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The Chinchilla is a gentle, timid and intelligent animal of the rodent family. It originates from the Andes Region of South America. An adult animal can grow up to 30-36 cm long including its bushy tail, which alone, can measure up to 12.5 cm. It has fine dense fur, large ears and eyes and long stiff whiskers. A fully grown animal weighs between 600 and 800 grams.
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Chinchillas have continously growing teeth and need something to chew on. Pumice stone or pieces of wood are recommended.
It is recommended that cages should be made of welded wire mesh, at least 16g in thickness, with the holes no larger than 1.9 cm (3/4 inch) square. Raised wire floors allow droppings, urine and partially eaten food to fall through, as the chinchilla is a clean animal that does not like its fur to become soiled. Chinchillas should be given a dust bath for at least 10 minutes every day. The dust is specially formulated to cleanse their fine fur of grease and dirt. Without this dust their fur becomes dull and sticks together making it part in great clumps. This is not only uncomfortable for the animals but unsightly and detracts from, what is after all, one of the worlds most beautiful creatures. |
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This information, together with all content on this website, should not be reproduced without the express permission of the NCS Website Manager. Links to this webpage are however welcomed. All material, names and logos on this website © National Chinchilla Society Website Manager - Richard Crutchley, 2001-2006. All articles, name (National Chinchilla Society, NCS) and NCS logos printed in this publication are the copyright of the National Chinchilla Society. The permission of the Committee via the Website Manager must be obtained prior to any form of reproduction by any means including electronic retrieval systems. |
