Chins Peeing on the Floor

[elvisthechinchilla]

My only boy Elvis gets to roam around my bedroom every night and he pretty much goes wherever he wants besides under my desk and on my bed. For the first 4 or 5 weeks he was with me he was an angel and never peed anywhere but his cage but now im starting to see spots on the floor where he peed. Any recommendations? He gets full run of the room while I am asleep and I think that might be part of the problem...

 

[ChinnyMom]

that is 100% definitely the problem. a chin should never be out of its cage when it is not supervised. having your chin roam the room while you are sleeping is very dangerous. the chin could get into anything, chew an electrical cord, chew a hole and get into the walls of your home, eat enough paint covered baseboard to get really sick...... the list goes on and on.

chins don't need hours upon hours of out of cage time. an hour every day or two is more than enough. with a big enough cage and a wheel (for chins older than 6 months only), chins don't even need to come out of their cages at all.

 

[elvisthechinchilla]

He has had the run of the room for quite some time now, the room is entirely chin proofed! He is an older boy so he runs around the room for a few minutes then will sit under my bed or go back into his cage. I dont plan on keeping him cooped up in the cage because he likes interacting with me while I work. I will make sure I put him to bed instead of leaving him out but he does absolutely great out durring the night!

 

[Cuddlebug]

I agree with Chinnymom, he should not be allowed to roam around while you sleep. It is way to dangerous for him. Chinchillas should always be supervised when they are not in their cages.

 

[ChinnyMom]

the only 100% chin proofed room is one that is lined with sheet metal everywhere, and there are absolutely no edges of any other material that the chin can get a hold of to chew.

even then, i'm sure a chin would find a way to get into trouble!

why not move his cage to beside where you are working (i assume a desk?). that way he is near you, but safe in his cage, and you can take little breaks to interact with him through the cage bars - hand him sticks, give scritches, etc.

 

[Tillygizmo]

About the peeing...I assume he began to see the room as one big cage and marked wherever he felt like it. He will probably stop if he is out for a shorter period and you are supervising.

 

[ChinnyMom]

if the cage is not accessible to him while he is out, then he has no choice but to pee on the floor, or bed, or anywhere in the room. when you gotta go, you gotta go.

 

[Claire D]

I know there is one prominent chinchilla person who allows his chins to have full access to his room over night while he sleeps - he lost one of his chins because it broke it's neck crashing into the cage trying to get back in during the night. It was a needless & preventable death.

Is the risk worth it? IMHO no, it is not. There is absolutely no way a chin should be allowed out of their cage without full supervision - I'm pretty sure chins could hurt themselves in a padded cell.

Your chin will be fine in the cage over night & it will make his interactions with you while he is out all the more enjoyable. I have some of my chins out when I am sitting working or forum surfing in the evenings & they love it (they come out individually since they don't get on) but I make sure the room is cleared & I can see them at all times - otherwise they'd be up to all sorts of mischief! :wacko:

Can he get back into his cage if he wants to while he is out?

He's peeing all over the floor because he can - the entire room is his territory so he knows no different. If you can spot clean the places where he pees then he may well stop but, I have to be honest & say that once they start that habit, it's not always easy to stop it. Again, access to his cage might help - he may well go back into his cage to pee.

 

[elvisthechinchilla]

He can get back into his, he has a ramp back up to it. I have stopped letting him out while I sleep and hopefully that will help. But there is no way that scratching him through the bars is as stimulating for him as letting him use my room as a big playground! He gets to sprint back and forth, jump as high as he wants and come and see me for interactions when he wants to. In my eyes there is no substitute for out of cage time. I do everything I can to minimize his risks out of the cage and he is a very happy boy. I would much rather have him out and having fun than cooped up in a cage all the time. I understand the overnight thing tho and I usually put him away around one or two AM