does this bother anyone else? My heart is broken.

Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum

Help Support Chinchilla & Hedgehog Pet Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Elaina_marie1

Member
Joined
May 8, 2015
Messages
22
Location
North carolina
I was browsing Instagram today when I found a post dedicated to a chinny who sadly just passed away. Was curious to see if the account had posted why, and to my luck they had. A DRESSER DRAWER FELL ON IT DURING PLAYTIME AND PARALYZED IT. this is not ok. Chinchillas are such curious and smart creatures and one of the first things I learned doing research before getting a chinchilla is that if you plan on having out of cage playtime the area needs to be a completely chin safe environment. I'm so sorry for the rant but I really didn't know where else to go. Please please please learn about these animals before taking one under your wing!
(See pics)
 

Attachments

  • image.jpg
    image.jpg
    11.1 KB · Views: 77
I wouldn't immediately assume it wasn't completely an accident. A lot of people have their chins play in their bedroom, and maybe they were grabbing something out of the dresser and it fell off the tracks. Accidents happen, even a "chin proof" room, you can't make 100% safe, even their own cages aren't 100% safe really, and most people can't/ don't have a room dedicated just to their chins with no furniture. I had a hamster die once when it got loose in my bedroom and my mom opened the bedroom door not realizing it was loose and the hamster got crushed under the opening door, so would that make doors inappropriate for a room too? If people have to remove everything from a room to make it ok for a chin then many could never have chins. I don't think having a dresser in the room makes a room unsafe, unless the person intentionally left the drawer open and the chin jumped into it and it fell with the drawer on it or something. The pic of the story you posted is very tiny so I had a hard time reading it, but it sounds like it was an accident not something do to lack of knowledge about chins.
 
I wouldn't immediately assume it wasn't completely an accident. A lot of people have their chins play in their bedroom, and maybe they were grabbing something out of the dresser and it fell off the tracks. Accidents happen, even a "chin proof" room, you can't make 100% safe, even their own cages aren't 100% safe really, and most people can't/ don't have a room dedicated just to their chins with no furniture. I had a hamster die once when it got loose in my bedroom and my mom opened the bedroom door not realizing it was loose and the hamster got crushed under the opening door, so would that make doors inappropriate for a room too? If people have to remove everything from a room to make it ok for a chin then many could never have chins. I don't think having a dresser in the room makes a room unsafe, unless the person intentionally left the drawer open and the chin jumped into it and it fell with the drawer on it or something. The pic of the story you posted is very tiny so I had a hard time reading it, but it sounds like it was an accident not something do to lack of knowledge about chins.
thanks for the insight!My weakness is definitely animals so I guess I just got upset. I'll make sure to take a minute or two in the future.
 
Something happened similarly to Freckles years ago. I had a dresser drawer cracked open less than an inch and when she "bounced" off of it, her foot slipped into the crack and she was stuck by the leg for a moment. Luckily it wasn't broken and no damage was done but it was sore and swollen for a few days. In my case, I felt negligent although I know it was an accident : / of course we have high standards for our babies safety
 
Aww :( The story and photos are so heartbreaking. Some things we just don't think of.

It is an unfortunate accident, but as Sulami mentioned, a good reminder.
 
Accidents Happen

I have a chinchilla who when he was about a year old had a hammock in his cage. He always loved to chew the stitching out so it would open up and act as a sort of "cave" hideout. I always thought it was cute. One night I went to give him his bedtime treat and he didn't come to the front of the cage. When I took a closer look I realized he'd gotten his leg tangled around the thread stitching he had pulled. I had to cut it off from around his foot which looked cut up and infected. I was heartbroken that I let this happen. Next day I took him to the vet and it was worse than I had imagined. The thread had cut off circulation to his hind foot and the only way to keep it from spreading was an amputation. They amputated almost up to the thigh and I was devastated and blaming myself. Needless to say, accident happen. You cannot be with them 24/7 to keep them Perfectly safe. I will say that he gets around absolutely fine on 3 legs, even runs faster and jumps higher than my other chin :) I was much more upset than he ever was. I'm just grateful that although costly, there was a solution to keep him happy and from then he is only allowed wood houses as hideouts!!
 
Back
Top