8 week old kit updated

[Nico]

So after clearing up dates with the family she is almost 9 weeks old, which makes me feel better. So I got a 8 week old kit from someone who was running out of room for their expanding chinchilla family. I was told she had been weaned off momma before I picked her up, but when I arrived they were still caged together and found they had never been apart. With some reassurance from the owners I took her home anyways. She’s eating, drinking and jumping around I just worry with one this young. I’ve read I should buy alfalfa instead of Timothy on the forum for the protein content. Till what age should I do this and at what ratio? (Old owners have her eating Timothy) I’ve only had her for 24hrs and will put my ego in check and coordinate best options with the old owners if she needs momma(Someone please chime in). Can I give her treats this young? When can she start to get treats? I really want to start to socialize with her because of the lack of a playmate, but would like to bribe her a little to make the process easier. I’ve been sitting by the cage and just talking to her and if I open it she’ll come say hi, but I think she’s looking for treats bc of the old owners were giving her oats, sunflower seeds and cranberries. I’m was going to do the a Cherrios and rose buds, hips, and oats maybe more herbs that route...

 

[Pepperpot]

Please do not give your chinchilla any nuts, seeds or fruit or veg, fresh or dry. The sugar content in cranberry is very high and pumpkin seeds are not suitable as a treat due to the fat content. A basic diet of good quality hay and pellets is all she needs to stay healthy. She's very young to be weaned.

 

[Nico]

Please do not give your chinchilla any nuts, seeds or fruit or veg, fresh or dry. The sugar content in cranberry is very high and pumpkin seeds are not suitable as a treat due to the fat content. A basic diet of good quality hay and pellets is all she needs to stay healthy. She's very young to be weaned.

Without a doubt shes not getting anymore seeds, nuts or anything of that sort. I bought Oxbow treats and some oats and I think that all shes going to get for now. I believe I read on here Cheerios are ok? Anything I should keep an eye out for in regards to her having separation anxiety? I feel so bad and think she needs a little social interaction due to how friendly she is, but I got the hand cross face swipe when she found out i didn't have treats. I read they shouldn't have any at all and just want to make sure my little girl is healthy and im doing everything I can to take care of her

 

[Nico]

Well I’m happy to say that she had a dust bath and cruised around my room with me for a min today. I also put a new shelf in her cage and she was happy jumping for 5 min, super cute. I guess my only question now is should I limit her play time because of how small she is so that she doesn’t overheat? I read that somewhere and I’m sticking to it for now, better safe than sorry

 

[Pepperpot]

No out of age time till at least six months old.

 

[Nico]

Damn ok I guess that’s the first and last time for a while. She’s just so very curious and will climb out on her own if I let her. She also chases me around her cage like my old ones used to do when they wanted to play. I guess he’s still very young and fragile though. Really appreciate your advise thank you

 

[yspm10]

Hello,

I would checkout Pandamonium pets on Etsy for your chinchilla needs. A lot of the stuff that’s sold in pet stores are not that great. This online store has great customer service and gives you advice from any concerns you may have. Goodluck with your chin

 

[Im Hyung Soo]

As the person above said, you could check out Pandamonium pets, she has a great shop and was very helpful and kind when I needed to ask about some things. I like to use azchins because she also has a great variety on treats, toys, and essentials for chins. I got mine a pound of rose hips sometime ago from there and my little Miki loves them. Most things in stores aren't okay but some are, you just need to be careful and know what's best for them. Mine also loves the oxbow hay treats, they're small and healthy and not to mention pretty cheap. My chinchilla is an adult though so I can't help much with the age difference but I only let her have one rosehip each day or every so often and the oxbox treats it's about the same.

 

[Nico]

As the person above said, you could check out Pandamonium pets, she has a great shop and was very helpful and kind when I needed to ask about some things. I like to use azchins because she also has a great variety on treats, toys, and essentials for chins. I got mine a pound of rose hips sometime ago from there and my little Miki loves them. Most things in stores aren't okay but some are, you just need to be careful and know what's best for them. Mine also loves the oxbow hay treats, they're small and healthy and not to mention pretty cheap. My chinchilla is an adult though so I can't help much with the age difference but I only let her have one rosehip each day or every so often and the oxbox treats it's about the same.

Thanks guys ill check out that etsy page and see if I can pick up some rose hips. My little girl was a little getting some unhealthy treats before we met, and by the way she acts around me, quite often. I have the oxbow treats you mentioned and she loves them. Ill check out getting her some rose hips, I cant find them here so again appreciate you guys. She also now has some alfalfa in her feeder. Till what age should I keep giving her alfalfa? Im buying a new cage for her tomorrow from someone who use to have a chinch. How much room should she have rn?She seems like she wants to jump which makes sense, but I dont want her to hurt herself. I know about the critter nation cages but need something just a little shorter because of where im keeping her, height and additional levels is not an issue. I was ideally thinking something like this eventually, idk about the 7/8 spacing rn https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/prevue-hendryx-cocoa-frisky-ferret-and-rabbit-cage

 

[Nico]

Hello,

I would checkout Pandamonium pets on Etsy for your chinchilla needs. A lot of the stuff that’s sold in pet stores are not that great. This online store has great customer service and gives you advice from any concerns you may have. Goodluck with your chin

^

 

[Im Hyung Soo]

Thanks guys ill check out that etsy page and see if I can pick up some rose hips. My little girl was a little getting some unhealthy treats before we met, and by the way she acts around me, quite often. I have the oxbow treats you mentioned and she loves them. Ill check out getting her some rose hips, I cant find them here so again appreciate you guys. She also now has some alfalfa in her feeder. Till what age should I keep giving her alfalfa? Im buying a new cage for her tomorrow from someone who use to have a chinch. How much room should she have rn?She seems like she wants to jump which makes sense, but I dont want her to hurt herself. I know about the critter nation cages but need something just a little shorter because of where im keeping her, height and additional levels is not an issue. I was ideally thinking something like this eventually, idk about the 7/8 spacing rn https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/prevue-hendryx-cocoa-frisky-ferret-and-rabbit-cage

Good to know, i'm sure she'll enjoy them. I can't remember if the etsy shop had a good amount but if you want a few to try out then that shop is perfect. AZchins also has a good variety of treats and toys so you can also check that out sometime. Anyway i'm not too sure about the alfalfa but i'm also sure they shouldn't have it often so i'm guessing when she's more of an adult but it'd be best to check with someone else to be sure. As for cages well I don't have a critter nation cage because I couldn't afford much at the time but I did buy her a cage that's about 40 inches tall with the bottom having space for things. The one I have is also a prevue one but for chinchillas and rats mainly but it has two levels at least and I think it's good for just one chinchilla, it should still be on petco since that's where I got it though I did buy it during a sale so it was cheaper. Either way mine certainly loves having a big cage all to herself since she was stuck in a small one with another chinchilla while at the store and when I got her all I had at the time was a smaller cage with no other levels to it. This cage also is good since she also likes to run up the ramps while also jumping around. Some of the bars are kind of broken, in terms of that they look like they were bent and therefore have a slightly wider opening but it's still really small. And the ramps have a flat bottom with some bars so she can't get her feet caught in it. One thing is that she tends to shake the cage a bit when running in her wheel but it's not so bad. The only other issue is the bottom is grated but I just cover mine up with fleece so it works out well.

 

[Nico]

Good to know, i'm sure she'll enjoy them. I can't remember if the etsy shop had a good amount but if you want a few to try out then that shop is perfect. AZchins also has a good variety of treats and toys so you can also check that out sometime. Anyway i'm not too sure about the alfalfa but i'm also sure they shouldn't have it often so i'm guessing when she's more of an adult but it'd be best to check with someone else to be sure. As for cages well I don't have a critter nation cage because I couldn't afford much at the time but I did buy her a cage that's about 40 inches tall with the bottom having space for things. The one I have is also a prevue one but for chinchillas and rats mainly but it has two levels at least and I think it's good for just one chinchilla, it should still be on petco since that's where I got it though I did buy it during a sale so it was cheaper. Either way mine certainly loves having a big cage all to herself since she was stuck in a small one with another chinchilla while at the store and when I got her all I had at the time was a smaller cage with no other levels to it. This cage also is good since she also likes to run up the ramps while also jumping around. Some of the bars are kind of broken, in terms of that they look like they were bent and therefore have a slightly wider opening but it's still really small. And the ramps have a flat bottom with some bars so she can't get her feet caught in it. One thing is that she tends to shake the cage a bit when running in her wheel but it's not so bad. The only other issue is the bottom is grated but I just cover mine up with fleece so it works out well.

Thank you again for your reply. Like I said before my little girl is still very young and I know Im supposed to limit her amount of space for the first 6 months at least so she doesn't hurt herself/overheat. Honestly I had 2 chinchillas before and I didnt know what I was in for, with one this new. Not saying she isn't well taken care of. Im just having trouble socializing with her when I cant take her out and when she wants to play its really obvious. So my solution right now is to get her a bigger cage so shes a little more happy and can exercise, but not to big lmao. So I've dona a ton of research and looked at a hundred cages by now and have come to this company http://www.martinscages.com/chinchillas.html. I think the chinchilla lodge is a good size having 3 levels, but only being 24 in tall and I like how there is no stand so i can move her if needed. I plan on positioning a hammock in a way so that she cant fall, but on it. That being said the mesh has me on edge because of the squares, I currently have allot of horizontal bars for easy climbing, but have encountered that come spots cant support a stand alone ledge. Am I being paranoid?

 

[Nico]

Omg so my little brat is picking through her hay and only eating the soft easy pieces and scattering the rest everywhere. Then when I put more food in she goes over and picks through it like shes starving, but quickly loses interest. Its hard to tell how much she is eating vs tossing. I'm a a little on edge, but have read about other chins doing the same thing. Im gonna weigh her tonight and make sure shes gaining still. I've upgraded to Oxbow Alfalfa bc its the softest, sweetest and she was picking around the timothy. So my questions are; should I be worried? and should I hide some Timothy in with the alfalfa or she she fine with the one?

 

[yspm10]

My chinchilla does the same with the hay. I think most of are picky. If you’re worried about the mess being thrown outside of the cage you should get cage guards or ledges with cage guards. It’ll be easier for you to clean the cage without having to move it around all the time. Easier to vacuum. Also for that cage you don’t want shelves with those square holes or ramps with holes. It’s bad for their feet. You can probably replace them with wooden shelves. Pandamonium pets on Etsy sells these as well. Goodluck

 

[Nico]

My chinchilla does the same with the hay. I think most of are picky. If you’re worried about the mess being thrown outside of the cage you should get cage guards or ledges with cage guards. It’ll be easier for you to clean the cage without having to move it around all the time. Easier to vacuum. Also for that cage you don’t want shelves with those square holes or ramps with holes. It’s bad for their feet. You can probably replace them with wooden shelves. Pandamonium pets on Etsy sells these as well. Goodluck

Yeh I was going to go the fleece route like suggested above. She knows how to litter box and didn’t chew on it in her old cage so I’ll keep my fingers crossed

 

[Sabrina]

Hello, just quick about alfalfa... It has too much calcium as a main food source and can cause bladder stones, which need to be removed surgically on chillas. Timothy hay is the way to go. I have peeled and hand fed "crispy not crunchy" to my little beasts. They are like 2 year olds and like tasty and junk food. I figure they can eat the hay they like, not cheetos they also like.