Chinchilla Care

Expectations

Chinchillas are an exotic pet and require some special care. They make for great entertainment for the right family. Though fluffy and extremely soft, chinchillas also are curious and like to explore. It will take time to bond with your new pet, much like a bird. The more time you spend working to build trust with your chinchilla, the more friendly they will be, usually. Chinchillas can live 10-20 years when provided with proper care. Read more below.

Cages

Cages for chinchillas should be metal and not plastic. Chinchillas cannot have plastic, as they will chew through it and eating it will cause fatal blockages. The Midwest Ferret Nation is a highly recommended cage among pet owners. You can stack 1-3 units to give additional space, for additional chinchillas, though 2-4 fit in one unit perfectly fine. There is a metal replacement pan you can order to switch out the plastic pan, and metal scatter guards to help keep poo/pine shavings in the cage too. Visit www.bassequipment.com to find those.

Temperature

Air conditioning is essential. It's very important the temperature in your home does not exceed 75 degrees where your chinchilla lives. They cannot regulate their temperatures due to their dense fur. This is an important care factor when owning a chinchilla. The nice thing about them is they can be left alone generally for a few days, but you need to be sure that if it's a hot summer weekend that you have a plan in case of power outage and a way to monitor the temperature at your home while away.

More Care Tips

Food and Water

Chinchillas thrive on simple diets. A high quality pellet and hay is all they need. We recommend Oxbow Essentials in the Red bag, Selective Science, or Mazuri. These are the most easily found foods, and it's best to feed something you can easily obtain in case you find yourself running out. Pellets should be free fed at all times. Never limit pellet intake.

Timothy or Alfalfa hay should be provided for proper wearing of the teeth. We feed a variety of both, in both loose and cube forms. I find that feeding loose hay 2-3x a week in smaller amounts, results in more eating and less playing. Constant access to the hay makes it seem more like a toy than a food.

Water should be filtered and provided through a glass bottle, not a bowl.

cage accessories

As mentioned, chinchillas cannot have plastic. All houses should be wood. Chinchillas 6 months and older should be provided lots of wood ledges for chewing and hopping around. Anti pill or blizzard fleece hammocks make for great options in the cage as well. No other hammock materials should be used, though. Any plastic cage pans should be fleece covered or replaced with metal pans. If you choose to use a bedding material, aspen or pine shavings are the only safe options. Under no circumstances should paper or cedar bedding be used. Any wheel used should be at least 15 inches in diameter and solid metal. None of the wheels sold in pet stores are safe.

Unsafe items list

Paper/Cedar bedding

Plastic

Hamster Balls

Wire Hay Feeders

Fabric except Fleece

Fruits / Veggies

Seeds / Nuts

Glass Tank Cages