Welcome to our Health and Care guide. This guide is just that, a guide. It is by no means the only way to care for your chinchilla. This is what we find to work best for us.

Choosing your Chinchilla (TOP)

When choosing your chinchilla, you must first decide which sex you would like, if you want one or more, what colors you would prefer, and what quality of chinchilla your are willing to pay for. There are show quality, which are more costly, and pet quality chinchillas, which are usually more affordable. I love either of them. Just make sure they are healthy. Try to avoid getting your chinchilla from pet stores, for very seldom can they give you much information about the chinchillas, such as date of birth, and parentage. Buying from a pretty well known breeder is your best bet.

It is said that if choosing one chinchilla, it better to choose a male, for they tend to do better as far as lonliness goes. I however do not really agree with this. I think either male or female is fine. As far as pairing them up goes, I have found that it is easier to pair a male and female, rather than a male and male, or a female with another female. Males can be rather territorial, and females can be the same. But also if you pair a female and male, there may be problems as well. A male may be over eager with the female, and vice versa, in which a squabble may be the result.

If choosing to get 2 or more chinchillas, you must first decide if you intend on breeding, or just want your chinnies to be good buddies, or just a playmate. And as in all cases be sure that the 2 you get are going to get along. If already caged together in the store, or breeders home, then you should not have a problem with this.

All chinchillas have their own personalities, choose a chinchilla that will come to you and sniff your hand. Try to avoid skittish chinchillas, however, chinchillas may all be skittish to a certain extent, since you are new to them.

Always be sure to check eyes and teeth before purchasing your chinchilla. Eyes sould be clear, and free from any matting. Teeth should be yellowish orange, and the front teeth should not hang down over lower teeth. Check also and make sure they don't have any bald spots, or soft stools. If there are bald spots, that could mean either they have a fur fungus, or they have a tendency to fur bite, which is usually genetic. Make sure they do not have wet chins or paws, for this is a sign of drooling, which can mean bad teeth.

Taking Your Chinchilla Home (TOP)

Be sure you have a carrier for your chinchilla before you even go to get him/her. Also be sure you have their cage prepared and ready for them as well. Try and make their trip home as comfortable as possible. If in the summer, be sure you run the air in your vehicle. If in the Winter, run your heat, but not too high, for they can overheat, which can cause problems for your chinny.

When you get home carefully place your chinchilla in their new home. Be sure they have plenty food and water in their new surroundings. Make sure they have plenty of room to explore in their new home. Also, try and have a little wooden house in their cage, for they will probably look for something secure to hide in. Give them lots of wood to chew on, pumice stone, or mineral blocks.

Don't rush your chinchilla to make up to you. Take your time with him/her. Give them a couple of days before trying to pet or hold your chinchilla. Speak softly to them, and make sure they have quiet surroundings during the day. After a couple of days begin to approach them, but move slowly around them. Your new chinchilla will adjust to his/her new home, but you must be patient.

If you purchased more than one chinchilla, and you bought them from seperate owners, it is wise to first place them in seperate cages to see if they will get along. Place the cages side by side so they can get used to each other. You can also let them out together during playing, if this an option for you, but only under supervision. Sometimes chinchillas just can't get along, so be prepared for that.

Handling your Chinchilla (TOP)

Chinchillas should be handled with the upmost of care, but don't be afraid to hold your chinchilla, that is how they bond with you. Some professionals say the proper way to handle a chinchilla when first picking one up is to hold on to the base of their tail, and slide a hand under their belly. I myself do not use this method. I use both hands to grab their middle then cradled them against my body. If you choose to pick them up by the base of their tail, never, under any circumstances hold them upside down by grabbing their tail. Chins tails are very delicate, and if they were to begin struggling, it could surely break their tail. Before any attempts of picking up your chin, let them get to know you. Let them smell your scent. You can use the tested and true method of starting out by feeding them a treat.

1. First try feeding a treat to your new pet by feeding it to them through the cage wires. Once they are used to this, you can move on to #2.
2. Second, try opening the cage door and handing them a treat. Once they get use to you, they should easily walk up to your hand and take the treat.
3. Thirdly, place the treat in your hand and hold your hand out to them through the open door. When they get use to this, they should place both paws on your opened hand and take the treat.
4. Forth, the next time, place the treat up on your forearm, this time they will get into your hand and get the treat off of your forearm.

This will take some doing, but if you get a young enough chin, around the age of 3 months, it will be a little easier to gain their trust, depending on how much they were handled as little kits.

Bathing (Top)

Bathing is a very important part in a chins life. And alot easier to deal with than most pets. Chins take a bath in dust. You can purchase dust bath from your dealers. Pet Smart is one place I know of that actually carries dust bath. But now more and more often you can find wonderful dealers right on the net, and sometimes costs you less.

Dust baths should be given at least minimum of 3 times a week, and if you have more time, they can even be given every day, or every other day. This ensures that their coats stay healthy and free of debris. We use Blue Sparkle dust bath, which you can obtain from Twitch Chinchillas.

There are many possible containers that may be used for this. If your chin is new, then be sure you are in a place where they can't escape you and cause themselves possible harm. One of the best containers I have found to work well is a 10 gallon glass aquarium. It helps to contain the dust, and gives them plenty of room to roll around. You can also use a covered cat litter box, and this works even better than the aquarium. I have also heard of people using fish bowls, cardboard boxes, plastic bins with lids, and many other items. Some dealers even sell containers specifically for dust bathing.

Young kits will learn to bathe from watching mom and dad bathe. Mothers that have had kits should wait for 10 days before getting a dust bath, to keep from getting an infection from the birth canal not being back to normal size, and vagina not being totally closed.

Caging (TOP)

Cages can be made of stainless steel, metal, wood, wire and plastic bottoms can be used if the chinchilla can't get to it! Plastic is one thing that I know can be harmful to Chinchillas. Cages should be big enough so that the chinchillas have plenty of room to move around, and don't over fill the cages with chinchillas. We use cages from Custom Cage works. They will build them to your specs, and can come in units. They take less space and are easy to clean. Another good place for cages is Martin's Cages. I think you have a choice between drop in pans and slide out. They do stack easily, but if you get the drop in pans, they are a pain to clean. They have baby safe wire on both the walls and the flooring. Never use Aquariums for your chinchillas, they do not provide enough air flow or ventilation.

Cages should be cleaned very well at least 1 time a week. Also by cleaning once a week it keeps it easier to clean each time. You can use aspen, kiln dried pine, or newspaper to place in the bottoms of the cages. Do not use cedar chips or pine chips as a bedding, the oils are very toxic to your chinny, causing liver problems, and respitory problems as well. If you have a wire bottom cage that sits in the bottom tray, make sure you have the spacing at 1/2 X 1/2, otherwise their feet may slip through the bars and cause injury to your chinchilla. We do not recommend wire bottom cages. Also do not use aquariums for your chins, there is not enough air circulation, and your chin could become over heated, plus no room for exercise, which is essential for chinchillas.

It is always possible to build your own cage as well as using store bought cages. If you choose to build your cage, then you should use untreated pine. Built cages can be great because they have plenty of wood for them to gnaw on in the cage. Alot of wood products can be easily replaced. Also try to have a house in the cage for a hideaway for your chins, they like to have a place to lay in for sleeping. Also a nice wood house is good for them to gnaw on to keep there teeth trim. If you build a cage, be sure the platforms are not made out of plywood, for the glue used is toxic to chinnies.

Breeding (TOP)

Before ever thinking about breeding your chins, you must first realize the responsibility involved. You have to be sure that the 2 you choose to put together are going to get along. To start this out, you may want to have them in seperate cages next to one another. And let them out together at play time for some interaction, if you allow free run. You will probably be able to tell right away whether they will get along or not. I have also read where some people have a big cage and a smaller cage inside of it, to help introduce one to the other. When starts a fight, then they go into the smaller cage for a little while. This method will take patience so be prepared for that. You just have to try different things, and figure out what works best for you. And Remember not all chins are going to get along. I have my own sytem for introductions, whether it be female to male, or the same sexes. Click here to learn about my system of introduction.

Breeding can be a very trying time for most chin owners. You definately need patience for this. Females will get pregnant when they are ready to.

Chinchillas have a gestation period of 111 days (3 1/2 months). It can be hard to tell at times whether or not your chin is pregnant. One thing to look for is a mucous plug. If there has been mating going on, you will see it laying in the bottom of the cage. It is a bout 1 1/2 inches long, and diameter about half the size of a pencil, and white in color.

Other ways to possibly tell if your chin is pregnant is by her size, or weight. It is a good idea to have a scale so you can take eekly weights. Also if you see her lay on her side alot. In some females they seem to get alittle more aggressive as well. And then sometimes you may not notice, and find out that you have babies.

When a mother does give birth, the father is quite the helper. But it is a good idea that the father and mother should be seperated to help prevent breed back. This is when the mother gives birth, and then approximately 3 days later she could get pregnant again. This would be very hard on the mother. I have discovered that the average time period that they should be apart is 10 days.

When kits are born, they should be handled within the first week of birth, this way they can get used to the human touch faster, and learn to socialize with people better. Also by the age of 6 weeks mom usually starts weaning the kits, they should be eating pellets and hay rather heartily by now. We usually give them a couple more weeks in with mom and make sure they are eating well on their own, but it is important to remove the male kits at least by 10-12 weeks, so they do not impregnant mom. This you do not want to happen.

Feeding (TOP)

What you feed is a very important part of your chins lives. It is very important that they get food specifically for chinchillas. Don't feed them rabbit food!! They don't need the extra fat that rabbit food contains. For pellets we use Mazuri pellets. We mix in some oats, bran and barley for added vitamins. It is usually 30% of total pellets. Along with their pellets, chinchillas should have hearty helpings of timothy hay, or alfalfa hay, even alfalfa cubes work great. I have discovered that my chins will eat either hay, or alfalfa hay, but they tend to like the alfalfa hay the best. There is also orchard grass that my chinnies love!

You can also give moms some calf manna while they are pregnant in early stages, however there have been cases where babies grew too big to be birthed. It has also been discovered that giving calf manna regularly can cause soft poos in chinchillas, so we have cut out total use of calf manna.

Chins also love treats! But be careful to not over feed them treats, for it can cause bowel problems. Chins crave raisins! I give mine 1-2 raisins a day, with no problems. They also like apple slices and/or banana chips. Try sunflower seeds as well, but very limited. You can find great treats in your local pet stores, but they can become costly, and check to make sure that they are not contaminated with bugs! Just try new things with them, and I am sure you will find something that they can enjoy.

Adult chinchillas know when they have had enough, so we free feed all our chinchillas. Young kits should not have raisins, or other treats as such until over 4 weeks of age, because their digestive systems are not yet developed enough to digest them. Also watch how much food young kits eat, they tend to overeat, and this can cause a mess with soft poos, so best to ration out their food.

Also remember that when giving treats, try not to switch treats too often, try and stick to a treat that they love. And do not give them too many. Also treats should not be mixed in with there regular food, for alot of chins will go only for the treats, and not the food. Do not, under any circumstances, feed your chinny any green leafy foods. Their pellets, and hay are plenty for them.

Also, try to stay away from too much salt in your chinnies diet. I have just learned that some chinchillas can have a low tolerance to salt and can cause kidney problems and seizures.

Exercise (TOP)

Exercise is essential to your chins health. If they have room in their cage that will work great. Also there wheels available on the internet. They will be expensive, but this ensures that they can exercise safely in it. We however do not use wheels, and nothing says that you have to. This is just an option.

Also you can let them run at night in an enclosed room where they can't get hurt, for about 30-60 minutes. This however is not neccessary, nor do we recommend it, because they could get spooked easily and injure themselves in some way. We used to allow free run, but was a bit to risky for us, as we have other chinies in the room and they can get at each other even through cage bars. We have noticed that now, since they do not have free run, they are much more sociable with us, they like to be pet more, and they now even allow us to hold them. We feel that you can have a better bond with them by holding them and petting them rather than letting them run free about the room. However, if you still choose to allow free run, do not chase them, this will cause them unneeded stress, and they will learn not to trust you. Also do not startle them by grabbing them to quickly, they will release a handfull of fur.

If you choose to have your chin out for exercise and play it is often like having your own baby running around. You NEED to chin proof the area that they may be running in. Wires and cords are very dangerous for your chinchilla, because they love to chew so much. Anything you do not wish for them to get ahold of needs to be removed from their area of play.

Vitamins (TOP)

It is said that extra vitamins are not an essential part of a chinchillas diet, and I must agree. Chinchillas can get all the vitamins they need in their pellets, and hay. Sometimes extra vitamins are needed.

Often times, when you have a nursing mother, you may want to give her some extra calcium or vitamin C. For extra Vitamin C, try dried fruits, such as Kiwi. You may also want to supplement underweight or sickly chinchillas with some extra vitamins. You must be careful that they do not get too much calcium, because instead of them discarding unused calcium it forms deposits on vital organs instead. Take a look at their teeth, if they have nice orange teeth, this is usually a good indication that they are getting enough calcium.

Care of Teeth (TOP)

Chinchillas teeth should be a yellowish orange. The front teeth should not hang over the lower teeth. Make sure your chinchilla has alot of good chew toys to help keep their teeth shaved down at all times. Their teeth continually grow. One of the best sources for chewing is wood. Also pumice stone, and they also have vitamin and mineral blocks for them to chew on.

If you notice your chins teeth to be rather long it is best to take them to a vet so they can have their teeth filed down. Also if you see them drooling alot, this is a sure sign that they have teeth problems or could be malocclusion. This is usually a genetic problem when the teeth are growing at an angle. This can cause many problems for your chinchilla, such as causing sores in the mouth, eating problems, therefore causing severe weight loss that may result in death. Being careful who you buy from can lower the chances of this in your chinchilla. Always buy from a good breeder, and not a pet store.

If anyone has any questions about the health and care of their chinchillas, then please do not hesitate to email me with any questions. I will do my best to answer any questions that you may have. Also you can visit Chinchilla Charm Forum that we started in Feb 2001 and can give you great advise and answer your questions. Everyone there is very helpful!