Chinchillas have quite delicate digestive systems and so have special dietary requirements. Rabbit food does not meet the nutritional needs of chinchillas and frequently makes them fat.
Food
The primary food item for chinchillas are specially formulated pellets. Unlike other animals, chinchillas will only eat small amounts at a time and so you need not worry about over-feeding them. However, to keep the pellets clean, we suggest you provide just a little more than they need in between feedings.
Along with the pellets, chinchillas should have ready access to hay cubes. These hay cubes can sit in the cage for many days until they have been eaten.
In addition to the above two items, chinchillas should also be given a vitamin and mineral-enriched seed mix. A teaspoon each day per chinchilla is what we have learned is the proper amount. Chinchillas will eat all of this seed mix in one sitting so you can't simply fill up a dish and expect them to spread it out over several days. Also, have one dish with the seed mix per chinchilla to ensure that each of your chinchillas gets a chance to eat it.
We've started to compile a list of safe and unsafe foods in case you choose to feed your chinchilla items other than what we've mentioned above.
Treats
The last food item to provide your chinchillas is some form of treat. Treats are chinchilla-specific products from the pet store or simple things like raisins. Our chinchillas like raisins the best. Like the seed mix, it is important to limit the consumption of these treats. Make sure that each chinchilla gets a treat by hand feeding it to them.
For an idea of what treats other pet owners use, check out poll #2.
Timing
We try to feed our chinchillas the pellets and seed mix at the same time every day. The routine seems to comfort our chinchillas. In fact, they sometimes let us know that we're late with the food by barking. We give them their treat just before we go to bed as it helps with our chinchilla training efforts.
Changing Food
One final note about food. If you need to change food suppliers, do so slowly. An abrupt change can be harmful to your chinchilla. The best is to blend the new food in slowly with the old food so that the transition isn't too sudden. We've done this once with and it worked out well.
Water
Along with food comes water. We use distilled water as we have learned that tap water can contain bacteria that, although harmless to humans, can harm chinchillas. Chinchillas don't drink a lot so the expense of a bottle of distilled water is negligible.
Entries (RSS)
July 3rd, 2006 at 10:29 am
I'm getting a pet chinchilla that was just born. Does it have teeth? Do I have to feed it mushy food?
July 3rd, 2006 at 6:20 pm
Nancy,
I'm guessing your new chinchilla wasn't "just born". Instead, it was probably born a short while ago and has been weened from its mother. What this means is that your chinchilla will be able to eat regular chinchilla food.
August 3rd, 2006 at 12:12 pm
I'm getting my first two chinchillas very soon and we are just building a cage for them right now. I've been looking at all web sites that I can find about chinchillas but none of them can answer my question that I have. My question is do you have to feed your chinchilla the diet and its regular food or do you just give it a diet when it get over weight? Please answer my question. Thank you!
August 3rd, 2006 at 10:00 pm
Nikki,
We feed our chinchillas a specific portion of their regular food to ensure they are getting a balanced and nutritious diet. If we feel that they may be gaining weight, then we cut back on their treats (e.g., give them fewer raisins).
If your chinchilla is clearly overweight, then you may want to speak with your vet about its diet and whether to change the food.
December 23rd, 2006 at 3:58 pm
I have a Chinchilla that I purchased back in March 2006. He is a very picky eater and doesn't want any type of Chinchilla pellet. I buy the prepackaged Chinchilla food from Petco or Petsmart, and have tried several different brands that have other items mixed. I have also tried just straight pellets. He loves oats, sunflower seeds, carrots dried and fresh, celery, dried bananas, raisins of course and the other goodies that are mixed in with the pellets. If I just give him straight pellets, he doesn't readily eat them and begs me for the other items I mentioned above. He always has fresh timothy hay too that he eats eagerly. What type of pellet should I feed him? Thanks so much for your advise and I look forward to hearing from you soon. Sherri and Chinchi
December 24th, 2006 at 12:01 am
Sherri,
There's no way to know for certain what kind of pellets your chinchilla will like. We use what is called the Anne Kline blend. Mazuri is also another popular one. However, in your case you may just need to back off the various other foods such as oats, sunflower seeds, etc. A hungry chinchilla may turn out to be a less picky one.
May 28th, 2007 at 6:07 pm
I have a question regarding the greens included in the spring mix at the supermarket. which parts of it can be given to chins and which can't?
May 28th, 2007 at 8:28 pm
Debra,
Skip the greens. Chinchillas don't need them. They get everything they need from regular chinchilla food. If you're looking for a treat, try a raisin (max one a day) or a cheerio. Check out our safe food list for more ideas.
August 2nd, 2007 at 11:29 am
Hi. I was wondering what is the right amount of food to give a chinchilla (like 1 spoon full, ect.) because I don't want him to get fat, yet not to thin.
August 2nd, 2007 at 11:40 am
Maryann,
Hay cubes and pellets can be given in unlimited quantities. Chinchillas will limit their consumption of these on their own. What we do is watch how much they eat and adjust how much we give them every day so that none is wasted. It looks like 2 tablespoons of pellets per day is sufficient.
If you feed your chinchillas a fortified seed mix, limit that to one teaspoon a day. Ours will eat more probably because it tastes better than the pellets or hay.
And of course, any sort of treat should be given in moderation i.e. at most one per day. In the case of raisins, some prefer half a day or none at all.
August 14th, 2008 at 2:39 pm
Since our chin was almost finished with her pellets, we bought a new bag. It was the same kind that she'd always been eating; however, she has refused to eat any. I noticed that the smell of the new pellets was a bit less pungent than the ones she had been eating, but I don't know if that has anything to do with anything. For now, we have been giving her more hay cubes than usual so she won't starve from not eating her pellets; it turns out that she likes the hay cubes a lot more than we thought.
Is there something wrong with the pellets? Or maybe is she being picky?
August 15th, 2008 at 6:39 pm
I Get my chins food from the local pet store. This food consists of nuts, fruits, seeds, and pelets. Is this ok for her? Also, should i have a feeding time or leave her food in the cage all day?
August 15th, 2008 at 6:57 pm
Jaclyn,
It sounds like there's something wrong with the pellets you bought. I remember once I had the smell of a detergent on my fingers and our chinchillas refused to take the raisins I had in my hand which they would normally do.
August 15th, 2008 at 6:58 pm
Caroline,
It doesn't sound like you're buying proper chinchilla food. The giveaway is the inclusion of fruit. Also note that rabbit food doesn't make a good substitute so look for something specific to the dietary needs of chinchillas.
October 18th, 2008 at 4:18 pm
My chinchilla has not shown any signs of drinking the water that I provide for in in a bottle on the side of his cage. Maybe I have just not been around to see him drink, but I am worried that he doesn't know how to use the bottle. Also, the food i have seems to have seed mix contained inside and my chinchilla seems to be eating the seeds first and being picky about the pellets. Any suggestions for either situation?
October 18th, 2008 at 5:13 pm
Clay,
Chinchillas don't drink much so it's hard to tell sometimes if they're drinking at all. We suggest you keep the water bottle close to the food dish (but not over it) so that there's a good chance it'll be found. As for the pellet and seed mix, it's best use food that doesn't mix them. That way you can provide a small amount of seed mix and know that your chinchilla will eat the pellets as well. Be sure to supply an unlimited amount of hay.