Do chinchillas inow what they are capable of?

NigelAndPeanut · Feb 13, 2021

I've been wondering this for a while. I know chins can jump 6 feet, but do they realise that they can? I know my little Nigel has never jumped that high let alone anywhere close, but I dont think that he has tried. Does anybody know anything about this?

Dragonflye · Feb 13, 2021

I think chins just do what comes naturally. Also, their abilities may vary based on age, size, etc.
I do believe that they have mind control powers. Their cuteness is their superpower and they know it.

Amethyst · Feb 13, 2021

I'm not sure they all know they can, until they actually really want to escape and try. My current two I am able to use a 2 foot high fencing to contain them when I let them out around their cage, they have never even tried to jump over it. It could be because when I use the fencing they have most of the room anyway and I have the door closed (I have cats and dogs), so nothing interesting or anywhere to really go if they jumped out. I also don't think they feel trapped and the need to escape. However when they have really gotten going they jump higher then that bouncing off the walls in the spare room I sometimes use for playtime.

petran79 · Feb 13, 2021

Now that you mention it, when I tried to grab the chinchilla, I had lifted the couch vertically in order for them not to slip under and also because there were holes in the sides of the couch where they could hide. One was squeezed between the couch and the wall and he tried to climb the wall like a squirrel and he managed to reach 40-50 cm till he fell down. Then he tried for a second time to squeeze through an opening that he had failed to do so the first time and succeeded.

NigelAndPeanut · Feb 14, 2021

This is all very interesting thankyou all for sharing

JamaisVu · Feb 14, 2021

Mine may not know she can jump 6 feet, but she definitely has an idea of how high she can jump. Even as a young chin, she used to sometimes stand on my shoulder and stretch to look over the playpen fence. She wasn't being cute. She was definitely measuring if she thought she could make the jump.