There are several things to consider when buying a wheel for your chinchilla. First off, you'll need to get one that is much bigger than the kind you've probably seen for hamsters. And because of the size of the wheel and the weight of a chinchilla, we recommend getting a metal wheel rather than a plastic one. Metal will also fare better since chinchillas won't hesitate to chew plastic.
From a safety perspective, we highly recommend that the part where the chinchillas run be solid. That is, there shouldn't be any gaps for a chinchilla's feet to slip through.
Unfortunately, many chinchilla wheels are quite expensive. It took us a while to find a reasonably priced wheel that met our needs. We use the 15" model in the picture below. We've hooked it on to the sides of our cage and use a few zip ties to make sure it stays in place. Our one complaint is that this wheel can be noisy.
One product that we haven't had a chance to try, but that looks promising is the exercise saucer. It looks interesting because it provides an unobstructed view of your chinchilla.
For more information and pricing details, check out Quality Cage Company. Note that we are not affiliated with this online store and we haven't purchased anything from it. They just happen to carry the wheel we use.
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August 10th, 2008 at 7:06 pm
Hi, I've had my chin for awhile now and I just can not get her to use her wheel. I'm wondering if anyone has any advice on how to teach her to use it. I place her on it but then she just jumps off =/
September 6th, 2007 at 8:20 pm
Kimmey,
We're not sure whether wheels will cause harm to chinchillas, but we're guessing not. We believe the trick is to get a big one specifically sized for chinchillas. We've heard great things about the saucer, but we don't have one. It's apparently really noisy and as you've discovered they cost twice as much as a wheel.
We let ours out of their cage for 3 hours a night and we still hear them use their wheel at other times so we think it's good to have one.
September 6th, 2007 at 2:44 pm
Ive heard from a few people who own chins that the wheels that look like hamster wheels but larger are very unhealthy for their spines. i looked it up on the internet and a few things came up where chins had their spines twisted from continuous use. i am getting a chin in a week, i dont really want to pay the £65 for the flying saucer, and dont want to risk the wheel as hes just a baby. He will have at least an hour and a half running time out of the cage per day, and i have baught toys and stuff for the cage, is this going to be enough? i will buy the saucer if he needs one, but im short on cash at the moment so i would like to know if he does need it.
June 30th, 2007 at 8:56 am
Hello Megan.I would advise an exercise wheel as chins are quite active during the night and they can burn off excess calories.They do tend to put on weight which can lead to health problems such as sore hock,as well as the obvious serious risks we all share when over weight.If you don't want to buy them a wheel I would advise you let them have freedom in a well chin-proofed room for at least 2 hours in the evening so they can run free.Vanessa.
June 27th, 2007 at 4:10 pm
Do they have to have a exercise wheel?