When we first got our chinchillas, one of the things we asked ourselves was whether we could get a harness and leash that would fit them. Our goal was to be able to take our chinchillas out to the backyard or a field and give them exposure to something outside their regular environment.
But the more research we did, the more it became apparent that harnesses, leashes, and chinchillas don't mix. And while we've never tried using one ourselves, we're inclined to believe the research. Here are reasons to not use a harness with your chinchilla:
- They are skittish to begin with and putting them in a harness will very likely cause them stress.
- Chinchillas "release" chunks of their fur when stressed.
- Their bodies and bones are relatively soft and the strain from a harness is likely to cause them internal injuries.
- A sudden or surprise movement by the chinchilla could result in a "jerking" action on the leash which could easily break their backs or ribs.
- Their soft bodies mean that they could escape from the harness unless you have it really, really tight.
- Chinchillas hop and jump rather than walk like a cat or dog.
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August 1st, 2007 at 11:12 am
I recently ordered a ferret harness from a website. It has straps that go around it's head and middle and the leash attaches in the back. I've heard about people using harnesses on chinchillas. My chin is very laid back and doesn't get skittish at noises often. Do you think that if I give her enough slack on the rope and don't pull her, that it could work? Please let me know because otherwise I will not open it and return it.
August 1st, 2007 at 11:15 am
Liz,
We've heard too many negative comments about harnesses to use them. While you might be safe 99% of the time, would you want to risk injury the other 1% of the time?
July 31st, 2008 at 10:02 pm
i had heard that chins have fragile bones, so i was a little wary about using a harness, but most of the petstores in my town require pets to be on a leash, or else they can't enter the store. my chin loves to go into petstores and pick out treats and toys, but in order to be able to bring her in the store, i have to put a harness on her. i keep her on my shoulder and don't let her run around. she's very well-trained and stays on my shoulder all the time, but as a precaution, i bought a long leash so that if she were to jump off my shoulder she wouldnt be hurt or jerked around by the harness and leash. is it really terrible for me to harness my chin under these circumstances?
August 1st, 2008 at 10:26 am
Some Chinchillas dont even like
harnesses- But yours is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO well trained- I want to trained my lil' Chinchilla, Mickey! Can you help me? Mickey wont even let me hold him! (He's not one yet)
October 5th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
I would say train your chin to be held first before attempting putting on a harness, if your chin doesn't like being held it might not be a good idea to put a harness on it..
My chin is getting trained she is new and only about 4 months old..hasn't had much contact with people but with time and patience she is finally letting me pick her up and carry her around for 5 mins before she gets squirmy then I put her back in her cage..with every attempt she makes in becoming friendly and tame she gets a treat.. I only reward her for the good behavior and clicker training works good for this..just cut up two raisins very very small and every time your chin does a good behavior click and give it a treat of the raisen.. soon he will learn to be more calm and tame..don't rush take your time and introduce things slowly..
November 18th, 2008 at 1:41 am
I have had my chinchilla for 2 years and I let him out in my room for about an hour a day, but i feel bad that he never gets to go outside so i recently bought him a harness. It is the adjustable kind for a ferrett and the harness detaches from the leash. So far i have put the harness on him twice without the leash to get him used to it first. I plan to do this whenever i let him out for the next few weeks. At first he was really mad and annoyed with the harness, he growled and tried to bite me when i was putting it on, but after it was on for a while he sortof forgot about it and went about his business begging for treats and getting into trouble as usual. I think mabye in time i will be able to walk him outside on the leash and he can meet other critters.
I think it will be a long process though and i wouldnt want to have him on a leash right away because all that confinement would really freak him out.