Chinchillas and dogs

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Pepper18

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Joined
Apr 26, 2019
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My boyfriend wants to get a dog but I am worried about having the new dog around my chinchilla. She lives in our living room and I don’t want to have to move her into a bedroom and close her in by herself. Is it safe to get a dog? What kind of dog breed would be best? Would a trainable puppy be better or an older more mellow dog be better?
 
I would try to find a breed or dog that has little to no prey drive, so terriers and hunting dog breeds for example are probably out of the question. It really comes down to individual dog's temperament more then breed though, and how it's raised. It's hard to say if a puppy or older dog would be better, a pup you don't know how they will be yet, but you can pick a more laid back pup and hope for the best. An older dog you know is already mellow, but if it's never been around small animals you don't know if that is a trigger for it.

Two of my dogs (a lab mix and a collie) I got as puppies so they were raise and trained to leave the chinchillas alone, they were also the more laid back of the litters when I picked them out. However my chins are also in my office, so they don't have access to the room were the chins are unless I am home and awake. My third dog I have to keep in a different part of the house when he comes inside because he has a very high prey drive, so he can't even be in the same side of the house with them. He is ok with my cats, but any other critter is prey to him.

Also keep in mind that chins are prey animals, so some may become very very stressed by having a large predator move in. Some people have resorted to actually cover the bottom portion of the cage so the chin(s) can hide from the cat(s) and/or dog(s) in the house.

Some other suggestions are put a pen around the cage so the dog can't go anywhere near the cage. Dogs carry bacteria in their mouths that can be deadly to chins, so no licking the chins or even licking the cage allowed. Also dogs go outside so they can carry things in their fur that can be dangerous to chins (like sticks and plants) as well, so you don't want the chin to get a hold of anything like that. Outside cage playtime should be done only in an area that has either been fully cleaned or the dog can't get to, and obviously no chin and dog playtime together.

I would also make sure the dog is either kept in a different room at night and when you aren't home or crated so it can't get to the chin if you aren't around to supervise.
 
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