Chinchillas
Family: Chinchillidae (Chinchillas and Viscachas)

"Keeko" Grey Chinchilla
Photo © Animal-World

They make good pets and are very lively. Keeko loves to go outside in the long grass (on a leash) to jump and play. Pippin is actually Keeko's father! Pippin likes to be left alone more than Keeko, probably because he was in a breeding situation for several years.

   The average lifespan of a Chinchilla is 8 - 10 years, though in captivity they have been known to live up to 20 years.

For information about Small Animals and their care visit:
Guide to a Happy, Healthy Small Animal

   See other Chinchilla color varieties below:

Background:
   The Chinchilla was named after the South American Chinca Indians .by the Spaniards in the 1500's. There are about 6 species in the Chinchillidae family and all are found only in South America. Originally they came from the Andes mountains in Peru, Chile and Bolivia. Presently, they can only be found in the mountains of Bolivia.
   The Chinchillas seen today are the descendents of 11 little critters brought into California by Mathius F. Chapman in 1923 to be bred for their fur. All species have dense beautiful fur. The importance of the Chinchillas in the fur trade led to intense harvesting and today they are a relatively endangered as a wild species, though there are over 3,000 Chinchilla ranches in the United States raising the domestic species.
   There are two types of domestic Chinchilla, the Chinchilla lanigera and the Chinchilla brevicaudata.

Description:
  Chinchillas are adorable animals with long ears, large eyes and bushy tails; they are also rodents.Their tail looks like a squirrels' tail and accounts for about one third of their length. The chinchillas' body is 22.5 - 38 cm (8 3/4 - 15 in) long. The tail is 7.5 - 15 cm (3 - 6 in) long. They can weigh anywhere from 18 to 35 ounces.
   The Chinchilla Lanigera is distinguished by a more pointy face, a longer tail, and a more slender body, while the Chinchilla brevicaudata is thicker in the neck and shoulders and has a shorter tail. Visually the C. lanigeria looks larger, but the stockier C. brevicaudata is actually a bigger Chinchilla. It is mostly thought that the pets are of the C. lanigera species.
   The hind limbs of the Chinchillidae are longer than their forelimbs, and the animals are good at running and leaping; they are also good climbers.
   Today there are different colored domestic chinchillas including blue-grey, white, beige, black, violet, and mosaic. Keeko and Pippin are called grey chinchillas.

Environment:
   An indoor enclosure makes a perfect chinchilla home. In the wild where the ground is suitable, they dig burrows, but otherwise they shelter under rocks. The cage needs to be large enough for your pet to stand up on it's hind legs without bumping it's head, as well as being large enough to put in a little sleeping hut for the animals privacy (a cardboard box works great for this), a place for food and water dishes, and also have space for running around. Use absorbent bedding material on the bottom.
   Provide a good soft bedding that is clean, non-toxic, absorbent, relatively dust free and easily acquired. Use a natural bedding since the chinchilla will probably eat some of it, and make sure it doesn't contain paint, lacquer, or varnish resins! A good bedding is a pelleted litter which is is non-toxic, digestible, and draws the moisture inside leaving the area dry. Other litters include wood shavings and corncob. Avoid cedar or chlorophyll impregnated shavings as they have been associated with respiratory and liver disease.
   Chinchillas are a colder climate animal and cannot tolerate high heat. Keep the cage in a draft free place with a constant temperature between 60 to 80 degrees. Remove the animal waste everyday. Once a week change the bedding and disinfect the cage with bleach, rinsing it well.

Care and feeding:
   Provide a water bottle with fresh water daily.
   Chinchillas feed on available vegetation in the wild, including roots and tubers. They sit up to eat, holding their food in their front paws. Their cheek teeth grow throughout life.They should be fed a Chinchilla pellet which provides most of their nutritional needs. Use a crock for its food as they are difficult to knock over and spill and they are hard to chew. They can be fed occasional greens, and they love dried bananna pellets for a treat.
   Chinchillas must be given access to a dust bath (available at pet stores) at least once every few days. Chinchilla teeth grow continuously so to keep them trim you must provide a block of wood for the chinchilla to chew on.

Social Behaviors:
   Social animals, they live in small family groups which are part of larger colonies of 100 or more. It is better to keep pairs or families in captivity.
   Chinchillas are very sensitive and highly suseptible to stress when introduced to a new environment or new companions. Introduce anything new slowly, giving them time to examine it before making a permanent change. When frightened they will shed hair as a defense.

Breeding/Reproduction:
   Female Chinchillas are larger than males and are agressive toward one another. They breed in winter, usually producing two litters of 1 - 6 young. the gestation period is 111 days, and the young are suckled for 6 - 8 weeks.

Common health problems:
   Here is what most breeders recommend for common health problems:
      Diarrhea: give the chinchilla shredded wheat. Those little cubed 1" square ones work great.
      Constipation: Feed the chinchilla raisins.
      Runny eyes: Use a boric acid rinse. This may be a sign of other problems or infections, so if it persists for more than a day or two take your pet Chinchilla to a veterinarian.

Availability:
  Although kind of a specialty pet, you should be able to find a breeder or a pet shop that can order a Chinchilla for you if they don't keep them at all times.

Common Chinchilla Color Varieties
Black Velvet	Violet
Mosaic	Regular (Grey)

Comments from people who have kept this pet:

It should be noted that exercise balls are a definite 'do not' in terms of toys for chinchillas. The temperature inside of them can reach 15 degrees greater than the ambient temperature of a room. Mesh wheels (or mesh anything) are also something to be avoided as there's a staggering record of chinchillas breaking limbs, and toes on them.

I have two chinchillas. I love them very much and feed them everyday. The only thing I don't like about them is that I'm constantly cleaning up after them. I do admit they really are lovely creatures and I am glad we bought them though I'm not sure if I will or will not have anymore after these.

We have 3 chinchillas Oreo, Smokey, and Taz. They are like part of the family. When my boyfriend comes home from work instead of kissing me hello first, he runs in and gives the boys a kiss and hello first. It's amazing how much fun they are. Taz is the one we saved from the pet store that no one wanted. He was the third addition to our family. The funny thing is that each one is so different from each other with their own personalities and corks. Oreo is cuddly and wants love all the time, Smokey is the trouble maker and loves to get the other two going, and Taz would rather be alone and do his own thing until Smokey comes around starting trouble.

I just got a chinchilla six months ago, he is so cute!! His name is Twinkie and he is brown. He is so sweet and loves to be around me at all times. He is like a dog, he has to be everywhere where I am when he is out running around. When I clean his cage out he hops onto my shoulder and just watches me. Then when I'm done he will come nose to nose with me and just nibble and lick my nose. It's like he is saying thank you! I wouldn't trade him for any other animal!

I have two chinchillas, a male and a female. Pearl is the white one and dusty is the gray! They are just adorable!

My chin is a sassy chin to my family and friends. 9\(ju"][;pkk) (my chin wrote that)

Last month we were on the blist of a heat wave, here in Rochester New York even. We kept the Chinnies indoors for the duration. It was so hot they just layed in the bottom of their cage for most the duration. Something above changed and the weather began to improve. First, a few days of light to moderate rain, temperature decreased to the 70's, and the humidity was down to the 50 percentile. That was just fine for all of us, including the chinnies. The weather was partly cloudy at early hour in the upper 60's, I set them outside in the shaded area. Two hours later it wasn't so shaded but the temperature was still only 74. At that time I noticed two of the furballs real excited about something and I assumed it was they were just trying to get out of the cage. I again observed the temperature was at 75 degrees F. I monitor the temp with a calibrated thermo-couple to +/- 1 degree F tolerance. 20 minutes later My wife and daughter were in agony. They found all 4 chinnies past out, one was also due in the next weeks. The outside temperature was about 78 degrees. So we thought it was something unexplainable. We took them to the animal hopspital only to find that we would need a biopsy. Well the end result was they all died but one. The mother, with young, sadly didn't make it. These little charmers have been the dearest little pets. Yes they can bite from time to time but never serious. All but one was lost. After calling around, we learned from a rancher, original rancher where they were bought from, that ultraviolet radiation did the trick. Even the animal hospital was unaware of ultraviolet radiation. Every living life form has its means to control body heat, as perfect as these critters may seem, they have one strong set back, heat stroke: The symptoms (human) of heatstroke include: Fever (temperature above 104°F) Irrational behavior Extreme confusion Dry, hot, and red skin Rapid, shallow breathing Rapid, weak pulse Seizures Unconsciousness * Man or animal, "heatstrokle is heatstroke" and the symptoms are not enjoyed. Heatstroke is beyond a Chinchilla's imagination. These critters by virtue of their natural habitat have no need for heat control. They come from the high Andes Mountains. Seldom is there a day above 75 there. Especially when Ultraviolet Radiation is exceptionally high they have the natural reaction to get out of the rays and retreat into their dwellings or behind rocks. I recently was told about an individual who drove with many in the vehicle. The vehicle was comforted with airconditioning, however, the sun was emitting intense radiation. Needless to say, the drive was a sad one, all perished in transport. Need I say more. We were hurt. How many others procure pets and think home is the ideal place. How many have had their circumstances as such with out an understanding. We have books and such and no where is there comment of ultraviolet radiation. Consider the microwave oven, radio waves, where everyhting is unsuspecting, until all the molecules within you get so excited they literally cook at such an exceleration rate until you literally pop. Do you need pictures... Please don't let this happen to you or your pets. Consider the dog or children in the car? Enough said, I am glad I was able to put this out for others. Love your pets...they will love you back.

Chinchillas are the sweetest animals! However they are not for everyone. Chins are gennerally not "cuddle pets" that want to sit on youre lap, they are however sweet and bond well with their owner. Chinnies are, however, not the best pets for every one. They have strict dietary requirments and need large cages of at least 2x2x2 feet, 2x2x3 is better. They need fresh chincilla pellets with NO treats mixed in, and fresh timothy hay, every day. If the food has treats in it, the chinchilla will push the pellets out and only eat the treats. They should get no more then 2 raisins a day, or a small amount of dried rose hips, cranberrys, or apple. Chins need out of cage exercise every day, unless the cage is at least 2x4x4 feet, and even then they need exercise at least 3 times a week. Chinchillas are less then ideal pets for young (or under 9) or irresponsible children, however their are exeptions. Chinnies tend to nip at fingers to test how tasty they are, which some times frightens young children. When buying keep in mind that chins live 10-20 years if well cared for. Also keep in mind they are delicate, so dont grab them.

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