Author: JoAnnThis is in reference to the local Petland. Also, not mentioned in the article, the parents gave birth to a beautiful female white mosaic kit while there ... I decided, when I saw, it less than 12 hours after it was born, I had to have it. I took the money I was saving for one and paid on my little Misty and everything she would need. I went to see her daily and played with her whole family. By the time she was 6 weeks old everything was paid for in full. I had to be out of town for 3 days when she was 8 weeks old (but Petland would not let me take her home until she was 12 weeks old). When I got back, I stopped at Petland even before going home. My Misty was injured and they didn't even realize it ... but I did, the minute I saw her in the corner just sitting there shaking! Not playing like she normally would be doing. Later I would find out someone had improperly handled her and broken a rib and punctured her lung. She died a very slow and painful death. The assistant manager (the so-called-breeder) took her home with him that night ... she died during the night. The reason I refer to him as the so-called-breeder is because the housing provided for them was from his specifications. They were in a glass/wood enclosure with a florescent light on them 24/7, no air flow, a bowl of water, a plastic hut and a plastic dust bath container left in the cage 24/7. The wood was press wood covered with a plastic covering that ate on constantly. And they were fed a mixture containing nuts ... giving the female liver failure due to a fatty liver from the nuts. It took me another year and a half before I could get my first chin ... during this time, I spent hours and hours daily, learning every thing I could and am still learning more each day.
Of Luv'n Chins
How and Why I Became, and Still am a Breeder
My first encounter with chinchillas was a beautiful white mosaic male in a pet store. He was the most beautiful and the softest thing I had ever touched ... and he touched my heart in a way like no animal had that I had ever seen before. It was love at first site. I had to learn more about these wondrous, precious little fur balls, even if this one would never be mine. (With a $599 price tag, he was beyond my reach at that time.) As the weeks went by, his family was brought into the store and I found myself spending a couple of hours a day 3 or 4 times a week with them. After a few months, the complete chin family had died, due to mishandling and lack of knowledge by the caretakers in the store. Sadly, in the future, I would find this to be the norm and not the exception to the rule. It was heart breaking. I vowed to get my own chins someday and know how to properly care for them.
She said she wished the person you bought him would have taken this chinchilla too as they had gotten a long so well.Apparently the person that said it has no idea that chinchillas will mate with the opposite sex, even if they are related. Insest is one thing you do not want with chinchillas, it usually means trouble.
And yet people still keep going back and buying them and so the pet stores stock more and more chinchillas.
It's a vicious cycle..... :::(((
if you would be so kind in telling them how to cage them the poor things are sooo hot too cause they are all laying down on their sides they have a small plastic like hermit cage thing in ther with a ice pack in it but it wont get them cool enoughDone
I guess I could never be a good breeder cause I would always want to play with them and let them out and stuffYou don't have to have 100's to be a good breeder either. being a good breeder shows in your level of care, love concern for your animals and being able to make the right choices in breeding and keeping chinchillas.
You don't have to have 100's to be a good breeder either. being a good breeder shows in your level of care, love concern for your animals and being able to make the right choices in breeding and keeping chinchillas.
I finally took some pictures of the my chinchilla room. This is the best. It shows my cages along with my extra ones on the old freezer ready for new babies when I have them! ::nod::
Cinsi is...standard...from Mr. Shoots last year at the Rock Hill show...is...1 and 1/2 years old and her mate Toby, tan, is...from Jamie...is 3 years old. This will be their first litter.It being their first litter, will make it a little easier.
"I don't know when they actually mated because I didn't see a mating plug or really have any idea that they even got along. I never saw them in the same cage together."It only take one time and only 10 to 15 seconds. Out of all the litters that have been born here, I've only seen one mating plug.
He was always in the run looking down at her like she scared him to death.He probably tried before she was ready and she beat him up. ::)
Now that I have them separated and he can't get into the run any longer. He sits and cries when I am cleaning the cages wanting to get to Cinsi. The other day I let them sniff noses and they just kissed and kissed making little sweet sounds at each other.He was finally patient and won her over ... they miss not getting to cuddle. If you have the door that closes off the run so he can not get to her, it might calm both of them if they can see and smell, but not get into the same cage.
It is just a waiting game around here.
The local pet shop is no better. We go in there to look at the puppies and buy bedding but that’s it, the only other chinchilla products they carry are Kaytee products. We were in there a few weeks ago, and I was shocked they actually had a chinchilla.
The sign said "male and female $199 each or $350 for the pair," but there was only one in the cage. It was adorable, much bigger then Maggie and it’s coat was very nice looking, a lighter gray (I’m not sure of the official name of the color). So I ask the clerk it's gender and age and he says it's a boy and he has no idea how old. "He" was very friendly, ran up to me and sniffed, he let me rub his head even.
So I was there last time, and he's still there, and I ask the other clerk there about him. Well now he is a she, but we still don't know her age. This clerk said the other chin they had in the cage with her was her brother. She said she wished the person you bought him would have taken this chinchilla too as they had gotten a long so well. I asked if the boy had been neutered and she said no of course not...
I feel really bad for that chinchilla, if we had more money and space I'd buy him too.
So this poor chinchilla I wrote about below is still at the pet store, I go by occasionally to torture myself. The food in his/her cage is filled with colorful dried fruit and the dust bowl is left in the cage constantly (always full of poop). The cage itself is a single level box, kind of like the super pets ones, but not as tall and not even one ledge, her plastic hut is always overturned.
One time I went in and this guy was there with two kids and walked past the chinchilla and said, "Whats this? Some sort of retarded rabbit?"
At that moment I felt mild irritation, but fear set in as I listened to the woman behind the counter describe them as easy to care for and cuddly. I piped in that I owned a chinchilla and she was neither cuddly nor cheap to care for, the woman replied oh all animals are different. :flames: :flames: :flames: :flames: :flames:
Still this chinchilla seems happy, and lets me rub her head. The chin has beautiful beige (I think) fur.
I want to buy her/him so bad and for some reason they've raised the price even more to $219. I'm sure right now we couldn't afford another chin and chin cage but I hope she holds on till we can.The local pet shop is no better. We go in there to look at the puppies and buy bedding but that’s it, the only other chinchilla products they carry are Kaytee products. We were in there a few weeks ago, and I was shocked they actually had a chinchilla.
The sign said "male and female $199 each or $350 for the pair," but there was only one in the cage. It was adorable, much bigger then Maggie and it’s coat was very nice looking, a lighter gray (I’m not sure of the official name of the color). So I ask the clerk it's gender and age and he says it's a boy and he has no idea how old. "He" was very friendly, ran up to me and sniffed, he let me rub his head even.
So I was there last time, and he's still there, and I ask the other clerk there about him. Well now he is a she, but we still don't know her age. This clerk said the other chin they had in the cage with her was her brother. She said she wished the person you bought him would have taken this chinchilla too as they had gotten a long so well. I asked if the boy had been neutered and she said no of course not...
I feel really bad for that chinchilla, if we had more money and space I'd buy him too.