Why are chins considered exotic?

Just curious really. All of us chin owners have to worry about finding a good exotic vet. Chins have been domesticated and living as pets in the U.S for a long time. You would think that given their increased popularity as pets that vet schools would teach more about them. What do you guys think?

I do not consider them as an exotic but a farm raised livestock that has become a very popular pet. More and more vets are working with them and some universities are doing more and more vet training on them. I donate animals to help them in their training to promote and give them a better understanding of the animal we so love to deal with.

Exotic vets take care of all the small animals, it's dogs/cats, Farm animals, or exotics I thinkie. I think their designation as exotic would only matter when it comes to state laws regulating pets.

Actually, in relation to cats and dogs, chinchillas haven't been around that long as pets at all they were first brought to the US from the wild in the early 1920s, and it takes generations to go from wild to domesticated and really only being in the more mainstream pet world for 40 years or so. In reality most small pets you get are considered exotic, they are not native to the area you live in, so hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, most birds, reptiles, etc are all exotics unless you live in an area where they are native to. They do teach about chinchillas, and other exotics in vet school, but briefly. It's like a brain surgeon for example, they are a doctor but require extra training in a specific field, doctors are all taught about the brain in medical school but you can't expect your family doctor to be able to preform brain surgery on you. Exotics are a specialty that vets go into after the basic vet school, and requires more specialized schooling. I guess you can also look at it in terms of, you wouldn't bring a horse to an inner city companion animal vet clinic, you'd take it to a vet that specializes in livestock, a farm vet. If you stop to think about it, a general vet has to know the anatomy and behavior of hundreds of animals, you are better off having someone that has devoted their career to just a few (which is one reason cat only vets or dog only vets are becoming popular) rather then a general vet that mostly sees cats and dogs and may never have even seen a chinchilla in real life. There is more money in specializing for a vet, but not guaranteed work, so most stick to mostly cats and dogs.
Also chinchillas aren't really that common yet, in the last 20 years or so their popularity has increased a lot, but still how often do you really see chinchilla breeders around? In comparison to how often do you see people breeding cats and dogs? Most people in the US have had a cat and/or dog sometime in their life, or know someone who has.

Everything I have, except my dogs, cats, and horses are considered "exotics" and they all use the same vet. If there is something he can't handle, he refers them on to another vet who specializes more in just small animals, including exotics.

Amethyst gives a good explanation of why. While Randy and other ranchers look at chins as an agricultural product, the general public does not. To them, they are exotics. I also think that it enables some vets to charge more by saying they "specialize in exotics."

These are some great explanations, especially from you Amethyst! I was just kinda thinking about it the other day. Several years ago before I got my first chin, I remember calling around to different vets so I could have one ready just in case I needed it. Lots of places were like "oh we don't see exotics". In my mind, I remember thinking "Its a chinchilla! Its not like I'd be bringing in some type of rare imported species here!". When I hear the term "exotic" I always think of someone with a pet monkey or something more extreme! I guess I just kind of thought it was odd that some people classified chins as exotic. Makes more sense now with everyone's replies though. Thanks guys! :thumbsup:

Amethyst said:

Actually, in relation to cats and dogs, chinchillas haven't been around that long as pets at all they were first brought to the US from the wild in the early 1920s, and it takes generations to go from wild to domesticated and really only being in the more mainstream pet world for 40 years or so.
Also chinchillas aren't really that common yet, in the last 20 years or so their popularity has increased a lot, but still how often do you really see chinchilla breeders around? In comparison to how often do you see people breeding cats and dogs? Most people in the US have had a cat and/or dog sometime in their life, or know someone who has.

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I will add, that's a really good point when you look at cats and dogs too. Chins are much less common than having a dog or cat for a pet. Its quite true that you don't see that many breeders around as well, especially here in FL! I can think of two breeders off the top of my head, and a couple of rescues and thats it! Now that I really think about it too, I'm probably part of a minority of people who even have a chin in my area.....and I have six! So I'm probably even more of an exception lol!

Found it interesting that during our USDA inspection this week the inspector says they no longer consider chins as exotics. Maybe the tide is turning.

jags said:

Found it interesting that during our USDA inspection this week the inspector says they no longer consider chins as exotics. Maybe the tide is turning.

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That is an interesting observation - wonder what the future holds for chinchillas.

It is a specialty some vets study, chinnies have different needs and different diets and anatomy than a dog or cat or rabbit so you don't want a vet who didn't study them taking care of one! Rabbits are not "exotic" but I only ever considered a vet with lots of rabbit experience and knowledge for Miss Hoppy!

I just get annoyed when apartment complexes list "no exotics" in their leases lol

Try this one on for size: Like my tag line says, I kind of live in a zoo. So, when we were at a reptile show last month, I asked the guy who'd purchased table space to advertize for his Exotic Pet practice if he'd be comfortable with some of our bigger, more unpredictable snakes. Sure, he said, no problem.

Then I asked about chinchillas.

"Uhm, what's that?" O_0 "You mean a chinchilla rabbit, like a lop?"

And he was a vet school graduate that focused on "exotics".

3CsMommy said:

Try this one on for size: Like my tag line says, I kind of live in a zoo. So, when we were at a reptile show last month, I asked the guy who'd purchased table space to advertize for his Exotic Pet practice if he'd be comfortable with some of our bigger, more unpredictable snakes. Sure, he said, no problem.

Then I asked about chinchillas.

"Uhm, what's that?" O_0 "You mean a chinchilla rabbit, like a lop?"

And he was a vet school graduate that focused on "exotics".

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Be sure to let me know who that was, Becky, so we know to avoid referring anyone to him!