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Christina Noraas

Christina
Joined
Sep 28, 2010
Messages
537
Location
Mc Grath, Minnesota
So my boyfriends grandma was a chinchilla breeder, and when I got the pair (Big Momma and Rex), they already had two babies that came with them, the babies have now been given to other homes already, and the mom was pregnant when I got her, now she is due any day now and I would REALLY appreciate some help.
You see I'm a senior in High School so I'm gone from 6 in the morning until around 4:30 at night, my mom is constantly home and such. The pair are living in a home built cage, because I simply did not and do not have the money to buy one from the store. Before any one asks or says anything, the babies absolutely cannot escape through bars, because there are none. I don't know how to explain it, anyways they can't escape that way, HOWEVER the only thing that I am worried about is them escaping through the bottom doors, due to the fact that it is homemade (provided by my boyfriends grandma so it is safe to live in for them) the doors are shut with wires, I am so worried that the babies will sneak through and I will never see them again.
I let Big Momma and Rex out at-least 6 out of 7 nights a week (they live in my bed room) so I was thinking maybe that'll help locate the babies if they do abandon ship.
I have asked around in so many different places, and I have not received any helpful answers, this is my last hope.

So here are my questions:
1.) I know that they are born fully furred and eyes open and such, but how long does it take them to get REALLY active as in like crawling around to the point where they will find their way out.
2.) If they do find their way out, and I let Big Momma out will they come back to her or will she find them.
3.) How will I know when she is going to have them or if she has had them already and I'm too late? :[
4.) What are some definite signs of her going into labor or going to have them soon, her nipples are long already by the way.
5.) Will they stay with the mom right away, and will she stay with them because I have a 3 level cage.

Anything else you can think of would be GREAT. Thank you!
 
1.) I know that they are born fully furred and eyes open and such, but how long does it take them to get REALLY active as in like crawling around to the point where they will find their way out.

A couple hours. Once they dry off, they are moving. They will nurse off mom for quite a bit of the time, but they will also run all over the cage as well.

2.) If they do find their way out, and I let Big Momma out will they come back to her or will she find them.

No. If they find their way out, they will most likely hide and die.

3.) How will I know when she is going to have them or if she has had them already and I'm too late? :[

You won't. Not even the most experienced breeder can tell you down to the exact day or hour when a chin will deliver her kits. For all of us, it's a wait and see situation. If she has already had them, often times you will find blood on the shavings, maybe a piece of the placenta, mom may still have some blood around her vagina, and, hopefully, you won't find any body parts lying around.

4.) What are some definite signs of her going into labor or going to have them soon, her nipples are long already by the way.

She may start stretching on her side a lot. Not just laying, but stretching. She may burrow down in the bottom of the cage and not want to go up on any shelves (which you should remove in any case, so she doesn't have the kits up there and one falls), she may not be interested in eating or drinking. Her vagina will appear open. Right now it should be closed if you look at it, as she gets ready to deliver, it will start to open up to allow for passage of the kits.

5.) Will they stay with the mom right away, and will she stay with them because I have a 3 level cage.

Depends on the home. As I said above, the levels should be removed, both so mom will stay with the kits and for the kits safety. If they are born on the top level, then they could easily fall and die.

A few thoughts - call some small pet stores in your area, mom and pop types, ask if they have any old cages they would sell cheap (I had to do this with a rat that had little ones I wasn't prepared for). Check Craigslist in your area. Even if you can get a 1 level cage, you can wrap it in hardware cloth and it would be pretty cheap. If you have to use the one you have, then remove the levels so there is only the bottom available and get some 1/2 x 1 inch wire to block the gap under the door.

BTW, mom is going to get pregnant again, and she will continue to do so over and over until eventually it may just kill her. The only way to prevent that is to have a second cage where you can move dad so that he does not breed her back. She's already had one, apparently, with this current litter. If she continues to do so, it will eventually deplete her body to the point that she won't survive.
 
I don't use shavings, I use second crop alfalfa hay that we bale our selves so it's a little hard to see blood there, because they like to burrow down into it and fluff it up. I do not want her to have another back pregnancy, but how long do I have to wait to make sure that she is recovered enough before she has more kits. Although, she is really, really good at telling Rex "No", she pees on him a lot.
 
It literally takes a chinchilla seconds to breed. Even with her telling Rex "no" it's still a possibility he bred her. He can breed her BEFORE she even delivers the kits since chins have a uterine horn which allowed them to conceive and carry two separate litters at a time. He should be removed now, if you believe she is pregnant.

You should switch to shavings and limit the alfalfa hay. Hay is supposed to be eating for fiber supplement, and alfalfa is usually not the first choice for that since their pellets are already alfalfa based. Good shavings would be KD pine bedding (same stuff they use for horses) and it is very cheap.
 
Reading your other post, I thought I would add, you may want to learn a lot more about chins before continuing to breed them.
 
I thought you weren't supposed to use pine for chinchillas? I was always told that it could cause health problems for them??
 
Reading your other post, I thought I would add, you may want to learn a lot more about chins before continuing to breed them.

I'm actually going to try to prevent her from becoming pregnant again, so that way I'm not so panicky, plus the breeder that I got them from is going to be moving less than 10 minutes away from me, but thank you. :]
 
I'm actually going to try to prevent her from becoming pregnant again, so that way I'm not so panicky, plus the breeder that I got them from is going to be moving less than 10 minutes away from me, but thank you. :]


I doubt your boyfriend's grandma knows much if she advices feeding guinea pig food because rabbit food makes them sick.
 
I doubt your boyfriend's grandma knows much if she advices feeding guinea pig food because rabbit food makes them sick.

She wasn't the only one who said that I asked in multipule forums and looked on various websites and most said about the same thing. It is very hard to decifer what is good information and bad information out there.
 
Christin, take a look through the FAQ's on this forum. There are a lot of forums out there that have bad information, I know of one that recommends letting chinchillas run in the death balls...regularly, and I have seen first hand how dangerous those plastic balls can be. I know of a "big" rescue that recommends feeding GP food for chinchillas. I don't recommend it and never would for the simple fact that a chinchilla is NOT a guinea pig. There are chinchilla specific diets and suitable rabbit foods that work as replacements (Purina Rabbit Chow show)...not EVERY rabbit food is suitable for a chinchilla, but no guinea pig food is suitable. Heck, even some chinchilla foods aren't suitable for chins! It all has to do with finding the correct information...which can all be found on this forum. ;)

I would recommend, for now, to separate the males and females like you said you were thinking of doing. Learn more about chinchillas and their proper care from this website (the information is updated whenever we get new information) since what you read on here is up to date AND accurate. The creators, admins and mods of this forum have worked very hard to provide the chinchilla community with a reliable resource.
 
She wasn't the only one who said that I asked in multipule forums and looked on various websites and most said about the same thing. It is very hard to decifer what is good information and bad information out there.

Yes, that is very true. There is loads of incorrect and harmful, even lethal information on chinchilla husbandry out there. I've never actually heard of feeding guinea pig pellets to chins, but I don't doubt that multiple web sites promote it. I pretty much stopped searching for sites that have info from pet owners when I found this forum.

I think the point being made is that your boyfriend's grandmother obviously came by some misinformation and the concern is that she is applying other misinformation she might have heard thinking it was sound advice.

The best thing is to follow the advice here on the forum.
 
Yes, that is very true. There is loads of incorrect and harmful, even lethal information on chinchilla husbandry out there. I've never actually heard of feeding guinea pig pellets to chins, but I don't doubt that multiple web sites promote it. I pretty much stopped searching for sites that have info from pet owners when I found this forum.

I think the point being made is that your boyfriend's grandmother obviously came by some misinformation and the concern is that she is applying other misinformation she might have heard thinking it was sound advice.

The best thing is to follow the advice here on the forum.

I am going to inform her of it the next time I am able to talk to her, and our local feed store carries that type of rabbit food so I will pick some up on my way in to town the next time, thank you! I've been reading the site in and out since I officially became a member, I have a note book dedicated to chinchilla stuff with notes. :] I have been working very hard to double check what is already in the note book with the information I found on this site, I'm thankful that so far I haven't had very much bad information, but there is more than what I had hoped for.
 
Christin, take a look through the FAQ's on this forum. There are a lot of forums out there that have bad information, I know of one that recommends letting chinchillas run in the death balls...regularly, and I have seen first hand how dangerous those plastic balls can be. I know of a "big" rescue that recommends feeding GP food for chinchillas. I don't recommend it and never would for the simple fact that a chinchilla is NOT a guinea pig. There are chinchilla specific diets and suitable rabbit foods that work as replacements (Purina Rabbit Chow show)...not EVERY rabbit food is suitable for a chinchilla, but no guinea pig food is suitable. Heck, even some chinchilla foods aren't suitable for chins! It all has to do with finding the correct information...which can all be found on this forum. ;)

I would recommend, for now, to separate the males and females like you said you were thinking of doing. Learn more about chinchillas and their proper care from this website (the information is updated whenever we get new information) since what you read on here is up to date AND accurate. The creators, admins and mods of this forum have worked very hard to provide the chinchilla community with a reliable resource.

It's actually christina. :] Death balls, you mean the exercise balls, I have one but I only used it to carry them around in and to set in my lap, I didn't ever let them run around in them, they were just a good way to keep their fur off my clothes and still being able to enjoy them, because I heard that they could over heat in them, and I didn't want to force them to run about in their urine and poo, plus I would be scared to run in one. Are there certain types of exercise wheels that aren't acceptable? I bought one recently because school was coming up soon and I wanted them to still be able to exercise while I was gone, the one that Petco. suggested for me was a plastic wheel that is solid all the way around and I think is about 12 to 11" When I asked if I should buy the chinchilla flying saucer or what ever it is, they told me that they don't like to use it very much and I thought that it would defeat my purpose of buying an exercise wheel thing at all.
 
All of those plastic exercise wheels that the pet stores sell are too small. Unfortunately, really the only place to get a good one is online. Chinchilla exercise wheels have to be around 15" so that their spine doesn't curve when they run on it.

Good exercise wheels are the Chin Spin and Flying Saucer, both of which Quality Cage carries.

http://qualitycage.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=129_142_143_144
 
All of those plastic exercise wheels that the pet stores sell are too small. Unfortunately, really the only place to get a good one is online. Chinchilla exercise wheels have to be around 15" so that their spine doesn't curve when they run on it.

Good exercise wheels are the Chin Spin and Flying Saucer, both of which Quality Cage carries.

http://qualitycage.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=129_142_143_144

That's what I thought, that it looked to small for them. But the lady insisted that it was just the right size, I'm going to get a saucer this upcoming weekend when I go to the cities.

But they haven't been using it very long, no real damage has been put to their spine has there?
 
Do you mean the saucer that you saw at the pet store? The plastic one? Those aren't any good either, they don't attach to the cage in any way, so they can fall over... not to mention they're plastic... and plastic doesn't last long with most chins, and can cause impaction if they eat it. If you can't afford the good wheels at the moment, just save up. Your chin will be fine without a wheel until you can get a good one.

I would think the chin would be fine. If you had the wheel in there for 10 years, then I'd worry, but a short period of time, should be no damage done.

ETA: that's what I hate about the pet stores - they insist that their products are great for chins, and really, if you don't know any better.... people buy the stuff because "the lady at the pet store said it was ok!" I'm not poking fun at anyone, you didn't know and assumed the pet store person did - but I wish the pet store people would simply just admit when they don't know... or at least not pretend that all their products are great for the animals if they don't know one way or the other.
 
Do you mean the saucer that you saw at the pet store? The plastic one? Those aren't any good either, they don't attach to the cage in any way, so they can fall over... not to mention they're plastic... and plastic doesn't last long with most chins, and can cause impaction if they eat it. If you can't afford the good wheels at the moment, just save up. Your chin will be fine without a wheel until you can get a good one.

I would think the chin would be fine. If you had the wheel in there for 10 years, then I'd worry, but a short period of time, should be no damage done.

ETA: that's what I hate about the pet stores - they insist that their products are great for chins, and really, if you don't know any better.... people buy the stuff because "the lady at the pet store said it was ok!" I'm not poking fun at anyone, you didn't know and assumed the pet store person did - but I wish the pet store people would simply just admit when they don't know... or at least not pretend that all their products are great for the animals if they don't know one way or the other.

I have some money saved up, but thank you for telling me that so I didn't end up wasting my money on it. I'll look at the website that you provided thanks!

That was the only time I bought something from a pet store other than that I've been trading with other chin owners or making my own stuff. But I kept going up to the employee and I kept asking are you absolutely positive and she just said yeah, our chins us it and they love it.
 
I highly doubt that pet store employee knew what the flying saucer is. All of my customers I have had had no idea what the Leo Braun or the flying saucer was.
 
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