Housing & Supplies

h3>Cages:
Chinchilla cages can vary in size and style, and that design is dependent upon what your purpose of having the chinchilla is. Oftentimes breeders will use smaller cages because it reduces stress, injury and promotes safety for new kits. Larger breeders often use what is called a “run” style of cage to reduce injury from females quarreling or injury to the kits.

The pet purchaser however will be looking for something larger and more enjoyable for the animal. The general rule of thumb for a pet chinchilla if using a wire cage is no smaller than 2” x 2” x 2” with ½” by 1” wiring. This small size of wiring allows for the chinchilla to be safe from hurting themselves in their bounding and climbing around! But remember, the more height and space a chinchilla has, the more likely the chinchilla is for injury, so make sure there are plenty of solid shelves at various levels for chinchilla to play on. Many people also make custom cages out of melamine, and these can work wonderfully as well. A fish tank is NOT acceptable chinchilla housing!

Here are some examples of chinchilla cages. The wire cages are courtesy of Martin’s Cages, a Melamine Cagecourtesy of Christine Marchington, and one of our cages for our non breeding girls.

Bedding:

Kiln dried pine or aspen shavings are the most appropriate and safe bedding to be used. These types of shavings are often found at feed supply stores and some pet shops. The process of kiln drying shavings removes both the moisture and toxic phenol oils that are contained in most other types of bedding. Examples of non-safe chinchilla bedding are cedar chips, redwood, certain types of hemlock, corncob and chlorophyll.

Dishes and water bottles:

Your chinchilla cage will need both a water bottle and a dish. The water bottle should hold at least 8 oz of water and needs be emptied and refilled each day. Glass bottles are excellent because they are dishwasher safe, and non-chewable! If you cannot find a glass bottle and must use plastic, he harder the plastic, the less chance for bottle destruction! And yes, they can chew on a bottle that is OUTSIDE the cage.

Select heavy dishes made of crock ware or metal, and not plastic. The heavier the dish, the harder it will be for your chinchilla to turn it over. Hayracks are a no!! Too many chinchillas have lost their lives to unsafe hayracks and should not be used!

EXERCISE: Platforms, Wheels, and Chinchilla Proofing:

Platforms and wheels provide chinchillas exercise. Platforms are most commonly made, and not purchased. They can be made out of metal or certain types of wood and have never been chemically treated. These can be hung them from the wire with eyehooks, nails, or other forms of fasteners.

Many different styles of wheels can be found on the Internet, but range from $45-$100. Just make sure whatever wheel you purchase is again, not plastic, and is at least 14” diameter.

Solid platforms in the cage allow a chinchilla to hop around at different levels and promote exercise. I avoid ramps in my cages because they normally are unsafe, and chinchillas can jump around just fine!

If you have a smaller sized cage, you may want to “chinchilla proof” part of your house to let your chinchilla run around for about 10-30 minutes. By “chinchilla proofing” a part of your house, I mean to remove all plugs from their sockets, make sure there are no holes your chinchilla can get into, nothing dangerous to chew on, no bookshelves to jump upon, no chairs to climb into (like recliners!), and making sure the chin can’t get too far. This is very similar to baby proofing your house. This can be a hassle for people, and catching your chinchilla when you are reading to put him or her away is not always easy. If you chase your chinchilla, chances are it will get scared and run away from you. Just take your time, have some patience, and sometimes a treat ready in waiting!

Chew Treats

Chinchillas are a rodent, and this means they need something to chew on. Such appropriate chew treats consist of untreated pine pieces, manzanita sticks, baked and chemical free apple or mulberry branches, and safe pumic stones (these are often found at pet supply shops). Trees with pitted fruit and cedar or treated pine are not safe!