bathing/washing a chinchilla

[TheNobleFight]

I am not sure if anybody brought this up...
Evaporative cooling... Through evaporation of of a liquid, typically into surrounding air, it then cools an object or a liquid in contact with it.
Even if there is no airflow in the room natural convection can still cool the object or liquid.
What this means... Basically depending on ambient air temperature, humidity, and air flow in the room. You could lower your Chin babies surface body temperature by 40 degrees just by getting him wet.
Normal evap. cooling is good for a 30 degree drop in temperature, but I believe that Chinchillas have all the ingredients to act as a Super Cooler.
The super high fur density and number of follicles per shaft, combined with the furs telescoping length and ability to absorb some water, create a near solid substrate to transfer heat away from their body.
This is the same way we get sick from walking around with wet hair. Rapid cooling is known to weaken the immune system. Although some chins may become ill, and some may not. The probability of of them getting ill is doubled or tripled by getting them wet.

 

[TheNobleFight]

If I have problems with the dust bath, I would like everyone to recommend other brands that I may be able to substitute it in.

If there was a way too dust your chinchilla, and eliminate most of the plume and residual dust afterward's. Would anyone buy it????

 

[AZChins]

The problem is that you can eliminate the dust coming from the duster...BUT the dust coming off the chin is the problem. They hop out, shake and there's a dust cloud!

One time I came up with a preliminary design for a duster that had a blower in it to blow the dust out of the chin's fur as it hopped out of the duster...but I don't think the chin would stay in one place long enough for the dust to blow out of the coat! LOL

It's a losing battle... I just dust everything afterwards... It's a small price to pay to have the chinnies around though...they are worth it.

As for the waterbath thing...Only if absolutely necessary. They hate getting wet...and getting them fluffy again is such a pain in the butt. If there's a chin with a really bad problem with drool or something really nasty like someone didn't clean the cage in a year and it was living in mud (yes, I have seen this more than once), then it's not like it's going to matter that much if you mess up the fur. But, for a little itty bit of something on the fur I'd spot clean it and dust the chin every day until the fur looks pretty again.

 

[Sierra]

I will go to Tractor Supply today to check to see if mine has some just in case the sparkle doesn't work.

 

[RDZCRanch]

I read the question wrong... *sigh*

Anyways...I agree with what everyone else has said so far. It's not okay to REGULARLY bathe a chinchilla for non-medical needs. I have bathed some chins for non-medical needs (show) and will continue to do so, but it is not done regularly and I only do the bellies because they have an uncanny knack for getting them dirty before show, lol.

I don't think this post was in any way meant to attack you, Sierra. If you notice the majority of the people that responded here are simply giving knowledge and not their personal opinions on your intelligence for bathing the chinchilla. I'm glad that you've found this forum and a ton of knowledge through it and it's extremely nice to see you taking the advice! Good luck and I hope you continue to learn!

 

[ticklechin]

Need to read all the pages before replying, me bad.

 

[Parkerspetchins]

I didn't even know who was being referenced...TheNobleFight, you crack me up!...

One solution to dust allergy that I have read about is dust-bathing the chinnie in a shower/bathtub (dry/clean of course) and then letting the chinnie hop around for a while and then after he/she is done you just rinse the dust down the drain and hopefully much of the dust will have come off the chinnie while he/she is romping ...just a thought.

 

[Bostongirl'sChin75]

One solution to dust allergy that I have read about is dust-bathing the chinnie in a shower/bathtub (dry/clean of course) and then letting the chinnie hop around for a while and then after he/she is done you just rinse the dust down the drain and hopefully much of the dust will have come off the chinnie while he/she is romping ...just a thought.

Talk about the worlds biggest dust house! I will have to try that ( like you said, in a clean dry bathtub of course )

 

[InkedupTara]

I bet those chinnies would love tub time lol!! I know Blue Sparkel is way easier on my allergies. It also helps to dust them at playtime, so I can clean it all up afterwards and they are playing so most comes off at playtime.

 

[starleomach]

Not unless necessary. I voted no, but if it was a sanitary issue I would, I bathed a rescue once. He came in so nasty and gross.

 

[Jazicat]

I didn't even know who was being referenced...TheNobleFight, you crack me up!...

One solution to dust allergy that I have read about is dust-bathing the chinnie in a shower/bathtub (dry/clean of course) and then letting the chinnie hop around for a while and then after he/she is done you just rinse the dust down the drain and hopefully much of the dust will have come off the chinnie while he/she is romping ...just a thought.

This is what we do too and Edgar loves his tub time so much he gets a run in it every day. It's really funny to see him using the tub like a slide and watch him bounce around.

I think this is a great poll because I'm not sure that chins purchased from pet stores or poor breeders know the real danger of getting chins wet. Interestingly I think I am allergic to Edgar's hay but thankfully I know that it is so important to him that I would never stop feeding it to him.

Sierra, I hadn't read the other post but I am so glad you are here! I admire anyone who is willing to say I am learning and changing. It's a sign of courage in my book!

 

[Luci]

first off, that pic of the wet chin cracked me up! i know its not for comical reasons but he did NOT look happy at all. but im sure he's happy and fluffy now.

in regards to allergies, im "one of the most allergic" people. thats a direct quote from an allergist i recently went to see. ive had allergies my whole life and they used to be just seasonal and cat-related. but recently they've gotten worse. i do NOT attribute it to gizmo because whether or not im near him, i have a lot of congestion.

people are allergic to different environmental factors but if something is causing you so much annoyance, maybe you should see a doctor. there could be something more there. after visiting an allergist, im now on a 6month regimen that consists of 2 different allergy pills a day, using Flonase, and washing out my nose with a neti-pot. i start tomorrow and from there, we get to see if it helps or if future tests are done.

after seeing an allergist i no longer put blame on other things, i just accept that i have a sensitive nose and it needs to be controlled.

 

[Sierra]

That would be miserable. I don't have an allergies to anything else I've only found that the chin dust does it but I'm really hoping that sparkle will work. I looked at Tractor Supply for that EDZ (i think) dust but they didn't have any. I will just have to try lots of dust but I probably won't try blue cloud since a lot of people with allergies don't like it. I will let everyone know how it goes. I hope I get it the beginning of next week so I can try it.

 

[Essentia]

Did you ask the feed store about the Sweet PDZ? It's not actually a chinchilla dust, but a horse stall refresher. I'd say about 90% of all feed stores carry it in stock, and the rest can order it for you. It comes in two forms, granular and powder. You want the powder.

And yes, I am the one who has to wash her chinchilla twice a month. It's definitely not something a normal chin should have to endure often. The process takes forever, so I don't think it's something that the owner would want to endure either. I wash with baby shampoo, rinse thoroughly, and then comes the tedious task of drying. I use a hair dryer that has a cold setting, and I press the cold button throughout the entire thing. By the way, if you are drying your chinchilla on a cool setting like you should be, this process takes about an hour, if not longer. I dry until he basically looks completely dry and then let him dust to get poofy and pretty again. Then after that I rough groom him just to make sure he has no tangles that could turn into mats. Also, chins do not like blow dryers, at least mine doesn't. He doesn't mind the bath, actually he seems to like it, but he has never gotten used to the blow dryer. Poor baby. Every time I bathe him I feel bad about it and is not something I would recommend anyone doing just to do. I only bathe him when his belly/back (when he runs on his wheel) get's too yucky with urine. If I can get away with just washing his bottom, I definitely do that.

 

[Bostongirl'sChin75]

Essentia, when you use the dryer, do use a diffuser when you do it? I have had to give my chin, Herby, exactly 2 water baths and the first one, she hated the dryer but after I put the diffuser on the end if it, she did not seem to mind, as much. This made the second one a little easier, on both if us.

And you are right, this is something that neither the chin nor the human wants to endure! oh, the things we will do for our chin children!

 

[Sierra]

O I had no idea that it's a horse refreshner so I was looking in the wrong section.

Phoenix didn't mind the washing part just was scared at first when I turned the water on. She actually liked having the water run on her belly which you would think that she would be more scared since it's considered her weakest part of her body. I would wrap her up in a towel and hold her against my body then wrap the towel in a thick baby blanket. I would hold until she didn't want me to do it anymore and then she was pretty dry but just was a little wet and then I would rub her with the towel for a while. She would just run around in the bathroom with me until she was about dry. I hated giving the bath but I loved how she smelt afterward. She would just jump and run around it was so funny. She didn't mind it at all.

I tried the blow dryer a couple of times and I would have it on a cool setting and would have it on a low speed and she just didn't like it.

 

[CommonYak]

I think this conversation is really interesting.

I have always dreaded the chin-jumps-in-the-toilet scenario, or the chin-gets-covered-in-something-sticky-and-it-must-be-washed-with-water scenario. I have never actually dealt with either of these, and wondered what the best way to dry a wet chin is.

It is precisely because most people don't water-wash their chins that the information about hair dryers and the burrito method of drying seems valuable. Definitely worth filing away for use in the appropriate situation..

 

[aznmexaggie]

I don't agree with regularly washing a chinchilla. I'm sure they don't enjoy it, and their fur is not meant to get wet. Chin dust is what keeps their fur looking plushy by absorbing any oils. Water tends to make the fur stick together and lose the plushy insulating qualities.

However, I did wash a chin's belly today for the first time. One of my girls I want to take to the show next weekend got into a spray fight with her cagemate and had urine on her belly. I just washed her in the sink and used the nozzle to get only her belly wet and used baby shampoo. She was content to be toweled off and didn't fidget too much while I dried her. I had my blow dryer on the low heat and low air speed setting. It took a LONG time to get her dry... and after I blow-dried her, the hair looked a little funny to me. I used a #2 comb on her belly and gave her a dust bath and now she looks normal again. I just don't know if I want to go through that again! I think the next time that happens, I'll say "Sorry girl, but you're just gonna stay home!" Oh, and I will keep my potential show chins separate, I think!

 

[Becky]

You are right- show animals should always be caged separately! Of course, that doesn't mean the chin in the next cage can't get them!

I have a lot of chins and have had them for 14 years. Only once have I ever washed a chin with water. That was at my first show (Nationals!) when he leaned on the water bottle all night in the show cage, wetting his hay. Then, he sat on the hay. Whites with green spots don't do well on the show table!

I don't have plans to ever do that again!

 

[Stackie]

Whites with green spots don't do well on the show table!

OR you could say you have discovered a new mutation! I'm sure people would love a white and green chin! Now, what could we call it... :hmm: