Things to Put in Your Chinchilla Cage
Time to deck out your pet’s home. Here are a few chinchilla supplies that are essential.
A House –
Your chinchilla will want a cozy place to get away. A wood house is ideal because it will give your chin something else safe to chew on. There are plastic houses available, but it should be obvious by now that plastic is not a good option for your chinchilla cage. These are very easy to make, since it can be as simple as a wood box with a hole. Below is a Woodlawn Get-a-Way.
Water –
A water bottle attached to the outside of the cage is the best option. These will have a ball in the tube which will stop the water from leaking. The chinchilla will have to move the ball up for the water to come out. I’ve heard of people using water dishes, but I don’t think it would be worth the hassle of cleaning up.
Food –
Chinchilla food is obviously very important. It is best to go with a quality brand of food. Some good examples are Oxbow, Traditions, and Mazuri. Personally, I bought Oxbow in bulk online. A lot of the food that is on the shelves at your local pet store is full of filler and not particularly healthy. The same can be said for a lot of the treats.
Hay –
High fiber hay is important for your chinchilla’s digestion. The most common types of hay are timothy and alfalfa. Alfalfa hay is very high in protein and other nutrients. Because of this, it should not be your only type of hay. It should be handed out as more of a treat, or to a chinchilla that is nursing. Most stores will have hay racks to put in your chinchilla cage, or hay cubes are also available.
Bedding –
It comes down to using newspaper or wood shavings in the bottom of your chinchilla cage. If you use wood shavings, use Aspen or kiln dried pine. DO NOT use cedar. Choosing chinchilla bedding may seem like a no-brainer, but there are things you need to watch out for.
The Dust Bath House –
No showers for these guys. Chinchillas take dust baths and they love it. 10 minutes a session, a couple times a week, is plenty. It is not good for their skin or fur if they are allowed to hop in whenever they want. If you want to keep the dust bath in the chinchilla cage, you can find (or make) something with a door that closes. The chinchilla dust bath is a good way to get your chin back in it’s cage, as well.
Things to Do and Thing to Chew On –
Besides the fact that you want to spoil your chinchilla, they will need things in their large chinchilla cage that will provide stimulation. You have to keep your chinchilla stimulated to keep them happy. Tubes for them to run through and hide in are great to have. Hammocks will give them an extra place to hang out in. Wood or lava ledges can be bought to add on to your cage. This gives the chins somewhere to stand and something to chew on.
Lava rocks and wood sticks are good for your chinchilla to chew on. Without something to gnaw on, dental problems, such as malocclusion, can occur.
For exercise, the Flying Saucer is a pretty cool invention. Exercise wheels with spokes can be dangerous.
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