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Author Topic: So Happy!  (Read 1670 times)

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JRLeo

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So Happy!
« on: April 13, 2011, 09:14:29 PM »

Okay, so as of late I've been having a few bonding problems with my Chinchilla and him sitting under my bed all the time and hiding from me. While I try to figure out how I can block off access to my bed I've been putting Leopold in his yellow ball. I know it isn't the most fun for him, since he really can't jump or run under and in small hiding places, but it keeps him safe and out of trouble for the time being, because I'm doing some spring cleaning in my room and it's not the safest to let him roam, and the only other 'safe' place is the rest of the house INSIDE his ball, due to our two small dogs, who are more scared of him then he is of them, and our cats who think it's cool to whack at his ball with their paws, but usually give up when they can't get it to move. But anyway!

When I first put Leo in his ball, he wanted NOTHING to do with it, he'd sit in one place, pawing and trying to chew at the walls and doing what ever he thought he could to get OUT of it. And when I finally felt bad for him, after watching him paw at the walls only to end up spinning out of control like those hamsters who loose their footing in their wheels and go for a ride. Which made me laugh so hard to watch him spin in his ball... Lol. Poor Little Guy! I would let him out and back into his cage, and as soon as I let that ball door open he'd be out faster than you could say sliced bread!

But the other night, I had it. I couldn't stand leaving him in his what I think, small cage, until I can find the money to get him something bigger, and the thought of having to chase him out from under my bed after letting him have some time out, I just put him in his ball. I wanted him to have some out time, that would not stress him out, or me out with the fuss of having to get him back into his cage. So while I watched a movie in the living room, I let him sit in his ball, ever so often looking over at him only to find him rocking in his ball. At one point, I completely zoned out. And after a good hour or so, I found him running up and down the halls and into one of our other main rooms. I was so happy that he was using his ball! So much in fact, that I let him roam around until he seemed to sit in one place for a little while, thinking he was tired of his ball I went to put him back into his cage. To my surprise, when I opened the ball up he didn't jump out right away like he normally did. I had to tilt and give the ball a slight shake to get him to come out of the darn thing. It made me feel so happy that he could have some out time without the stress and fuss of going back into his cage!

And what makes me even more happy, is that just before I wrote this, I went to let Leopold out and in his ball, I thought I'd try and let him jump into his ball on his own, usually I would have to grab him and fight to put him into, but tonight! He got in all on his own after sniffing the sides of the ball! And he is running around as a write this. I am so happy that he is using his ball until I can figure out how to block access to my bed, and get my room all spring cleaned out!  :::grins::
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dianah

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #1 on: April 14, 2011, 12:00:09 AM »

great news! :) the danger of overheating in the plastic balls is higher than if they just run around the cage or a room as there's not much ventilation so i would suggest you keep an eye on this, as well as possibly doing a series of few shorter sessions rather than a long one. glad he enjoys it :)
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shooper

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #2 on: April 14, 2011, 08:41:44 PM »

I hate to be the one, but many Chin owners call these balls "death Balls" because chins can overheat soooo easy  :-\
Is the bathroom an OK place for him to have out of cage time? I would hate for you to loose your baby just because you were trying to
give him a fun time and exercise. Just be patient with the bed thing and hopefully he will get more comfortable with you!
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dianah

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #3 on: April 15, 2011, 05:24:39 AM »

i thought that myself (bought one and then binned it) but then i heard a chin owner who's also a vet (not my vet) say recently that they used the ball for their overweight chin so i'm not so sure now - although i guess she can monitor her really well given she's a vet maybe? i would still be too worried to use one myself and i'm lucky to have a designated chinchilla room so they can run around but it would be interesting to know if anybody on here has any experience with the balls?
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JRLeo

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #4 on: April 16, 2011, 01:01:41 PM »

I don't let him stay in his ball for more than 40 minutes at max. Most the time he's out of it after 30 minutes or less just because my legs start falling asleep from sitting on the floor and watching him. When he is in his ball, I do not leave him unattended. I may sit down and poke at things on my laptop, but I usually sit on the floor, and keep my eyes on him. Just for the fear of what you guys have been saying.

I guess I could try the bathroom, but it isn't very big and doesn't have much space, and the door to the hamper doesn't stay shut all the time, and I would hate to have him jump down it like our cats do. [They think it's fun] And I don't think my mom would like it if I tried duck taping the door shut, although I guess I could sit in front of it. Lol.

And our house is usually kept very cool, my mom doesn't like it getting over 56 degrees.. But I don't know. I'm working on it. :) I'll make sure to keep a close eye on him while he's in his ball and try the bathroom out.

With my old Chin, we never seemed to have a problem with him in his ball, he loved it! And when ever he wanted out of it, he'd rolled himself over to the door of his cage. It was pretty cute. Lol. I didn't know then that they could overheat in the balls. So I'll make sure to keep his time in his ball short and watch him.  :::grins::
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dianah

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #5 on: April 16, 2011, 02:40:26 PM »

good room temperature is great but if you're inside a plastic ball, running around, the temperature in there will be significantly different - similarly to a greenhouse in cool weather.

i think tolerating temperature varies form chin to chin as well, for example, all mine are perfectly fine in their cool room but mae's ears go red very quickly if i hold her for more than maybe 30 seconds. others are perfectly fine. it's annoying because she's the girl with medical issues and i need to check her and wash stuff out and obviously sometimes she struggles when i'm performing medical procedures and gets hotter quicker.

how do you watch him though? is the ball transparent? can you see his ears properly through it?

as for the bathroom, could you put something in front of the door to keep it shut?
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JRLeo

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #6 on: April 16, 2011, 04:10:23 PM »

We bought the most clear ball we could choose from, yellow. I can see him pretty well. It was better than the purple or the blue they had to offer. If it's kept clean, I can see his reactions pretty good. I wash it out after ever use, just to keep it from collecting dirty, or chinie-poop.

My last chin had a pink ball, and I quickly learned that it had to be cleaned out or it would get build up and be hard for him to see or for me to even see him, and pink probably wasn't the best color to get. Hence why Leo has yellow. If they had a clear one available I would have gotten it.

When I watch him, I just watch where he goes. Usually if he stops moving, because I can hear the ball rolling on the hard wood flooring, I'll look up right away to make sure he's okay. But I watch his ears, and eyes and what he's doing, because our dogs like to run around and knock on the doors, trying to get into the space, so I tend to watch his reactions to them, or even just to the room. I'm not saying I watch his every move every second, but I look often, just to make sure he's okay.  I'll call after him, and talk to him [Sometimes even about my homework and ask him if he wants to help! LOL], and sometimes, Ha! I'll sing silly things to him in a soft voice like, "Whatcha doing Leopold? What do ya see Lepold?" Lol I know, silly! But I know it helps to talk to your chinchillas, and I like to sing to him in a soft, and low voice. And he kind of seems to like it - I think.
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dianah

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Re: So Happy!
« Reply #7 on: April 16, 2011, 04:59:17 PM »

i had the yellow ball and the one time i put my chin in before i found out it was not a good idea (he didn't do anything so he was in there for about 15 seconds) and i don't think you can see if they're overheating through the plastic.

they do tend to keep moving when overheating, so it's not like he'll keel over if he's hot - i'm guessing when they eventually do, there's quite a chance it's too late.

i talk to mine all the time (and sing to them!) - it's not silly at all! ;)
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