Origin

·         They are closely related to the guinea pig.

·       Chinchillas originate from the Andes mountains and live among the rocks.

·          They have long been valued for their fur and because of this, in the 18th century they came close to extinction.

Life expectancy

·      Up to 20 years.

Temperament / Behaviour

·          They are nocturnal.

·          They like to explore although they are normally quite wary of new experiences.

·            Although they are normally very friendly and do not normally bite, a lot are not keen on being handled.

Company  

·          They are social animals and should be kept in same sex pairs or a neutered male with a female chinchilla.

·          If one lives on its own it should be given lots of stimulation and attention. They will eat their own fur as a way of coping with boredom.

·          They bond with their partners and can become very stressed if they lose them. 

Mixing / Introducing

·           They are social animals and can be mixed if done carefully, see sheet on introducing.

·          If neutered they are much easier to mix as they can be territorial. A neutered male with a female is the easiest combination to introduce. Two females will often mix as well.

Diet

It is better to feed chinchilla pellets rather than a mixed food as this means that the chinchillas get a balanced diet as they cannot select feed by picking out their favourite bits and leave the rest. It is also important that they always have good quality fresh hay available as they need to spend a lot of time eating to compensate for the rate that their teeth grow.

Do not feed:   Fresh fruit or anything that contains sugar. Their natural diet is very sparse, they eat mosses, grasses, cacti and very dry vegetation. It doesn't contain anything with sugar in it, so if fed it in captivity it can lead to diabetes. Shredded Wheat makes a good treat.

Accommodation

·            Chinchillas need a large cage with several floors to enable them to jump and climb, something they need to do in the wild. As they are nocturnal and are most active when we are in bed it is important that their accommodation is as large and as interesting as it can be.

·          They need wood to gnaw on.

·          They clean themselves by rolling in dust, something they would do naturally in the dust from rocks high up in the mountains. A dust bath can either be left in the cage (although it must either be sieved or changed daily) or they should have access to one for at least half an hour a day.

·            Minimum cage size: 90cm x 60cm x 60cm. Ideally as large as you can provide with lots of ledges so that they can sit up high and jump from shelf to shelf.

Maintenance

·          Food and water must be changed daily.

·          Cages will need cleaning twice weekly.

·          Must have access to a clean dust bath on a daily basis. We leave our dust baths in their cages but sieve them daily to keep them clean.

·          They are intelligent animals and ideally they should be handled on a daily basis, and have daily exercise out of their accommodation.

·          They need a weekly health check by an adult.

·          They can live up to 20 years so it is a big commitment to make.

IN CASES OF CRUELTY, NEGLECT OR IN AN EMERGENCY TEL: (24 HOUR)