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note that a lot of chinchilla breeders do not use runwheels of any sort due to a high accident rate with chinchillas. I have mixed feelings right now due to how much my chinchillas love the runwheels but I am looking for alternatives to give them a chance to run when they want to.

seen a few small animal breeders make hundreds of their own disk style ones... usually out of plywood and bearings with screw holes for attaching them.

I have to take that back... the Red Arrow line used to accept caged pets on select trips but now they only accept registered service animals (like seeing-eye dogs). This could be solved though if I personally transported any animals that needed transportation through Saskatchewan or Alberta (but...

When I used to live in Calgary 2 decades ago, there were regular guinea pig shows held in Alberta. It might work well to bring the two events together if there are still guinea pig enthusiasts having meets. I will explore that possibility. I think Toronto area has some chinchilla groups along...

hi from Saskatchewan

There used to be Canadian chinchilla shows but not anymore. Is anyone interested in a Canadian show and where abouts are you (rough idea to decide where it would be easiest for most people to meet)? I am willing to do some leg-work to try and organize a meet or show but only if there is interest...

here are some YouTubes of chinchilla tricks http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=724becYYHYs http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MMBSSZCM82g http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t85ivNFXmyY They can bounce off walls and do back flips (seen that in person) but have not seen very good videos of this. One...

I wish to try making runwheels as a hobby/cottage industry. I know some people recommend only using solid bottoms but others say fine mesh bottoms are fine and stay clean longer. I was wondering if any of you have opinions on the bottoms and suggestions for improvements over what is available...

just an update, the two current babies are both still alive and healthy-looking. One has gained more weight then the other though which is not a good sign but other then not weighing as much as her sister, she seems healthy (including fat layer on her ribs and color on her teeth). There are a...

Silly dancing hedgehog animation on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aDX3yr3eyB4

This is specifically the problem I have... need to provide some sort of pleasurable experience dozens of times a day... need a treat that is acceptable in larger numbers without health risks. I do find giving them normal food can trick them into thinking they are getting something special but...

The agricultural products store near me (called CowTown) sells small bales of high quality hay meant for treats to horses so it has to be better then regular hay. This is usually the case but not always. Still, at $10 for about 30 lbs, it is a dozen times cheaper then any bagged hay and they do...

I have not had the opportunity to do any serious training efforts with chinchillas but have trained a number of other rodent species in the past. YouTube shows some cool tricks by these other species but looking for chinchilla training, they were just doing boring stuff. Chinchillas have amazing...

Two tests for acceptable wire floors: 1) make sure the wires are thick and smooth enough that you will not hurt yourself jumping on it as high as you can with bare feet. This will make sure the wire does not bruise the feet causing a condition known as bumblefoot. 2) make sure that foot-sized...

For the power outage backup, thermal mass can do the trick for several hours or even days. The best is tanks of water. Of course this takes up space but if heating is your concern, the water tanks can be placed under the floor but on top of foam insulation (and insulate the sides). A vent in the...

I have 3 females with a male... all standard grey color except the current mother is slightly lighter. I had a darker chinchilla in the past (I believe that shade is a "velvet") so I don't think there are lethal genes at play. All three females had a litter but only this one had two litters. I...

In the recent past, I had a pair of baby chinchillas who appeared healthy and active but after about 3 weeks, one was found dead and about 7 weeks in the other also died. Their bodies had no injuries, enough body fat to not feel the ribs, and color on their teeth (likely no mineral...

hi there! I have been raising small mammals for decades including hedgehogs in the past. Right now I am concentrating on degus with a side-order of chinchillas. About 2 weeks ago, one of my chinchillas gave birth to two healthy girls but I have had some past baby chinchillas die for no obvious...