Hedgehog Found To Have Mites - Worried About Our Chins

Okay I'll try and keep this brief !
We recently purchased our first hedgie (Kippin) a few weeks ago and he's wonderful, loving and settling in fine.

We also have the loft converted into 4 chinchilla open enclosures, which there is currently a cage of 3, 2, 2 and 1.

Yesterday we took him to the vets for a health check and because he was scratching a bit - vet rang today to say that they found a mite under a microscope from the scraping sample they took from him.

Today has been a day of boiling all equipment , bedding and cleaning overall before treatment begins tomorrow.

What we havent been able to establish is our contact with the chins upstairs - can the mites transfer to our carpet , clothes and make it up and infect the chins.

Does it also mean that we have to keep cleaning the carpets , sofa (how to wash this too!?) , stairs up to the chins and boil all our clothes to avoid infecting everyone in the loft (or recontamination of Kippin)........

Please and thank you for advice.

2 Chins sharing a dustbath

After a long time we finally found a chin who gets along with my little one, we are picking them up again this weekend and I was wondering if I have to buy 2 new dustbaths or just one. Is is okay for their health to share a dustbath or would they be at risk for fungus or any other diseases/infections?

Dried Flower Consumption

I recently received a treat sampler pack from an ETSY vendor which contained dried hibiscus and chamomile. Does anyone know how much dried flowers a chin may consume and still not be considered detrimental to their digestive system?

Mysterious overheating

Really need advice: I have an 7-8 year old female chin who is constantly overheated. Her ears turn bright red. The room is freezing! I don't know what to do

Sent from my SM-J737T using Tapatalk

Gandalf has watery eyes

Hello, I am a new member and have 1 chin, Gandalf. He has had watery eyes for the last couple of weeks, and the vet told me she thinks it was his bath dust irritating his eyes. I took his bath away and his eyes still are runny after a week.
The vet said to try switching his litter, and I just did today. I'm switching him from pine to paper material.
He is not drooling, he eats and drinks, and doesnt seem to be in pain when he eats, so I'm hopeful it isnt a problem with his teeth. The vet said if this new litter doesnt work, she wants him to go xrays on his teeth in 2 weeks.
Any ideas what this could be? I would attach a picture but I cant figure out how to do that.

Choking on pellets - Throat tumor? Upper body seizure?

Took my chin to the vet after I witnessed him choking on his pellets a few times. His neck would stretch out, ears pressed down and tail thump like he couldn't breathe. One time, I saw a pellet dislodged and spat out.

The vet checked his front and back teeth and said they look normal. She raised the possibility of a throat tumor if choking continues.

What other tumor symptoms should I look out for?
Is it possible he was having some kind of upper body seizure? Does that happen in chins?

Playpen high enough?

Hello,

Since I am moving to a new dorm where I don't have a chinproof room, I am planning on making a playpen out of thick cardboard pannels as others seem to have great succes with this and it is very cost effective. The pen would be made out of multiple cardboard panels that have been taped together (the kind of tape with string in), by taping it together in this way I could ealsily fold it when not in use and also "close" the pen by using velcro. Each panel would be 116cm (45,6") high and 96cm (37,7") wide. I'm not sure how many panels I will use yet but if I order 20 panels the cost is only 15 euros. But my worry is that my chins would still be able to jump over it and get into trouble. And I am scared they will crawl behind my shower, and there is a hole in the floor behind it that I can't reach so I am unable to cover it up (It is a really old building.) Would 116cm be high enough? Or should I paste another panel to my wall above the pen where my shower is?

chin with weepy eye

I've been taking one of my chins to the vet over the last 3 weeks for a weepy eye. She's had xrays that show no tooth problems. Metacam for 10 days and now ocufen for just over a week. There's not much change in her condition.
I've been searching online and see that ocufen can be painful so not feeling comfortable continuing to give it to her. I see the vet again Tuesday. A breeder on a facebook page has recommended lubrithal as a good go-to for general chin eye problems. Does anyone have experience of that? Vet is an exotic but doesn't know what's causing the problem. TIA

Advice about a newly-purchased baby chin passing away after 2 weeks

Hi folks,
At this time I do not want to share the breeder's information.

I purchased two baby brothers on Jan 4 at roughly 3 months old. Their fecal test, that I submitted a week after I got them, showed 3-10 giardia cysts per field (which I've been told is a lot). They had no contact with my other chins, who are housed in a room on a different floor of my house.

One of the brothers began exhibiting lethargy on the 17th. I took them both to the vet on the 18th. One of them passed away on the 19th. I've submitted his remains for necropsy and am waiting on the results.

My problem is this. I told the breeder right away and they immediately started blaming me. They did not offer a refund or replacement animal, but instead continually questioned my competence as a care giver. Over the course of the next couple of days I decided to do to the necropsy, and told them after the remains were submitted. Then they begrudgingly offered a refund or replacement animal "only if the necropsy showed that death was caused by giardia or an anatomical defect."

I have owned chins for over 12 years and I know how to take care of them. I currently have two 13+ year old chins, which I think speaks volumes to my ability to house and care for them.

They seemed to be a reputable breeder (with a website showing lots of ribbons and high-quality looking animals). I don't want to trash their reputation unjustly. However, it breaks my heart every time I see the surviving little boy, not knowing if he's going to be alive the next time I wake up since his brother passed so quickly. I've spent so much money and energy that I should not have had to spend because they sold me sick babies.

What should I do? The breeder belongs to both ECBC and MCBA.

Thanks for listening <3

Pain with pooping?

Hey everyone,

So my chinchilla recently was treated for gingivitis, and she was constipated for a while on meds (the antibiotic can do that to her), but we continuously kept her hydrated and fed her critical care. After successful treatment of gingivitis, she started pooping again, and she was pooping WAY more than usual, and they were larger. I know this was normal for the first short while because her system was clearing out, but it has been a couple weeks and she is still pooping a lot and they are still large- no diarrhea though.

In the past two days she has started barking (as if she is in pain, or snipping at someone) and I noticed that it is when she is pooping- that is her trigger. She will also chatter her teeth (not happy chatter, this one seems like pain) when pooping. Has anyone else had this experience? I was thinking about bringing her back to the vet to get her checked out, but I was wondering if anyone else had something similar, she is really worrying me.

Dawnna of chocolate chinchillas

Howdy all!

I was a member about 10 years ago. I can't remember my username and I had one of those fancy emails from my cell phone provider so oh well.

I came back wondering what happened to Dawnna of chocolate chinchillas. She sold lifeline on her website and was a lovely woman. I think she was eskiemom on here. Does anyone know?

Wood play thing?

Hello! I let my chinchilla play around in my room for 3-4 hours everyday (supervised, and he has access to his cage when wanted), but it seems to be getting boring to him with the same old stuff. Does anyone have any links or is selling anything that is a bit of a “wooden maze” or something he can jump on and explore?

Chinchilla not eating

Hey guys my 5 y/o chinchilla hasn't been eating much for 3-4 days. He doesn't touch his pellets or hay. I fed him three whole wheat Cheerios and a bit of rolled oats because he usually loves those but he didn't seem that excited and wouldn't take more than that. He's drinking a little bit of water but not too much. He is less active than normal but still runs a bit on the wheel and approaches me when I come to the cage. He's been posing less frequently obviously due to not eating as much. Physically nothing looks different from the usual. And other than the things I've described nothing else is different; his breathing seems fine, he doesn't seem in pain (or he's not bee very vocal about it), and there's no fur loss or anything. I may be taking him to the vet tomorrow but I've never done that before because he's never really had any issues. If anyone has any suggestions on what may be wrong or what I could try that would be great. Also, if anyone knows of good exotic vets in the York region area in Ontario, Canada (Richmond hill, Markham, Newmarket, Aurora, etc.) please let me know! Thank you.

Do Chinchillas like being read to?

I know that some chinchillas love to watch tv, but frankly, I don’t have the money for that. I did some digging around and a good way to bond with chinchillas is to read to them, but do they actually enjoy it like they would tv?

Modifying a Ryerson Carrier

Does anyone have an idea on how to modify a Ryerson carrier? I received my double carrier the other day and for the most part I am pretty impressed with its construction and design. However, I'm not to keen on the latch for the mesh doors. Has anyone changed out the latch for something like on the plastic small dog/cat carriers made by PetMate?

Funny Training Behavior

Yesterday, my chin named Squeak, exhibited a funny but cute behavior during our training session. Let me set the table. Squeak unlike her sister, Pip, has a rather narrow rat looking face and beadier eyes. LOL. She also has slightly longer paws than her sibling. For a few weeks, I was watching a YouTube video on how to train a chin using a "target" stick/wand. After tapping the stick to get her attention, I had Squeak point with her nose and follow the wand in certain directions while standing on her hind legs. I then rewarded her for her correct efforts with some oats. She normally takes the reward in her mouth and then handles it in her long paws. On the most recent training session I didn't use treats as a reward but just used my voice and pet her head. She instinctively tried to reach out for a treat (that wasn't there) and motioned it to her mouth about three times. It was almost as if she was saying "where's my treat"? After the next task, she gave me the meanest rat face while motioning her paw three times again for her treat. The longer I withheld giving her the treat, the more frantic her paw motion became. I eventually gave it to her but I didn't want her to be dependent on treats during our training sessions. I'll never forget that mean rat face though!!! LOL the funniest incident seemed to be the way she balled up her paw into a fist as a final gesture to end our session!!! Anyone ever have this result with your chins??? LOL

Quality Cage Litter Pan

Josh Paulson, the creator of the ChinSpin, sent me the QC chinchilla litter pan. I am thoroughly satisfied with his design and craftsmanship. It has high walls on two sides and fits into a cage corner. My chins can pee and poop through the mesh without kicking out the bedding vastly reducing my clean up time. The pan's fine metal mesh keeps the bedding from contacting them. The pan and mesh are both powder coated to resist rusting and really easy to clean. I can place the pan on the floor of my chins' cage or I can install it as another corner ledge due to the hardware attached to it.

Carrier Training Methods

It took my chins about a month to get socialized with me! They would never jump on me during their outside cage playtime until yesterday. Yesterday was the first time they actually reached out from their cage and climbed on my hand and up my arm. I was using crushed rose hips or rolled oats as their reward for their training sessions every two days. One of my chins is still very leery but she is coming around. Her sister took to her training better and now literally leaps from the cage into my lap. My next challenge will be to get them into their carrier without carrying them into it. Any suggestions???

Unhappy Chin/Nervous all the time

My rescue boy Nimbus just seems to be on edge all the time. He's had some good days in the time since I've had him (November 6th, and he's 3 years old approx.) but lately he doesn't want to come near me, and doesn't like to be touched (even chin scratches, and he loved those). I keep the room he's in dark, and the door closed, but when someone even walks past the door, he bolts/spooks. (He shares the room with a hamster and two fish, but that's all. I have no other pets.) He has two hideouts currently that he can hide in, but he rarely uses them. He just sort of sits in one spot in his cage all day and sort of appears half-asleep (I've never caught him sleeping for real). I know he's a lot more active at night, chewing on things and bouncing around. He's pooping normally, peeing normally, eating normally... He's eating Oxbow Chinchilla food (two small handfuls a day... I have small hands) and Oxbow Timothy hay (a handful or two... he's kind of picky about which strands he wants, but he's never without food or hay) I've weighed him a small number of times, and he turns up around 600 grams. The highest he's been is 650, the lowest is 550. He's small, but I think that's because he's likely pet-store stock. I don't weigh him very often because he hates being handled, but these are the results I've got from him.

I plan to get him a baby brother eventually (likely not for several months) hoping it'll make him less lonely and more secure...he's never lived with another chin before (he's lived with one in the cage above him) and I've been told an 8 week old baby would be best to pair with him, cause it will seem the least threatening.

Anyway, he just seems really stressed out all the time, and I'm not really sure what to do to put him at ease. Any tips or thoughts are welcome!

pulling out hay

my chinchilla enjoys pulling hay from the rack and pooping on it. I assumed he liked huddling in it, so I put a pile of hay in his cage. It's next to the hay rack, but he still pulls his hay out. I'm worried he doesn't eat enough hay because he leaves most of the rest (that he didnt pull out) untouched. he has timothy hay which was the type of hay he came with. should i try changing it?

wet tail

recently a few drops of a sticky substance got on my chinchilla's tail. It's only on the tips, so it didn't reach the skin. It has been a few days and parts of his hair stuck together. How can I safely wash his tail?

Drooling chin

Hello,
Over the last week, we have noticed our chin seems go be drooling. He is about 9-10 years old and a rescue. Weve had him about 3 years and he gets his fresh hay/new chew toys regularly. I did a little research and saw this could be related to dental trouble. He is still eating fine but hasn't shown much interest in his sticks or chew toys. Any ideas on what might be causing this? I have not yet taken him to the vet but will probably be making an appointnent in the next day or two if he doesn't stop drooling.

Breeders that ship or are in Washington

Hi! I'm looking to get a chinchilla from a breeder and was wondering if anybody knew of a good breeder in Washington state (or possibly a state close-by) or one that ships? I'm having trouble finding one. Thanks!

Chin is avoiding bedding

Hey all,

So we recently had to switch from fleece to Aspen shavings because looks to me and the breeder like fleece was drying out and irritating my poor chin's feet. :( I thought being on shavings might be better for her tootsies in the long run.

But she hates them with a burning passion so far, and is avoiding all areas with shavings. She grew up on shavings before I got her, but then I had her on fleece...and I guess she doesn't remember what shavings are like on the feet.

Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem with persnickety chins and if so, of they just sorta got over avoiding the shavings after a while?

She's sorta avoiding the spots where her hay and water bottles are because shavings are there too. Part of me wants to move that stuff to the areas she's not avoiding. But part of me also doesn't want to enable her avoidance strategy by moving her essentials to only places she likes. Catch 22 I guess.

Pregnant chinchilla

I recently adopted a male and female and their 4 month old baby boy. Before I got them they were housed together so I believe she is pregnant but I’m not sure how far along. I have separated mum from the dad and baby as I don’t want her to get pregnant again.

So today she is looking quite uncomfortable and keeps on licking/ pulling fur from around her lower stomach area. She also seems to be breathing a little more heavily. I was wondering if these might be signs that she is having the kits or is close to having them.

She is in a kit safe cage and I have a trusted vet that she can go to at any time just in case there is a problem.

Hawaii Chin Owners

It's a fact that Hawaii has one of the highest costs of living in the United States. However, if you're going to be a chin owner in Hawaii DO NOT skimp on the necessities for these particular pets. I have seen other forums (not necessarily this one) where Hawaii chin owners try to get around the AC issue by using alternate forms of cooling chins. UNACCEPTABLE! If you own chins, AC IS REQUIRED especially in the 808 state with it's year round high temps and humidity. Another issue was the lack of regularly scheduled medical exams. I asked a few owners in the past on the Hawaii Craigslist on how often they took their chins to the vets. ALL of them said they hadn't taken their chins to the vets ever. Living in a high cost state has its challenges but these pets shouldn't have to suffer the consequences when chin owners are unwilling to make financial sacrifices for their pet. Sorry guys, I had to rant.

Good treats/Whimzees for chins?

I work at a pet store and we sell a vegan dental chew called Whimzees. They are marketed as a dog treat however I know customers who give them to their hamsters. I understand that chins have very different digestive tracts than a hamster but I figured it would be an awesome treat/toy if they could eat them. I just am having a hard time figuring out if the ingredients are safe.
The ingredients are;
potato starch, glycerin, lecithin, malt extract, and yeast.

Thanks.

food amount

My chinchilla is about 8-10 months now, so far I have been feeding him around one table spoon. Now that he is getting older, should I increase the amount of food I give him?
thanks

Cool Mist Humidifier

Does anyone know of a cool mist humidifier that *doesn't* soak the carpet?

We started out with a Sunbeam Cool Mist Ultrasonic, and I'm not sure if it's leaking or if the water mist is simply dropping to the floor and collecting, but the carpet is wet after one use. Obviously I don't want the mold issues that might come from prolonged use of this one.

I've also read reviews on the Vicks Cool Mist Humidifier , and unfortunately it seems that many people have the same complaint about that one.

Having used warm mist humidifiers for years for my own sinuses, I know that a humidifier can work without soaking the floor, but my only experiences have been with warm mist. We trying to go with a cool mist for the nursery, but will look at other options if none of those work successfully.

So do all cool mist humidifiers (ultrasonic or impeller) result in a wet floor??

Odd Chin Eating Habit

One of my chins eats her Oxbow pellets very oddly. She holds her pellet and nibbles it down to where she is holding onto the remaining portion of the pellet. She then sniffs it and tosses that portion on the floor of the cage!!! Is this weird, eccentric, just plain OCD-like or is she just a damned picky eater?? LOL I have not observed my other chin eating pellets in the same manner.

Chin still drooling after tooth surgery HELP

Hi.

I'm new to the group. Wondering if someone can please provide some info!

Our chinchilla padme is approx 10-13 years old. We've had her for 8 years and rescued her from the sspca who estimated her to be 2 to 5 years at the time.

In the middle of December she stopped eating and stated to drool. We took her to the vet and he couldn't see her teeth properly. We started painkillers and food stimulants. A few days later we returned with her and a different vet managed to see her front teeth which were curled under at the top, one broken and the bottom and one over grown at the bottom. She was also losing weight but we risked putting her under anestetic. Her teeth were cut and xrayed her. No apparent other issues except a fuzziness in her chest which they believed to be a chest infection. This was28th December. 1 week later she was doing much better came off antibiotics and our only new battle was getting her back to solid food as previously would only eat her pellets if wet. We have been trying that again for another week or so and the last couple days she has started the drooling again.

Took her back to the vet and they said they didn't know what else to do so we could take her to the Edinburgh vet school which is another £175 Just for another vet to look at her. We have already paid £350 approx so far to our own vet. They gave her more anti biotics today to take but I'm really quite angry that they expect us to pay to see someone else when they could be liasing with them to help her.
Not sure what else to do.

Any one know ??
Thanks

Reorganizing Cage Setup

How often do you change up the cage setup in order to avoid chins becoming bored? I'm just curious how often other owners reorganize their cages.

Looking for White Male!

Would prefer around a year or two old! White with pink wars or whore with grey :) In Seattle, WA

Getting A Chin?

So I was in the pet store yesterday and they were selling 2 chins (separately). I was sticking my fingers in the cages (at this point I had no real thoughts about actually getting one) and one of them seemed to react like it didn't care but still let me pet it. The other one was literally pressing itself against the cage and didn't leave my side unlike the other one. Is there any way to guess how the loving one will act if I buy it. I mean I adopted a dog once and he played fetch at the pound. Once we got him home his does not play at all. So I don't want to pay over $200 for a chin just for it to change and act differently.

Weird fur patch under the chin and chest

Hey.

Yesterday I noticed that my chin had a weird fur patch on his chest and chin. At first I thought it was just a regular knot and he let me puzzle out the tangle by scrathing him. Seemed like he enjoyed too.

And then I noticed the weird hard patch under his chin. It felt like the fur spot had gotten wet and dried all weird. I had a feeling it's drool but since I scratch his chin and chest every day I haven't noticed any wet spots. His fur around his eyes are dry and under his chin as well.

Is it possible he had a hay or something stuck between his teeth which caused drooling for a moment? Or is it something with his teeth? I tried to google and search for any similar experiences but all of the answers said their the drooling is continuous.

He is eating and drinking fine, just before I noticed this issue I was watching him eat his pellets normally. Also no change in his behavior either, he is all happy and bouncy as usual.

What could this be? :// Worried.

p.s sorry for broken English.

Things to buy for my chins

I’m getting 2 chinchillas today from a girl from kijiji. I’ll be looking them over before buying them obviously! She said she has all the necessities, but I’m wondering what else I should buy/order tomorrow, once I see everything she has for them. I’ve looked over a lot of things here but it’s hard to gather so much information from so many posts. I didn’t know what the best brands of everything I should get are. (I won’t be changing their food right away if what she is feeding them aren’t good, I’ll ween them out and in) Also what are some good things to buy/order that aren’t necessities but things they’ll like, toys, treats, sticks, etc. I’ve done an abundance of research but living in Alberta, Canada it’s a bit harder to find stuff and forums to order from, especially ones that aren’t from 10 years ago. I’d prefer to order from Amazon (Canada) but willing to order from other places as well as long as shipping isn’t stupidly overpriced!
Thanks a bunch!

Several available in the Richmond Va area

I have several nice chins ready for adoption. Be mindful I do not ship.

Listed on my web page is a very nice standard female ( Sky ) that keeps getting overlooked. She really would like a home where she can be spoiled rotten. Next up is a cute BV female. Spunky and very friendly. Starting to enjoy the "scratch".
Lastly a really friendly love bug named Cash. Cash is a special needs blind dark ebony male. He would do best in a single story home.

They all can be seen at:

Norwoodchinchillas.com
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Need help to define illness! Please

I've seen my chin scratching to much, i thought it was ok, just like any other animal. But after a couple of days it scratched side of its nose to much, so that fur got off. It also scratches near ears and bites near back paws, but fur there is ok for now. What could it be? fungus or mites?

We are living in a new build block of flats (about 4months), have no other pets. Our chin is about 5-6 months old, got him for about 2 weeks.

Pics when he started to scratch(don't know if u actually see, but fur there was getting thin and skin a bit red) :
https://imgur.com/pxR0x5Z
and now:
https://imgur.com/TiFbuly

Chinchilla ledges and custom cage advice

So I had bought an all living things multi level cage for my chinchilllas and as you know it comes with all plastics shelves and such and chinchillas shouldn’t consume plastic the cage btw is the exact same cage as a ferret nation cage so I bought stainless steel metal pans from bassequipment.com shipping was very quick and it costs about 100 bucks for both pans THEN I had to think about how I would make the ledges if I would buy them and such and I feel like there isnt enough information on chinchilla ledges and wood they can consume and WHERE TO FIND IT I had a very difficult time finding the wood so I wanted to make a post saying what I have found in making my chinchillas custom cage the wood you’re looking for that’s most common anyways is untreated kiln dried pine wood and basically what that means is it’s been untreated so it won’t harm your chinchillas because they treat the wood for outdoor use and kiln dried just means that it has been dried with a lot of heat to kill anything that could have been in the wood and to get rid of the sap you can also use poplar wood poplar wood is harder wood so screwing into it will be a lot easier pine splits very easy so as for making the ledges and that’s any ledges you wanna make sure and sand them very well because any sharp edges can hurt them Home Depot and Lowe’s near me didn’t have the special pine they had pine but if it’s not marked kiln dried I won’t buy it because it’s supposed to be marked poplar wood though is very very popular and was there the best place I have found though for this kind of wood is a lumber yard as for hardware THE BOLTS ARE SUPER HARD TO FIND LARGE QUANTITIES OMFG I had to go to probably 4 different Lowe’s and Home Depot to find the 1/4 hanger bolts hanger bolts work like this half goes into wood and half is used to put a wingnut you also want a fender washer I bought several different washers but fender washed is by far the best and that’s because it’s very large and will support the board better Home Depot is better priced for the hanger bolts I bought a pack of 4 for 1.18 Lowe’s was a pack of 2 for 1.28 Lowe’s is cheaper than Home Depot for washers and wingnuts now if you’re using pine you want to make sure to PRE DRILL I can’t express that enough if you’re using a 1/4 hanger bolt you pre drill with one size smaller and then drill the 1/4 hanger bolt into the board also the holes you use to drill for the chinchilla house and such is like a special kit for cutting holes it was about 50 bucks for smaller medium ones and for the 4 inch large hole you need for the main entrance had to be purchases separately also I highly recommend using a nail gun over screws if you’re building a house or box because it’s very easy to split the wood Also thought I’d mention what sizes I made because i didn’t really see very many posts regarding exactly what they made and how they made it I made (8) 6 by 2 1/2 for the “stairs” (4) 11 by 6 with a 4 inch hole on one side i made (6) 6 by 4 1/2 (1) 11 by 6 (1) 12 by 7 1/2 (1) 11 by 7 bottom with a stick attached on one side that was 9 inches the “box” I made with empty sides was 11 by 8 by 8 as for the weird angles piece it’s 22 x 8 and I basically just cut at an angle one piece just make sure when you have large pieces you put a lot of hanger bolts so it’s supported and doesn’t hang or go down when the chinchillas jump off of it as for the other house the bottom piece of 14 by 11 front and back pieces are 8 1/2 by 11 and the side pieces are 8 1/2 by 7 and top was 7 by 11 the second house was 8 by 7 on the side front and back were 6 by 6 1/2 and the top 8 by 8 and I had a 4 inch whole on the front piece all in all I spend about 7 bucks for washers 7 bucks for wingnuts and probably 20 or 30 bucks in hanger bolts you’re better off ordering them online because Home Depot and Lowe’s only carry 4-6 packs at a time if you have any questions feel free to hit me up beforethesunrises2@gmail.com

All Metal Chinchilla Carriers: Ryerson, Bass Equipment, Quality Cage Crafters

Does anyone have photos of these types of chin carriers? I 'd like to get a perspective of its size with two chins in the carriers. I heard the Ryerson carriers are really well constructed at an affordable price. I was using a small cat/dog Petmate carrier for my chins recent vet visit but I'm going to return it to Amazon.

Chinchilla pooping irregularly.

Hi, it's my first time posting and I don't think this is an emergency, but I would like to hear if anyone has anything to say about this to tell me what' going on. Just as preface I have an 8 month old male chinchilla, he's never been very active always super laid back and sleeping, not lethargic just very chill in his cage. When I take him out for play time every day he has a great time running around and playing with all his toys, when he's in his cage though he just isn't active and he occasionally uses his wheel. He always likes to cuddle with his stuffed toy chinchilla and at night likes to come sleep close to where he can see me. When I adopted him two months ago he was on a bad food full of treats and I've been weaning him onto Mazuri, he gets fresh hay everyday too. He's never eaten much and weighs about 450 grams consistently. Lately though his poop has been weird. He occasionally has softer stool, and sometimes its very small or it will come out in clumps. I'm not sure whats causing this and I wanted to know if anyone would have answers or anything I could try to help him. He doesn't like being held much and I don't want to stress him out by taking him to the vet.

Dr. Lydia Lam, Oahu, Hawaii

Dr. Lydia Lam at the VCA Family and Oahu Veterinary Specialty Center located in Pearl City, Oahu, Hawaii took real good care of my two chins. Her and her assistant were really careful handling my chins and were very thorough in answering my concerns. Can't say enough about Dr. Lam's facility as they have also taken care of my rabbit and two dogs!

Weighing Chins and Scales

I just got a clean bill of health for my chins from their vet. She used a scale to weigh my chins which was accurate to the gram. How often are you supposed to weigh chins (I forgot to ask this to my vet)? What are the more popular brands of scales chins owners use?

Chew toys

Hi, I've noticed my chinchilla isn't interested in chewing his bend-a-bridge or his house anymore. He used to enjoy nibbling on lava rocks, but he's lost interest in them. I know some chews have a good smell to get the chinchilla interested in chewing it. Is there anything I can do to get him interested in it again? Maybe rub an apple slice against it?
Thanks

The male chinchillas rapping each other

Hey guys so I was just wondering if anyone might know why my two male chins are trying to rape each other. Yes I have females but this has been going on way before I got them. I am constantly whipping the room down and vacuuming even scrubbing the carpet and giving them fresh dust to try and confuse their little noses. Some times they get aggressive and I stay in the room till they finally stop(usually after I give them a snack) but every time I let them out and they start to Chrip that I’m a happy chinchilla nosie they start trying to rape each other!!! Poor guys!! Please help me if you have any information!

Cuddle Buddies

Hello,

I'm a relatively new chinchilla owner and I was wondering about cuddle buddies for my chinchilla. I have one chinchilla, less than a year old, who I think would benefit from a stuffed cuddle buddy. I was looking online and it says that fleece buddies were ideal but on every website I looked with a fleece buddy it doesn't say what's stuffed inside the fleece. I'm afraid the inside will be stuffed with cotton and I know that is terrible for chinchillas if digested. Does anyone know what is inside a fleece cuddle buddy?

Thanks!

A few words about my chinchilla and me

Hello everyone, at first glance this forum seems so packed with info, how fabulous. I have lots of reading to do 😊
I have one rchinny boy called Monty. Love most animals really, my heart and soul belongs to my basset hound Leo, 4 guinea pig boys, 4 rabbit girls and little Monty. Looking forward to learning lots more, I’ve had Monty for 3 years, he’s e was a rescue and is 4 now.

3 Story Critter Nation Cage Setup

Does anyone have a 3 Story CN cage setup that they can share? I'd like to see some photos of various layouts. I'm very interested in seeing how other chin owners have divided up their cage or if they kept it wide open providing the chins a lot of space for jumping. Any photos of your various setups will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Baytril and Stasis?

Hello, on 12/21 I took my chinchilla (Falcor) to the vet because she was having soft stool and it smelled sour when it dried. She did not have any parasites but she did have a little bit of bad bacteria so the vet had prescribed her .4ml of Baytril every 12 hours for 10 days. I was giving her the Baytril plus giving her probiotic 2-3 hours after. Her poop did become smaller and harder but she was still eating and drinking then about the last two days of her medication, which was about 12/29, I noticed she only ate if I hand fed her and she stopped drinking water. So I started syringing her water and feeding her CC. I was never told by the vet that I needed to give her CC during her Baytril treatment, but I also blame myself because I should of done my research first. Well I started to give her CC and infant gas drops based on the info on this forum, which helped and she started pooping some off and on. She is still very active and the gas drops helped her out so much. I called my vet and the soonest she could see her was 1/4. Needless to say, when I took her in, the vet was furious at me for following her directions. She lost too much weight. I was advised to take her pellets away and feed her hay, water, and the antibiotic dosage only. She got an x-ray done and no blockage but obviously she has stasis. I was given Metoclopramide to be administered 3 times a day and Meloxicam once a day and Baytril again for another 10 days twice a day. She did not run a poop test to see if she had an infection so I'm a little apprehensive on giving her Baytril again because from reading the Sparky forum, I did not see where he was taking antibiotics and I read that Baytril can make her worse if she's already in stasis. Her stomach has went down a lot and she is not drinking on her own but I'm making sure she gets 30ml of water a day and 15-20ml of CC every feeding and I'm also taking her in today 1/5 for more fluid injections. I've noticed that shes eating hay on her own and I added some pellets to get her back on eating that and she's starting to poop a lot more now. I have been giving her tummy massages, warm compresses, and even though she has a big cage with a wheel, I bought her a playpen where she runs around and plays for about an hour and then goes into her kennel to sleep. I feel if I give her Baytril that its just going to stop her progress. I wanted to ask you guys what you think. I know we aren't vets but I like opinions from people who have experience with chinchillas. I'm sorry for the long post but I have been reading tons of threads here and I just wanted to get the whole story out.

What treats can I safely give my chinchillas

Every article I've read says something different. Carrots, celery, Cheerios, shredded wheat, Rose hips, mountain Ash berries, dandelion leaves, hawthorn leaves, nettle leaves, red clover leaves, chamomile flowers, marigold flowers, and on and on.

I'd like to find a variety of safe treats but everyone says something different.

Any help would be amazing.

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ETSY Chinchilla Vendors

Shout out to these remarkable vendors on ETSY:

Lucas Shorey of Chinvilla
Marissa Dycus of LotsofCuddlesByRissa
Kristen Vine of FluffyFeetDesigns
Mark and Viktoria of WoodandBeads
Chirping Chins
Joshua Paulson of Quality Cage Crafters
Tiff and Kurt of Pet Revolution

You guys made my life and my chins' lives so much better!!! Thanks again for all of your hard work, high quality crafts and most of all your customer service!!!! I'm definitely a fan of yours because of ETSY!!!

wheel vs flying saucer

Hi, I'm planning on buying my year old chinchilla a running wheel/saucer. Currently I'm looking at kaytee silent spinner (giant) since it seemed large enough and doesn't take up as much room. Should I invest in a flying saucer instead? What are the benefits of each one?
Thanks

FN Double Units: To Divide or Not to Divide

My boyfriend and I will be moving into a townhouse in about a month and a half. Which means SPACE like I haven't had in years of apartments. My four girls went from a double unit FN per bonded pair to one section per pair. They did fine, but I held onto my other FN and we will have room for two again. I am very excited to plan layouts and see how they react to having more room again. I've also considered the possibility of leaving the second level floors out and just doing wood shelves and fleece everywhere to provide more climbing options and save money on shavings (potential added bonus). But I'm worried about one of them falling from that high. My oldest girl can be a bit clumsy and I also have a young chin (3 months). Thoughts?

Bonding Methods

I have a young chin (about to turn three months) that will be finishing her quarantine next week and I hope to bond her with my much older girl (not sure exact age because she was a rescue, but my guess is about 15) who lost her cagemate recently. It's been 6 years since I've gone through a bonding process (the one and only time). I can't remember if I read the method I used on here or if I got the suggestion from the breeder I got two of my girls from, but I used a form of the side by side cage method. Set up a divider in one level of an FN with each chin on one side of it. They stayed side by side for several days and when there were no signs of aggression, I removed the divider, put an open dust bath, in they bathed and loved each other ever since. Each side of the cage just had one house double entry house, which I turned to face the divider after a day or so so they could hide out next to each other (also a suggestion from somewhere), food and water.

I still have the divider and was thinking of doing the same thing again, but have also been looking up other bonding methods. I'm just curious what others prefer and have a specific question about the car ride/smooshing method... isn't it risky if they were to start fighting in the carrier? I'm probably too cautious for that approach, but idea of that almost instant bond is appealing. Thanks for any insights!

traveling overseas

I'm going to Scotland for at least 3 weeks during summer and I'm not sure what I should do with Willow during that time. I don't think having her go though quarantine would be good for her..... any ideas?

Possible seizure, not wanting treats

On Monday night my chinchilla who will be 8 in February was cuddled at the bottom of her cage like she normally does, and then calmly started to roll over on her back/side, and slowly stretched her legs out. She wasn't trembling or stiff, but she never lays on her back or side. When she did this, she was not responding to me putting my hands near her nose or talking to her. After about 30 seconds she sat up and hopped around. She has been normal ever since, except she does not want her usual treats (normally begs for them), and only eats critical care when I put it on my finger or bring it to her on a spoon. She's been sleepy but not lethargic as she still comes out to hop around the cage but then goes back to sleep. The only treat she voluntarily takes is dried cranberry.

She had a mild seizure about a year ago but it was not the same in nature as this one, since this time it seemed more like she was just out of it for a few seconds. Does this seem like another seizure and is it a major concern that she does not want treats? I was giving her a couple days to recover in case it was a seizure, because last time it made her tired and unlike herself for a couple days.

CareFresh vs Kiln Dried Pine bedding

What is the safest bedding between the two? What are the pros and cons? Fortunately my chins are now potty trained. I was able to use a glass baking pan and limit their space options by placing it in one corner.

Reintroducing Chins

Hi All!

I have 2 male chins who are brothers from the same litter. Long story short, one of them got injured and has been separated for over a month. He’s finally healed and ready to go back to his big cage with his brother but I’m having trouble reintroducing them. The uninjured brother was definitely the alpha before but not it’s the injured brother who’s trying to be alpha. I tried to introduce them in the most neutral place I could, but the uninjured chin keeps running and shedding large clumps of fur every time the injured one gets near him and the injured one keeps chasing him. I’m at a loss because they were very close before all this happened and I don’t have the money or space to house both of them in adequate cages separately. The injured chinchilla is currently in a small one level cage because his activity needed to be restricted. I’ve been through so much with these guys over the past few months, I just want everything to go back to normal with them.

Getting Off Critical Care

Hey all! I’ve read all about getting your chin off critical care and I just don’t know what to do. I’ve cut him back to 2 feedings of 20ML a day. He was eating some pellets for a while and now he’s gone back to not eating any at all. He won’t drink from his water bottle at all, it’s been weeks now since he first started CC and I’m worried he won’t ever be off it. He was on it due to antibiotics from an injury and he’s fully healed now so I don’t understand why he won’t eat on his own. He’s very picky with his hay and will only eat certain pieces of orchard grass. If I give him baked treats, he’ll eat those right up. I’ve tried 2 different pellets and he seems so uninterested. He still hasn’t fully gained all the weight he lost while ill/injured.

Bee Pollen

I just purchased a treat sampler/variety pack from a seller on ETSY. It contains about 10 treats. One of the treats is Bee Pollen. I have never heard or read about this as being a chin treat. The rest of the treats are the typical dried treats like hibiscus, rose hips, goji berries, oats, etc. Has anyone given their chins Bee Pollen before? Do they eat it as is or do you have to mix it up in their food?

new chinchilla owner questions?

sorry if in wrong forum! lmk and i'll repost in the right direction :) recently was 'gifted' a chinchilla as a friend of mine did not want him anymore due to the attention they require and price of upkeep. she told me he's about a year and two months old. having shown guniea pigs before, i'm a little interested in showing mine if possible.
1. does he at all look show quality? or 'rat-faced' as i've seen some be called? honestly can't tell myself, i think he's cute either way but wanted to know others opinions! pictures here
2. my second question is whether or not it's safe for him to interact with guniea pigs? like play with them outside of cage, definitely not caged together, or would they fight/hurt each other/get each other sick?
3. does he need a partner/cagemate? i have read mixed opinions of introducing two chins together and keeping them separated etc. i don't want him to be lonely during the day (currently have class from 6am to 2pm with no job :innocent:)
4. FINAL question is whether or not anyone uses the quality cage crafters 'chinchilla condo' as a full time chinchilla cage for a single chin? i'm interested in getting him one a long with ordering the chin spin since his current wheel is nooooot acceptable at all. if i do need to get him a cagemate though, i'd be getting the townhome for sure :)
thank you so so so much anyone who answers, and any advice is welcome!

Bath Dust on ChinSpin

A few days ago, I gave my pair of chins their first dust bath after I acquired them. For their first bath I put their 1 gallon penny jar in their CN cage. After they were done, they decided a run on the ChinSpin was in order. I try to sweep up as much dust as possible from inside the ChinSpin drum. In the future, I will try to encourage them to dust bath outside of their cage. Does anyone know what the effects of the dust, if any, will do over time to the ChinSpin bearings?