| Basic Chinchilla Care Adult chins should be fed as many pellets as they want, with a handful of timothy hay, orchard grass or mixed cubes (70% timothy 30% alfalfa). Treats should be fed sparingly and can consist of rolled oats, raisins, and banana chips. They should be given a dust bath daily or at least every other day with a high quality dust like Blue Cloud or Kaytee. The temperature should be kept below 75 degrees (60-70 ideal) and the humidity as low as possible. The golden rule is to add the temperature and humidity together and if they exceed 150 it is dangerous to the chin and it may suffer heatstroke. Chinchillas do not tolerate humidity well along with high temps. Wire cage bottoms and wire hay racks are dangerous because they can get their legs caught in them and get hurt. A chinchilla with a broken leg will most likely have to be euthanized. For levels in the cage we suggest using untreated pine boards. They are good for chewing and look nice. Adult chins need a wheel at least 15" in diameter. Remember they are nocturnal so try and let them rest as much as possible in the daytime. Keep the cage in a room where there is minimal amount of activity in the daytime. (no birds!) When handling the chin be sure to hold onto the base of the tail, they will get away from you if not held this way. Any signs of not eating, lethargy, diarreah or constipation call the vet asap. They do not normally exhibit signs of sickness until they are very sick. They should be yearly by an exotic vet to check overall health and teeth growth (because they grow continuously). Make sure you have plenty of things for your chins to chew on such as wooden chew blocks, hay cubes or pumice stones. |