Hello again, I'm Back.

[3CsMommyAgain]

Hey all.

Was here years ago as the 3CsMommy. Unfortunately the 3Cs were killed when their AC was turned off when I had to leave my abusive marriage. I've been out of chins a long time. I may be getting back with a rescue male from a "friend of a friend" and have popped back in to see what's changed since I lost my boys in 2015.

Glad to be here.

 

[3CsMommyAgain]

My questions so far:

What's everyone feeding? The top names 10 years ago were Mazuri, Oxbow, Manna Pro Sho, and one other rabbit pellet from Purina I don't remember well because I fed Mazuri almost exclusively.

Any new awesome research studies/papers that prove the "low liquid/no fresh greens/no sugar" diet is what's healthiest" or do we still have nothing to show a vet when we say "Thanks but I won't be giving my chinchilla raw carrots and watermelon for treats. This isn't a guinea pig."?

How are we decking out the FN142/CN242 or is there a new "great choice" cage for these little dust gremlins? Do we still have folx in the U.S. making fleece liners, shelf covers, hanging tubes, hammocks, etc.?

Is Blue Cloud still the "go to" dust? I see the sparkle dust repackaged in the big box pet stores, so I know I can get something at least depending on what comes with this rescue guy.

 

[Amethyst]

I'm so sorry to hear about your chins, that is horrible.

It seems to be a bit split on who you ask, in the pet chin world Oxbow, Mazuri, and Science Selective seem to be the recommended ones currently. With Oxbow though they now have a couple other formulas but only the Oxbow Essentials is recommended the other two aren't good. People that have a lot of chins, like breeders, still seem to go with the rabbit food, likely because it's cheaper and "close enough".

Unfortunately there is still no actual research done on not feeding fruits and veggies. I think the problem is the people that have the number of chins needed for a proper study would be the large scale breeders, and since they just feed plain pellets, hay, and water and have had no issues they aren't going to be motivated to look into other diets, especially when the study is just to prove they aren't good. When you have people with chins living into their teens and
20s on just a simple diet that seems to be proof that extra stuff is not required, but I know some vets wont see it that way. There was also a thread talking about this recently Vets Recommend Fresh Greens

The Ferret and Critter Nations are still the most popular cages, but they are not the old 142 and 242 models, what you can buy now are the newer "no tools required" snap together FN 181 (single)/182 (double) and CN 161 (single)/162 (double). The two cages can also be mixed and matched, they are the same size so they fit together which can work out well if you need two different kinds like for a kit or if you have other animals and want smaller spacing on the bottom unit. There are still a lot of vendors that sell fleece for them, most people use Etsy now.

The Blue Cloud mine closed about 10 years ago, so with the exception of finding old stock someone is selling you can't get it anymore. The mine that has taken over for it is Blue Beauty, which is in the same mountain range area but different mountain and is where companies like Oxbow and Lixit get their dust now. It's not exactly the same, it's a bit more sparkle to it then the blue cloud had but I haven't had any issues. The new "best" dust if you are in the US now is ChillDust ChillDust: Premium Bathing Dust for Chinchillas and Degus it is only sold online and in the US though, which is why I haven't tried it myself (shipping to Canada would cost more then the dust, lol). I would just steer clear of the Kaytee dust, there have been a lot of issues with chins getting skin, eye, and respiratory issues with that dust.

 

[3CsMommyAgain]

Thank you. Yes, I was devastated when he finally told me what he did. 2016 was a very rough year.

Many thanks for the links to the dust! I think the big box pet store near me has the science selective and the oxbow essentials so I'll look when I'm in next, and I'm lucky enough to live in a fairly rural area again where getting a bale of hay will likely be cheaper and easier than ordering. Wonder if Kleen Mama's Hay Loft is still at it...

 

[3CsMommyAgain]

He is here! I haven't chosen a name yet (he was called Link at the last 2 homes). Any help/hints about his color? He does not look like a standard grey to me; there's no banding on his fur and no actual black anywhere. In sunlight he looked very brown. I had 2 standards and a hetero beige in the past and the freckles on his ears remind me of my beige, but he's definitely NOT the typical standard. He's bigger than I expected and looks like he may be from pretty decent lines. So far he's been nibbling hay and just watching things happen. He is pooping, thank goodness, because there is SO much uncovered plastic in his cage, holes in the shelves, lots of plastic hides etc I've removed, I'm glad he's acting so healthy, happy, and normal. Once I have another pay check I'll be getting fleece for shelf covers.

Also, that's the attachment for the wheel that he came with. The running surface is NARROW but apparently he's been using it for a while. I'm reluctant to put it back in after breaking down the cage and trying to remove years of accumulated dust/pee/bedding dust. I'm not sure it's safe at his size. Has anyone seen this one or had/used it? I don't want the noise to keep us up at night or him to hurt himself on it.

 

[Amethyst]

I can't really see the belly though, but looks white? If so would say beige, definitely not a standard grey.

The wheel is ok, but do tend to be narrow, for most chins so long as it's at least 4" it's ok, it's the width that most of the recommended wheels are (it should also be 15-16" diameter). I really can't tell size from the pics, but bigger chins (like ones in the 800g + range) do need a wider wheel, like 6" wide to prevent falling off. If he has been using it ok without falling off it's probably ok. I have no idea how noise that is, I had one similar, it looks like the common DIY design people make themselves. The one I had had a lazy susan bearing though and it was LOUD, but that looks like a skate wheel, so it shouldn't be anywhere near as bad assuming it doesn't rattle. If properly installed and balanced the noisest part of a wheel tends to be the bearing, but depending on your cage it may rattle the cage. Wheels are not required though, like of like a swing set for a kid, it's fun and most like them but they aren't required, so if it is too narrow or make too much noise you can leave it out.

 

[3CsMommyAgain]

Yeah, white belly. I'm stuck between beige and brown velvet tbh. He's DARK.

We're skipping that wheel. The pan it's made of isn't even as deep as my hand is wide and this chin is a CHONK, comparable to most of the chins I met at the MCBA show in York several years ago. He's not totally cool with me picking him up yet and I'm not going to push it to get a weight right away. I've got a wish list started at the Tic Tac website, but I've risked contact with my ex to see if my chin spin and flying saucer are still serviceable. I can have them shipped to a UPS store or something if he finds them and then my little cocopuff can choose the one he likes.

 

[Amethyst]

He doesn't look dark enough for brown velvet to me, I also don't see any veiling but it's hard to tell from the pictures (I'm also not an expert on colors). Brown velvets are also pretty uncommon, not a lot of people seem to breed for them, but not impossible to get.

If your old wheels are still good, then great, but there are a couple other wide wheels you can get if you are interested in other ideas.

Pandamonium pets sells an Xtra wide wheel
https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/PandamoniumPets?ref=shop_sugg_market&section_id=24633626
The Chin Sprint
https://www.amazon.com/Exotic-Nutri...fos.f5122f16-c3e8-4386-bf32-63e904010ad0&th=1
also the Felix and Fido Spin Safe wheel, but that seems to be currently out of stock
https://www.amazon.com/Felix-Fido-C...ng/dp/B07SGVLKMK?ref_=bl_dp_s_web_17399506011

 

[ChinsForLife]

I would just steer clear of the Kaytee dust, there have been a lot of issues with chins getting skin, eye, and respiratory issues with that dust.

I can testify to that!! About a year ago, my chinchilla Chico ran out of dust and I decided to try Kaytee dust since its it was the only one my local pet store carried. DON'T. BUY. IT. Chico was sick to the stomach and lethargic for 4-5 days after I offered the dust and wouldn't even bathe in it when I originally offered it, he would just eat it. (Which I know can't be healthy at all) It was also very thick and almost tan in color. To give you an idea of just how thick and heavy it was, it was a 3 lb. jar and was half the size of the 3 lb. jar sold other brands. Very strange. Anyway, he worried me so I got on amazon and started reading reviews on it and turns out that kaytee dust has even sent many chins to the ER so I guess my boy was lucky! Personally, I highly recommend Oxbow Poof. The Petco brand is also good too.

 

[ChinsForLife]

My questions so far:

What's everyone feeding? The top names 10 years ago were Mazuri, Oxbow, Manna Pro Sho, and one other rabbit pellet from Purina I don't remember well because I fed Mazuri almost exclusively.

Any new awesome research studies/papers that prove the "low liquid/no fresh greens/no sugar" diet is what's healthiest" or do we still have nothing to show a vet when we say "Thanks but I won't be giving my chinchilla raw carrots and watermelon for treats. This isn't a guinea pig."?

How are we decking out the FN142/CN242 or is there a new "great choice" cage for these little dust gremlins? Do we still have folx in the U.S. making fleece liners, shelf covers, hanging tubes, hammocks, etc.?

Is Blue Cloud still the "go to" dust? I see the sparkle dust repackaged in the big box pet stores, so I know I can get something at least depending on what comes with this rescue guy.

1. I feed Mazrui too. My breeder Lone Star Chinchilla feeds the show rabbit pellet I believe but recommends Mazrui. I think the top 2 are Mazuri and Oxbow. Mazuri is just less expensive and just as high in quality.

2. None that I've heard of unfortunately.

3. I personally have the double critter nation and I love it. These days, the Feisty Ferret cage is also popular but isn't expandable and only one side opens.

4. I use Oxbow poof but I've heard great things about Chilldust and lixit blue cloud. The Petco brand "You and Me" Is a great option too.

 

[3CsMommyAgain]

Hey! He came w/ the PetCo brand dust and it's sparklier than I like but we're going with it. The rescuer had him on Oxbow Essentials chin pellets so we're sticking with that, and I got a hay order from Small Pet Select to replace the KayTee stemmy stuff he was used to. The first time I handed him a leaf of their second cut timothy he started to come around. Now he'll sniff my fingers and nibble my nails a bit when I reach into the cage instead of hiding. I caught him sleeping on his side the other day, too, so I know I'm making progress. And now that I've gotten some rosehips from Panda, it's all up from here!

I'm glad your guy didn't get super sick from that dust. That sounds almost like they swapped straight diatomaceous earth or something! Leave it to a big box corporate pet company to make a decision like that and leave us hanging.

 

[ChinsForLife]

Hey! He came w/ the PetCo brand dust and it's sparklier than I like but we're going with it. The rescuer had him on Oxbow Essentials chin pellets so we're sticking with that, and I got a hay order from Small Pet Select to replace the KayTee stemmy stuff he was used to. The first time I handed him a leaf of their second cut timothy he started to come around. Now he'll sniff my fingers and nibble my nails a bit when I reach into the cage instead of hiding. I caught him sleeping on his side the other day, too, so I know I'm making progress. And now that I've gotten some rosehips from Panda, it's all up from here!

I'm glad your guy didn't get super sick from that dust. That sounds almost like they swapped straight diatomaceous earth or something! Leave it to a big box corporate pet company to make a decision like that and leave us hanging.

Me too! Vet bills are sooooo expensive these days for an exotic.

I'm so glad to hear he is doing well! Btw, Chico's favorite treats are rosehips, hibiscus, and chamomile. He liked jasmine ok but made this weird face when he sniffed the lavender, lol. Just to give you some pointers for future treat orders.