Cleaning

[iagirlsmom]

We get our first 2 new chins tomorrow. Very young - 8-10 weeks. How often do we need to clean what, and with what do we clean it? I've seen so much conflicting info. The breeder says she uses Lysol anitbacterial kitchen spray. I read to only use vinegar and hot water... I don't want to poison them and also don't want to give them an illness 'cause we aren't clean enough.
Maybe what we clean the water bottle and food bowl with might not be the same as what we clean the bottom tray and cage with? But assume we do need to wipe down the whole cage? So confused...
Thanks for your advice.

 

[ChinnyMom]

welcome to the forum! :wave3:

vinegar and water is all you need for cleaning. harsher chemicals are not necessary. if any kind of chemical is used, rinse, rinse, and rinse again!

litter needs cleaned daily - if you have the whole cage bottom covered in shavings, then only the soiled areas need cleaned up/removed/replaced every day. one or two times a week the bottom cage pan will need the vinegar/water washing. if you plan on using fleece liners on the cage bottom, along with a smaller litter pan, the fleece will need changed out at least every few days (more often if your chins are peeing on the fleece). the litter pan will need to be dumped out and refilled with shavings daily, and get washed once or twice a week.

i use plain ol' dish soap to clean out food dishes, hay containers, litter bowl, and the water bottle (glass bottle). all these things from Rhino's cage get a once weekly scrubbing and mega rinsing (i'm paranoid about soap residue! lol). obviously the food dishes and water bottle get washed before the litter bowl. the ceramic tiles i have in the cage bottom get wiped down with a soapy cloth and then wiped multiple times with a wet cloth that i rinse with every wipe.

wood shelves in the cage will need sanded on occasion, especially if your chins are the type to pee on their shelves. i brush all the poops and hay and wood crumbs off Rhino's shelves daily during cage cleaning. thankfully, he's not a 'shelf peeing chin', so i haven't had to sand anything down yet, since Rhino came home in February.

and just want to ensure you are aware that young kits should not have a wheel in their cage or come out for play time for at least the first 6 months of life, eh? they need to conserve their energy to grow and fill out properly. also make sure their cage has bar spacing that is 1/2 inch or less, or else you may be faced with escapees.

 

[VolunteerChin22]

hi and welcome!

I feel the need to comment that your kits are pretty young. They will be able to squeeze through some cage bar spacing still at that age so be cautious about that and they will be clumsy for several weeks still so keep all the shelves and levels low in the cage to prevent injuries...I think cleaning the litter everyday is a little excessive and expensive but to each their own - I usually clean shelves off most everyday or every other day but I do a litter change once a week or so on my bigger cages. I wouldn't use lysol - vinegar works well.

 

[ChinnyMom]

...I think cleaning the litter everyday is a little excessive and expensive but to each their own

not really that expensive when you have just one or two chins and you use a litter pan/bowl instead of having the whole cage bottom with shavings. in my opinion, i'd rather waste a bit of shavings than have the potential of bumblefoot, or have pee smell in my bedroom (where Rhino's cage is and where my clothes hang in the closet).

 

[Ronda]

So when first bring them home I suggest you bring along some of their dirty bedding. LOL - now don't start yelling at me for this - stop and think about it - new home is usually scary. The smell of home helps chins settle in much easier. Cleaning their cage once a week is sufficient but depending upon where they are living in your house you might want to clean up wet spots daily and brush off poo from shelves. It's pretty easy to maintain with only 2 babies.

I also suggest not changing their food immediately if you are planning too, as that will probably upset their intestinal tracts. Your breeder or whoever you are getting them from should send a starter pack with them.

Good luck and have fun with your babies!

 

[iagirlsmom]

Thank you so very much for all the info.
I will ask if we can take some used bedding with us. We're using Yesterdays News recycled paper, not sure what breeder uses. We do have the exact same water bottle and food though.
There is a wheel in their cage and the cage itself is 48" tall with many ledges and levels. The wire spacing is 7/8". Ugh. We'll have to figure out what to do about that. Obviously can remove the wheel, but not sure what to do about the height and cage wire spacing..
The bottom pan is pull out so cleaning often shouldn't be an issue.
Thanks for all the good info. I didn't know about not exercising them until 6 months either. But OK to get them out to hold them?
Thank you -

 

[Ronda]

I actually don't see any reason for them not to go out and play as long as you chin police the room. The bathroom or a hallway blocked at both ends usually works rally well. You can hold them and let them run along the couch or chair too. They are going to be bouncing off of the walls of their cage anyway.

At 2 months they should be large enough not to squeeze through that size of bars. If not you can get some hardware cloth which is fairly soft 1/4x1/4 wire at the hardware store and line the outside of the bottom of the cage with it so they can't poke their heads through.

Good luck!

Ronda