Chinchilla's How easy are they to keep??.

[rema]

Not a doggie i know but wasen't sure where to post!!.I have been offered a young Chinchilla but i have no experiance of keeping them or even if i should have it!!.Do any of you guys have any experiance or knowledge of keeping these!.Do they prefer to live alone or in pairs.Any help would be very gratefully recieved!!.Thanks.

 

[SilverSkye]

I have one she is called fatty and very sweet! we used to have 2 but the other one died about a year ago we were told when she died that you cant introduce a new one or if you do it has to be done really really slowly as they will fight and kill each other.
She is really easy to keep clean her out about once a week feed her about every other day she loves treats of raisins and cornflakes, and she loves to come out to play we let her have free run around the living room and she is very lively and leaps and hops all over the place she is very fast when you try to catch her and nibbles anything and everything ( skirting boards being her favourite!!)
She is a great pet really as over long weekends if we go away we just give her extra food and make sure she has enough water and she is fine!
Here is a pic is a couple of years ols when we had the 2 ...

 

[rema]

Awww how cute!!.I must admit i am rather tempted but would want to find out as much as i can before commiting to have one.Thanks for your help

 

[Oneofthepack]

I kept some years ago, they should be kept in pairs and feed on special chinchilla pellets and hay if I remember rightly plus the odd raisin as a treat. The most important thing is that they must have a dust bath (special silver sand) every other day at least as they can't keep their fur clean otherwise. They are best kept in a large wire based cage so their fur doesn't get soiled and they like to jump and climb so the cage should be tall with climby things in it. They like a private nest box where they can be quiet in the day as they are a bit nocturnal though you can wake them up to play during the day. Lovely little chaps....very entertaining, full of fun and a bit naughty!

 

[rema]

Thank you for that.They sound like fun little guys.

 

[rrose]

my sister had one, and it was mad. very fun chaps. especially when you open there cage and let them about the room!

i would have 2. good luck

 

[buckybee]

I know this is really meen, but my x boyf had one and my dog would love one as a pet!! not sure how long it would last though!

 

[PiebaldHorse]

They are great pets if they have been handled properly, otherwise they can give a bad bite! They are becoming more and more popular, but would say to go to your pet shop and ask more about them.

My husband and I nearly ended up with terrapins after they were offered to us, but after talking to ones in our local pet shop, we left it

 

[TrecPeter]

Be careful - they live for ages, so be prepared to look after it for years. Apparently they reach 20yrs without any trouble.
We had two, but now just have one in a very large cage.
It seems quite happy on its own, but it's not really my cup of tea seeing this furry bundle inside a wire cage.

 

[Evadiva1514]

Hi,

I got my chinchilla when i passed my entrance exam to go to grammar school. That was back in 1993 and he is still going strong!! Basil is a wonderful pet and doesn't require an awful lot of looking after. He sleeps during the day, and is active at night. He eats specially formulated pellets and mix which can be bought from most pet shops.

We also give him a wisp of hay in his cage, apples and raisins as a treat and we have been known to give him branches off fruit trees which they love. He has a regular dust bath to sort his coat out and lives in a converted parrot cage which has wire netting within it which is made up of ramps and varying levels.

He is a very sociable creature and often tells off my boxer dog for getting too close to the cage!! LOL!! He has always lived alone but his cage is situated in a busy part of the house (dining room) so he has plenty going on around him... They can bark very loudly when they want too and if picked up hastily without holding the base of their tail first, they can shed vast amounts of coat as this is a defense mechanism for them.

Basil has been known to nip on occasion but chinchillas will do this as im sure they have a poor sense of sight or so i read somewhere... and so can mistake your finger for food.

Chinchillas are truly wonderful pets that can be enjoyed by all of the family and are relatively easy to keep... would highly recommend them!!