How would you know?

[eventgirl]

So I had my first AC scare last night. My ac wouldnt turn on and even though its like 50 degrees outside, I live in the basement and it gets pretty hot down here. So I ended up moving the cage into my room (thats were my one and only window is lol)and putting the chin chillers in his cage. He seemed ok but I was really worried all night and I kept getting up and checking on him.

So my question is what signs do chinchillas show if they start to get heat exhaustion? And when do you know that you need to do something asap because things are getting bad?


Luckily I got my AC working this morning and the apt is nice and cool again, but I want to know what to watch for just in case this happens again. Thanks guys!

 

[gella]

Some signs to look for are red, warm ears and acting lethargic. Do you have a thermometer in your room with you? If you don't, they sell cheap battery operated ones at stores like walmart. Getting one will help you keep good track of when it heats up and can be potentially dangerous to their health.

 

[eventgirl]

Yeah I have a thermometer, thats how I knew the AC was broken yesterday because I looked at the wall and it said 80 degrees and I freaked.

And thanks gella, so will the ears be like bright red then?

 

[gella]

It depends on their color - lighter colors like beige and whites you can see color change in ears a lot easier, and sometimes they will get warm/pink ears from sleeping on it or after an energetic playtime. I have a black velvet and ebony so when I can see a color difference (usually looks purply on them), I know they are overheated. I don't have any experience with it from temps - only after a super exhausting run in which they get a little too worked up and need to cool off.

 

[cintistatern2005]

My black velvet you can see his veins bulging in his ears and thats how i know he is getting to hot. He only does this when i am forcing critical care and he's getting aggravated. So maybe he is just angry and not hot, lol!!