Any experience with any of these treats?

[nikkik0720]

So I have been looking for some 'treats' and toys I can buy for my chins. I wanted to see if anyone has experience with any of these, and if they are good for chins or if I should just leave them in the store.

Willow Branch Ball by WARE from Petco
http://www.petco.com/product/112233/WARE-Mini-Willow-Branch-Ball.aspx?CoreCat=MM_SmallAnimalSupplies_Treats

Planet Petco Douglas-Fir ledge from Petco
http://www.petco.com/product/116369/Planet-Petco-Small-Animal-Ledge-Chew.aspx?CoreCat=MM_SmallAnimalSupplies_Treats

Nutriphase Natural Nibblers from Petsmart
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753482&f=PAD%2FpsNotAvailInUS%2FNo

OxBow BeneTerra Barley Biscuits
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=12273373&f=PAD%2FpsNotAvailInUS%2FNo

Antler pieces from Amazon
http://www.amazon.com/Small-Animal-Chew-Porcupines-Chinchillas/dp/B00EZS3802/ref=sr_1_15?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1393543632&sr=1-15&keywords=chinchilla+treats+and+toys

I know the hay part is safe, but the rose? As a treat?
http://www.amazon.com/Timothy-Hay-Plus-Flavor-Rose/dp/B004UK6N5M/ref=sr_1_126?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1393543794&sr=1-126&keywords=chinchilla+treats

http://www.amazon.com/Chinchilla-Cocktail-4-5oz-Catalog-Category/dp/B005X9RETI/ref=sr_1_180?s=pet-supplies&ie=UTF8&qid=1393543888&sr=1-180&keywords=chinchilla+treats

 

[akane]

Willow items are fine but generally don't last very long with a big mess on the cage floor. 100% wood ledges should all be fine. However I would not feed any treats sold from petstores except oxbow and all pellets should be plain pellets with nothing mixed in. I've heard others use antlers but have no investigated it. Oxbow makes a botanical hay with herbs in it that some feed once or twice a week. I don't know about the quality of other brands. That one looks really heavy on the rose flowers with little hay. You might as well buy various forms of dried rose from the chinchilla vendors to feed as a treat.

 

[ServantofBlueberry]

As far as treats, I pretty much stick with the things I find from a couple of vendors I have found on this site. I know they have a supply list somewhere on here that I have found that has lots of wonderful chin safe treats and toys

 

[becky12883]

The willow ball and ledge are fine. The antlers are probably okay, but if you do a search on the forum you'll see that there are differing opinions and most people that tried them their chins didn't touch them. The nibblers, barley biscuits, and cocktail all contain fruits and/or vegetables (and corn syrup in the nibblers too), which are not good for chins. They don't process sugar, so shouldn't have any, even what is naturally present in fruits and veggies. The hay looks fine, but it should be used sparingly as a treat. I give my boys rosehips/buds about 2 a week max.

 

[nikkik0720]

I know they can't process sugars. But I didn't know if they would be an okay treat like once a month. I know the hay with rose petals looks like it's all rose, but it's not. I had it before for my hamster. The petals seem to settle during shipping, and sometimes they settle towards the front, making it seem like its all rose petals.
The cocktail, I would only feed the 'chin-healthy' stuff to them. The rest would go to the hamster, or be thrown in the yard for the outdoor critters. I was on the fence about the oxbow biscuits because I know oxbow is a good brand, but at the same time, it is a treat. I figured I'd ask here before spending money on things they cannot have.

The main reason I asked about the wood shelf, was because of the type of wood. I wanted to make sure Douglas-Fir wood was okay.

As far as pellets go, I feed Blue Seal Show Hutch Deluxe. They get fresh Kaytee Timothy hay (plain) every night. I know Kaytee isn't the best quality, but it's all my girl will eat.

I'm mainly looking for pet-store items that are chin-safe because it's easier access and tends to be cheaper (sometimes, even though I know it's not as good quality).
Under regular circumstances, I wouldn't even go the pet store route, but my dad just lost his job, and I can't work at the moment due to health issues.

 

[Amethyst]

If you really don't want to save money seriously look into ordering stuff online, I'm not sure what a pet store is cheaper then, those willow balls for example are less then a dollar each from most vendors online. The hay should be fine, as a treat, but once again doing a quick look online you can buy about 1/4 to 1/2 of a pound of rosebuds or rosehips for the same price as that hay mix. The fir ledge is debatable, some say fir is not safe (it's on most unsafe wood lists) others say they've used it no problem, if kiln dried I don't see how it's bad, just like spruce and pine. As said the nibblers, have too much sugar and use corn syrup. The barley biscuits contain fruit, veggies, and oils. The cocktail, the only thing ok in it is the rose hips and vitakraft is not a good brand, maybe even worse then kaytee.
As to the antlers, I don't understand why anyone would give a chinchilla, a strict grass herbivore, a bone to chew on. Aside from the fact that it could splinter or break teeth, chinchillas can't digest animal products.

 

[AZChins]

If you can, make your own ledges. It's just a piece of wood with a hole drilled in it attached to the cage with some type of fastener. Chins do not care if it looks fancy or if the ledge is cut strangely. (Fir works out fine with chins, it isn't toxic or dangerous in the least.)

As for the other things...you can find chin safe treats in online chin supply stores or even locally. Antlers, well, I am too chicken to try them with my chins. It would be absolutely awesome if they were alright with chins and didn't cause any long term health issues. I just worry about the chins ingesting it or if they splinter, etc. There are lots of other chin safe things out there so the chins won't miss the antlers. (My chins aren't very spoiled...they get the cosmetically damaged pieces of wood and they seem to be just fine with it...it doesn't hurt their feelings one bit!)

 

[becky12883]

I think the best treats for the money are plain cheerios and old fashioned oats.

 

[nikkik0720]

They already get plain old fashioned rolled oats. They go nuts. I know treats are basically 'just for human pleasure', but I really think they do get happy when given a treat once in a while. I have made shelves for them, but I had a coupon for the ledges, so I wanted to make sure it was safe. I know kaytee and vitakraft are pretty bad quality things (the ONLY reason I use Kaytee brand hay is because it is the only brand my girl will eat.)

I do plan on looking into ordering stuff from the vendors on here, as they clearly wouldn't sell anything that they wouldn't give their babies (or so I would hope). My only issue with that is the whole paypal thing. I don't have one, nor am I allowed to sign up for one (my parents had issues with it before)

Does anyone know of any places in PA where you can buy rosehips and/or other chin-safe treats? Amazon.com is so expensive and I haven't had luck looking at local health food stores.


Also, opinions on Goji berries? As a treat, but only given a tiny piece of one like once a month? I know fruits are recommended because of the excess sugars, but as a very rare treat (Or 'birthday present' for them)

 

[Stackie]

Check organic shops and vitamin shops for rose hips. I've gotten crushed rose hips from GNC before.

I've had a bad experience with goji berries and I don't recommend them. I received some as a free "sample" in a package and decided to let my boys have one. About an hour after eating it, one of my boys got bloat. And sometimes, giving something as a "once a month" treat can be bad if they aren't used to it- especially if it contains sugar. The sudden introduction of sugar to their GI system can throw them off and cause problems. Why not give them something like a new chew toy if you're wanting to give something for a special occasion?

Nowadays, my boys don't get any sort of 'edible' treats. I give them apple twigs daily and they think of those as a treat just like anything else. If it's a special occasion, they'll all get new hanging toys or some other type of chew toy. They last longer and provide more benefit than something they can eat in 3 seconds. I've read and had too many bad experiences to keep giving other treats.

 

[cindyv3737]

Rosehips and cookies from StaceyWolf are the only treats I give my girls. I have no plans of adding anything else into their diet. They eat plenty of hay and Oxbow pellets.

Sometimes I will toss a willow ball into the cage as a treat. They don't last more than an hour and leave a big mess. The girls love them and that is enough for me. I also have hanging toys from AzChins in my cages. Actually, 95% of my toys come from there (so do my rosehips). Susan, has always made hanging toys, perches, and toss toys that my girls love.

 

[nikkik0720]

Thanks everyone. I really appreciate all the input. I'm also thankful that nobody is being rude or criticizing me about treats.

As for now, I'll stick to giving them their nightly rolled oat (the boys only get half of one even though the oats are small, and my girl gets a whole small one since she's bigger than them).
I'll keep looking for the rose hips/buds and other organic chin-friendly flowers/herbs.
Hopefully I can make a paypal account one of these days so I can order stuff from the vendors here.

One other question. Is it okay to give them some of the scrap wood left from making them shelves? I'd assume it is because it's chin-safe wood, and they chew on the shelves anyway. I just wanted to be sure it was okay to give them blocks of the scrap left over.

 

[Amethyst]

Scrap wood from shelf making is a great cheap chew toy, especially if they chew on it, drill holes in the pieces and you can string them up too.:thumbsup:

Just a suggestion about the paypal, you don't have to have a paypal account to use paypal, just a credit card. What I did before I got a visa bank card was buy those prepaid visa or mastercard gift cards, they work just like a credit card online and there is no worry about giving up any financial info. Just remember that paypal does a $1.50 test charge on the card (to make sure it's a valid card) that is returned once the transaction goes though, so if you have say a $50 card make sure the total comes to $48.50 or less (if you have a amazon account you can put the rest of the money from the card on that, by "buying" (it's free + the amount of the certificate) a gift certificate to your self on amazon for the amount left so the money isn't wasted.)

 

[nikkik0720]

I'll have to drill some then. I got Willow's cage from Petco. One of those "complete chinchilla kits" (the food, bedding, and treats went to my hamster though since they're no good for chins). It came with one of those treat kabob things that have wooden 'fruit' on them. She loved them but the replacement blocks are so expensive.

Thank you so much Amethyst! I didn't know that would work.

 

[Vyxxin]

I second StaceyWolf cookies...OMG my chins LOVE them. I've been meaning to order another batch but...yeah, it's been crazy here Oh, the paypal...I know at least SOME of the vendors will do check/money order through the mail...it'll take longer but they will accept that as payment just ask