chinchilla/cat interactions

I recently moved in with my boyfriend, where we combined household pets.

I have a critter nation with two chinchillas (separate), and the one on the bottom level, Chia, interacts a lot with the cat through the cage. Chia is pretty fearless and understands that the cat can't get her, but I do wonder if she's stressed at all, or if she enjoys the attention. She's actually the happiest I've seen her, she popcorns a lot when she's never really been a popcorning bouncing chinnie, more the plotting evil deeds type.

Millie isn't even a year old so she likes to watch Chia, and is really curious. We don't let her just sit and watch or paw at the cage when we're around, but if we ever catch her, Chia is usually ignoring her or she goes right up to Millie and pokes her with her nose. She doesn't ever bark or spray, sometimes she kacks but even that's rare and it's usually when Millie is being really hyper/persistent/disobedient. Sometimes Chia scares her and she takes off into the spare room.

Is it possible they get along? I always figured any predator might make any prey feel uneasy or stressed, but Chia is pretty intelligent for her tiny brain and knows she's safe.

(Also no we never have or would let them play together outside of the cage!!)

The biggest danger is if the cat gets a paw in the cage, even a single (seemingly minor) scratch can carry enough bacteria in it to kill a chinchilla if left untreated. The CN bar spacing is small enough that most cats can't get a paw in, and some people have bought that cage over the FN for that reason. Also make sure the cat doesn't lick the chin through the cage either, they carry a lot of bacteria in their mouths too so if the chin has any little cuts or scrapes it can get infected. I have my chins in a room that the cats only have access to during the day when we are home, but even then they show no interest in the chins. Some chins are more fearless then others, mine will nip at the cats if they get too close (they have even pulled out cat fur), and one even throws wood toys out of the cage at the cats as they walk by.

I don't think they would be happy if they were shut away in our spare room, it's down the hall and I'd much prefer the cat litter be there... We discipline the cat when we're here and we cut her nails and she's never aggressive, just curious.

My chin and corgi are very similar. They'll touch noses, and she does a lap around her cage. Rinse and repeat until she wears herself, and then she goes up to one of her higher shelves to rest.

My dog isn't allowed near her cage unsupervised, and even then he's so short that she can effortlessly avoid him if she wants. He also knows he isn't allowed to paw at her cage or anything. But they both get so excited when they interact, Dessy even popcorns for him! It's beyond cute to watch my fur kids play, even though they can never be loose together.

Dog person here- I think my dogs think the chins are super fragile dogs. We've had them supervised out together and the dogs both freeze (I think they even hold their breath) anytime the chins are in a 3 foot radius. We don't commonly do this, but wanted the dogs trained in case the chins accidentally got out. (the dogs also commonly play hide and seek with people where they have to signal when they find us) Then again my dogs have tried to do the paws out but in the air play with me thing with a wild rabbit... I apparently found a line of golden retrievers without any hunting instinct. Everybody's their new best friend. (My sister's beagle on the other hand... she's got pet rats too, bad combo)
On the cat stuff- I've heard of cases where a paw swipe under the door from a cat outside the room killed a chin. I've also read about reasons not to have a litter box in the same room- I don't know if it's just the smell and that chin's respiratory systems are sensitive or what. I really don't remember but there's probably a few threads on this if you use the search function.

I'm home 90% of the time now because I'm recently unemployed, and I've found that the cat doesn't bother the chinnies at all during the day. She mostly sleeps or hounds me if I don't let her on the balcony with me. Sometimes she naps at the foot of the cage which doesn't seem to bother Chia at all, I like to think she's keeping watch but she's probably just hoping I'll finally let her tasty treat out

We keep the litter in the spare room, which is down the hall and around the corner from the cage. I like having the chins in the living room with us, they get to watch TV and watch us bustle around. I have a huge play area for them and keep the cat in the spare room if ever they're out. The space between the door and the floor isn't big enough for her paws to swipe, but just in case I put a baby gate in the hallway as a buffer in case anything happens. I don't think Millie would want to hurt the bubs but I think she would get really excited and end up hurting them unintentionally.

When the cat is too wired we end up swatting her away from the cage and I think Chia recognizes this as us protecting her, so I think she realizes we're on her side. I've literally never ever seen her this bouncy and happy, I hope she does actually enjoy the attention and company of the cat..

a person cant monitore a cats actions every moment of every day. And even if they could, it can happen so fast that there is nothing a person could do. - Bottom line is its risking the chins life and health

Having both cats and chinchillas is a health risk? Seriously? Like everyone here has both and I'm guessing not everyone here has a special chinchilla room.

I even asked on this very forum if I needed to do that and everyone was like "no just a critter nation"

So really there is literally nothing anyone can do right in anyone else's eyes... Geez, give people a break! CLEARLY I love my pets and am not trying to kill them. I wanna make them happy, not shut them in a room away from everything, so they are staying in my living room. PLENY OF OTHER PEOPLE DO THAT AND HAVE CHINCHILLAS THAT ARE ALIVE.

I don't want to have an argument with you about this so if you'd please not respond I'd really appreciate it.

Just because it doesn't always end badly doesn't mean there isn't a risk. No one is saying you don't love your pets, just that there is an inherent danger to having a cat and a chinchilla in the same area. If a cat really tried, it could get a paw through the bars and hurt the chin.

Again, no one is attacking you. They're just expressing concern.

you asked questions about cats and chins together. We gave you answers regarding cats and chins being together. - Just because it wasnt the answer you wanted to hear doesnt make it an attack. No one here attacked you, merely told you the dangers that can happen when they are together.

If my cat could manage to get her paw into a space that's a half an inch, in less time than it took me to notice, that'd be a totally different story.

However, I had already said I was not going to put them in a special room and that I do what I can to protect them from any danger (really, the likelihood of her hurting them is like 1%). So to express concern over something that does not concern you, and having already read my comments, is not helpful nor does it answer my question or really even contribute to the conversation. It is a judgment without any other real purpose.

I find these things to be upsetting, and rightly so.

There's an inherent danger to basically everything. *shrug*

This thread can be closed now. If I wanted to argue I'd have put this in the debate thing. Thanks to everyone who contributed! I think my bub is comfortable being around the cat and I'm glad.

I don't want to argue or anything, but while chins will popcorn playfully, it also serves a practical function as practice, since it's a technique used to escape predators. So it's not always a sign of happiness. Would chins usually popcorn in response to another chin? If not, may be a fear/nervous response rather than an excited happy one, particularly if your chin doesn't usually tend to popcorn and bounce around playfully. But again not arguing, just a different possibility to consider.

My Girlfriend family has Gerbils like myself, and had a cage with less than a CM bar spacing. the cat was always fine with them then one shoved its paw straight through and caught hold of the gerbils tail.

Gerbil managed to escape in the end but blood was drawn. it came out of the blue and just shows that a cat can get its paw anywhere.

I like cats but have to face the fact they are untrainable killers. and I would not have them myself anywhere near my chin cage with out supervision at the least...

Cats are nasty, their paws are nasty, you are going to end up with one nasty infection on your chinchilla is you keep up with this attitude.

If you have that unsettling intuition that this doesnt seem like a good thing, then you should probably listen to that sixth sense.

(it is likely what led you to ask the question regarding the situation.)

Trust that momma instinct!

Is it worth it to chance it?

8 years later the cat (now cats) and the bubs are still happily and peacefully coexisting. Not once has either cat harmed either chinchilla.