Kinda a stupid question...

[joonkleaver]

But can chins see in the dark? His room is PITCH BLACK from covering the windows so it stays nice and cool and dark during the day when he is asleep. I am terrified he is going to fall one night running around in the dark. does he need a small night light?? :hmm:

 

[Laurie]

Joon I do not think they see well as I've seen my chins run into walls and such during playtime and also jump out of the cage when the door is open because they don't realize it. I personally don't think you need to keep the room pitch black during the day for him to sleep. Everyone and everything needs light. Chins sleep just fine with light in the room too. I don't keep a light on for mine at night as they sleep in my room and believe me they are quite active.

I believe chins move around and know their cage by feel so a light is really not necessary. However natural light is definitely good for them.

 

[Sesame]

During the daytime, I keep the blinds open for natural sunlight to come in. My chin's cage isn't directly in the sunlight. I have the central air running when needed to keep the temperature down. I have this little temperature egg that I check periodically to make sure the temperature in the room doesn't get too hot.

At night, I keep a small light night for my chin. I'm a bit worried that without any light, she won't be able to maneuver so easily. also, it makes sure that I don't crash into any walls since we're both a bit clumsy.

 

[Brittany]

I agree with everything Laurie has said. I don't go out of my way to change the lighting for my chins. At certain times of day the sunlight falls on part of my chin's cage. I often find her sunbathing. So I know she enjoy sunlight.

 

[Siany]

I dont worry about lighting either, i used to worry about them at nighttime in case they fell off the shelves but not so much now. When its dark and ive woken up in the night i have gone into the room and they are always bouncing around in the dark, they look like their mad at me if i switch a light on

 

[Chintastic!]

My chins room is dark most of the time, they seem to have no problem. Personally I think they rely more on their whiskers than they do their eyes sometimes.

 

[ChinnyMom]

Rhino's room (my bedroom) faces south, so there is quite a bit of daylight coming through the white curtains on the window. Rhino doesn't seem phased by the light at all, and snoozes like a log, lol.

during the night, i leave the hallway ceiling light on that is adjacent to the bedroom, more so for me to see if i should have to go through the hall to the bathroom or to go in and check in on Rhino, as it throws just enough light through the open bedroom door.

 

[Dusty Foot Prints]

Annabelle is in a back hallway that is near the bathroom. There is varying degrees of natural sunlight, but it's never pitch black during the day. At night I have a very dim night light on, mostly so I can peek at her without having to turn on the overhead light.

 

[ticklechin]

I use full spectrum lighting in my chin room during the day, I personally think its important for Vit D production.

 

[joonkleaver]

I'm sorry, I should have worded that differently. It is not pictch black during the day. It is the south west room in the house, and one window is covered by my clothes (clothes racks on the wall and clothes completely cover window) and the other that gets the most light has a curtain on it. It is mainly to help keep the ac bill down during the summer. however, at night there are no lights outside near those windows, and with the wondows covered it is black in there at night. I'm not worried bout him seeing during the day.... was wondering if he needs some sort of little light at night after we go to bed. Thanks!

 

[Airyn]

I use full spectrum lighting in my chin room during the day, I personally think its important for Vit D production.

I don't think I've read that on here before, but it sparked an interesting thought process. Do you think the signs of Vit D deficiency in chins would be the same as in people? i.e. lethargy, moodiness, irritability. Did you have a before/after situation to notice any difference in behavior or were you just going by the base logic of it? It makes a lot of sense... I'm just curious. )

 

[ticklechin]

Vit D's function is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus and it also aids in the absorption of calcium into the bones and teeth, it has also shown to help prevent periodontal disease of the gums-a silent infection that causes tooth loss and shows up more often than you think in pet chinchillas. I feel it is important to use the full spectrum lighting for chinchilla dental health, JMO. I do have experience in using UV light therapy on a malocclusion chin that had a moderate degree of success, but that alas is another long story and I don't want to hijack the OPs thread.

 

[Sandi]

I have nightlights all over the house because of my kids who sometimes wake up in the middle of the night and for the chins as well ).

 

[moon]

There are windows in my chin room and I use natural light. I think it's important to have natural lighting as well. Every living thing has biorhythms that are linked to the natural light/darkness and are negatively effected when the natural cycle of light and darkness is interrupted for prolonged periods of time (for example, the suicide rates in locations that have prolonged periods of darkness - like northern Alaska - are much higher than where light and dark are more equally distributed over the hours of the day).

That being said I don't think they see particularly well, despite the large eye size. They probably do see better in the dark than we do, however, they rely on their other senses exceptionally well to get around. I had two kits born with no eyes, and was amazed at how well they were able to navigate - everything. If you didn't know it, you would have thought they could see. In the wild they live in caves (I almost wrote "cages" - HA!) and it would be dark much of the time.

Long answer short, they do not need a night light.

 

[Godofgods]

My two chin cages have window on two sides of them. It doesnt seem to be a big deal. But i have large huts (full size of FN shelf) that they can hide in when they want. And they always sleep inside the hut.

That way they have both lighted areass and darker areas should their mood change.

 

[Airyn]

Vit D's function is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus and it also aids in the absorption of calcium into the bones and teeth, it has also shown to help prevent periodontal disease of the gums-a silent infection that causes tooth loss and shows up more often than you think in pet chinchillas. I feel it is important to use the full spectrum lighting for chinchilla dental health, JMO. I do have experience in using UV light therapy on a malocclusion chin that had a moderate degree of success, but that alas is another long story and I don't want to hijack the OPs thread.

Thanks for the info! I was more familiar with the emotional end of the spectrum (seasonal affective disorder).