Chinchillas

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**Chinchillas are nocturnal animals. Sometimes they are called crepuscalar, meaning their activiity peak is in the morning and at night. If somehting interesting to them is going on though, they will be awake during the day. They like to be keptin a quiet area. They eat a wide viriatiy of grass, hay, fruits, and vegatbles. They can aslo eat pellets specially made for chinchillas. Chinchillas average life span is 15 years. Some can live up to be 18-22. The body length of the chinchilla is 10-14in and the tail can be up to 6in. The scientific name of the chinchilla is //Chinhilla lanigera.// Chinchillas have a sensitive digestive system. They need a vegitarian diet low in fats. If they happen to have a fatty diet then it can result in serious digestion proublems. Chinchillas can have treats also. You can give them treats but only a teaspoon a day. Rasins are a good treat but you must use very little, about 3-4 a week. Dust bath are really good for chinchillas. They use them to shine up their coat and keep them healthy. It's also realaxing for them, Chinchilla dust is made special for them. It is made to look and feel like real dust in the wild that they would roll in.** A **regular dust bath is an absolute necessity for chinchillas. Taking a vigorous dust bath is one of their natural behaviors, and is how chinchillas keep their lush coats clean and healthy.The dust baths help to keep their thick fur smooth and silky. Indeed, chinchillas really get into their baths, rolling and flipping in the dust with great abandon. If you have never seen a chinchilla in a dust bath, have a look at** [|**this video**]**.** **Always use store-bought chinchilla dust for bathing. This is specifically made for** **chinchillas and this purpose. When the chinchillas roll in this dust, it penetrates their coat down to the skin and absorbs oil and dirt from the fur. Other powders or sand may look or feel similar, but just won't work the same way -- chinchilla dust is made to mimic what they would have access to in their native habitat. The dust should be at least a couple of inches deep in whatever container you use, so that the chinchilla can effectively roll in it. "Blue Cloud Chinchilla Dust" and "Blue Sparkle Chinchilla Dust" are two commonly recommended dusts, but just make sure you get one made specifically for chinchillas.It is fine to re-use the dust for several baths. Make sure to scoop out any waste when the chinchilla is done each bath. If the dust starts to look clumpy or dirty, discard and use fresh dust(Everything in this paragraph is from sorce 5).** ======

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**Chinchillas chew on wood. They need to have some wood in their incloser. There are a lot of toxic manmade wood pieces out there. Make sure to look at what they are made of. Wood sticks and blocks are good chew toys for them. For water,you would need to have a glass bottle so your chinchilla can't chew through it. The best way to provide fresh drinking water is to use a gravity-fed water bottle attached to the front of the cage. Use one of the large ballpoint bottles to prevent dripping and make sure there is a constant supply is available. Water bowls are not suitable becuase they are easy to tip over and can get contaminated. ** ** The chinchilla has a very sensitive digestive system which has evolved to process a high fiber diet of grasses, fruits, leaves, bark, roots, stems, insides of cacti and available bugs and grubs.Chinchillas need lots of fiber. Hay should be available to your chinchilla at all times. This is essential to keep the digestive system healthy and also to help wear down their continually-growing teeth. The chinchilla diet must be very low in fat and they should never have sunflower seeds or peanuts in their diet. They can easily become overweight if they have too much fat and, over the long term, it can actually be fatal. ** **Chinchillas are little rodents, they are found in South American mountains. You have to have a cool, peacful area for your chinchilla. The cage should not be where direct sunlight is because the chinihlla can get overheated easily. The temperature should be 77ºF and wheels can also be good for your chinchilla. They provide great excercise for chinchillas. A sugested size might be 15in. Anything smaller might be too small for your chinchilla. Their litter size is one to five babies. Chinchillas don't usually like to be held. They come in many different colors. You will mostly see a grey, dark gery, or black chinchilla. A very rare color is a goldbar chinchilla (See figure 1).** ====== 

4. [|**http://exoticpets.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ/Ya&sdn=exoticpets&zu=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.chinchillaparkplace.ca%2Fcolourchart.php**] 5. http://exoticpets.about.com/od/chinchillas/a/chindustbath.htm 6.http://www.supremepetfoods.com/languages/sus/65.htm
 * 1. Chinchilla. Dog Breed Info Center. 5, Feb.2009.** [|**http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/pets/chinchilla.htm**]
 * 2. Chinchillas.About.com. 5, Feb.2009** [|**http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/chinchillas/p/Chinchillas.htm**] 
 * 3.** [|**http://exoticpets.about.com/cs/photogalleries/l/blphchin7.htm**]