How much water should a Chin be drinking

[Don Ciccio]

Hi all,
Don Ciccio is 15 weeks old, weighs 370 grams, and only drinks about 4 oz of water a week. He is eating/peeing/pooping normal, we've checked the bottle daily and it works fine, and we see him drinking daily, so he knows how to use it. Is that enough water? Should he be drinking more?
Thanks!

 

[tunes]

Most single chins don't drink a whole lot of water, especially if the room they are in is nice and cool. Usually though, they do drink more than 4 ounces a week. However, if everything else is normal, his water bottle is functioning, and he's gaining weight as he should, then I wouldn't be overly concerned.

 

[Don Ciccio]

The room is 65 deg so maybe that's why. We'll keep an eye on it.
Thanks for the reply

 

[Kylelemler]

I agree with tunes if everything thing else is good I wouldn't worry about IF the animal has clean water. We didn't know we had a water problem for a while, and we were using RO water from major supermarkets at the bottle refill stations. We took several animals to a show and the animals had a lot going for them except they didn't have the size they should have had. The judge knew enough about the animals to recognize the problem and not knowing they were all from the same breeder said that the 5 of the 7 animals took had judge comments about possible water problems. We bought some liquid silver and put it in our water till we got a 5 stage RO filter system that we monitor and change filters on.

 

[Don Ciccio]

I'm currently using a Culligan D-30A under-the-counter filter. Its not a RO, but it is rated for Giardia and Cryptospordium, so I thought it was good. I'm, wondering if I should switch to RO water to see if he drinks more. Any idea where I can get bottled RO water to try it out?

Also? Its an 8oz glass bottle, I clean it and refill once a week. Should I be changing the water daily, and cleaning the bottle 1x week?

 

[Kylelemler]

Your water is probably fine then. I would also just change the water when you clean the bottle.

 

[ticklechin]

I change water daily but that is just me, some leave it in there until depleted which IMO is gross.

 

[Godins Chinchillas]

Most adult chins average 1-2 oz a day. My violet lines seem to empty their 16 oz bottle twice a week. I change my water bottles every 3 days. I'm sure your chin is fine. They are desert animals and do not require as much water as other animals.

Jessica

 

[Don Ciccio]

Thanks for all the feedback.

Right now he's drinking less than 1 oz per day. I think I'll start changing the water,every 1-2 days to keep it fresh. After all, its only 8 ozs.

Although the Culligan is a good filter as far as contaminants, maybe he just doesn't like the taste of it. I think every filter does have a different "taste".

I read that Aquafina water is bottled after going through a RO process. Does anyone know use that off the supermarket shelf? If safe, I would be curious to try that to see if he drinks a little more...

 

[Cuddlebug]

I, too, change the water daily and scrub the bottle once a week. If you leave it sitting for a week, algae and bacteria can begin to grow in the water and on the sides of the bottle.

 

[Gumby and Elmo]

Mine share their water bottle, and they drink about 50ml everyday.