Heatstroke

Posted by Chinchilla Planet in Chinchilla Health

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Chinchillas have fur for a reason. In the wild they live in the Andes mountains where it gets cold. Their fur is what keeps them warm. However, domestic chinchillas are prone to over-heating since most people's homes are much warmer than the Andes. The ambient temperature where chinchillas are kept shouldn't rise above 80 degrees. [...]

Heatstroke

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29 Responses to “Heatstroke”

Ariel:

Hi Everyone,
I wasn't worried about my chinchilla because my chinchilla is usually pretty bouncy and fine. But then as I read this I got a bit worried because when my chinchilla sleeps she either sleeps normally on her spinning wheel or she lies down flat on her side. They say that it can be a sign of heatstroke if they do that and another thing is that my room is pretty hot to me and I don't even have a thick fur coat on me! I keep her in my room with me but I am not sure how to keep her cool without getting her wet. Any suggestions? Thanks alot!

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mary:

I just got a Chinchilla 2 wks ago. We have been keeping the AC temp down at 72 degrees. It's freezing. What temp does it have to not exceed in the winter time for the Chin to be comfortable? Our family still needs to stay warm. We have a granet slab that we chill in the freezer for our chin. Any suggestions welcomed. I want to be able to coexsist in the winter time with our chin in the same house.

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kerri garrett:

my son's chin is acting funny.he's lethargic and making funny sounds,we can't afford the vet right now,any tips or suggestions?

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Neil:

On cooling,

I live in LA, so its real hot out sometimes. So, in addition to A/C, I put a small metal container (from Petco, originally for storing dog treats) filled with freezer packs in the cage. Also, a granite cutting block that I put in the fridge to cool down. My chin loves snuggling the cold objects and licks condensation off of the metal.

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Ann-Marie:

Hello Megan,
I've heard that you're supposed to give a chin a dust bath at least 2-3 times a week. So, every other day (or however you want to plan the baths) would be sufficient. Experts have recommended leaving the chin in the bath house for no longer than 15 minutes per bath (although I also heard a few say 30 minutes).

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Ann-Marie:

Hi Megan,
I'd be leary about putting a cold water bottle inside a chin's cage only because chins are known to chew through mostly any material especially plastic. Plus frozen water melts fast in the hot weather, so you'd also have a watery mess in the cage to deal with which wouldn't be good. What I'd recommend is to freeze an old bed sheet and place that over the top of the chin's cage. If you have an ice pack, you can place the pack in between the layers of the cold sheet (to prevent the melting residue from dripping directly into the cage).

Hope this helps.

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