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« on: January 24, 2011, 09:11:05 PM »
I rescued a Chinchilla that we affectionately call Tug Boat or Tug, right now. We just got him this past Saturday and his hair is in terrible shape. It is very greasy and unlike my other chins his fur doesn't really move. For instance, if I blow on my other chins coat it will part and I can see the skin but with Tug's coat it doesn't even move. He is also so obese he has fat rolls and I'm not sure if it's because he was in a cage that he couldn't jump around in or if it's because he is so large but he can only jump as tall as he is when he stands on his back feet.
So here is my first question. Right now I'm regulating how much pellets he gets but allowing him to have unlimited Hay. Is that okay? If so, how much pellets should he get? He lived in a large cage but it had ramps all through it so he never jumped anywhere, his old home also said he was not social at all so they never let him out of his cage. Since he is overweight we have been letting him out to stretch his legs twice a day for at least 15 mins each time. He loves this time and we seem to be bonding pretty well, he will even come and sit in my lap after a little while. Is there anything else I should do be doing for him?
My second question is how often can he get a dust bath and is there anything else I can do for his fur? His coat has a lot of tuffs of loose hair hanging out all over his body, can you brush chinchillas? If so what brush do you recommend?
Thanks everyone! Tug appreciates any and all advice!!
Ashley
