Choosing a chinchilla as a pet
Temperature
Housing
Chinchillas need a cage with plenty of room and most people buy wire cages. A chinchilla should not be kept in a glass cage or aquarium, because there is not enough air circulation in these kinds of cages. Most chinchilla owners have cages that are around 2 x 2 x 3 feet in size. Chinchillas have small feet that can easily be caught and broken in the screen if the spacing is too big. For this reason, the flooring of the cage should be at most ½ by ½ inch. Chinchillas should also have solid surfaces on which to sit in their cage. As long as wooden shelves are made of approved woods (listed below), they are suitable for this purpose. Chinchillas are also avid chewers, because like most rodents their teeth constantly grow. Nothing should be in their cage that is not safe for them to chew (i.e. Plastics and Cloth). However, chinchillas should be given plenty of toys that are safe for them to chew on so that they are able to grind their teeth down.
Bedding
Cedar should never be used as bedding as it is known to cause respiratory problems in animals. Recommended beddings are Aspen, Kiln dried pine (The bag must say Kiln Dried on it), and Carefresh. The bedding must be changed in your chinchilla's cage at least once a week. Chinchillas do not smell, so if you are noticing an odor, then you need to be cleaning the cage more often.
Feed
Chinchillas should be fed a diet of Alfalfa and/or Timothy hay and chinchilla pellets. If you feed an alfalfa based pellet, then feed timothy hay and vice versa. The hay can be cubed or loose. Only high quality chinchilla pellets should be used. Good quality pellets are Mazuri, Tradition, APD, Oxbow, and Kline diet. The only good quality chinchilla pellet that can be found in a pet store is Mazuri. Feeding other pellets that are not nutritionally suitable can lead to severe health problems. Most of the foods in pet stores have treats in them. Anything that does not look like a pellet is considered a treat. Chinchillas naturally eat a bland diet and therefore cannot properly process large amounts of treats in their digestive systems. My chinchillas are on a diet of Mazuri pellets and loose Timothy hay.When switching to a new feed, you need to do so slowly so that you do not upset your chinchilla's digestive system. To properly switch feed, you need to use this formula:
1st week - 75% old food, 25% new food
2nd week - 50% old food, 50% new food
3rd week - 25% old food, 75% new food
4th week - 100% new food
Water
Treats
If you prefer not to feed treats but want to give your chinchilla something special, then rotating through many different kinds of acceptable chewing toys is a good idea. Good chewing toys can take the place of food treats and your chinchilla will be just as happy. Chinchillas constantly need things to chew on (explained below in the teeth section) and new toys always excite them.
Dust Baths
Exercise
Another way to give your chinchilla extra exercise is by having a running wheel in your cage. If you have a wheel, then the wheel should not have any bars coming down the sides of it, like a traditional hamster wheel. The chinchilla’s tail or paws can get stuck in between the bars and cause them harm. The diameter of the wheel must be 14 inches or larger. Anything smaller will put too much stress on the chinchilla's spine. Recommended wheels are the Leo Braun Wheel, Flying Saucer, Silver Surfer, and Ed Exercise Wheel. Wheels should not be made of plastic; they should be metal. You can see an example of a safe chinchilla wheel in the picture above.
NEVER put your chinchilla in one of the plastic running balls that you find at pet stores. Chinchillas are extremely temperature sensitive and can very easily overheat and die. They will also often go to the bathroom in these balls, which not only makes a mess of their fur, but it raises the humidity level when they pee. The higher the humidity around them, the easier it is for them to overheat. I personally know of quite a few chinchillas that have died because their owners put them in these balls to run.
Hair Ring Checks
Male chinchillas can get hair rings. A hair ring is when the male has fur stuck around his penis and he cannot get the fur off. This is very serious and if it is not taken care of, it can cut off circulation. This can lead to many severe health problems. If you have a male chinchilla, you need to perform a hair ring check on him at least once a month.To do a hair ring check, you first need to flip the male onto his back. You may need someone to help you hold the chinchilla throughout this process. Next, you push on the male’s sheath until you can see his penis. You must then pull the penis out to it’s entire length; this is about 2 inches long. If there is no hair around the penis, then you are done; make sure no hair gets stuck to the penis when it retracts. If there is hair around the penis, then gently remove it with your fingers or tweezers. Once the hair ring is removed the penis should retract; once again make sure no fur gets stuck when the penis retracts. If it does not retract, then you need to keep it lubricated until it does. To do this, put KY jelly on it at least three times daily.
Teeth
The teeth should be a yellow-orange color. This means that your chinchilla does not have a deficiency in calcium. Chinchilla’s teeth constantly grow and need to be filed down. Chinchillas do this by chewing on things. You should give your chinchilla wood toys or lava blocks that they can chew on. If your chinchilla’s teeth start to become too long, then you can take them to a vet and have them filed down. If your chinchilla begins to drool and lose interest in eating, then it is possible that they have malocclusion. If this happens, your chinchilla should be seen be a vet immediately. This is a very serious hereditary disease and, if not treated properly, can cause a painful death.
Veterinary Care
