New Chinchilla Dust

Through our own research and trials, we here at TaylorMadeChinchilla have made what we believe is the closest dust to the chinchilla's natural environment. We are calling it Stardust! We have been using it in our own home and our chinchillas won't go back. It is NOT simply the standard blue cloud dust, I believe it's BETTER!



**NEW & IMPROVED**



Our bath consists of 2 different materials specifically designed to replicate the natural dust the chinchillas would have used in nature. The combination is perfectly designed to absorb the absolute most oil from your chinchillas WITHOUT altering the color or texture of their fur.



-Fullers Earth. This is the fine powder that really penetrates the fur all the way to the skin and makes their fur look soft and amazing! It is the consistency of baking flour and super soft. Fullers Earth has been used in the cosmetic field for years because of the wonderful ability to absorb oil without harming even the most delicate skin.



-Diatomaceous Clay. This is the larger pieces that are visible to the eye. (Similar to the size of table salt.) The larger grain size acts as a comb, helping to remove any loose fur. (NO MORE COMBING!) This is also a super absorbent material that will leave your chinchilla's fur super soft.



Both of these materials are FDA certified for HUMAN use, so you can rest assure that your babies will be 100% SAFE!



Shipping: 1 Pound will be shipped in a priority small flat rate box for $10 TOTAL. On orders larger than one pound, shipping will be worked out on an individual basis.



We offer a bulk discount if you are getting more than 10 pounds. Just message me for details.



Sepiolite (Fullers Earth) has been used for years by show breeders in Europe. Most believe it is softer and penetrates the fur better than pumice. Try it yourself and let me know, I value honest feedback.



**CHINS & HEDGIES ONLY SPECIAL**

All C&H users who purchase $20 or more during the month of July will receive 1 FREE POUND to try. PM me to place an order.



Click HERE for pictures and more information

Very small female chin

Hi I'm new to chins. I had my female chin for just about a year now. She only weighs 360-380g. Is this normal? Her appetites are good and is very active, not bony but not fat either. Is she just a small chin or should I be feeding her some supplements like cc?

Buying Combs

Can you all post some links for chinchilla combs i can't find them anywhere i'm hoping you guys will have some links for me. (:

Separating males from females.

Hello,



I currently have 3 females, and 1 male chinchilla in different cages. The cages are right next to each other for now, but i'm thinking of getting another male chinchilla to live with my male that I have already. How far does the cages need to be from each other to make sure they don't fight over the females? I've heard stories of the males fighting until death over the females even when in different cages.



I have a reasonable size room, and was thinking of putting the males in one corner, and the females in the other.. will this be ok? My male is currently 4 1/2 months old. What's a good age for a male to pair him with?



Thanks, I hope someone can help! :)

Introducing Chins

Hi,



I have 2 chinchillas. One is around a year and a half old and the other is around 8 months old. I have been trying to bond them for quite some time now. But I don't think they like each other, and i was wondering if I should call it quits. I currently have a ferret nation double story. So they go to the hole and can smell and look at each other through the bars. When they do this they aren't very hostile they just kinda stare at each other and touch noses.



Yet, when they are in playtime together it is a completely different story. I put a dust bath out for them and at first everything is always fine. They are running around taking dust baths. But then they start spraying each other a crazy amount. At random moments they will look at each other from up close and be fine. But then it always ends the same. After a while the older chin will start chasing the younger chin trying to bite her. This causes the younger one to have fur slips. I always return them to their cages at this point.



I have tried pretty much everything from a smaller cage in a bigger cage, trimming whiskers, switching them from cage to cage, etc. I have never tried smooching or taking them for a car ride because I am scared they will kill each other in that small space.



Do you think they are just not meant to be friends or is there something someone can recommend? I really want them to be friends but I have accepted that this may not be possible.



Thanks!

Water bottle?

I'm tired of fighting with the current one I have and every other I buy seems to leak...



Any recommendations?

purina rabbit show chow needed

I need a large flat rate box of prsc and I need it shipped tomorrow, June 30th. My husband only just now let me know that we have a week of food left. Whomever messages first that can ship it, I'll have the money sent through PayPal ASAP.



Thanks!



Samantha

Flying Saucer Wheel!?

Why are flying saucer wheels so hard to come by? The metal ones I mean! I've looked all over and can't seem to find a genuine website that sells them. I've found things such as a running plate on Amazon (linked below) but I'm not sure if I would prefer them to use this over a flying saucer!



If anyone knows of where I can get a metal flying saucer from, or if they have experience with the running plates then I will order one of those instead.



Thanks!

Mixed Chinchilla signals

So I've had Meeko my 5 month old chin for almost 3 weeks now. He loves playtime and loves to jump out of his cage onto me and my partner and then back in. He's ran off under the kitchen table a few times and we've always got him back in his cage either with his dust bath or managing to get him close enough to gently pick up and get him back to his hidey hole.



He's comfortable enough with us that we can put our hands in the cage and he'll sniff around them or reach for our hands or step on and off them but over the last 2 days it seems like we've gone about 10 steps back. Yesterday and today while having playtime he's given me a slightly sharper nip than I'm used to because I wont let him run under the kitchen table and if he wants me to move my hands out the way he'll nip at my fingers again. He also won't let me give his head a stroke either. He's not barking at me or sulking with me, in fact, as soon as he hops back in his cage after nipping my fingers he jumps back on me and tries it again. He doesn't bark, doesn't spray, and even though he doesn't so it as often as the first 2 weeks we had him, he still cuddles up on my hand when he's really tired (see pic of cute cuddles)



Is this normal to take a few steps forward and then a few back? I love him to bits already and I've spent a few evenings with the sniffles when it seems that he's not overly fond of me.



And advice would be greatly appreciated, he really is my baby and I'd do anything to make him happy.

Attached Images

Meeko.jpg (77.2 KB)

What to do...what to do.

Mela has been with us a few months now, and she was coming along really great. Very social, would come out and play every night, love scritches and treats on treat night. She would beg to come out every night... WELL... a few days ago while I was working my husband tried to pick her up, he said nothing happened but she didnt like it so he put her down... fast forward and she has not come out for playtime in three days. Last night I made a circle with the play pen and got her into her dust house and put her in the play pen... and she was so nervous trying to climb me constantly freaking out trying to get back to her cage. She was SO scared. So I put her back home. What happened to my playful girl? Nothing traumatic happened to her... do you guys think she will get over this? Did I mess up by pretty much forcing her to come out last night?:hmm:

Teeth problems

Hi All,



I haven't been on here in a very long time, but I need some advice. My chinchilla, Tristan, has been pawing at his mouth recently and tonight when I went to give fresh hay, water, and pellets I noticed that the fur under his chin and chest were matted with what looked like dried drool. I'm very concerned at this point. Although this is the first time I've noticed him drooling, ever, I've read up about malo. He's always been a lazy chewer...prefers pellets over hay and lava bites over an apple stick. The drooling seems to have stopped, but he's still pawing at his mouth. Right now as I type this he is eating hay and pellets as his usual self, but I'm still a very worried chin-mom. Should I take him to his vet to have his mouth examined? Also, he is 6 years old, just turned 6 in March.

1st cut Orchard Grass and Alfalfa Hay Mix

Perfect hay mix for all small animals that require daily hay. Smells wonderful and your fur babies will love it!



1st cut orchard grass and alfala hay mix from the farmlands of central Virginia. This year's harvest so it is nice and fresh.



3 Pounds with FREE PRIORITY SHIPPING for $18.



PM me for more information or bulk pricing. Thanks again!

help!!

On Monday I purchased two female chinchilla from a guy off of craigslist. When I got home I realized that one of the females felt big, well Thursday comes around and she had three babies. I am having trouble with one of the babies and I am afraid he is not going to make it, he is a lot smaller than the other two an seems a lot weaker. I've Been trying to feed him some goats milk, by he doesn't seem to be eating it, is there a Certain way I am supposed to feed him? I also started to notice him shivering like he was cold.

Learning to Hold My Chinchilla

So I've had mine for about a year now, he's gotten comfortable with me petting him on his head, his back, and under his chin, but holding he still seems uncomfortable with. Also I don't know really how to approach this. I absolutely adore him, but I worry cause what if something happens and he gets out? I'd need a way to get him in his cage. I don't want to just rely on hoping he gets in his dust bath either. Can anybody give me any tips on how to approach handling my chinchilla?

Just wondering if someone can help..so worried about my chin :(

Hi everybody, I am new here and really need some help. I have three chins all females, two of them live together in one cage. My four year old standard grey Bella has been acting strange for the past week. She still eats and drinks, but is really subdued. She has gone off chewing completely and juat wants to sit in the hay box all the time. She ia normally really active and perky. My husband and I have noticed when she does eat she seems to be stugfling to swallow. We took her to the vet who had a look at her teeth, she gave her some gas and checked her back teeth too and said all was well. That was three days ago ans her behavior is still the same. I can't understand what is wrong and have no idea what to do to get my girl back :( She means the world to me and I am scared that there is something I can be doing that I am not. Can someone please give me some advice?

Might change food/sugar content?

Ive had my 5 chins on Manna pro's Select Series Pro for a very long time, and they love it. But when my one chin was diagnosed with diabetes, it made me realize that the food is made with cane molasses. And there Pro, Gro, and Sho feeds all contain it to.



I had to switch my boy off of this food because its sugar content and his diabetes. But considering that chins cant process sugars in general, i was thinking it might be good to switch all my chins off this food.



The issue would be, what food. The Pro food was about $10 for a 25lb bag or so. With five chins, that price/amount came in handy.



But the American Pet Diner food i switched my boy to is $7.19+$18.70shipping direct from AMD, or $32+shipping (timothy pellet) and $21+shipping (alpalpa pellet) off of amazon. And they are for a meager 2.75 lbs bag (about 10%). - The cost of keeping up with that for all my chins would be pretty extravagant.



Most everything ive looked at so far is either unhealthy in general, contains some form of sugar, or is incredibly expensive. Anyone have any ideas for a decent food that fits these parameters?

Help and Advice for Ferret Nation 182 "Chin Proofing"

So I am going to be purchasing a ferret nation 182 for my two chinchillas. I understand that there are plastic shelves and the ramps are not safe. I already planned to take out the ramps and make kiln dried white pine ramps and little shelves for them to jump on. However I do not know what to do with the shelves. I understand a lot of people just fleecewrap but I dont really want to deel with the fleece (I would rather just use the pine bedding) But the shelves aren't even really deep enough to hold it correctly. So I know you can get custom made bass ones that I could just fill up with pine bedding but I guess that is kind of my last option. Here are some examples I saw some people do that im not even really sure is safe or not



Here is still the plastic shelves but he used wood around them. Is that safe?

http://ift.tt/1wKfYxB



Is there a possible way I could make something similiar to the picture above but using a wood shelf to slide in and out?





This idea looks fine too but once again he has bass custom Tray on the bottom but what does he have on top? nothing? doesnt the pee sink into the wood?



http://ift.tt/1wKg2NU



If you could please give me the best and maybe also the simplest ways to Chinchilla proof this cage to my liking, I can work with wood and I suppose I can buy two bass trays but it seems so expensive when I might be able to just make a wood tray myself, I just dont really know exactly how to do that, also what I should do about the ramps. SHould I makle wood ramps? or just have them hop to the second leve. All help appreciated thanks



Hunter

Odd feces

Hello, today I had my hedgehog out on the couch, and she began to, well...poop on my couch. I immediately ran to get tissues to clean, and on the tip of her feces it was white. I have never seen this before and my Google searches havent helped. If anyone could tell me what this could be that would be greatly appreciated.

4 Kits, 2 with problems

My female (Bonnie) gave birth to 4 kits Sunday evening. This is her second litter. One of the kits is super healthy looking and very active (Chubby). One of the kits is on the small side but still very active (Tiny). However, one of the kits still has one of his eyes closed (Winky). It doesn't seem to bother him but i've been gently trying to get it to open with no luck. And the last kit (Smoky) is very skinny and not very active. I don't think he's getting enough to eat so I put Chubby and Winky in with Clyde (the father) to give the 2 smaller ones more time to feed. When I put Smoky up to Bonnie, he nurses for a short while and then she moves to a different part of the cage. My question is what should I do about Winky's eye and Smoky's failure to thrive? Should I supplement for Smoky? Any input would be appreciated.



Thanks!

My chinny girl, Pichu :)

I love our little girl, Pichu! She has progressed so well the past week and a half. It will be two weeks on Sunday since we brought her home. She is starting to become very cuddly and loves a nice head scratch and belly rub. We haven't tried picking her up just yet but she has climbed onto our arms already so I think it will happen soon. We want to eventually be able to let her come into the other rooms potentially in a harness for her safety. Has anyone had any luck with harnesses with your chinchillas? Is it ok to use one with them? Just curious. It just seemed like a better way to bring her into the other rooms and still be able to keep track of her. She is doing great coming out of her cage at playtime and hanging out with us in her room. We have basically a whole bedroom that is chin proof for her so that's been nice for her, and fun for us. I just thought I would share a few pics of her because well I think she is adorable!





We think she looks like a chubby little hunchback kangaroo in this pic LOL





I think she only uses her spinny wheel to sleep on or sit on like a chair but oh well at least it is being used I guess. We do plan to replace it with a metal chin spin when we can.





Playtime .. don't worry we plan to replace all those cardboard boxes with wood ones eventually





She loves feet, especially my husbands. Not sure why.. I guess she likes the really smelly ones LOL. Also I know the floor there has a bunch of droppings & such there. I was cleaning the cage and dropped a bunch of them on the floor but don't worry it was cleaned that evening.





Adorable little sleeping beauty



I hope you enjoyed the pics! Have a great day!

So I bought a second CN for my other chin... and it's super crooked. I can't even finish putting it together. :/



I don't know what to do now. :/ I'm trying to bend everything into place, but the door latches are so lose that the top peg isn't even in the hole!

Buying a Chinchilla..Or Two?

I am about to purchase two baby chinchillas in a month or so from a breeder. I have decided I want two males also they will hopefully be from the same mother as two mothers are pregnant at the same time. Should I definitly buy two males from the same mother? Or is it okay to buy a male from each mother? Also, I heard if i only buy one chinchilla they will bond to me more but I need to be more socialable with it. I have already set aside 1.5 to 2 hours of everyday of mine to be with them, but I am nervous because if I buy two im worried they wont love and bond to me as much, and instead of bonding and liking me they will in turn bond with eachother, not caring about me as much. Can somebody please explain and tell me about this dilema? I understand it can take years and so much patience to tame them but I really want a friend that likes me, If I buy two will they still love me? D,x I just want them to still genuinely want to spend time and run around with me, and you know enjoy it when I come up to their cage and talk to them, or run out onto my hand sometimes during play time. Do they just wave you away and not really care you are there if you have two? If so it might turn me off to buying two, even though I really would like two. Any advice about this would help :) I have done almost 15 hours of research on them and I think they are wonderful little creatures. I did not however find a lot of info about this particular topic.



Thanks,

Hunter

Discoloured penis?

My male chinchilla is usually pretty good at cleaning himself, but I noticed by chance today that the base of the penis (when retracted) is slightly discoloured - it seems like a kind of greyish/blue/brown colour. I haven't been able to get him to sit still to have a proper look but does this sound like a hair ring?

If so I may have to take him to the vet since I'm having insane trouble getting him to sit still long enough for me to try and remove it :(

New fleecy stuff I made :)

I decided to make some nice fleece things for our little girl, Pichu yesterday. Made a no sew hammock as well as a backing for the back of the cage to catch some of her droppings so the don't go behind the cage as much. Also made a fleece cover for her top shelf until we get her wooden ones done. We plan to take all the plastic shelves out as soon as we can but I plan to make some more covers for the rest until then. my first cover didn't turn out too pretty since I forgot to calculate in then hole and the ramp lol but it works for now :) also I know the colours aren't the prettiest but I couldn't find any prettier polar fleece blankets around here :P















Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Mabel's Vet Appointment

So the vet checked, and her teeth are perfectly fine. She didn't see any spurs, and Mabel's overall health is perfect. I was so happy.

They said watch for drooling, but she doubts there is anything that could happen with her teeth.

Mabel weighs 1.1 pounds, so that is exciting that I finally have an accurate weight for her.

Apparently she was one of the best chinchillas they have handled, but I wonder what their worst was, as Mabel kept trying to get away lol. Mabel was fast forgiving and let the vet's assistant hold her until we had the carrying cage all ready for her. The assistant thought Mabel was the cutest aha.

So yes, Mabel is completely healthy!

Chin is MAD at me

My new-ish 6-year-old female had an eye problem and was taken to the vet. Long story short, she's fine and she needs eye drops twice a day.



However, she was an aggressively bred female who came from, in my own humble opinion, a very neglectful/abusive environment. She was not raised with regular human contact and generally finds people threatening and awful. She has a history of spraying when being handled, and being extremely difficult to get a hold of.



Ergo, this eye thing has taken a toll on her and she is VERY angry with me since I've had to wrangle her twice a day to shove drops in her eyes. To the point that when I walk in the room or near the cage, she starts "yelling" at me with chirps, barks, etc... even when I'm not attempting to handle her or approaching the cage.



Her behavior/demeanor had vastly improved since I took her in about 9 months ago, and now we've regressed and she's worse than how she was before. Does anyone have any experience with this or tips on how I start to win back her trust? Just looking for some general input on how I could possibly improve the situation.



Thank you in advance.

Cone of shame?

Dessy's eye is infected again, and she seems like she's constantly messing with it. I'm sure a cone of shame is out of the question, but are there any pointers to help it heal better/faster? I'm using the antibiotics the vet gave the the first time (all of three weeks ago).

Please Help Concerned for our Hedgie

We adopted our hedgie from someone we don't think took care of her well, we are first time owners and wish I had done my research before adopting however we have her and we are trying our best to do the best for her, she is very grouchy and mean. Anyways we noticed she is bleeding from her what seems to look like private area or possibly her tail ? She doesn't like to be held that well so its hard to get a look at it becuase she closes up and hisses and quills are up ? We don't know what it is if its concerning or what we should do ? Its not a lot but enough to be concerned on our part ? Please help us and tell us what would cause this

Chinchilla Rage...

Hello y'all,

So this is my first time bring a question on here but....I need all the advice I can get.



So I have four chinchillas. Two that tolerate each other and coexist in the same cage. (I say tolerate because one is protective and loves to cuddle and the other one has no desire to be cuddled lol)

Our third one is angry as all get out and has to be kept in his own separate cage. And the fourth is new recent and very sweet:



My question is with this third little man. All of our chins have been rescued in some sort of way. He was found dangling from a cage at pets mart and he had ripped some of his fingers from his hand and he had tendons holding him there. So we took him immediately and got him taken care of. He was very angry toward us at first (he would hiss, bark, and bite at any moment he could get) it's coming up on a year that we have had him and he absolutely loves us, adores us and follows us anywhere (I call him our little dog) but you can tell that he is very lonely being in his own cage around the other chins. We have tried everything, putting there cages close together so they would get used to each other, letting them plays working on dominance and about a million other ideas that we researched/were advices by our vet. When they are around him they fight with each other, as well as any moment they are near him they are fur ripping, biting or trying to yank body parts through the cage. At this point we have stopped trying and just keep them seperate. But you can just tell he hates it. When they are having play time he's is freaking out in his cage, and calms down when we finally let him out. We have moved him to different rooms of the house both to live and for play time. But when he stays in another room away from them he whines and stops eating, and for play time he still freaks out because he knows it's play time. Our two chins we have introduced to him don't show any agression until they are around him. They don't bite or anything but as soon as he is around it's like we have 3 very different chins.



I would like to eventually hopefully get all of them together. Our fourth one we just rescued and he is going through the process and for the most part he is not aggressive and they don't fight with him like this one. I can say that the anger aggressive is more from this 3rd little guy than from any of the chins . So I am wondering do they have issues with aggressive ness? If so is there a way to work with it? Does neutering work at all? Supplements? We absolutely love this guy and I want him to he happy but I can tell unless he is hanging out with me and my husband he is pretty depressed. When we took him in the petsmart said he got along with then other chins, so we are wondering if his accident sparked something? I don't know. Like I said , he loves us but hates the other chins.

Cage Problems

I got my chin about last summer and his first birthday is coming up! I'm very excited to see my chin getting big, but he is outgrowing his cage ): I sadly am not able to get mittens a very large one where he has extra space to run and play in. I want him to be happiest during the day when I'm not home, how can I do that? Also, I need advice as to what toys are best for chins. Thanks!

I don't think my chins will ever love me :(

I've owned both of them for just over 5 years now, I have never mistreated them, pushed them too far, made them feel "small" or anything like that. I spend a lot of money on them, their new cage is HUGE and has everything they could ever wish for. They get play time out of their cage daily, get treats, always have access to food and water and toys to play with... So what I don't understand is why they don't, not necessarily "love" me, but like me?



They hate contact and I feel like even after 5 years together they are still scared of me, I have tried so many bonding techniques and none of them work :(.



A bit of background: I got the eldest from a friend of a friend, who did not want her anymore, so I took her on. As for how she was treated in her previous care I'm unware of. I'm guessing they didn't understand how to look after chinchillas properly because they had no idea she was pregnant (and I found out a few days of having her). Her baby has been with me since he was born, and he was social when he was a kit, but now he's just as timid as his mother.. Can't help but feel like I'm a rubbish chinchilla mom :(

Perches- what size do chins like/is safe?

I'm cutting down a few Poplar trees to make perches for my chin and others. I'm new at perches, but they're turning out very well. I was wondering what typical sizes were. When I was outside cutting it up I ended up cutting 8-10 inches long and 2 1/2in diameter. Under 2 inches I figured would become coins. Then as I was trying to figure out pricing I saw some people selling them a lot skinnier (and shorter, but i thought i was doing 7 inches and am really bad at eyeballing it i guess). I dont want to do ones too skinny so the chins dont have enough room, or God-forbid land funky and hurt themselves, but If skinnier sticks are ok I could do a lot more and have more variety for others and myself. (I also could do grapevine if skinny ones are ok. Although Yuki would go through those FAST)



What diameter perches do your chins like?

What do you think is too skinny, and could cause bad landings?

What length do you think is typical? what would you like?



I'm also toying with the idea of making a perch that goes all the way across Yuki's ferret Nation and fixes onto each side-and I definitely would do it with the 2 1/2 inch or thicker diameter. Any thoughts on that either way? Would your chins like something like that? would you be too worried about a slip with a perch that big? I'm just always trying to think of new things for Yuki to enjoy, but i worry.



Thanks for any input! :)



Thanks for any input

Soap on Chinchilla by Accident...

Was playing with Chinchilla - he ran under auto soap dispenser (got away from me) and got some on his fur - can I rinse him? what do I do to get it off???



Thanks.. a little worried.. he can't reach where it is.. so won't eat it..

just want to get it off..



Worried Chin Mom

ISO: breeding runs and growing cages

Looking for breeding runs and/or growing cages. Will be going to the Shindig in August and can pick up along the way or if willing to deliver there.

Hello Everyone :)

Hi all! :) My husband and I just got our first chin a little over a week ago. I will be honest and say at first I was pretty overwhelmed with the idea as we had just got a new cockatiel the day before and wanted to devote my time to training him (as well as continuing to give our other 5 birdies attention as well-4 budgies and another cockatiel). My husband of course had done some research but not as much as I would like (and I like to do as much research myself beforehand so I am sure we take care of them properly) but he insisted on getting one right away so I went with it lol. But as soon as we got her home and got her all situated I have no regrets! She is the cutest and most entertaining little girl! She has made great strides this week. She enjoys her out of cage time and loves crawling all over us. She even lets me give her chin scratches! She let me scratch her ears and her side yesterday and even lifted up her front paw to let me scratch her belly for a bit! It was the most adorable thing ever!!! Anyways so we have been working very hard on getting everything as chin proof as possible. Since her cage came with plastic shelves and ramps we decided to go and get some wood to make her some shelves and ledges to replace those. We haven't finished them yet so she will have to keep those until we can... of course our power drill batter decided to die on us so we have to go fine a replacement one before we can finish them up! :( We also had bought one of those plastic running discs/wheels whatever you call them so I'm thinking of getting a metal chin spin eventually. I think she uses hers but I've mostly just seen her sitting in it like a chair :P We also plan to make the bedroom she is in more chin friendly. We have everything proofed as far as wires and anything she shouldn't get into but we have a bunch of cardboard boxes in the right now for some jumping and such which I know too much cardboard is not good for them so we will eventually get some wood ones for her to play and chew on. Anyways since this is getting pretty long I will go... and maybe post some photos soon. I will just leave you with a little sneak peak of our little girl, Pichu cuddling with her "cuddle toy" after play time the other night :)







Anyways, Have a great day everyone!!! :D

What does this mean? Is this gagging/choking?

A little background: my girl had a very tiny spur on her teeth on her upper left cheek and two weeks ago the vet removed the spur. There was no trauma on the surgery. The spur was so tiny that the vet didn't think that was the problem causing her to lose so much weight so she drew blood but came back normal. So we think it really was the tiny spur that bothered her and caused her not to eat. She returned to her normal activity the day of the surgery. She has been able to eat on her own and has slowly gained weight ever since.



A couple of days ago, I let her out for a playtime to enjoy her new wooden furniture (kinda like a cart). She was playing fine until she jumped away from me and landed on the cart (probably thinking that was a solid top? There is sasal rope around the top area so it kind of looks like a top). She jumped right to the ground after landing on the cart. She landed both times on her feet but I'm not sure if the corners of the cart hurt her somewhere. After that, she jumped up to my knee showing her discomfort in the mouth/jaw. Then she continued to play.



I gave her some rose hips after playtime and she had this gagging/choking motion shown in the video below. Yesterday when I gave her honey suckle she had that motion again and that was when I filmed the video. She doesn't have this gagging motion when she eats her pellets. It's only when she eats very small rose hips and honey suckle, and sometimes hay, she would have that.



Has anyone seen this? What does that mean and is this something I need to be concerned about and take her to the vet ASAP? :cry3: I don't think it's related to her surgery 2 weeks ago but just putting the history out there in case someone thinks it may be the cause. Maybe she landed wrong and hurt her jaw? She is eating and pooping and would let me touch her jaw and body. Occasionally though, she would make a sound when I touch her jaw too much.



Any advice and opinion is greatly appreciated. Thanks!



Video: http://ift.tt/Vl9Y1n

Are any of you guys redditors?

There's a popular post today showing a cute photo of someone's grandma and the Three Stooges with a chinchilla.



3rd top comment? Some hat bragging about how much money he made by starting a chinchilla breeding business.



Already people are asking about the $-making possibilities. :/ Worrisome.

kit prolapse - paws crossed everyone!

These kits sure have been an adventure. Today I discovered one of Luna's babies prolapsed. It happened sometime between 8am and 11am, when I discovered it. Off to the vet we went, and here I sit waiting. It feels like an eternity, and I want to scream at someone for not realizing the urgency! :hair: I really hope they take us soon. In reality it's only been a little over 5 minutes but it just feels like ages.



Has anyone had a kit survive this? If it happened shortly after 8 how bad is the outlook? I'm hoping it happened not too long before I discovered it at 11, and I know when I checked on everyone at 8 she was fine.



Do I have to worry about it happening to the other baby too now? Any suggestions from anyone whose been through it?



She will be two weeks old tomorrow... she's such a sweet little thing... :cry3:

DIY chinchilla shirt

So......I always wanted to make my own DIY graphic shirts. Finally had time since it's summer so bought some iron on paper and I made shirts like about vegan, cool prints, etc. but today I made one of my chinchilla and dog. It was the PERFECT pictures. My chinchilla and dog were doing the same pose let alone looking at the same direction. they were taken both in the same home too before I moved. Here is the shirt: Photo upclose: I absolutely love this shirt more than any designer shirts. Obviously my pets mean the world to me so I'm so glad I made this shirt. Plus I washed my another shirt more than twice after i put on an ironed on picture and it still looked good as new. You guys should try this instead of buying expensive customized shirts!. you can get creative plus the only thing i payed for was the iron on paper that was less than 10 dollars

Annabelle's new home, and a couple questions!

So I just ordered Annabelle a Feisty Ferret cage and I'm really excited! I found one for a good price, and free shipping, and just couldn't pass it up! I can't wait til it gets here! I just don't know how all I'm going to decorate it and get it ready for her. I know I need wood shelves to replace the plastic ones. But how about the fleece, once you get rid of the plastic in the bottom? Or do you leave it in there? Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated!





Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Need opinion on X-rays

I took a chin to the vet today because she has been loosing weight and squeaking when she tries to eat. The oral exam under sedation found nothing. Her teeth are straight and evenly worn. So he did some X-rays. I've seen overgrown roots before but the stuff going on in her lower jaws is new to me. Any opinions are welcome. My vet is clueless. (hope someone can see the attachments)

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Introductions

My husband and I are relatively new chinchilla owners. We adopted ours about 8 months ago. We were pretty inexperienced then but have since learned a lot. Our first two girls PC and Mac were adopted on the same day from a pet store. They were not litter mates. We took then home in 2 separate carriers. We put them together in one large cage. They squealed at each other and hopped around scared of each other for a few days but showed no real aggression. Now they are best friends. We wanted to expand our family and adopted a 9 week old female named Linux to join our girls ( now a little over a year old).

My husband tried introducing them in much the same way as we did for the other two by placing Linux in their cage. PC and Mac started trying to fight her and we took her out immediately. I suggested we put Linux in a carrier and put that inside the cage so they could safely meet. After a few hours we tried face to face again with the same result. We decided to buy another cage for Linux. We do want to adopt more in the future so if they don 't bond we can leave Linux in her cage and try bonding her with a female when we get one.

We would like to try introductions again but are unsure how to proceed. I don't want Linux to be too scared and definitely not hurt. I have read about cage within a cage , side by side cages, switching smells, neutral playtime,etc. what is the best and least stressful way to introduce Linux to Pc and Mac? Thanks!

Chin is really annoying

Hello everybody i'm new to this forum :)



First of al I have 5 chins total,



2 Females:

Ebony = 3 months

White = 1,5 year



3 Males:

2 twins Ebony gray = 4 months

1 Standard = 1 year



Females live seperate from the males cause i already got 2 grown up babys and its enough for now.

1 new female chin is very tame and she keeps sitting on my shoulder or in my hands she doesnt like escaping, same goes for the 2 young males.

But 1 female chin (the mother of the 2 young males) is getting very annoying, she keeps making noises with the bars by pulling at it with her teeth, and when i open the cage she jumps like crazy towards me and tries to escape (the good side is that she let me pick her up)

She sleeps together with the other female but she never plays with her, but the other female wants to play with her but she just ignores it, she only wants to play with me and escape is this normal that she dont really like playing with other chins?



My other 4 chins like playing together but they also like to sit on my shoulder, they dont really feel like escaping.

The chins also have enough to play and bite in there cage, its only the white female who does this its like she is a spoiled bratt ;)



anybody else having a Chin who likes you more then there own kind?

Baby Chin

Hey!



I recently got a new baby chin from a breeder with the hopes of possibly bonding him with my older chin! I'm having a small issue with the baby though he has no problem coming up to my hand and sitting on it but every once and awhile he will just bite down on my finger or part of my hand and start tugging on it...It's not like a grooming type of nibble its a pretty painful bite and tonight he finally broke the skin on my finger and made me bleed. He is never aggressive before he does it he will just be sitting there then suddenly decides he wants to bite... Is there any way I can stop this behaviour?

Peeing?

How do you guys deal with a chin who will pee on the floor during playtime?



I've been trying to potty train Momo but it's not working out very well. I've let him out in my bathroom(very short periods, as it's not air conditioned) and he didn't have accidents. However, I wouldn't like him to be peeing on my bedroom carpet or my bed, so I want to take steps to try to avoid that. I'm not sure if he would or not, but I want to be prepared.



His CN should be here sometime this week, so then I'll have to work on potty training some more. Do you think if I limit him to half of the cage, it would help limit his areas to pee(thus making him realize there is a litter box there Lol)??

Not running

So everything with Luna fine, eating well, bathroom stuff is fine, she is acting herself, except she doesn't run anymore. She pretty much just runs enough to go to the bathroom(30 secs - 20 mins avg). I am up pretty late (2 to 3 am) so whenever I peek in at her she is under her blanket, I rarely see her out anymore. When I get her up for play/snuggle time she is fine, takes her a little bit to wake up (15 mins or so) but is her normal self. Her tummy is warm and her room is warm. I have been messing with the heat because I'm worried it might be too warm so I have her space heater completely off and turned down the heat lamps. I am worried about her and why she seem to want to just sleep.



If she needs the vet she's is going, but she has been there so much this past year and has been sedated at least five times and I don't want to put her through it again if I don't have too.

baby with weezing?

My kits are now 10 days old, my big girl is fine but little guy hasnt gained any weight and is less than what he weighed at birth, he is very weezy, I have baytril 2.27% at home I used on my turtles when she had pneumonia, i know baytril is safe for chins but not sure on dosage for such a tiny guy, injectables can sometimes be givin orally, is this one of those? giving hime probiotics and baby vitamins but dont want this to turn pneumonia on him :(

ECBC is now on Instagram! Follow for pics/info on chin care, health, shows, and more!

Empress Chinchilla Breeders Cooperative (ECBC) is now on Instagram! Follow @empresschinchilla for pictures and info on chinchilla health, care, mutation colors, shows, and other fun topics!

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Seeking cage recommendations for largest possible within specific dimensions

Hi all,



I'm looking to invest in a new cage for my chin. I have a specific place in my home I'd like it to go, and I'd like it to be as large as possible while still fitting in that space. (Due to my work schedule and small living space full of chin-unfriendly wires, my poor guy doesn't get much out-of-cage playtime. I'd like his cage to be as roomy as possible.)



The area I'm wanting to fill up with cage space has the following dimensions:



Max width of 58"



Max height of 41"



Max depth of 24"



In looking for cages, most of the larger options I've found are taller than my 41" max and not nearly as wide as my 58" max.



What are your recommendations for large, high-quality cages which would fit within the space I've specified?

Serious problem with feet

I'm posting for a friend.....

Her vet can't figure out what is wrong with her chinchillas feet... He's been on antibiotics for 10 days and it's not clearing up. Bumblefoot? She's really worried so any help would be great. She said his feet were swollen and black spots formed.



I haven't posted here so I don't know how to post pictures. She sent me two. Can someone help?

HI!

Hello!

So I am new to this site and new to posting in forums, but I wanted to be able to talk to other people who have chinchillas so that I can learn how to better care for mine.



My chinchilla story goes like this:

I have always wanted to get a chinchilla but I was never allowed. Last summer I moved out of my house for my final year of college. Just by chance I was talking to one of my friend's from high school who said our other friend was looking to give away her chinchilla because she could no longer care for her, so of course I jumped on it.

My chinchilla has a history. Her 1st owners I believe had little kids who did not handle her well. They named her Joey because they thought she looked like a baby kangaroo :) Anyway I guess that she was too much for them because they gave her to my friend. My friend was looking for a small animal that was cute and that she could cuddle with…Joey did not like to be cuddled ( and still doesn't). Joey was mean (i think this was from being mishandled) and she would bite and spray if you got near her. I did not know this when I went to pick her up, but even when I found out I took her anyway. So after a year of bites and being sprayed I have managed to get through to her a bit. She now lets me pet her and she will jump in my hand on occasion. Getting her out of the cage is a struggle but it is getting better. She has not bitten me in a few months, but she will still spray when I try to take her out of the cage.

Good news though, she loves my boyfriend and he has kind of adopted her as well. She will let him hold her and she will come to him willingly. He bought her a bigger cage and new toys :)



I love her so much and I hope to have her for a long time:)

Help! I think my chinchilla has diarrhea

Hello,

I am new to this site and a relatively new Chinchilla owner. I adopted my Chinchilla from a friend of mine from high school who could no longer care for her. Before my friend, she had another owner (who I believe had small children who did not handle her well), so I am her third owner. I know that multiple owners is no good for a chinchilla and when I got her she was very mean and would bite. I have had her for a year and she has come a long way. She no longer bites and lets me pet her and she will sit in my hand, but she is still not fond of being held.



Anyway, it has been a year and this is the first time I am experiencing any kind of health problem with her. My boyfriend and I moved to a new apartment about a week ago (so I think that stress may be the cause). We tried to make the move as smooth as possible for her but she was definitely not too happy. As of 2 days ago her stool has been soft and it has been making a mess all over her cage. I did some reading and this sounds like it could be diarrhea, but I am not sure because her behavior has not changed. She is still active, eating, and her eyes are bright. The only problem seems to be the stool. I did some research and here is what I have done:

-cleaned and disinfected her cage and wheel, etc.

- i am giving her less pellets and more hay (timothy)

- i stopped all treats as of yesterday

- changed her water (purified) everyday

- given her 1 square of shredded wheat



Unfortunately, I do not have access to a vet until monday because the exotic vet near me is not in the office until then. Is there anything else I can do to help her get better before then?



Thanks!!

NY/NE Chapter Show

Date:

Sept 26-27, 2014



Location:

Fonda Fair

Montgomery County Fairgrounds

21 S. Bridge St.

Fonda, NY 12068

Exit 28 off I90

Entertainment Building



Nearby Hotels:

Super 8

301 N. Comrie Ave

Johnstown, NY

518-736-1800

PET FRIENDLY



Holiday Inn

308 N. Comrie Ave.

Johnstown, NY

518-762-4686

PET FRIENDLY



Microtel Inn

136 N. Comrie Ave.

Johnstown, NY

518-762-5425

Call for pet info.



Camping also available at fairgrounds on the midway electric included: $20 per night paid at registration table.



Judge:

Paul K.



Set Up:

Friday, Sept 26– 4pm-6pm.

All hands are welcome in putting up the show lights and equipment and arranging tables and chairs!



Registration:

Friday, Sept 26– 6pm-9pm. Animals may be housed in the show hall overnight.

Saturday, Sept 27– 6am-9am.

$4.00 per animal for MCBA members, $8.00 per animal for non-members. Applications for membership will be available at the registration table.

Each exhibitor gets a complimentary showbook.

$5.00 per family if not showing any chinchillas.

$5.00 per showbook.



Classification:

Saturday, Sept 27– 9am sharp!

All animals must be checked in and groomed by 9am. The show begins immediately after classification.



Lunch:

Entree provided for a cash donation. Suggested donation: $5

Sides are potluck. All food donations are welcome!



Featuring:

Baby Derby, and Door Prize Raffles



Raffle Items greatly appreciated!



Claiming optional.



Contact: Hope Glover

Mazaklove@aol.com or Mazaklove@yahoo.com



or Jessica Godin

baylisascaris97@msn.com

UGH Bed Bugs!

Anyone have any advice for keeping a chinchilla safe with a bed bug infestation? They are in a bedroom so I've been letting him out in the bathroom as much as I wish he had more room. He's used to being let out in the room. Any information would be so welcome! :facepalm:

Kung Fu Chinchillas?

Post a picture of your Kung Fu chinchillas here, please :party:

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Cleaning questions for apartment dwelling-chins?

Hello! We are looking to relocate from a ground-story house to an apartment-styled condominium unit at the end of the summer.



Mips has fleece covers in his Ferret Nation, and I've been shaking them out once a week in our backyard--but being that we'll be on the top story of a building, I'm thinking that it might be pretty bad form to shower the people below with little poops and hay. My working plan for once we move is to first roll up the fleece, put the whole thing into a paper grocery bag, shake out what I can inside the bag, and then maybe shove the fleece immediately into the washer so whatever hay bits that are caught in the fleece doesn't get all over. My biggest fear is that since I'm not giving the fleece a full-blown shake, residual hay bits and wood shards might get in the washer and lead to problems in the future...



Is this a sound plan? Any nifty cleaning tips from current apartment/condominium-dwellers?

Anyone hear of Dr. Foster and Smith before?

Anyone hear of these ppl before?

Came upon there site while researching ferret food nutrition again. However they do have the last few items i get from the pet stores and would love to switch.



Also, would this be safe for bedding? I already use aspen and i don't see anything wrong with this brand. But im overly cautious with my chins.

New Chinny Mama

Hi all. We adopted our first ever chinchilla less than 2 weeks ago. She is over 2 years old. Never knew what to expect, so I gave myself a crash course on Chinny care. She is amazingly silly and hyper and cute. We setup a play area in the hallway. I always sit in the play area with her when she's out and about. She attempts to chew on the walls and such so I stay there to keep her from that and to get her used to me. She really loves newspaper and is constantly trying to drag some into her cage. Silly girl. :3

Timothy hay alternative

I'm allergic to my chins Timothy hay, is there a healthy alternative I can feed him instead?

Bluegrass as a staple?

http://ift.tt/TfgkgU



So we're about to move the land of bluegrass. Now I know it's used as a treat, and I read that a couple people use it as a timothy alternative when allergies hate them. That said, I wonder if the nutritional differences in that link up there mean I should/should not use it as an alternative to timothy hay if it's any cheaper. My girl will continue to enjoy her oxbow pellets so she'll get some timothy in her diet regardless.





What do the masses think?

Pawing at the mouth?

Hello! So I have noticed Mabel paws at her mouth about everytime I go to say hi to her. At first she would only paw when she was eating, which I thought was normal as food might get caught or something. But while I was playing with her she started pawing again. I checked her teeth and they are trimmed down, not anything that would be bugging her. She doesn't drool, and she eats with no problem. What do you think could be causing her to paw at her mouth so much? (She has plenty of toys to keep her teeth in check, and she absolutely loves to chew.)

Her mouth is slightly open at times (In these pictures her mouth was open), but she closes it back up after a few minutes. Is this a sign of anything?

I have included pictures of her mouth, if that is any help (Quality is bad, and she wouldn't stop moving, so slightly blurry.)

Thanks! xoxo

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Made my own cage

I just wanted to show off the new cage I made for Nibbles.

He had a big fight with his friend and we had to separate them. Nibbles ended up in a cage that was to small (more like a rat cage) and as our chins live in our family room I have been wanting to make a cage that they find it a bit harder to throw poo all over the floor.

I have a wood working background so it wasn't to hard (but still a mammoth effort!)

I'm pleased with how it turned out & I think Nibbles is happier too :)

I have since made new fleece liners for the bottom.

Now I want to make another one for chewy & stack it on top!

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chinchilla ate hay with pee

I left for vacation for about a week and i asked my neighbors to feed my chinchilla while i was gone. When i came back i noticed my chinchilla's fur has a greenish stain just below her mouth. my neighbor told me he didn't clean out the old hay and it was scattered all over the cage. so my chinchilla ate hay that pee peed on. how can i removed the stain from her fur? also, should i take her to the vet since she ate urine?

New hay and treat

Hello! So today is cleaning day and I realized the hay wasn't looking very good. So I decided to head to the vet (where I get oxbow brand food) and decided that I would get oxbow brand loose hay so I wouldn't have to drive to the other store. But of course, they only had the giant bag of loose Timothy hay. So I grabbed the compacted Timothy and the orchard grass. I also bought Timothy treats so she could have some variety of treats. Anyway, I've given her a little of the grass to Mabel and she loves it. I was wondering if she should have both types of hay at the same time, or if I should switch it each week? (Have Timothy and orchard then just Timothy). Or do chinchillas enjoy both? Thanks xoxo

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Quick wood question...

So I know someone with an apple tree but they're not normal apples... Are other types of apple trees okay for chins?



Someone thinks they are crabapples, but I'm not sure.

Holy S*it!!! How'd he do that?!?!?! Share your super intelligent chin stories...

So...my little guy is getting used to his new home and in doing such, exploring his playroom.. on each end of his playroom are doorways leading out of the room, with no doors on them. I had to put up 4 ft cardboard boxes with very strong packing tape to keep him in the room. Well, he figured out that he can't popcorn and bounce off the boxes to knock them down anymore, so after some consideration and sizing up from all angles of the room, he proceeded to use the inside of door frames to bounce up from left to right to left to right etc, until he was about 6 feet up and then just landed on the other side of the barrier.....Like a freaking NINJA!!!!!!!!!!



I'm gonna get him a cape and call him Jasper The Great!!!!!! Hahahahah



Share your super intelligent chin stories !!!!!!

No Exotics Allowed >:-(

Ugh, I am so frustrated. We're in the process of moving and I am having no luck finding an apartment complex that will allow chinchillas. I've kept my chins in my apartment for the last 6 years and my landlord has never had an issue. They accept caged pets no questions asked. Every new complex I call has a strict no exotics policy. Since most apartments are owned by large corporations it's nearly impossible to speak to someone high enough up who would have the power to make an exception. I always explain that they are very similar to rabbits and guinea pigs, they're caged, and not destructive but it always comes down to their label as an exotic species. How have other apartment dwellers gotten around this issue? My current apartment complex can't be the only place in this entire country that allows chinchillas. Getting rid of my pets isn't an option, but I am at a loss for what to do. I'm even being turned down by complexes who take large breed dogs. Surely they're more a liability then my 4 furballs.



:cry3::tantrum::hair:

Teeth?

I've noticed that my chinchilla sometimes "squeaks" when she's eating treats, she also randomly squeaks a short while after eating and is still making a chewing motion. She does not like to be handled, so I can't physically check her teeth but I have been able to see that her teeth are not over grown, she still drinks and eats and poops. She has always had access to toys and chews to grind down her teeth. She has not been drooling, or pawing at her mouth. Just wondering what people think? At first I thought she was just eating too fast and catching her cheek or lip or something like what humans do when they rush their food, but now I'm not convinced.





The male sharing the cage with her (who is neutered, don't worry) does not squeak like she does but when he eats he will pick up a pellet, take one bite, drop it, pick up another, take one bite, drop it and so on.. The cage floor is covered in pellets and the bowl is often empty every morning when I fill it to the top on a night before... They are related (mother and son) so maybe they have some kind of teeth issues in their genes? I'm not sure.



Any form of information at this point will be extremely helpful.



Thanks!

Grooming Tools

So, I made a post a short time ago mentioning that my boy is shedding a LOT. He's got a lot of dead hair trapped in his coat and I'd like to try and get some of it out.



I know you can use medium or finer toothed dog combs on chins, but from what I understand the teeth of these combs can be kinda sharp. This worries me because although my boy isn't nippy or anything, he IS really really squirmy and I know he's not going to like being groomed much. Additionally, my fine motor skills are not the best because of a neurological condition that affects my hands. The combination of these factors means that I'm kind of worried about using any kind of sharp/pointy grooming tool on him. I don't want to hurt him by accident!!



That being said, I go have a few small animal grooming tools hanging around that I've used on guinea pigs. One is a small animal slicker brush and the other is a small double sided dog brush. If I cleaned these, would either be okay to use? I will attach a picture. If closer photos of either brush are needed I can procure them.

Hedgehog

Hi my so what's a hedgehog what would I need





God Is Good And His Love Last Forever

Scales

Any one know of scales that can measure accurately to a ten of a gram (0.1) that they would recommend?



Could use one for my chins, but it seems i could also use one to weigh a few coins.

hello

Hello guy and girls my name is ashley and im kinda new to hedgehogs and got my first cinnamon about 7months ago and absolutely love him. Plane on getting another on in a few days I live in louisiana.also have may other hobbies asin salwater tanks and hot rods .jsut thought id say hello and very exited to have joined the forum

color id please

does any one know what color this would be concidered

Is Having Only One Chinchilla Bad?

I only have one chinchilla and do not plan on getting another one any time soon. Is it really that bad for a chinchilla to live alone? I know they are social creatures and in the wild they live in larger groups. My chinchilla gets love and attention everyday and is let out for hours at a time on a daily basis. My boyfriend and I have become almost like "other chinchillas" to her. But are there any certain activities I should be doing with her to make sure she is always happy and never feels lonely?

Chinger and Charo

Meet Chinger (gray) and Charo (black velvet, I think). I had never met a chinchilla until I saw these two at the local pet store. I was told they are both females, and they had been living together. This seems correct. :thumbsup: Supposedly they are around 7 or 8 months old. They are housed in the Feisty Ferret cage because it was the one that fit perfectly in the family room. They figured out the flying saucer wheel pretty quickly. They absolutely love their new wood houses. I've noticed they have very different personalities. Chinger is much quicker to check things out, while Charo approaches more slowly. They do take treats from my hand, but do not jump on me yet when they are out for play time. They returned to their cage without any prompting last night, which was nice. We are really enjoying these gals. They are getting more and more comfortable and playful every day.

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Instagram?

Does anyone else have an instagram dedicated to just their little fuzzballs?

Post your instagram name!



Follow mine: @thechinnybrothers

Chinchilla play pen?

So, I'm moving rooms (good news for me, but bad news for my chins). In my current room, I let them run around the whole room, on the bed, under my desk, where ever they want, and I won't care if they "damage" anything, because everything has been a victim to my chin's teeth anyway.



However, because I'm moving into a new room (and have spent a lot of money on it, £30 for a roll of wallpaper? And I need 5 of them?!) I cannot let my chinnies ruin anything in that room. The original idea was to keep them in my current room while I move into the new bedroom, but, my brother has lost his job and has to move back home, therefore, my current room will be made his room (you all still with me here?)



Anyway, my chinchillas cannot stay in the room with my brother, so they have to move into the new bedroom which I will be investing a lot of money into it, I physically cannot chinproof everything.. the bed, the walls, the wires.. they will chew EVERYTHING. So I was basically wondering if anyone uses a chinchilla play pen, their current cage is 5ft tall 2ft wide, with a lot of shelves, toys, hide-aways, so they are never bored. In fact, they hardly want to spend any time out of their cage. As for the play pen, I would custom build it so it uses the same material as the cage, it would be attached to the cage so they can have access to their cage and I would then detach it and put the play pen away when it's not in use. I would obviously put toys in the play pen area and make it fairly large.



Just wondering what people think of chinchilla play pens?

I made things :D

I just wanted to share what I made ^.^



I made about three 6" ledges, one 8" and that one in the pictures... and I still have plenty to make yet. :D



The house is probably my biggest accomplishment... That was the most I've done with wood since I was forced to take woodshop in school. The wood was a bit crooked so that messed it up a bit, but for a first attempt, I think it's awesome!



Does anyone have any pointers or ideas for my next project? I'm limited with what I have. Anything that's not a straight cut has to be done by my brother, as I just don't have that equipment. But I am open to ideas :D

Horrified! Chins aren't supposed to go swimming!

http://ift.tt/1pbGdsw



This is why chinchillas are for responsible adults only! What on earth are the kids thinking?!



Sorry for all the exclamation marks, I couldn't believe these children thought this was a good idea.

Looking for Fleece Liners for CN Cage with Bass Metal Pans

Looking for Fleece Liners for the Critter Nation cage (with Bass metal pans). It's a double, so I need fleece liners for the large bottom pan and the large second story pan with the cutout. Any suggestions on who makes these and where to order them?

To get two...or not to...

I have my deposit on my sweet little pink white male...and I found a female in town, who's a precious mosaic. They wouldn't be housed together or allowed to breed..but I'm wondering how hard this is to deal with as far as splitting time? Is it worth it in the end, or am I better off with just one Chin as opposed to 2?

Wood

So I'm not too sure which category this should go under, but figured since it has to do with chins eating, it could go here.



I have a few questions about wood.



My brother and sister-in-law have a nice grape arbor in their back yard. It's all natural, has never been sprayed/treated with chemicals/pesticides. They said I can take some of the vine/wood for my chinchillas. I was just wondering what parts to take. When I was up there yesterday, I got some of the dry ends that would break off. Is that okay to use? Or does it have to been the green/new growth?

This takes me to my second question. How exactly do I prepare the wood? I know you need to boil/scrub it and bake it, but can someone give me more specific/step-by-step instructions? The wood I have (if it's okay to use) is pretty thin stuff, like less than the thickness of a pencil.



I know that a lot of people sell wood that's already prepared and ready for chins to eat, but it can be expensive, especially with how fast my three go through it. I would like to learn how to do it myself.

Chinchilla is scratching one area of herself

Hey all, glad I found a chinchilla forum!



I have an emergency, and need some guidance because me and my girlfriend are novice with chinchilla's. At the moment, our chinchilla is missing a big patch of fur on the side of her back. She keeps scratching, biting, and rolling on her sides. She's been doing this for about 24 hours ( found a lot of fur on the bottom of the cage) and I also came across that she let's me pet her and check on her and it's a big red spot with some hair still there but stuck against the skin. (I don't want to scratch it so I'll say its stuck)



Please, looking for guidance on what might be the issue.

kit with head tilting

Hand feeding kits, got up this mrning for 630 feeding and one kit is fine but other has head tilting and kinda seisure like behavior, any advice? keeping it warm, it ate a tiny amount, but not sure what to do forit, years ago one died through the night after behavviour like this and the other kit died from depression and refusal to eat hours later,

Attacking/Dominance mounting my knee?

Every once in a while Meucci (a male) will climb onto my knee and and aggressively nip and sometimes scratch at it while making a rapid chirp-like squeaking sound. Thinking it might be a dominance behavior I've taken to placing my over his back and gently grabbing at his eats and scruffing him right back and and gently knocking him off. He is little deterred and almost seems encouraged by this. I'll even pick him up and put him in the cage and sometime he'll come right back down to the level I'm sitting at and try again. He'll nip at my fingers too with some force but not enough to be painful.



Eventually I guess he decides that someone has won and goes back to behaving as normal. Is this fighting behavior? Mating? Can I win?



I've had him for just over a month now and I want it to be well known to him that I am in charge here.

Male chin problem

I've had someone email me asking if I have any suggestions on their chins "problem", here it there first email/explanation:



"I thought that he had a hair ring problem as he was very swollen and cleaning excessively around his genitalia, but on closer inspection, he had a build up of hard, white, very smelly stuff on and around his penis, but no hair. I have never found a hair ring on him in the year that i have had him. This problem though occurs anywhere between daily and monthly and requires me to hold him down and clean him up (if I don't it gets to the point where his sheath will not close). I have tried several vets and none of them have any idea as to what could be causing this (and a lot of vets I have called won't even let me bring him in as they will not treat chinchillas) and I really am at a loss of what to do"



A further email showed his urine's normal, poop is normal, he's eating fine, exercising fine, he's on good food with minimal treats. The vet tried putting him on a course of oral AB's but it didn't help, she thinks the vet may have tested the discharge but she can't remember what the results were so she's going to try and find out from them.



I was thinking possible UTI to start with but when she said his urine was normal and he'd already been on a course of AB's I'm thinking maybe not...

I've never experienced anything like this myself, has anyone else?

She wants some things she can suggest to her vet and get them to check for/treat.

need fostering advice for my 2 orphans

On wed my chin had 2 babies, on friday she had to be uthinized due to retaining a third, have been bottle feeding the babies every hour to 2 hours since thurs since i noticed mom wasnt doing well, they are not gaining weight steadily and gain a gram then loose it, both perky and active, the little girl is a bit of a bully to her brother tho and that is concerning, I have another chilla who is pregnant and my most experienced mother, should have her babies tomorrow, i was expecting them today but they didnt come, she is super interested in the babies and want them, is any harm likely to come of her if I give them to her now? Also what supplementation do you think she might need givin she will have the extra burden of more kits to look after, she successfully raised 3 last time she had a litter last year, how many is too many for a chin? And about the bullying how can i handle that? what if the one is mean to the smaller babies my chin is gonna have? Any advice would be great!

I guess petco is even worse

I decided to go to a local petco the other day for a few supplies. I figured if i had another option other then petsmart that id take it. I don't like supporting petsmart seeing how they treat there animals.



But i was quite saddened to see the state the chins were in when i got there. First they had all the same stuff wrong that petsmart does. Plastic water bottles, plastic huts, some type of recycled pellet paper as litter, plastic wheel etc.



The chin was kept just a little bit in past the opening doors of the store. The cage roof had whole on the top for ventilation which meant no temperature control. I even saw some small white feathers laying in the litter. The chin needed a dust bath. - Under the display cage were unsafe chew items and a death ball being advertised for the chin.



I went to check for the supplies i needed since i was there. They had no aspen or pine litter at all. Only there brand of mixed wood litter shavings. They had no Oxbow hay. Just dome bran id never heard of before. They didnt even have any of the ferret food i needed on the shelf.



It almost made petsmart look good in comparison... wtf



And just to top off the bad experience, my shipment of two bags of American Pet Diner (special chinchilla food for my chin with diabetes) arrived from amazon yesterday. Both bags had a big whole in it. So now i gotta return it and get replacements. - Hope it gets here before i run out of food for him. And hope it gets here in one piece!



Usually i always keep a small stock pile to make sure nothing ever runs out in cases like this. But since it was the first time i was giving my male chins this food; i only got one bag. (and at $20 for a small bag i don't want to waste any ><)

Portable AC Safe?

We acquired a portable AC. They thought about using it for my room since its the hottest and the central air does a decent job in every room but mine. I had put a window AC in the chin room (just in case it was hot for them and they didn't have the central ac on) But there is only one window in that room, which means there is no fresh air to circulate in.



So i was thinking about using the portable one for the chin room if it was ever needed. That way i could take the window unit out and get some fresh air in there.



But i was reading about how this unit works yesterday and i was wondering about the water.





MMB10 Mobile Mastercool 3426



Apparently you have to fill the bottom with water. The unit sucks air in from the side and uses the water to cool it. But the air comes in through the sides to a cardboard like filter that removes the moisture from it. (something like that) The water itself on the bottom evaporates as its used.



Is it ok having that water evaporation in the room? To much and i would imagine it could condincate on the chins or something. Or maybe a dehumidifier? - Never had to deal with a unit like this before.

Excessive Shedding?

I've noticed for a while now (say.... like.... 3-4 weeks maybe?) that Pepper's been shedding a lot more than normal. None of it seems to be from fur slip and he hasn't been giving himself a bad haircut, no bald spots or anything, but there's been a lot more dead grey fur coming out than normal, to the point where his coat looks a little tufty and unkempt and I'm finding big gobs of dead hair in the cage and clinging to his hammock especially. He's acting normally and eating/drinking fine, he's actually a bit heavier right now than what he normally is - he's gained 10g or so in the 2 weeks since I last weighed him (normally I try and weigh every week on the same day but the last few months have been slightly sporadic as I've been sick quite a lot and I'm in the home stretch of school) and he weighed in today at 765g where normally he's high 740s to low 750s. No dietary changes, he eats Oxbow pellets and gets loose and cubed timothy hay. If anything he's been getting fewer treats as of late, but he's also not particularly active and likes to laze around quite a bit. He is in a room that gets natural light but I don't know if chins shed seasonally or if the days getting longer would affect his shedding. Should I try dusting him more often? I've been letting him dust usually once a week or so because he tends to get dry spots on his ears and is a major drama queen about letting me put Bag Balm or anything on his ears (its like the end of the world, seriously). I wouldn't think he'd have a nutritional deficiency since he's eating plenty and on a pretty good diet but I can't get a look at his teeth to see the colour just yet (I tried, he was NOT happy especially after the manhandling it took to get him on the scale.... will try again later).



Is it possible he just needs a bit of a good combing? As far as I know he's never had any kind of grooming aside from dust baths and knowing him, a combing wouldn't go over so well, but there's definitely a lot of dead hair hanging around in his coat (and showing up in big gobs everywhere x.x I think I need to get a chin-only lint roller for all of his fleece items...).

RIP Tseng... bye, little one.

Tseng had adorable lopsided ears. He loved hay, so much that he hogged it from his cagemate. He would do anything for a cheerio except let you pet him. He threw hay all over the cage floor. He was nuts about alfalfa. Like every chin ever probably, he adored bathtime and would make a beeline for the bath house if I tapped it. He slept cuddled with Elena. Sometimes he would over groom her and she'd snip at him so he'd stop. He liked his hammock if it touched a shelf on the bottom, but wouldn't touch it if it was free hanging. His ears used to get really red when he wore himself out running around during playtime, back when he did serious running around during playtime. Lately he had been more laid back, spending his outside time munching hay off the floor and hopping around casually. I stuck some cheerio bits in this plastic ball and he went at it for quite a while the first time I did it... he actually got a piece or two out of the ball! I just have all these memories but I feel like I should have gotten so many more. Bye little buddy. You're missed already. I'll see you on the other side one day.

Help please - New metal pans

Just got metal pans for my boys cage, but a little worried about him slipping. I have fleece in a few areas but have never completely covered the pans in fleece. He's also litter pan trained so I don't want to use wood shavings on the bottom. Is this something he'll get used to? Is it safe? Any other suggestions?

Photos

Hope this is the right place for this question!



I can't seem to see any photographs at the moment. I see the box at the bottom of the post where the photos normally appear, but they are empty, with no photos to click on on. I can't even see the photos that I myself have uploaded!

Not sure what to do... any help appreciated.

What's that in the bin bag???

Hubby was outside the other night, and heard a strange rustling noise... coming from INSIDE the bin bag that we'd just put out. In NZ we don't use the metal trash cans, we just put the bags on the roadside on the night before collection. As you can imagine, often we find dogs and cats rip through them for scraps, and we end up picking up all the bits.



But whatever was in this bag must have been small: with no holes in the bag, we could only assume something had gotten in through the hole where we'd tied the bag handles together. Whatever it was had burrowed down deep.... this bag needed surgery, STAT!



So we broke out the heavy duty scissors and got to work. And found a hedgehog!! In the bin!! Eating goodness knows what!!



Well we liberated the cheeky wee thing eventually. He was tiny... only just bigger than my hand, obviously a young one. He stayed in a ball for a very long time, but we stayed quiet long enough to see him wander off, and get one good snap!



The bin bags now go in our shed, as they're apparently not hedgie-proof!!

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FN pan covers

Does anyone know of someone who makes just plain fleece cage liners. I usually make them myself but my sewing machine broke and my other sets are starting to get pilling on them (even though they were supposed to be anti-pill).

Any help would be greatly appreciated :)!

Scam

I just want to let people know that I believe there is a new scam going around. Some may know I had a sale going on and I actually sold most of our overload. But I had one person, and I don't even know their gender, who kept contacting me and always never quite made the sale. Tonight they were to show up between 4 and 6 to pick up a chin and didn't. I had feelings about them from the start, not asking questions about the care of the animals. Not too unusual if they had done their homework, but I just didn't feel right. At one point I even said, "I'm not sure if I can sell to you . . . "



My conclusion is this; and it's only to warn people, not to be hysterical. I think they (in the corporate sense) were trying to buy animals to resell at much higher prices. They never talked about a cage or anything. So I just want to warn you all. I'll be a little more on guard as a result too, it's hard because you want to give people the benefit of the doubt.



Blessings,

My first chin.....

Hi there,



After years of thinking about getting a chin I finally did today. She is 12 weeks old and lovely! Here are some photos, is she a standard grey?

Thank you Attachment 21276 Attachment 21277



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Natural Science supplement - Oxbow

Hi everyone, are Oxbow's natural science supplements any good? Anyone has experience with it?



My chinnies are 12, 13, and 14 years old. Do they considered as seniors? Would giving them the senior support supplement benefit them? They are still active and alert, only since recently, the 12 year old one was diagnosed with a tumor in his mouth that diverted two molars apart at the root. He is under special care now, but I would also like to get him the GI support supplement, which it says one of the ingredients actually has anti tumor properties. Is it a good idea to give it a try?



Thanks in advance!

About to lose my chin :(

So I took Tseng to the vet yesterday to have his teeth looked at. They looked different and he was suddenly not eating much so I thought maybe they hurt. As it turns out... his kidneys are failing. They gave me some medicine for reducing acid and such, and told me to stuff him with critical care, but its basically just about making him comfortable until he takes a turn for the worse, at which point they told me I should have him put to sleep to minimize his time in pain. I don't know how to make myself do that when it comes time. How do you take your little one to somewhere unfamiliar and scary and ask them to kill him? My dog had to be put to sleep a year or two ago and it was so hard.



I have another concern though and that's his cagemate Elena. They're a bonded pair. They are rescues so I have no idea how long they've been together but they are 11 so potentially a long time. What can I expect from her when he goes? I'm terrified she will pine and be lonely without him. What should I watch out for? And what if anything can I do for her?



Dani

11 week old kit still nursing?

Hi, I tried searching around for this answer but no luck:-( I apologize if this is a repeat question. Rosie is 11 weeks old today and still nursing. (Her brothers been on his own since 8 weeks.) Should I intervene? If I did seperate them, how long does mama (Lola) need for her milk to dry up? Normally I would think nature will take its course but it took me 2yrs and 4 months to wean my first child so Im feeling very sorry for Lola! Also these girls are very, very attached and cry for eachother if they are apart at all.

Thanks for your help!

Housing for pregnant females?

I'm wondering if anyone has any suggestions on hidey houses I can give to my pregnant females. I'm afraid to use wooden houses because I don't want babies to be crushed if the mom jumps around and flips the house. It just seems too dangerous. And with the fleece houses, they tear them apart in a week or two. I've spent so much money on fleece houses just to have to toss them after about a month :hair: Does anyone have any suggestions on what I can give them? I feel so bad having them in a boring empty cage, but don't know what else to give them.