We've come across some interesting facts about chinchillas during our research. Here's a list of things that don't quite fit in with other pages on this site.
- Chinchilla fur is considered the softest in the world and is thirty times softer than human hair.
- Chinchillas must regularly bathe in dust or volcanic ash to remove oil and moisture that gathers in their thick fur.
- Chinchillas have the highest fur density of any land animal with more than 20,000 hairs per square cm. Their fur is so dense that skin parasites (such as fleas) cannot live on one lest they suffocate. Whereas humans grow one hair from each follicle, a chinchilla has more than fifty hairs from a single follicle.
- They are agile jumpers and can jump up to five feet above their head.
- Martha Stewart has 15 pet chinchillas.
- Chinchillas have no dander, which is the leading cause to pet related allergies.
Sources:
Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia
Chintasia
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June 12th, 2006 at 6:37 pm
Hi Philip,
Chinchilla adults are about the same size as a small to medium-sized domesticated rabbit. Their length runs in the range of 9 to 11 inches long not including the tail. An adult male chinchilla weighs between 0.8 to - 1.1 lbs while the females are generally larger weighing in at up to 1.3 lbs.
June 12th, 2006 at 5:15 pm
How big do chinchillas grow?