Might get a free 2 year old Chinchilla thursday.

[Stiganator]

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[halik]

Originally posted by: nakedfrog
I've heard they can be nasty.

yeah you need to marinade them overnight

 

[waggy]

hwo are they for kids? do they bite? hard to take care of?


we are thinking of getting my 5 yr old a pet. i was thinking a rat (had those for years) or something.


staganator: damn! thats a delux apartment (in the sky) for those critters!

 

[Stiganator]

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[Stiganator]

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[Zysoclaplem]

Originally posted by: waggy
oh man. i read that you were getting a 2 year old chinachild for free!


oh man. glad to see im wrong lOL.

Hell no. I had to pay for that kid. Worth every penny though.

 

[Zysoclaplem]

Originally posted by: Stiganator
It really depends, I wouldn't recommend letting anyone under 12 care for them alone. They are fragile, so if little kids are playing with them you have to make sure they don't get squeezed. My 3 yr old could figure out how to hold them gently though, so it isn't impossible. Once we have everything set up it is not too tough to care for.

Each one is different, some like being held others don't at all. I recommend getting them from a breeder or going to see the chinchilla first (if you're using craigslist) and see if it's a nice little guy. I had one since he was little and he doesn't ever bite, if he wants down he'll squirm or just give a nibble. I had another who is from a family of biters, but not he rarely bites. My gf had one that was pure evil and drew blood on several occasions, but I hated him and he hated me. Most chinchillas a pretty nice and will only bite if very frightened and you'll know because they can make barking noises.

Time Costs
Playtime - 30min-1 hr per day ( if you have a empty garage or other chinproof room or a little pen which you can buy you can leave them mostly unsupervised to play, but if they are in a living area you want to make sure they don't chew anything)

Food Water Hay- 5 min per day

Clean cage- 5 min per day (quick vacuum) and 1 hour once a week for a full cleaning with vinegar water and full bedding change.

Dust Bath- 10 mins every 2nd or 3rd day (can be part of play time)

I usually multitask and when they are in the garage or in the playpen I do the cleaning. I would say it is pretty minimal once you have the initial set up.

Money Costs
Chinchilla- Free (sometimes on craigslist), $40-150 from a breeder depending on color for pet chinchillas, $150-3,000 for pure breed proven breeding chinchillas.

Cage- often comes with a chinchilla if you get it off craigslist, ebay 30-100 bucks, petstore (small:60, bigger:130)

Food- Pellets (Breeder:0.75-$1 per lbs, petsmart: $7 per 2.5 lbs)
1 lb lasts about 2 weeks normally, YMMV

Dust- Breeder:$1 per lb, PetSmart $3 per lb
1 lb lasts about 1-2 months, YMMV

Hay- Farmer $77 per ton, Fleet Farm $2-3 for 50 liters compressed, Petmart $6 for 15 liters
15 liters lasts about 1-2 months, YMMV

Chew Toys- Free if you have an unsprayed safe wood tree.

I don't think it's a very good cage he is coming with. If we get him at all.
But how about animals? Will a cat kill him? My roommate has a cat, well still just a kitten. I don't want any problems but I will kill his cat if necessary to protect gizmo.

 

[Chadder007]

Originally posted by: ricochet

Originally posted by: RollWave
killed one on accident?!!!

Yes. It was still a little baby then too. Small enough that it can crawl through the cage and run around all over the place, chewing wires and everything in site. Well, it was running behind me when I was seated on the floor. I reached back to block it's path with my hand, lost balance, and my weight shifted more than I intended. Just my luck the little guy went right under my palm and was crushed.

.....Oh Snap.

 

[Mr Pepper]

I had one of those when I was in high school. The best part was watching it freak out while taking a dust bath. The little guy was mean though... plus he went legs up after a couple months for some reason.

Was kinda like having a rabbit. Some are more cuddly than others.

 

[MmmSkyscraper]

Originally posted by: TheGizmo
hey I am the only Gizmo damnit... don't you see the "The" in my name. bastage

There's only one way to settle this. We're gonna need some big swords and some bad special effects...

 

[Auric]

Originally posted by: Chadder007

Originally posted by: ricochet

Originally posted by: RollWave
killed one on accident?!!!

Yes. It was still a little baby then too. Small enough that it can crawl through the cage and run around all over the place, chewing wires and everything in site. Well, it was running behind me when I was seated on the floor. I reached back to block it's path with my hand, lost balance, and my weight shifted more than I intended. Just my luck the little guy went right under my palm and was crushed.

.....Oh Snap.

Snap, indeed.

 

[GrantMeThePower]

Whitey!

 

[Ns1]

Originally posted by: Stiganator
Here are some pics my setup and chinchillas.


Cage is about 5 feet tall on a 1 foot stand. (You can use smaller, but I just feel bad if its too small.

Hidey house on the top, they like to curl up in it.
Chinchiller- granite slabs to let them cool off, they shouldn't live in heat higher than 75 ish they can overheat.
PVC tube so they can hide and sleep sometimes.
Running wheel- "Flying Saucer" they love running on there.
I also wrap the cage with a sheet so the don't pee on the walls and keeps debris in the cage is they are running and hopping around. When I'm not around I clip a sheet on the front too.

They like hopping, I try to let them run around in the garage for 30 min- 1 hour a day (this is important if you have a smaller cage, since mine is big and I have a wheel I could skip this but I like watching them play its entertaining.

that's a ridiculously sick setup

 

[MmmSkyscraper]

Chinchillas pwn. My friend had one and his dog would sit by the cage, enthralled as the chinchilla ran around and did stuff.

 

[Crazee]

I have two male chinchillas and have to say they are excellent pets. Stignator has given you some excellent advice. I have an excellent cage that I got at Quality Cage. It is extremely well built and makes clean up easy.

For bedding I would recommend that you use carefresh bedding(not litter). It is very absorbent and safe for them. The litter is pelleted and they will eat possibly leading to bacterial infections and digestive problems.

Also make sure you get a chew proof water bottle otherwise you will go through water bottles like it is going out of style. They will eat holes in them or tear up the stuff holding them in place.

 

[Stiganator]

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[Geekbabe]

Originally posted by: Leros

Originally posted by: Geekbabe
OHHHH.. A grow your own coat kit

haha, thats horrible.

no, that's frugal

 

[rubix]

what temperature range does a chinchilla live in? in my apt. it can get really hot in the summer (100+, no windows) and sorta cold in the winter. would i have to leave the ac on 24/7 and run up a big electricity bill every month?

 

[Stiganator]

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[Zysoclaplem]

Today is the day! I will post pics if I get him. Hope he isn't ugly.

 

[krunchykrome]

Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Today is the day! I will post pics if I get him. Hope he isn't ugly.

They all look the same.

 

[biostud]

I remember beeing in a home where they had a chinchilla, they had no wallpaper on the bottom meter of their walls.........

 

[Zysoclaplem]

Originally posted by: krunchykrome

Originally posted by: Zysoclaplem
Today is the day! I will post pics if I get him. Hope he isn't ugly.

They all look the same.

Nope. The color variations can be different. Size, Ear Size, Tail length...etc..etc..
There are different types of Chinchillas too.
I have not seen any pictures of him though.

 

[dug777]

WHERE IS HE? :|

 

[Zysoclaplem]

Originally posted by: dug777
WHERE IS HE? :|

I dunno gonna get him today maybe