Tons of Questions re Cage Size, Hay, Fur Chewing

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Nef

CnH Supporter
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Dec 15, 2010
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Hi everyone -

I recently got my chin and I'm loving her soooo much. She's almost 4 months now. I got her from a breeder and also got a cage from there, which at that time thought it was a pretty decent size (second largest cage from that breeder), but now I've seen you guys' cages and felt that my cage is very small!!

1) The cage is 30" X 24" X 15". It's split into two levels and it's one of those wire mesh cages with litter pans underneath and a ladder on the side, so really each level is about 12" with a 3" litter pan. Is the cage too small for my baby? Is each level too short for her to jump around?

2) I've put tiles on the floors with fleece wrapping around them. Unfortunately the fleece doesn't absorb very well so now I've removed the fleece in the lower level (She only pees in the lower level corner). I've also removed the tile at that peeing corner so she pees directly into the litter pan. I put an open-tunnel thingy (forgot what it's called) on top of that corner so she won't be able to jump into that wire mesh. Do you guys think that should be fine? Should I still cover that corner anyways with absorbent fleece just in case her legs get caught in there?

3) She had been eating her hay cubes but recently I introduced her to Oxbow Timothy hay and looks like she loves it so much that she doesn't wanna eat her hay cubes. I don't want to waste those hay cubes since I still have a ton of them. How do I get her to eat them more? She still eats them, but much less than before and only when she finishes all the timothy hay. And can you switch to all timothy hay all of a sudden?

4) How do you stop her from chewing her fur? She has tons of toys already, in my opinion. She had been chewing much more before, then chewed a little less, then after I introduced her to timothy hay but didn't give it to her all the time since I want her to finish her cubes, she chewed more again. She makes the "I'm lonely" sound occasionally. That's probably one of the reasons? She gets an hour of playtime in the bathroom every day. I watch TV at night with her cage around me. So really, I'm only around her 7-8 hours a day and the rest of the time she's just in the cage with no noise and no one around. Is that okay? I feel that she's lonely all the time.

Sorry for this long long post! I'm posting some pictures of my little girl here. I think she's super adorable!!
 

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Welcome to the forum

I recently got my chin and I'm loving her soooo much. She's almost 4 months now. I got her from a breeder and also got a cage from there, which at that time thought it was a pretty decent size (second largest cage from that breeder), but now I've seen you guys' cages and felt that my cage is very small!!

1) The cage is 30" X 24" X 15". It's split into two levels and it's one of those wire mesh cages with litter pans underneath and a ladder on the side, so really each level is about 12" with a 3" litter pan. Is the cage too small for my baby? Is each level too short for her to jump around?
Did she come from Valley View? I've had a few rescues come in those cages and I absolutely hate them. The 1"x1/2" wire flooring is horrible and the perfect size to trap feet.

3) She had been eating her hay cubes but recently I introduced her to Oxbow Timothy hay and looks like she loves it so much that she doesn't wanna eat her hay cubes. I don't want to waste those hay cubes since I still have a ton of them. How do I get her to eat them more? She still eats them, but much less than before and only when she finishes all the timothy hay. And can you switch to all timothy hay all of a sudden?
Don't worry about her not liking the hay cubes, the loose hay is much better for her. You can try just giving her the occasional hay cube as a treat. Switching straight to timothy hay is not a problem.

4) How do you stop her from chewing her fur? She has tons of toys already, in my opinion. She had been chewing much more before, then chewed a little less, then after I introduced her to timothy hay but didn't give it to her all the time since I want her to finish her cubes, she chewed more again.
Unfortunately, a lot of chins from Valley View are fur chewers. If loose hay vs cubes stops or reduces her chewing, I'd most definitely stick with the loose hay and not worry about the cubes.
 
Yes she and the cage were from Valley View. Should I change the cage? The floor is less of a problem now since there are tiles, but will the sides cause a problem too? Thanks for the advice!!
 
Fur chewing is genetic, nothing you can do about it. She will stop and start for whatever reason. Responsible breeders do not breed chewers.



Note from menagerie: I've split off the Fur Chewing Discussion. As it is a great topic but detracted from the original post.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Back on topic

Yes she and the cage were from Valley View. Should I change the cage? The floor is less of a problem now since there are tiles, but will the sides cause a problem too? Thanks for the advice!!
The sides will not cause a problem. She will be fine in that cage for a while. But I would make it a goal to get her a different cage. I am happy to see that you didn't get the wheel from Valley View is it is not big enough and the running surface is made out of the same 1"x1/2" wire mesh.
 
Thanks everyone for their comments and advice!

Menagerie - yea I'm glad that I didn't get the wheel there. Does she need a wheel now? The only exercise wheel that fits into the cage is the small flying saucer from here: http://www.flyingsaucerwheels.com/wheelinformation.html. But the website says the most ideal one for chinchillas is the standard size one. Another thing is that, if I fit a saucer into the cage, there isn't really much space left in the lower level anymore. So I'm not sure what to do.

How long can she stay in her current cage, do you think? Perhaps a year?

Thanks!!
 
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