Hey guys! I hopped over here from glidercentral as they highly recommended this forum. I am a very new chinchilla mama to a 2 year old rescued boy who I named Ziggy Stardust. His background is that I got him from some people who were basically hoarders living in a trailer and junkies (they dropped a couch on their hamster while I was there and I didn't sleep the entire night because I was just so... ugh... traumatized and full of adrenaline I guess). He does not like other chinchillas at all supposedly (I was told he screams when he sees them). This was so similar to my sugar glider who I rescued seven years ago that I had to take him (same age, same weird sociopath behavior in a colony animal haha). So I was literally given him and not much else (not even food) at 11:30 on Saturday night. It's been one week and I am slightly less anxious, but still very full of new pet worries and questions.
I fixed his living situation up the best I could on short notice. He has a one level ferret nation cage that maybe I can add modules to eventually (although this is one of my areas of concern as I live in an apartment and my sugar glider already has a fairly large cage so I don't know that I have the space to expand Ziggy's quarters). I did get him lots of stuff though - good food, fancy botanical hay, fancy pink salt nugget on a string, looots of toys, wheel, flying saucer on the way from internetland, two fleece beds one of which is hanging cube that he can jump on/in and play with, chinchiller, nesting boxes, chew sticks, and dust bath and bath house. I love animals and have owned or fostered exotics (and some wildlife too!) but I honestly don't know much about chins beyond the basics and have been feeling very overwhelmed.
I also have a cat and a sugar glider. My suggie is 9 and I've had him since he was 2. He was a very aggressive rescue and he bonded so much with me. I take him everywhere and you'd never know he was a former thug haha. He's the sweetest sugar glider ever, loves to be held and cuddled, loves people. So I'm hoping my good luck with exotics extends to my new chin as well. Oddly, chinchilla is not aggressive at all. Has not bit me once. Very sweet, loves pets, is somewhat okay with being held but scared when I first go to pick him up. Likes to come and sit on me though.
Anyways, back to the chinchilla... he is going to the vet next Saturday as I live in kind of a small city and the only exotic vet I trust is out this week. I'm really worried about doing something wrong with my little guy. Taking on a third pet is a lot for me (I'm 26, have my own two-bedroom place, but I work full time and I'm a grad student too although I do school online so I'm home often... still with two other pets, integrating a third can be tricky). I've thought of rehoming him but it would break my heart at this point and I'd only do it if I was absolutely convinced someone else had the experience to care for him better than I could. Even then, I just love the lil poofball and I want it to work out.
My major concern is the heat issue; do you have to have an AC to own a chinchilla? I live in Montana, but my apartment gets toasty in the summer with no AC.
How often do you let your chins out to play? My suggie is extremely bonded and free roams except when I am gone or asleep. He goes everywhere with me, including work, coffee shops, hair dresser, whatever. It took a lot of work and patience to get my suggie to that level though and I definitely don't expect Ziggy to be that way. It would be nice if one day he could get into a routine like my suggie has. Right now though, I do let Ziggy out as much as possible when I am home. I chase him around and supervise, or sometimes he just sleeps under my TV stand or near the couch. He's so big that I feel bad having him in the cage at all when my other two pets are sitting with me enjoying their evening. :\ Sometimes when I leave the door open, Ziggy stays in his cage anyways and sleeps or runs on his wheel. But in general, what is the norm for outside time with chinchillas? What is too much and what is too little?
And onto my next question... he was very hyper last night and had a good time jumping from my dresser, to my bed, and back, like a kid on a trampoline. Today he is pooped out. He's alert and not acting sick, but is this normal? What is normal sleep pattern for them? I know they are nocturnal but honestly I saw him sleeping on his side for the first time and flipped out because he looked dead so I'm very unsure about chinchillas and their ways. I have been letting him out for several hours, about whenever I am home and doing not too distracted. He isn't constantly playing or being petted/picked up though - like he'll go sleep somewhere and I'll just stare at him while I work on my computer because the TV stand is his "safe spot" so I'll only pet him when he's over there and I don't pick him up that much. I try to pick him up and hold him once every day.
Anyways, I have lots of questions and I'm hoping the vet can put some of my anxiety to rest, but any tips or advice you all have would be great. I'll have to post pics of him and his setup. He is adorable though. He likes to pick up my cat's jingly ball toys and prance around holding them. When I first gave him hay and chew sticks, he freaked out and fell asleep holding a chew stick. He still frequently sleeps with his chews and it's pretty adorable. <3 I just hope he's healthy and everything. It worries me when he sleeps a lot, but maybe I'm just paranoid.
I fixed his living situation up the best I could on short notice. He has a one level ferret nation cage that maybe I can add modules to eventually (although this is one of my areas of concern as I live in an apartment and my sugar glider already has a fairly large cage so I don't know that I have the space to expand Ziggy's quarters). I did get him lots of stuff though - good food, fancy botanical hay, fancy pink salt nugget on a string, looots of toys, wheel, flying saucer on the way from internetland, two fleece beds one of which is hanging cube that he can jump on/in and play with, chinchiller, nesting boxes, chew sticks, and dust bath and bath house. I love animals and have owned or fostered exotics (and some wildlife too!) but I honestly don't know much about chins beyond the basics and have been feeling very overwhelmed.
I also have a cat and a sugar glider. My suggie is 9 and I've had him since he was 2. He was a very aggressive rescue and he bonded so much with me. I take him everywhere and you'd never know he was a former thug haha. He's the sweetest sugar glider ever, loves to be held and cuddled, loves people. So I'm hoping my good luck with exotics extends to my new chin as well. Oddly, chinchilla is not aggressive at all. Has not bit me once. Very sweet, loves pets, is somewhat okay with being held but scared when I first go to pick him up. Likes to come and sit on me though.
Anyways, back to the chinchilla... he is going to the vet next Saturday as I live in kind of a small city and the only exotic vet I trust is out this week. I'm really worried about doing something wrong with my little guy. Taking on a third pet is a lot for me (I'm 26, have my own two-bedroom place, but I work full time and I'm a grad student too although I do school online so I'm home often... still with two other pets, integrating a third can be tricky). I've thought of rehoming him but it would break my heart at this point and I'd only do it if I was absolutely convinced someone else had the experience to care for him better than I could. Even then, I just love the lil poofball and I want it to work out.
My major concern is the heat issue; do you have to have an AC to own a chinchilla? I live in Montana, but my apartment gets toasty in the summer with no AC.
How often do you let your chins out to play? My suggie is extremely bonded and free roams except when I am gone or asleep. He goes everywhere with me, including work, coffee shops, hair dresser, whatever. It took a lot of work and patience to get my suggie to that level though and I definitely don't expect Ziggy to be that way. It would be nice if one day he could get into a routine like my suggie has. Right now though, I do let Ziggy out as much as possible when I am home. I chase him around and supervise, or sometimes he just sleeps under my TV stand or near the couch. He's so big that I feel bad having him in the cage at all when my other two pets are sitting with me enjoying their evening. :\ Sometimes when I leave the door open, Ziggy stays in his cage anyways and sleeps or runs on his wheel. But in general, what is the norm for outside time with chinchillas? What is too much and what is too little?
And onto my next question... he was very hyper last night and had a good time jumping from my dresser, to my bed, and back, like a kid on a trampoline. Today he is pooped out. He's alert and not acting sick, but is this normal? What is normal sleep pattern for them? I know they are nocturnal but honestly I saw him sleeping on his side for the first time and flipped out because he looked dead so I'm very unsure about chinchillas and their ways. I have been letting him out for several hours, about whenever I am home and doing not too distracted. He isn't constantly playing or being petted/picked up though - like he'll go sleep somewhere and I'll just stare at him while I work on my computer because the TV stand is his "safe spot" so I'll only pet him when he's over there and I don't pick him up that much. I try to pick him up and hold him once every day.
Anyways, I have lots of questions and I'm hoping the vet can put some of my anxiety to rest, but any tips or advice you all have would be great. I'll have to post pics of him and his setup. He is adorable though. He likes to pick up my cat's jingly ball toys and prance around holding them. When I first gave him hay and chew sticks, he freaked out and fell asleep holding a chew stick. He still frequently sleeps with his chews and it's pretty adorable. <3 I just hope he's healthy and everything. It worries me when he sleeps a lot, but maybe I'm just paranoid.
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