer wheel - which Phil is just not interested in whatsoever. I even bought 2 granite slabs that I refrigerate to get cool and he seems scared of them.

Does anyone have any suggestions for boredom busters for their chinchillas? I need some chinchilla toys to keep my boy happy.

Oxbow Garden Select???

I feed Oxbow pellets since I read in this forum about which feeds and nutrient percentages were good for chinchillas and found that was the best one sold in my area.

Today I took a trip to my local Petsmart and there were no Oxbow pellets anywhere, despite all the other normal Oxbow products being in stock. Talking to a store rep, he said that there was a shortage from their distributor, would not be getting more for several weeks (I don't have that much food left), and the only store somewhat close to my area that had any had only 3 bags in stock.

Instead of driving farther away, I dropped by a nearby Petco and noticed that there was a new bag design (again?) and decided to compare ingredients when I got home. Well, apparently Oxbow Garden Select is completely different from Oxbow Essentials, to the point that I would feel extremely uneasy cold-switching it (I'm not quite out of pellets, but I don't have many left).

Has anyone heard of this feed before? Is it being sold in addition to Essentials or going to replace it? I didn't think to ask the Petsmart guy for a specific type of Oxbow... just Oxbow chinchilla pellets.

The Oxbow website says:

Quote:

"**COMING SOON!** Hand-picked and wholesome – just like your chinchilla. Garden Select Chinchilla is a complete and balanced chinchilla food, with a flavor profile hand-picked from Mother Nature’s kitchen. Select garden ingredients such as whole yellow pea, tomato, rosemary, and thyme give Garden Select its delectable, garden fresh flavor while a blend of three varieties of hand-selected hay provides essential fiber."

The three hays, according to the bag I got, being Timothy, orchard grass, and oat hay. Besides the fact that the ingredients are obviously completely different, so are the nutritional values. Any I didn't list are the same as essentials.

Guaranteed Analysis
Crude Protein (min) 16.00% vs 18% essentials
Calcium (min) 0.80% vs .06%
Calcium (max) 1.30% vs vs. 1.1%
Phosphorus (min) 0.50% vs .25%

Obviously first thing to note is its a timothy pellet vs. an alfalfa pellet. The oat hay also surprised me, considering you guys always advise to give oats/oat hay in moderation if at all. I don't give my guy any oat products since he had a calcium deficiency with his old owner, and I don't want to have to counteract any extra phosphorus. I'm not sure about the ideal protein amount, but the increase in calcium and phosphorus worries me. Haven't people said before that Oxbow essentials was on the high end of acceptable amount of calcium in feed? I guess the increase in phosphorus would possibly even it out, but I'm not sure what the correct Ca:P ratio even is.

And also... peas and tomatoes?! The ingredients also list sunflower meal, canola meal (no soybean meal), oat hulls, barley, oatmeal, and flax seed.

Am I paranoid to think that ingredient list sounds like total junk food? I've always felt like I was able to trust oxbow brand, and I think it would be great if they came out with a viable timothy based pellet for people who's chins have issues with stones etc. but I'm not sure that this is it.

Smaller petstores in my area don't carry any chinchilla pellets period. I could order online of course, but does anyone know if Petsmart is still carrying the essentials feed? If Oxbow is phasing out essentials (why though?!) what would be the closest replacement for my very picky chin? I know I've read somewhere about a feed that was extremely similar, but I can't remember which one it was and can't find the post again.

Please correct me if I got anything wrong with chinchilla nutrition, I try to learn as much as I can to be a good owner. ;w;



tl;dr Am I right in thinking this new oxbow food is not as high quality? Sorry if this post is kinda long, I tend to ramble.

Building a New Cage... Suggestions?

I am finally, after way too many years, upgrading Pikachu's cage. I have a Ferret Nation cage and I'm planning to take all of the ledges and shelves that came with it out and making everything I possibly can out of Pine. I want to fill it with toys and things to entertain him, but outside of the normal twigs and hanging things, I'm not sure what to put. Not only does he destroy everything I put in there very quickly, he will get over certain toys very fast if I buy them in bulk. Anything hanging will be in pieces within a day. And I have a saucer wheel for him which he only uses as a second bathroom.

What type of toys, entertainment, misc. items should I include?

I'm making a hay holder, litter box, house, and trying a different wheel.

Also, I'm doing it Mario themed. :)

Advice about new cage and bedding!

Hi all!

I'm new to the forum but have had my two chinchillas for 10 years now.
I've always had cages from John Hopewell but recently the wire in my current cage has broken and I'm in need of a new one. I wanted a change and to find a sturdier cage. I found this one http://ift.tt/2oATHZ1 and think it looks good, although any opinions would be welcome!

My question is about the floor of the cage. My chinchillas have always had a wire floor, covered with fleece because one is prone to bumblefoot. This cage doesn't have a wire floor and I was wondering what you guys all use as bedding as I'm aware that the ferret nation is very similar. The fleece isn't really a bedding for my chins because they like to move it out of the way in order to pee over the wire and we use newspaper in the tray to catch it. I'm also worried about the tray potentially rusting in this cage because of this. Biscuits (one of my chinchillas) just has an obsession with moving the fleece out of his way in general, and with digging at it.

Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated! :)

Rachel

2 Chins need a home! Odessa, Tx.

I have a friend in Odessa, Tx who has two sister chins who she needs to rehome. They come with cage and supplies and she asking for a rehoming fee of $200. Please help me to find these two a good home!

Chinchilla not responding and shaking

A few minutes ago my chinchilla started making screaming noises, and I went into the room and he stopped, but he is breathing heavily and seems out of it and is shaking. I don't know if this is a serious matter but he doesn't seem 100 percent aware. When I put something near his nose he will sniff but act uninterested. I have even tried giving him a treat and still no reaction but a sniff

It took a while but he finally noticed his dust bath and got in it for a second but immediately got back out and started standing still again. Every once in a while he will jump onto another ledge and stop moving again, looking completely out of it.

I left the room and not even 10 seconds later he started screaming again, and I went back in and he stopped. Is my chinchilla scared? Does he need to go to the vet? There was some loud banging earlier and his screaming started probably 15 to 20 minutes after that.

Flying with a Chinchilla

My dad lives in a different state and I go to see him at least once every couple of months and I go to his house during 7 weeks of the summer. I would like to bring my chinnie with me, but I do not know if it would be a good idea since they do not like to be disturbed out of their natural habitat but I can't leave my chinnie alone with my mom. Is it safe to take my chinnie with me?

New Chin owner

Picked up three girls a couple days ago - their old owners wanted rid of them..they had been living in a completely wire rat cage inside a car boot, no hay, no dust and were just feed bad pellets with coloured bits in and seeds.

This is them on the car ride home.

Have named them, Crissa, Chub Chubs and Chicha. They are velets, two browns and a black.

Chub chubs is the healthiest & biggest, Crissa is the smallest, and Chicha has dental issues that we are getting vet treatment for (missing one front tooth, other 3 front teeth overgrown and back teeth also bad).

They are said to be 3 - 5 years old.

Wondering if a cage that is 154cm high 83cm wide and 60cm deep is big enough for the 3 girls? Their old cage was 61cm x 37cm x 60cm.

Have ordered them wooden levels & hideys for in their cage :D

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Vet in Southeast Michigan?

Someone previously recommended us a vet in Canton that does not appear to be practicing any longer.

Thanks!

Cory

Chin making weird noise.

My female chin Squeaker​ has been making a weird noise. It sounds like a cat trying to cough up a hair ball. She's been doing it since I got her almost a year ago. I took her to the vet for a check up and about the only thing I learned that day was that Squeaker is a female. When we bought her we were told she was a male. The vet said she's healthy. Has anyone else ever heard this noise? My other chin doesn't make it.

Hardware cloth?

So I bought some 1/2in hardware cloth to cover my cage. The bottom half is empty but since my guy is doing great, I want to give him full access again. Anyway, I need to rig it so the cat can't get at him. He's only in that room at night but he will pest him if he's on the bottom half of the cage. Nails are trimmed and cleaned regularly, the hardware cloth is just for added protection. I'm hoping to move soon so the chin can have his own room but until then, I just have to make it work.


Anyway, I bought some stuff from TSC and after I was on my way home I noticed a warning. Apparently the hardware cloth contains lead. It is galvanized, but now I'm worried about using it. I don't think the other stuff I bought before had lead in it, so should I just trash it and keep looking or is it safe since it's galvanized?

Pretty sure this is what I bought:
http://ift.tt/2pa5p9T

Pringles and Nibbles

We lost our little Nibbles just after Christmas, and now his brother, Pringles has just passed away. :cry3: Pringles never got over the loss of his brother, he seemed to lose interest in a lot of things once he had gone. The good thing about Pringles was, that he still followed us around wherever we went in the house. I'm going to be so lost without them both. They at least lived to a good age, both were near to 10 years. Now they're both back together again. Rest in Peace, Nibbles and Pringles xx

Wet Poops: Help!

Hello, I am a new owner of a chinchilla. She's about 3 or 4 months old. I brought her home a few days ago, and noticed that she started having wet poops last night. I've been reading up on it, and I've found that it can be a bacterial/parasitic infection or just stress that is causing this. She seems to be acting fine otherwise, but she's been making a mess in her cage ever since this has happened. I read that substituting their pellets with just hay for a day might help. I tried this today, but it seems like it hasn't really helped. I'm a little scared since this is my first chinchilla, and I just wanna know what to do. Can anybody help me out? Anything would be appreciated!

Hello!

Hello, I'm Caitlyn, and I recently became a new chin mom. Her name is Mika, and she's about 3 or 4 months old. She's a curious little thing, and I'm still learning about her as time goes on.

I'm here because she's my first chinchilla, and I feel like the guidance of more experienced owners could really help me do right by her.

Babies with eaten off tails

This morning my chin gave a birth to 3 kits. 2 survived. It is her 1st pregnancy.
The death kit had half it's tail eaten by the mom + few fingers on the leg. 2nd one also has half tail, the 3rd is missing 1/3 of the tail. You can see this on the photos...
Is this common? Any advice?

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Help with hardware removal on tube

I wasn't sure what folder to post this in, so feel free to move it to wherever it belongs.

One of my chins' tubes started slipping on the front side, so I kept tightening it. I guess because the bolt is near the foldover, I just couldn't get it tight enough to keep it level. Now it's stuck, and it won't budge! I have a lava ledge underneath the tube to support it and keep it level at the moment. You probably already know, the bolt is flat (no indentation for a screwdriver). I tried gripping the edges with pliers, but that didn't work out either. Maybe I need to try a different kind of pliers? It's been a few weeks since I've changed the fleece on it. Thankfully, neither of the girls urinate in it, and I was able to de-furr it.

Any ideas on how to get it off?

Thanks!
Trish

Can't tell behavior function!

My chin has been laying down flat like flush against the ground all cute and potentially sad? the last few days, I think more than usual and I'm getting worried. Weather is not an issue it's back to cool even though I got an a/c for that one day we've had so far recently. He seems fine otherwise. He was jumping around when I let him out to clean his cage he was climbing all kinds of stuff trying to make a break for freedom and stuff, has been eating, "grooming" his "area" lol, nothing looks injured or anything, no unusual noises, no flinching or anything when I pet him, but he's been napping more, between all that good normal stuff and looks blah whether it's tired or sad or is that all sick? BUT, the weather has been gloomy like raining all day today especially and I've noticed that blahs him out (nerd behaviorist me took casual data to prove I wasn't being a crazy obsessed mommy lol). Has anyone had theirs have a few days like this and it just be a mood? He's never seen the vet (he's 4, ish) and I don't want to take him unless I really think I'm not being a hypochondriac, but I know they can get real sick real fast and now I'm like omg what if he lays like that for a nap and that's the end of it?! Advice, experiences, please anything welcomed! Thanks as always!

Pseudopregnancy/false pregnancy

A friend called me about a problem with a female chinchilla. It's a female 5 years old. Recently she lost fur under chin like she rubbed it off somewhere, her inguinal mammary gland is swollen (about 2,5cm), soft, not painful, not warm, her vagina is opened, no discarge, she is eating, and acting normally. Is it possible that she has false pregnancy? I can't find any literature about this condition in chinchillas. Chinchilla was recently rescued from a fur farm, but she had no contact with a male chinchilla.

Any clues or suggestions?

Chinchilla not drinking after surgery

I took my 1 1/2 year old chin, Bam to get neutered two days ago. He's back to pooping and he eats a little, but his water bottle isn't moving. I gave him some lettuce, which he ate. Should I just keep feeding him greens to hydrate him?

Suddenly lost interest in sticks?

Hello- we've been giving our two chins 3 apple sticks apiece every night since we've had them (6 months). We get them from a great seller on this site, and they've always lost their minds when they see they're about to get them, and sit and chomp away like madchins until they're completely stripped of bark.

Somewhere a fourth of the way through this last batch, they have been more reluctant when they start eating...they chew a bit, then seem to search the stick, then chew a little more. Often they'll leave a couple only half chewed, which they never did before.

There doesn't seem to be mold on them, they look exactly like the others. Sometimes there's that grey "fuzz" but that's been on some of the sticks in every batch for the last 6 months.

Has anyone else experienced this? Do they just not care for this batch for some reason, or should we try a type of wood other than apple?

Thinking about adopting one or two chin(s)

Aloha,

I've been pondering the idea of getting chinchillas for a long time, but the time was never really right, until maybe now.

Our local humane society has several chins available, two males (neutered), one female and her young offspring (also female). It is tempting, so just out of curiosity and because I like to be informed and don't want to make wrong decisions, I started reading up on keeping chinchillas.

As a kid and way into my teens I had many guinea pigs, a rabbit, and gerbils, so rodents aren't completely new to me. However, when starting reading all the information I feel chinchillas may be a bit more complicated and many questions arose.

1) 1 or 2? I keep reading contradicting information, some say that chinchillas are grouping animals and should at a minimum be kept in pairs, otherwise it would be cruel. Other sources say that they tend to do better alone in captivity. I'm especially pondering over that female and her young - but then i keep reading that female and female may be even more difficult.

2) Obviously they need a large cage and I'm looking at the ferret nation - would that be big enough for two? I'm also pondering building my own, but I can't really find any info on such an endeavor - but I feel like wood wouldn't be the greatest idea, but how to build it otherwise? Has anyone here built their own?

3) My guinea pigs and rabbits were housed outside during summers, but I read that chinchillas should not be kept outside. I understand that they're prone to heat strokes, but also sensitive towards cold and humidity. Were we live it get's into the 40s in winter, but only at night!, and probably around mid-80s in summer - humidity is low. I guess they still shouldn't be kept outside? The house doesn't have AC and may get warmer than outside during the day.

4) We have three cats and I've been reading up on that and again find contradicting information. None of the cats (indoors) know rodents, but a previous cat didn't bother the guinea pigs back then and they in turn didn't seem to care. Two of them already are older and very chill - the youngest may learn to accept the chins?
I understand that chinchillas are potential prey, albeit technically them being too big for cats. They could have their own room which can be locked, but this would greatly reduce the living space of the cats. Has anyone experience in bonding cats and chinchillas to the point that they can be in the same room when (and only then) the chins are in their cage?

This is it for now, and I'm really still in the early stages of thinking about it and may have to come to the conclusion that I can't provide an appropriate home as much as I would love to have one or two chinchilla(s). I'm sure more questions will arise as time progresses.

Thank you very much for your thoughts :)

Chinchilla Questions

Hello!

My name is Jasmyne, and though I am not a current Chinchilla owner but I am actually looking to buy one. I know they are a long term commitment, so I have some questions I am very curious about. I have researched a lot about getting a Chinchilla, and I have everything I would need to buy tracked down for one, including appropriately sized cages, a bunch of wooden chews and also toys to keep the size of their teeth down and for entertainment, exercise wheels, hideaways, cloud dust bath, an exercise pen, and found some unneeded stuff I would like to get like a little Chin Cat-Bed for example. I have researched a lot about them, like what they should and should not eat, diseases they can catch, and how to care for them. I even looked up a Chinchilla veterinarian which is close by to where I live. Even though I have done this research I do have a couple questions that were kind of hard to find answers too? I would appreciate any help, advice, personal experience, or if you have a link to information written by a doctor on these subjects I would greatly appreciate it!

From everything that I read, Chinchillas each have their own unique personality, but can they be successful service animals? I will be looking at getting a kit, as I have read that will cause Chins to be more friendly and I would love to get a White Mosiac Chin from a breeder. (I will not be buying from a store so don't worry, I do know about the issues with Pet Shops. :'00). But I have extreme anxiety issues, and intense sadness swings, and after my grandparents passed away, it has been much worse. I would love to register my ten-year-old cat, but he has a lot of emotional problems and I do not think I will not be taking him when I move out. I have looked up many forums, and the majority of people have said yes, but I wanted to see if experienced Chin owners had anything to say on this. I would mainly be looking for an animal to cuddle, groom, and focus on when I am feeling upset. I am a night owl, so I do not mind that they are active at night either haha. That is a segway into my next question, however! I know that Chinchillas shouldn't have collars or harnesses as it can cause stress and hair loss, but can they go into pet safe travel bags? As I said before, I get extreme anxiety around people and sometimes I shut down so I would probably like to take it with me for short trips. :'0 From what I've seen it's okay depending on the Chin and how long, but I can't find any specifics for what I am looking for.

Thank you for looking at my post!
- Jasmyne S.

Water bottles and chewing.

Hello!

I'm trying to figure out some peculiar things going on with my chinchillas! Primarily im wondering if I am doing something wrong with their bottles or if it may be a faulty bottle.

So I have one cage with two boys in it and they have one of those glass water bottles with the duck in it. For the most part they seem to be drinking from it but there ALWAYS seems to be bubbles in it. And the water I put in it (ITs from target and says 'Purified by reverse osmosis) always seems to have stuff in it but im wondering if maybe thats just bubbles from being poured? I cannot really tell. Ive tried cleaning the bottles/tubes as well to see if there is crud in it but thats also something im not sure is working correctly.

My other boy who has his own cage doesnt seem to be chewing a lot. I see little gnaw marks on some of his toys a little bit every morning but he doesnt like those bundled willow sticks from the store it seems. Should I try apple sticks maybe? Thanks!

Looking For Chin Breeders

Hey, my name is Nicholas, I'm from Newfoundland, Canada and I'm looking to buy a new baby Chin! I'm just trying to find a Chin breeder who can ship me the Chin, I'd pay airfare and whatever other services may be involved but if anyone could help me out in terms of referring me to a breeder then I would greatly appreciate it! Thanks :)

!HELP! Female Chinchilla Vaginal Discharge

I come home today to my 3 chinchillas and all seemed well until later on the mother of the other 2 was eating her feces which I know isn't abnormal until I saw a couple pellets stuck to her nose and that freaked me out as it was so I tried to pick her up and she wasn't having it and she ran to the bottom corner of the cage and for the first time in the nearly 2 years I have owned her she sprayed me which caused me to back off and leave her alone. That was until I looked where she standing before I tried to grab her and there was a wet kinda white spot on the shelf which then set me off into protect mode and I needed to see what was going on so I picked her up to much of her discord and cleaned off her nose and then started to inspect her and I found that she had something white sticking out from her vaginal area from which point I placed her back down and from then she is very inactive still hasn't gotten off the cage floor or for that matter really moved. I am super freaked out and don't know what to do. Should I separate her from the other 2. I need your help if you need pictures of it I can get some. I'm really worried about her and there isn't a vet that I know of around me that can handle her this late, the closest one it nearly an hour and a half away. Also the goop that was on her nose was kinda sticky almost like halfway dried Elmer's glue. Please give me any help you can.

Pimobendan/vetmedin

Any personal experiences with using this med for chins?

My 3.5 year old chin, Shrimpie, has had a murmur/CHF for most of her life. She is currently on lasix and enalapril. Over the past year or so, she had very gradually lost weight, dropping from approximately 575g to 475g. She is active and acts and eats completely normal. Today we had a vet appointment to rule out teeth issues. She had some very minor points, but due to her heart he prefers not to put her under anesthesia to float her teeth since she is not drooling, swiping at her mouth, or showing any signs of discomfort/trouble eating.

He x-rayed her to check the size of her heart. The size of her heart has not changed, but her lungs were not clear. He feels that her heart is the source of her weight loss, i.e. it is not effectively circulating nutrients to her body. He is increasing her lasix and will recheck with x-rays in one week.

If her lungs do not look better, he said we would discuss adding pimobendan. I had a dog use it years ago, but have never heard of it used in a chin. The one thread I see about it on this forum makes me hesitant. Has anyone actually had a chin on this drug?

Chin got into cleaning products!!!

He seems fine and I'm keeping an eye on him but my little Penelope chewed his way into a bottle of "nature's miracle cage odour eliminator"

The hole in the bottle was very small so I'm thinking he left it alone once he broke through. He has plenty of fresh water, pellets and hay to eat and I'm going to be monitoring his appetite.

I need advice, has any of your chins gotten into pet cage cleaning products? Should I be worried? What should I be looking out for, do I need to take him to the vet?

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Chin dosent wanna do anything

My chin between 5-7 years old (I lost track) started pulling on the cage bars trying to get out also he wont drink or eat or take baths. Probably gonna take him to a vet but it might be a while.

Not sure what's wrong

I have a male chinchilla named Marbles he's at least 3-4 and I've had him for about a year and a half. While I was at work tonight my boyfriend messaged me saying that he noticed a large lump next around his genitals. We plan on taking him to the vet tomorrow but I was just trying to get some opinions on what this is or what it could have possibly caused it. We are very worried.

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Chinchilla leaving red wet spots

Hello everyone,

I've had my chinchilla Rex for a few months, from everything I've read he looks like a healthy happy chinchilla. My one concern is that during play time i let him roam in a chin proof room, at some point there are a few red wet spots he leaves behind. I've looked at Rex and he has no cuts or bruises or any injury. This is an everyday thing, i have no idea what it is. Please help.

Opinions on Potential PetPlanet Chinchilla Cage?

I was wondering if people could weigh in on this potential cage, the Rat & Ferret Cage by PetPlanet:

http://ift.tt/2oIvxdJ

Ferret Nations are hard to come by in the UK. Not impossible, but they're much more expensive than they are in the US. I was wondering if this might be a good alternative to upgrade the chins from their starter cage as I want to give them more romping room. It looks like it comes with metal pans already which is definitely a plus as it's difficult to find someone in the UK to make the metal pans to measure, and I think shipping from BassEquipment would be fairly pricey. I'd be leaving out the extra metal shelves and ladders and filing with wooden platforms, and probably either tiling or fleece-ing the bottoms. But how does everything else look to people?

I can't find very much information on the cage, besides one review on YouTube from a girl who has rats:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-SI1KML-GM

I'm just wondering if there are some obvious pitfalls that I'm not seeing as of yet... Any opinions from more seasoned chin-friends would be much appreciated! Or if someone has experience with this cage, even better!

Air evaporator?

Hi everyone. Time for another potentially silly question for which I apologize in advance as always!

Okay, so: I moved into a studio and the window isn't a regular push up to open. It's a sliding one and only one side opens. That's my only window. So, being in lovely New England, it's supposed to go from the 60s to 81 on Sunday ...then in 2 days down to 48, but I digress... I'm trying to be prepared for my chin. I'm pretty broke right now, so I've been looking at portable "air evaporators," but they all keep referring humidity. Does anyone have any insight on whether or not they're okay and do the same thing essentially? I don't want to do something terrible to the air and end up making things worse for the poor little guy.

Any suggestions on window or portable units of any kind if anyone has any information please would be greatly appreciated. It's kind of overwhelming to try to pick one off Amazon or something online, but when I went to Walmart the other day they only had 2 pricey units that were meant for the windows that open like that and no portable ones at all. I'm sorry for the rant! It's been a generally bad week and honestly if anything happens to my furchild over the temperature, I'll be devastated. I hope you can relate! Anyway again, I'm sorry and thank you all in advance as always.

You're all so wonderful and patient with my dumb questions!

Have an awesome weekend!

Chinchilla and heat

Hello guys :) I'm afraid for the upcoming of summer with my chinchilla

I saw on google that they allow 16 to 21°C (I guess i can push it to 23) so it's 60-70F. Here in france, summers can rise up to 40°C often...

Is there any practical way to cool down my little chin ? I thought about a fan but I don't know it can make her sick and it doesn't really work that great. I can't afford those machine that make the room cold. i also thought about a giant ice cube in a bowl so the water don't spill, I know it works for cats but chins ... Idk

Any tips ? :)

Hii! Marshmellow and Me

Hi everyone! Marshmellow is my baby chin (cough 10yrs young cough) who's super curious, super inspiring, super beautiful/cute/majestic, and a touch sassy...but mostly pretty mellow. I like to think I'm about 0.00001% all those things too <3 We have a cute instagram together if you're interested:
http://ift.tt/2ovqixS

We are from the north eastern United States.
Looking forward to learning and sharing with y'all!

Vet near Odessa, Texas

any suggestions on a chinchilla vet in or near Odessa, tx

Aloe and other plants?

Hi everyone!

Not sure if this is the right area, so I apologize if I should have posted elsewhere!

I know that some wood and whatnot is toxic for chins. Does anyone know if having an aloe plant in the same room would give off anything that might harm him? I read an article about certain plants that might help sleep (granted it was off Facebook and I'm still going to look into it if they are perhaps chin-friendly http://ift.tt/2oQkorN), my current life problem, and I wanted to try them out.

I thought aloe might be the least fragrant and easiest to get and maintain. The others were lavender (hate the smell), jasmine (I think I hate that smell too lol), English ivy, and the snake plant. Those last 2 also sounded interesting if anyone happened to have any information. I wondered if it's the smell of anything that could be harmful. Is echinacea or eucalyptus or maybe both that are toxic, so I've avoided a room spray/essential oils thinking that I might kill my baby if he inhaled! Color me paranoid lol. Any information would be great. Thank you!

Free to good home. Livingston, Texas

Dessy is a standard female, about 4 years old. She normally eats Oxbow, though I had to put her on Pirina Pro rabbit food when funds got tight. She'll likely be back on Oxbow soon, though, because she hates this stuff. I also have about 75% of a large bale of timothy that she has for food and bedding.
Dessy has a massive ferret cage, the size of a double Ferret Nation, with ample perches and a wood house.

Now for the reason: I'm going to be moving out of the country by the end of the year, and between the 11+ hour flight, selling her cage and buying a new one with all new supplies, any quarrantine she might have to be in, and hoping I can find a reliable window A/C unit right away, I think it would be kinder to everyone if I found her a loving home here.

As the title states, I'm in Livingston, Texas. I can travel a bit to meet her new family, but I work six days a week so I can't go too far.

What should I do with my very scared chinchilla

Hello, I bought my chinchilla 5 days ago.

She is very scared, she let me touch her if she isnt in her hideout and if I go very slow (she never tried to bite me so i guess it's a good sign)

But 99% of the time she won't get off her house and she will jump at any sudden movement i do (and I do my best not to do any, really)

I tried to give her apple but she won't eat any (from my hand or even if i leave it there) So the only way for me to tame her is to approach her which is impossible without scaring her. So I feel pretty stuck.

I just wonder what I should do to get her trust. Should I just wait it out ? Or try to make a move ? Right now I just tried to talk to her through the bars of the cage, without doing a movement, but i was so focused on not moving that when she moved it scared me so i scared her back and she kept doing whiny noises (the ones chinchilla do when they are scared) I'm starting to act like a chinchilla and get scared at any movement she does :laughitup:

I'm very scared to f**k up with her :S I'm also worried because since she is alone, she'll feel sad (I suppose ?) but I can't do anything about it because she doesn't want me around :S Any suggestions ?

11yr old Chin wants food, but isn't eating

It started several weeks ago. We've been syringe feeding him for awhile now, but he fights it and is slowly losing weight.

He's been sedated twice in the past ~2 weeks for teeth filing. The first time his teeth were a mess and the Dr fixed a lot, and took xrays. He still didn't start eating on his own. Re-examined after ~1.5 weeks, saw some blood in his mouth (might have just been the device?) so sedated him a second time to give him another close check.

This second time, didn't really see anything that would be poking him or causing any problems. The cuts on his tongue were all healed up. Took some xrays, roots look fine with a few teeth having some minor elongation. Also looked for hairballs? Everything looks fine.

Also took blood to get checked up, still waiting on results.

He acts like he wants to eat. Anytime you go to the cage he runs up like he wants a treat. He's nibbled on a dried mango for a few minutes, but didn't really eat much of it. Anything else (soaked pellets, hay, whatever, he accepts, sniffs, then drops).

He still has energy. Still runs around and explores when let out. Runs on his wheel sometimes, just not for long. Sleeps a lot more than normal right now. Poops a lot. Drinks just fine.

He was on pain meds for awhile after the first tooth filing, but it didn't seem to make any difference. He's currently not on them.

Any ideas what could be causing this?

Also, how much winter squash baby food is ok to feed him in a day? We syringe feed him Critical Care, but it's often a fight to get enough in him. He'll accept a CC or two of the baby food with some CC mixed in on his own, I just don't want to give him too much, but at the same time he needs food in him.

Chinchilla chewing whiskers

I recently bonded two male chinchillas and noticed that one has very short whiskers. I know that this is a sign of dominance over the other but does this hurt or negatively affect the chinchilla with shorter whiskers?

Chinchilla playtime questions!

Hello!

I am a relatively new chinchilla owner. I've had them for a couple months now but they have previously lived with my girlfriend. Due to her moving they now live with me and I am learning how to be an awesome Chin-Parent! I've already learned so much but there is something peculiar about my one chinchilla boy.

I have 3 chinchillas total. One in his own cage and two brothers in another. The singular Chinchilla seemingly LOVES playtime! His energy is absolutely crazy and he seemingly never wants to stop. I want to regulate it to an hour long session but after the first week or so he seems to know that if he gets back in his cage Im going to close the door. And getting him myself is a hassle and I am always worried about making him hate me because I have to try and get ahold of him.

When he's out during playtime he always tries to get either under the couch or the bed. I have chinchilla proofed the entrances but he is relentless and doesn't seem to focus on other areas in the playroom. Is this something I should be worried about? DId I start the playtime sessions too early without properly bonding with him so I can pick him up?

When I try to pick him up he makes grumbly noises, and last night he made teeth chattering sounds at me. He also doesnt ever seem to want the rosehip treats I offer him probably due to the fact that ive decided to no longer give him those fattening dandelion treats that Ive learned are really bad for them.

Any advice would be helpful! I just want to make sure he lives a happy life. I know i probably asked a handful of questions so any answers are awesome!

Thank you!

Moving the cage for warmer weather

My chins have been in my guest room for the 5-1/2 months I've had them, since in the winter it is the coldest part of the house (That and the laundry room). For the same reason it's the coldest in winter, it's the warmest in summer, so soon being in there isn't practical. I keep the house very cool, but I don't think the living room temp is going to be good enough to keep that room cool, and I don't want to turn it lower and freeze the cats. I'm trying not to use a window air conditioner. I have an old portable unit but it is not wi-fi capable. The thermostat is, and I do monitor it all day long.

Add in that I don't get to spend enough time with them since they're in a separate room. We seem to have kind of halted the bonding process this month or so for some reason. They don't usually allow me to touch them or pick them up, but they climb all over me. (Last night JoJo jumped on my foot, and her feet were freezing!) That was around 4 months, and I thought by 6 months all would be good. But no progress since then.

Soooo (and sorry that was long), I have a couple options for the warm weather. My first choice, and I'm asking if you think this is a bad idea, is the living room. Is it just not a good idea with the all the dust flying around and tv/electronics in there? On a separate note, the cats have zero interest in the chins, although Abby LOVES to eat hay off the floor. They are 15 and 13 years old.

The next option would not be far away from the living room - the foyer (which is pretty small, and the cage would block the front entry). It's tiled in there and they would still be close by. And I wouldn't need a separate air conditioner.

The final option, which would require a separate a/c unit, would be the laundry room. It's fairly big for a laundry room, but I'd have to move the cats' litter boxes out.

I'm testing option 1 today. I just moved them into the living room before I sat down to type. Now I have to go clean the guest room - what a mess behind the cage!

So what do you think?

Thanks a bunch!
Trish