One of our readers recently moved and describes the following situation with her chinchilla:
We have had our Chinchilla for about 6 months, and when we brought him home everything was normal. We recently moved and now he is making noises at night. The first 2 nights after making sounds every couple of hours I finally went and slept in the same room as him and he was quiet after that. Then a couple of nights went by with nothing, now he has started again. I looked up the noises and found that they were stress related, but it has been over a week. Is there anything I can do to help him relax into his new home?
Our advice to Krysten:
We're sorry your chinchilla is having a hard time adjusting. The first thing to realize is that chinchillas can be made nervous by the oddest of things. It seems like we could crash plates all around ours and they won't react. Yet, if we shuffle our feet suddenly across the floor they'll go running. Ours also don't like the sound of rain or wind and on such days will stay in their cage.
A couple of things to consider:
- Are there any noises outside of the house? Chinchillas have good hearing so they may be hearing things that don't register with you. A dog in the distance? Raccoons or cats fighting?
- Does your chinchilla have enough room to run around in your new home? Ours will sometimes "bark" if we're out for the evening and don't have a chance to run around before we go to bed.
- Do you still have time to play with your chinchilla? Or has the move sapped all of your free time? Your chinchilla may be missing you.
Entries (RSS)
October 20th, 2007 at 7:26 am
Randi,
Introductions can take longer than 2 weeks. Our last one took a month.
October 14th, 2007 at 1:28 am
HI, I bought from a breeder a 4 month old male chin as a friend for my 4 year old male chin. The breeder thought that the younger one would be easier to introduce because he will be more passive. well it has only been 2 weeks. so i am still trying to get them used to each other before i try letting them out together. well My older one is still trying to attack the younger one through the cage. is this normal? even after 2 weeks? or should i just plan on 2 chins in 2 different cages and different run times? Also the little one is easy to handle and doesnt mind it. when we first got him he would sit on my shoulder and cuddle for a little while. well he now seems to only want to be in his cage. he doesnt want to take treats from my hands. which he did before. He also no longer wants to cuddle at all. Do you think he is nervous about the other chin? Missing his littermates? or did i go too far too fast?
September 20th, 2007 at 7:00 am
Victoria,
It is unlikely a chinchilla will get your brothers sick. In fact, at that age they probably shouldn't be playing with a chinchilla anyway. While pet stores aren't the best places to buy chinchillas, if that's your only choice, look for a chinchilla that is lively, has "bright" eyes, and good fur. None of that guarantees a healthy chinchilla, but it is a good start.
As for living in Florida, it sounds like your home will be too hot to keep a chinchilla comfortable especially if your area is humid along with being hot. You really need an AC to keep the temperature down even if it is just a window unit for a single room.
It is unlikely that you will be able to train a chinchilla to sleep during the day and be awake at night unless you completely simulate night and day. We've never tried.
September 19th, 2007 at 4:43 pm
Hi, I am thinking about getting a chin, but i have 2 baby brothers that are 2 and 3. My mom is wooried that the chin might make them sick, will it?
I also want to get a chin from petsmart or petco, should i, or should i go to a smaller company, because i dont know any breaders.
I live in florida and the temperture gets really high, my house is usually 78 degrees and my mom doesint want to make it higher because my brothers can get sick, what should i do to keep the chin cool?
My room is right next to my brothers room and thats were i want to keep the chin,(im gonna keep it in my room) will it wake my brother up at night or can i train it to sleep at night by putting a night light or somthing?
September 5th, 2007 at 1:43 pm
Wow! I am now really nervous about getting my neighbor's chinchilla. She has 2 dogs & a horse & noone pays "Chico" any attention. My 17 yr. old son thought the chin would make a good addition to his biology class study of small mammals & reptiles. This would require taking Chico to high school & leaving him. Is this a good idea? Should he be brought home every weekend? We have had numerous gerbils & fish in the past & our dog of almost 10 yrs. recently died. I am concerned because I didn't realize that chins were so delicate. They seem to need more care than I thought & I guess I'm nervous about the school situation. My friend thinks he'll be fine, but I'm not sure. Any thoughts? I'm keeping him regardless, just don't want to jeopardize his health.