Can someone tell me anything about chinchillas? (as in for pets!)
We've got the opportunity to get a pair of chinchillas and I was wondering if anyone has any experience with these things. We've had hamsters, hedgehogs, and guinea pigs, but nothing like this. I don't know whether to get them or not.... It's a male and female, about 1 year old. All I know is that holding them is like holding a puff of air and that they like to take dust baths.
Anything that you can tell me about them would be MOST appreciated. Would they be okay with a 4-year-old?
I don't have any but I have heard they can be difficult to take care of. I know they need cool temps (if you don't have AC they will die from the heat in the summer) and need dust baths (how fun to watch!). I'm not sure how friendly they are though.
I'm sure others will respond... just wanted to add the thing about them being sensitive to temps
Are they STINKY? When we had the guinea pigs, we had to change the cage AT LEAST every other day. That got really old really fast. The hedgehog was absolutely fastidious and we only changed the cage once or twice a week and only because we knew it was the right thing to go. Those guinea pigs -- P.U.!!!!
Hmmmm..... even though this little couple is completely adorable (one is white and the other is grey), here's what I found on a google search:
Quote:
They are very timid and are easily frightened by noise and rough handling. They have the special trait which skunks have: emitting a pungent odor when frightened. A chinchilla may also bite or shed its fur in fear. Even owners need to be gentle and quiet when handling their chinchillas.
Quote:
You will enjoy watching your pet keeping busy with activities more in the night than day for chinchillas are nocturnal rodents.
I don't think so. They're almost like minks or something, they're so soft. But the article I read said that they're most like squirrels. And they can live 20 YEARS! So it's not like hamsters or guinea pigs that live about 5 years -- it's a long commitment.
my mom used to have a pair.. she called them cheech and chong Anyway.. they are very cool! I was able to hold them and pet them, you can get a large ball like a hamster and let them run around. You have to be careful not to let them get loose. lol they are fast.. and will chew up everything!
We were going to get them from my mom.. but she lives in oklahoma. I saw a set in the paper today and thought about getting them myself...but we don't have enough room for a big enough cage.
I am sure the more you play with them, the tamer they will be.
They make funny noises at night, and i think they may screech if you scare them. They need a big cage, and don't set them too close to anything.. because they will eat it.
My mom used to feed hers special lettuce, and I can't remember what else. They knew when they were supposed to eat. lol
I think they are so cute.. and I would bath them everyday if I could. You get a little thing that looks like a house and you pour ash into it.. these two used to fight about which one would get in first.. lol and they even got in together and they flip around. A child would LOVE them!!
Wanted to add.. you need to make sure you tell your daughter not to squeeze them.. they are very fragile.. but Bailey held one and he was just over 3 but I was right next to him. I would hold them and let the boys pet them mostly. :) I think they would make a wonderful pet.. they can make a mess though.
Aww they are soo cute. i think you should get them. I never had them. I've only had like mice, hamsters and gerbils for rodents. I cant stand guinea pigs. No offense to all you other guinea pig lovers but those things stink bad even after changing the cage a hundred times a week and they love to make noise at 3am. lol Plus they always run from you. i've never seen a guinea pig that was calm lol. I say get the chinchillas. They look soooo fluffy and cuddly soft. i wanna get a pair of Sugar Gliders. I prefer joeys so i can train them young.
They are very much nocturnal animals. The one we had was a rehab from a frat house and had been abused. We used to let it out of the cage in a confined room and he would run all over and the dust baths are great fun to watch. About 8 weeks ago we got a pair of degus and now have 4 total! The babies are soo cute. They like dust baths too but do better with warm temps. I just changed their cage for the first time after 8 weeks! Should probably be done a little more frequently. I would find out how much they've been handled. The more the better! Hope that helps. Any more questions, I'll try to answer! Tina
Can someone tell me anything about chinchillas? (as in for pets!)
Anyway.. they are very cool! I was able to hold them and pet them, you can get a large ball like a hamster and let them run around. You have to be careful not to let them get loose. lol they are fast.. and will chew up everything! 
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