chinchilla laying on her side

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Henrie01

Member
Joined
Apr 1, 2012
Messages
9
I have had my chinchilla for 4 months and she has been to the vet with a healthy report. However, she keeps laying on her side and it freaks me out. I live in AZ so it gets rather hot here. We have been keeping the house at most 78 (my mom wont turn the air any lower). The thing i find weird is she will lay on her side when it is 73 or something and then she is perfectly fine when it is 77. Last nightnight it wasto 77 and she was hyper running around being her normal self. Most of the time when she lays on her side, her ears arent even red and she jumps right up when you open the cage. I understand they should be in cooler temperatures, the vet said no more than 75, but i was wondering if there is any other reason why she would lay on her side consistently. She doesnt just do it during the day, she will do it at night as well.
 
Chins can suffer from heat stroke at 80 degrees, so it's best to keep the temperature under 72. The temps you mentioned are way too hot. Think about how it would feel to wear a fur coat in that heat... and then imagine not being able to sweat it off. That's what your chin is going through.
 
Chins will normally lie in any position, including on their side. My chin frequently sleeps on her side, although the first time I saw this I thought she had died! Now I run to get the camera! But I agree, your house temp is way too warm for a chin who literally is wearing a winter coat all year long. Your chin should be in a room where you can have an air conditioner. By Keeping the door closed, you can keep one room significantly cooler than the rest of the house without having to use the a/c constantly. Either a window a/c unit or a portable unit.
 
I know that my house is too hot for her and we are trying to find a cool spot for her. My room has poor ac we are getting someone to come in, so i cant keep my door close cause it can get 84 :( she is in the hallway since we have tile it keeps it a degree cooler. I have a swamp cooler but it isnt working how i want it to. My mom wont let the air get below 78 so im trying to get my room 75 but there is something about my room she doesnt handle any temp well in there. What i dont understand is why she struggles at 73 but is perfectly fine at 77, you think it would be the other wayy around. I want to find a way to keep her cool because i dont want to have to give her away. Also, my parents wont let me get portable ac, uses too much energy.
 
Chins can suffer from heat stroke at temperatures below 80 degrees (as low as 72 degrees) if they are active and the humidity is high. Please find a way to keep her cooler or find someone to take her that can.
 
Could you offer to help pay the electric bill for using the a/c? I understand totally that you don't want to have to rehome your chin, but the conditions in which she is living in - such high temperatures - makes it unsafe for her. If she suffers from heat stroke, an emergency trip to the vet will cost a lot of money. Would be cheaper to keep her at a more ideal temperature. You could also have your parents learn more about chins and their needs so they really understand that cooler temps. are a must for chinchillas. You can help cool her down a little (not a replacement for an a/c unit) by keeping marble tiles in her cage that you keep in the freezer, then wipe them down and put them in her cage. Have several on hand so you can swap them out when they warm up. I would limit any play time when the temps are high. Her running around will only heat her up more than it already is.
 
Yeah. My mom usually keeps the house at 80, I was able to talk her down to 78. I know it is not fair to her for being in such a hot environment. I do have a marble slab that I have in her cage. I also have frozen water bottles and ice packs that I keep in her cage as well. I know it doesn't replace AC, but it is what is getting us through right now. They have read up on chins and my mom has grown to like her (my mom always refused for us to get any sort of rodent). I will try to see if I can talk her down lower and pay the difference. The vet said the highest should be 75, so I'll try to talk to my mom to get it to that. Thank you for your input! :)
 
I would go with what your vet says TBH. I live in Colorado, and with relative humidity so low here, vets here say 75-78. Humidity makes a HUGE difference, more than many would think. I'm not saying the things other are saying aren't true, just that it really can vary from region to region... and that should be kept in mind.

Also, if you have a finished basement, that is a good area. Our basement is only garden level, and its still 10 degrees cooler down here than up stairs. And houses don't come with AC here :)

Also, a little portable cooler, wont use that much energy, probably cheaper than lowering the AC.
 
It's only going to get hotter as we get further into summer. It is very selfish to keep a chin in conditions like that when there are many people willing to take great care of a chin and give it a great home. I feel very sorry for her :( I hope you figure something out soon..
 
In all honesty what you're talking about is dangerous for a chinchilla. Mine get super pink little ears of they get above 70 and hop around. (Admittedly this is Portland so the humidity gets a little higher.)

People here recommend below 70 but my vet goes a step further to say:

The optimal temperature to house your chinchillas is between 50-60° F, (above 80° can be fatal) and humidity of 40% or less is preferred.
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You're past the time where buying a small air conditioner is cheap but if you really want to keep your chin, invest in one and then offer to pay the electric.

Our house is under 68 degrees and we deliberately moved somewhere with an HVAC system to keep them cool.

Other than that, if your mom won't budge, these may not be the best pets for you.
 
My sister's husband refused to keep the temperature at a lower level, so I took her chinchilla home with me... My sister was extremely sad, and cried a lot, but in the end, she knew it was best for her chin... and if it was making her that sad, how much worse would it have been, if/when her chin overheats and dies?...
 
i have my chins setup with homemade chinchillers. i take a tile ad a small plastic icepack(covered in fleece) and i stick/secure the icepacks under the tiles in several places all over the cage. they stay pretty cool that way. its one way to keep them cooler if the temperature is bad. and swap them out 2 times a day.

i also have the room set up with a fan. (i have a a chin who is fascinated by fans. she practically begs to be set in front of the fan when playing. the fan isnt actually ever pointed directly at the cage. though if she would have her way it would be)
though in the hot months i have air conditioning going as well.
 
A swamp cooler might not be enough. I live in Az as well and we could not stand our swamp cooler on extremly hot days. They just dont cool the house like an A/c does. :\ I would definitely invest in a little A/C unit for your room. Craigslist craigslist!! Fans do nothing to make a room cooler. They actually raise the temperature in the air by knocking heat particals off of your skin (and your chin) and circulating them around the room.

This is really something you should have discussed with your mom before getting the chinchilla...
 
I can understand bills and how much having an AC can cost. But basically, let your mom know, this is your chins health at risk. It's not something light and lower the temp two degrees to 78 isnt helping much at all.
Do you have a basement that is cool? I have a air conditioner in my own room with them, but if we loose electricity when it's hot out which only happened once last summer i think they go down in the basement. I would just really explain to your mom that these temps are not good for your chin at all.
 
I appreciate all of your comments! However, we have been keeping the house at 79 and the hallway stays about 77 and she has been great! It has been about a month that it has been hotter and she is doing absolutely fine. I catch her on her side a couple of times but she gets right back up. It had gotten 102 here and she was fine. We also had our AC looked at and it turned out that our attic had really bad ventilation. It was 145 in our attic! So we got that fixed and the house is still at 79 but it feels so much cooler. I was actually freezing the other night, which is weird in AZ when it has been in the upper 80-90s. Trust me, if she can't handle the higher temps in the summer, I already have a house lined up! I'm not going to be selfish and keep here if I can see her struggling.
 
Henrie01 said:
I appreciate all of your comments! However, we have been keeping the house at 79 and the hallway stays about 77 and she has been great! It has been about a month that it has been hotter and she is doing absolutely fine. I catch her on her side a couple of times but she gets right back up. It had gotten 102 here and she was fine. We also had our AC looked at and it turned out that our attic had really bad ventilation. It was 145 in our attic! So we got that fixed and the house is still at 79 but it feels so much cooler. I was actually freezing the other night, which is weird in AZ when it has been in the upper 80-90s. Trust me, if she can't handle the higher temps in the summer, I already have a house lined up! I'm not going to be selfish and keep here if I can see her struggling.
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Chins will almost always get back up. They're prey animals, so their instinct to move is stronger than their instinct to stay put. That's why it's so difficult for new owners to tell when their chin is sick.

If you care about your chin at all, you will take her to the house you have lined up immediately...in an air conditioned car. As Sandi so eloquently stated, you are definitely playing Russian Roulette with your chin's life.

Subjecting your chin to temps that high is neglect... plain and simple. Justify it however you need to, but you're still wrong.
 
Henrie01 said:
I appreciate all of your comments! However, we have been keeping the house at 79 and the hallway stays about 77 and she has been great! It has been about a month that it has been hotter and she is doing absolutely fine. I catch her on her side a couple of times but she gets right back up. It had gotten 102 here and she was fine. We also had our AC looked at and it turned out that our attic had really bad ventilation. It was 145 in our attic! So we got that fixed and the house is still at 79 but it feels so much cooler. I was actually freezing the other night, which is weird in AZ when it has been in the upper 80-90s. Trust me, if she can't handle the higher temps in the summer, I already have a house lined up! I'm not going to be selfish and keep here if I can see her struggling.
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The best we can do is tell you what you're doing is dangerous. You wanted to know why she was laying on her side. We told you and we told you how to keep her healthy.

You aren't wearing a fur coat. She's already showing you she can't handle the higher temperatures

That's what chinchillas do when they start to overheat.

The next step is seizures and death.
 
Here are a million links besides what you've been told here.
https://www.google.com/search?rlz=1...=chrome&ie=UTF-8&q=chinchillas+and+heatstroke


Chinchillas and heatstroke: http://www.chinchillaplace.com/blog/bid/5395/Chinchillas-and-Heat-Stroke

As a way of trying to release heat from their bodies, they will stretch out and lay on their sides, rather than sitting hunched in a ball or curled up.one of the big heat stress indicators. Another sign to look for is your chinchillas ear color. They try to lose heat from ears (as you can see the veins in them) so the ears turn bright red when they begin to overheat. Red = Major danger. These warning signs are followed by labored breathing and if you do not take immediate action to cool off your chinchilla, your chinchilla will likely die of heat stroke.
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http://www.freewebs.com/chinchillabehavior/heatstroke.htm

At this point of time, it would be well to remember that chinchillas do not sweat and they have a very well insulated dense fur coat which traps their heat. Their body temperatures are approximately the same as humans at 37 degrees celsius. This means that if you are breaking out into sweat and dispersing your body heat through the process of evaporation, your pet is trapping this heat. Again, my favourite rule of thumb, if you feel uncomfortable and sweaty, your chinchilla is definitely feeling uncomfortable as well, the fatal difference is he/she does not feel sweaty because he/she has no sweat glands and if you let this trapped heat remain trapped for a prolonged period of time, that is when the internal organs get overheated.
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http://petsrepublic.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/heat-stroke-in-chinchillas-part-ii/

1) Body slumped onto the floor
2) Little energy to move
3) Red red ears for pink-earred breeds
4) Heavy and laboured breathing
5) Wet fur around the mouth area
6) No prior signs of sickness
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http://petsrepublic.wordpress.com/2009/06/11/heat-stroke-in-chinchillas-part-ii/

The dangerpoint is when it gets to 20c (71f)or more, with very high humid conditions.
It will clearly show if your chinchilla is suffering from heat. They will possibly be laying on their side, panting with mouth open, difficulty breathing. Obviously distressed and
looking unwell.
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http://chinchillaskingdom.webs.com/heatstroke.htm

Heatstroke: Chinchillas overheat very easily. They should be housed in temperatures not exceeding 75 degrees with 65-70 being ideal. Fans do not cool Chinchillas; all they do is move warm air around the room. In order to ensure your Chinchilla does not overheat and suffer heatstroke you must make certain to monitor the temperature and humidity in the room. Remember humidity can raise the temperature and anything over about 100 degrees combined is almost always fatal to a Chinchilla.

Signs of heatstroke are lethargy, rapid breathing, shallow breathing, and red ears with blood vessels being notably visible, and laying on their side.
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http://www.chechinchillas.com/chinchilla-health.html


http://chinchillaskingdom.webs.com/heatstroke.htm

(In that Google search there's a pretty disturbing video of a chinchilla dying of heatstroke)
 
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