Chinchilla

[Gamer]

Meet my 1 year old female chinchilla Ellie. She’s a standard, super healthy lines.

 

[trahana]

What a cutie! I have two elder boys that are both solid black. How long have you had your girl?

 

[Gamer]

What a cutie! I have two elder boys that are both solid black. How long have you had your girl?

Just under a month. She is super sweet and always wants attention or out for playtime.

what do you feed your boys?
Are yours a bonded pair? If so did they come together or did you need to introduce them? I’ve heard they can be heck in a hand basket to introduce! But that they may do better in same sex pairs. I’m considering her a friend from the same breeder.

 

[trahana]

They are Father and Son! I introduced them slowly when the son was still young. I owned his mother but rehomed her when I no longer had time to keep two cages. I didn’t want a third litter of chinchillas to rehome so I had separated the mom and dad. I kept Char char, the son, since he was my buddy.
they do have fights occasionally, but never more then a quick nip. I can’t find any injuries on them but I have seen bloody foot prints on the wooden perch a few times that I can remember. I have read horror stories about people waking up to a dead chinchilla, I think the biggest issue is too small a cage to house a pair. When I built my own cage I stopped hearing the little scuffles at night, so I assume a proper cage is bigger then a pet store carries.
I feed rabbit pellets that are low in oats. Oats aren’t good for their intestines. Sugar isn’t good for them too, so if you feed raisins don’t give to many. I give them different dried fruits as treats but only pieces as big as their nose.
I buy a Timothy or grass hay bale and then seperate it an store it is plastic tubs. Char char has some issues with switching hay where he would gain weight and loss weight radically, so I stopped buying the small hay from pet stores.
If you do get a friend you will need a second cage to house her in while they get to know each other. My breeder says he would place the cages on top of each other or next to to get them friendly. Except squeaking and peeing. Chinchillas don’t require a buddy to be happy, so don’t feel required to get a second chinchilla.

 

[Redshark1]

They are adorable and it was good to learn a bit about them.

I have two (former stray) cats as well as five aquaria and aren't planning any more pets since my lovely weekie Guinea Pigs came to the end of their furry lives!

 

[Gamer]

They are Father and Son! I introduced them slowly when the son was still young. I owned his mother but rehomed her when I no longer had time to keep two cages. I didn’t want a third litter of chinchillas to rehome so I had separated the mom and dad. I kept Char char, the son, since he was my buddy.
they do have fights occasionally, but never more then a quick nip. I can’t find any injuries on them but I have seen bloody foot prints on the wooden perch a few times that I can remember. I have read horror stories about people waking up to a dead chinchilla, I think the biggest issue is too small a cage to house a pair. When I built my own cage I stopped hearing the little scuffles at night, so I assume a proper cage is bigger then a pet store carries.
I feed rabbit pellets that are low in oats. Oats aren’t good for their intestines. Sugar isn’t good for them too, so if you feed raisins don’t give to many. I give them different dried fruits as treats but only pieces as big as their nose.
I buy a Timothy or grass hay bale and then seperate it an store it is plastic tubs. Char char has some issues with switching hay where he would gain weight and loss weight radically, so I stopped buying the small hay from pet stores.
If you do get a friend you will need a second cage to house her in while they get to know each other. My breeder says he would place the cages on top of each other or next to to get them friendly. Except squeaking and peeing. Chinchillas don’t require a buddy to be happy, so don’t feel required to get a second chinchilla.

They look so beautiful, and so friendly. Mine so far is perfectly fine chilling on my lap and I can scoop her up and lower her from her cage to the floor so far. But not perfectly like your 2 seem to be with you.

I have so far fed Modesto Milling Chinchilla/Rabbit pellets with Timothy hay and orchard grass hay. As treats I do give 3 old fashioned oats here and there. Or a broken off piece of plain shredded wheat.

I think you are right. by nature I just knew they are social creatures who herd in the wild.. but in domestication I’m convince it’s preference.

I’m going to continue being happy with one! She gets a full spare bedroom to herself. Chin proof no chords she can grab etc.

however I did order a Chin Spin 15” for her .

 

[trahana]

The Father is a head case. He was a rescue from an hoarding/neglect situation and for the first three years of ownership would bite anything and everything from fingers, wall corners and the metal cage parts. He essentially was so anxious he constantly bite and chew to make himself feel better. I have scars from him on my fingers. The turning point was him getting a respiratory infection(this is serious, our first chinchilla died from respiratory infection). I had to force feed him antibiotics and then because the antibiotics he lost his apittite so I had to feed him emergency liquid diet. Somehow the constant handling and the feeding set his brain straight, now he is safe to hold and hand to any person who wants to hold him. It was no easy journey, but its safe to say no matter how bad a chinchilla is when you buy them they get friendlier the longer you own them.
I would quit the oats/wheat for treats, it messes with their stomach. Well, most things that aren't grass and dried plant matter messes with them. They are grazing creatures and are fragile because the whole domestic population is from a small group brought down the mountains. Chinchillas live so high up that to bring them down they need to acclimate at different elevations making it a very longer trip. Other people who tried to bring chinchillas down the mountains didn't spend time acclimating them so the chinchillas would die. That means that only one group of chinchillas founded all the chinchillas we now have! Lots of inbreeding happened, so the chinchillas are more fragile then they should be.