Newbie

[ckap]

I just got my first pair of chinchillas, two males about two weeks ago. To my surprise we had 4, yes 4 babies this morning...surprise! So not only am I a newbie to chins, I now have babies! Mom is solid black, dad is solid white. Mom had a grey and white mosaic, an all white, a solid light grayish, and a little darker grayish. No white on the greys bellies (at least not yet). Mom and babies are doing great!! She is nursing, cuddling and cleaning the kits. I have separated mom and dad and just put their cages right next to each other. The babies are 40gm, 43gm, 44gm, & 45gm. They seem to be nursing and then all are running around and playing. I have not seen any fighting. Is there ANY advice for me? Anything I need to do? Anything to watch for? I was soooo overwhelmed when I first saw them this morning, but now I feel better. Mommy is doing such a great job! Thanks in advance!!

 

[tunes]

Monitor their weights once a day at the same time, watch for fighting, make sure there are no shelves or ledges where a baby can fall or where mom can get away from the kits, and be sure your bar space is no more than 1/2 x 1 inch in size so the kits can't escape.

There is an FAQ under the chin breeding and babies section that you can read through that is a good read for new breeders.

 

[ckap]

thanks

This is quite a surprise! I hope it continues smoothly!

 

[Cuddlebug]

You need a scale that measures in grams for weighing them. Watch for kits fighting. They can really do a number on each other. And of course, read the FAQs on breeding and caring for kits.

 

[jbcstratton]

This is the reason I just took in 8 new chinchillas, someone was selling them to anyone and they had pairs together and 3 new babies, guess what? I seperated pairs and at this time at least one female is pregnant. Same thing would have happened to someone around here. Thankfully I will ween the kits and find pet homes for these guys. Good luck to you!