My new cage, some questions

[BenD188]

I build this cage myself. It is 4ft high, 4ft long, and 2ft wide. I currently have 2 chins in there right now and they have plenty of room to run around.

My question is do you think there is enough room for a third chinchilla? Right now I have two male chinchillas and I am thinking about a third.

Also, anyone have any ideas of anything to put in their cage that they are missing out on? I ordered a fleece tube as well as some other hanging toys to swap them out with the others. They seem to be entertained enough by all of their toys that they don't even chew on the wood shelves. They LOVE the wheel... they are always on it. It is so silent that I can't even hear it when I'm in the other room unless you really listen for the sound of their feet hitting the metal.



Pictures of the boys...

 

[eroomlorac]

Yes, I believe there is plenty of room for a third chinchilla. But you never know if all three of them will get along. So it's up to you. You may end up with two chinchillas in one cage and a third chinchilla who might not fit in with them personality wise. You never know and you are taking your chances when you try to add a chinchilla.

 

[Sugarmama]

That's a beautiful cage! You did an awesome job. There's plenty of room.

There are no guarantees on chins getting along. Some do, some absolutely will not accept another. It's even harder with 3. The first two you have may get along, but when you add a third personality into the mix....Sometimes the first two even stop getting along. It all depends on the chinchilla.

So, if you want a third, make sure you are prepared to have an entirely different set-up in case they don't get along. I had two who were getting along famously, and tried to introduce a third...they got along for about a week, and then the fighting broke out. Fortunately, I was home, but I ended up having to put all three in a separate cage for a while, and then re-intro the original first two. I don't think I'm going to try to get all three to get along again; chin fights can be vicious and deadly.

And yet, I have a trio that gets along wonderfully. Go figure. It all depends on the personalities of the chins.

 

[Sandi]

That's a great cage you built! There's plenty of room and your little guys are absolutely adorable! As everyone said you just never know if they'll get along with another chin. Good luck.

 

[Chinniechantel]

I agree with what has been said. There is plenty of room.

May I ask where you got the wire sides of the cage? It looks really nice, sturdy too!

 

[BenD188]

I think they were purchased at a Lowes or Home Depot. It was a birthday present so a few different people bought all of this.

As for introducing a third chinchilla.. I have another cage already, but it is one of those Petsmart ones with plastic wires (given to me by a friend). I would be fine with that cage during the quarantine time but I wouldn't want a chin to live in it his whole life.

During quarantine do all of the chins share the same play time? Or should they stick to separate play times until the quarantine time is up? I have read that it should be 15-30 days. It was to my belief that you are supposed to let them share play times to see how they react to each other, correct?

 

[Chinniechantel]

No, quarantine means they cannot have ANY contact at all for 30 days. Not 15, but 30 days. They should be in separate rooms, as far away from eachother as possible. Fungus, Giardia, and lots of other bad things can spread otherwise. It is very important that you do this. You need to wash your hands and change clothes in between chins as well.

After the 30 days, then you start having play time together, and then cages side by side, etc.

 

[alli713]

Awesome cage! And good luck if you do decide to get another, like was already stated, it really depends on the chins. Some will get along, some won't. And yes, for the quarantine, they would have to have separate play times, no contact at all. And really they should have playtimes in separate areas of the house too to avoid anything similar coming into contact.

Just one thing I wanted to mention, you should ditch those log snak-shak things. They're made with honey which is not good for chins. Atleast that's what those log things look like to me, forgive me if I'm wrong and they're something else.

 

[EveningChin]

As ChinnieChantel said, quarentine is for a full month. 2-3 days give or take is ok but a full month is needed for the new chin to not only make sure any diseases it maybe carrying can present themselves and/or pass, but so the new chinchilla get become aclimated his new surroundings and so that his gut Flora can stabalize on the new food he is eating. If you just dive in it causes the new chin alot of stress and can be hazardess to his health.

Washing your hands between handling is another things that should be done but changing your clothes can be a bit excessive. If you spend time with the chinchilla pressed against your body or after a play time where the chins have been running on you this maybe something you should do but I just really don't have the waredrobe or the time to change 5-6 times a day.

I would not put them together untill they have had their cages next to each other for a few days so they can get used to each other scents. After a few days then I would try a playtime. I'm very cautious about this because I just got back from the vet, Nyx got her stitches out today. This was after 2 weeks of living next to each other, two play times, and living in each others cages. Petra Shredded Nyx's ear and bit her shoulder enough for a few stitches. Nyx's ear will always be cleft. Its a delicate process and things can go poorly in the blink of an eye.

 

[whiskers387]

Is that a chin spin? If so are those quiter than the silent spinner plastic ones?

 

[Sasha]

Is that a chin spin? If so are those quiter than the silent spinner plastic ones?

Yes it's a chin spin. I would think it's quieter. Those chin spins are probably the best wheels you can get for a chin.

 

[xwalkawayx]

sick cage,
what did you use to hold the metal together on the sides?

(i spy harry potter)

 

[Gizmo24]

Beautiful cage! well done.

 

[Brittney]

what did you use to hold the metal together on the sides?

Looks like Zip Ties... could be wrong, but that's what it looks like to me.

 

[~*=Phoenix=*~]

I was also wondering if those were zip ties (especially the one holding the door tothe cage). If so, those should be changed.