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B&E Chins

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Joined
Mar 25, 2023
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28
Location
Victoria BC Canada
Hello! I'm wondering what the better pellets is for my buddies (in addition to their hay). The first bag I bought was Oxbow Garden Select and when that was finished I purchased Oxbow Essentials. I will try to post a pic in a minute! thanks!
 

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The Oxbow Essentials is considered by many to be the best chinchilla pellet you can get. The Garden Select isn't as bad as it use to be (use to have fruits and veggies in it) but still not really good. The biggest thing is chinchilla food should ideally be alfalfa based, it's the primary source of protein in their diet, the Garden Select is timothy based, making it lower in protein. You could add alfalfa hay to make up for the lower protein, but then you risk giving too much calcium which can cause urinary tract sludge and stones in some chins. It's also fairly grain heavy making it possibly gassy, and chins have a hard time passing gas.
 
Another great option is Mazuri chinchilla food. I'm not sure about the price in Canada but here in the USA, I can order 25 lbs for $25. Not saying oxbow isn't a great option because it most certainly is, Mazuri is just a less expensive, high-quality option so I figured I'd mention it. :)
 
Thanks:) maybe I can get a couple bags of different 'best' ones and switch it up once in a while.
That could work if you want to try mixing them even (Maybe 2/5 oxbow and 3/5 Mazuri to cut cost) but I would be careful about adding in/switching food too quickly. Chinchillas digestive systems are pretty delicate so you have to be careful about upsetting their tummy. I Know Oxbow Essentials and Mazuri are the top recommended pellets so either one would be great!
 
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Also, just a side note on calcium intake, a good way to check if they are doing good on calcium is to look at the color of their teeth. Preferably they should be kind of a dark orange color.
 
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That could work if you want to try mixing them even (Maybe 2/5 oxbow and 3/5 Mazuri to cut cost) but I would be careful about adding in/switching food too quickly. Chinchillas digestive systems are pretty delicate so you have to be careful about upsetting their tummy. I Know Oxbow Essentials and Mazuri are the top recommended pellets so either one would be great!
That being said, I don't know if it's really best to switch them up.(I personally haven't heard of anyone doing it safely before) I would just choose one and stick with it. Some chins also do better on one than the other so if they like oxbow, unless you just want to try Mazuri since it's less expensive, I would stay with what you are doing. If you want to mix it up, you can add a variety of treats and swap out maybe 4-5 treats if you want to give a daily treat. For example, I have rose hips. chamomile, jasmine, hibiscus, and lavender. (As well as oat groats but he only 2-3 oats once every week or two since they can cause gas if given too many) You just don't want to give too much of one treat.
 
Thanks:) maybe I can get a couple bags of different 'best' ones and switch it up once in a while.
I wouldn't recommending doing that, their digestive system is pretty delicate so switching food should be done slowly over a few weeks if possible. The recommended way to switch is 1/4 per week, so 1/4 new 3/4 old the first week, if no digestive upset then you can do 1/2 and 1/2 the next week and so on. Some chins even end up needing gas drops and probiotic when switching foods to help their gut adjust, so ideally it's best to just pick a pellet that works for your chin and stick with it.

What you can switch up though is the hay, although timothy hay should be the primary hay you can also give other grass hay like orchard and meadow hay daily, grain hay like oat about a handful worth a week, and alfalfa can be given as an occasional treat. You can also give treats a couple times a week too, here is a list of currently recommended treats (it's from a FB group I am in, they recently updated it) Oh and keep in mind that recommendations on things do change, sometime we find that things aren't as bad as we thought so they are ok to give, or find out that they do harm long term and stop recommending them.

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Also a word of caution with Mazuri, it's not as highly recommended anymore since it does contain oats, which can cause gas, as well as whey (a milk byproduct) so it can cause digestive issues for some chins. These things are not new, it just seems more chins are now having a problem (I was told in the past it's likely genetic since it seems to just effect certain breeding lines, my guess they are likely unable to digest the whey), but if your chin does well on it then it's still a good food.
 
I wouldn't recommending doing that, their digestive system is pretty delicate so switching food should be done slowly over a few weeks if possible. The recommended way to switch is 1/4 per week, so 1/4 new 3/4 old the first week, if no digestive upset then you can do 1/2 and 1/2 the next week and so on. Some chins even end up needing gas drops and probiotic when switching foods to help their gut adjust, so ideally it's best to just pick a pellet that works for your chin and stick with it.

What you can switch up though is the hay, although timothy hay should be the primary hay you can also give other grass hay like orchard and meadow hay daily, grain hay like oat about a handful worth a week, and alfalfa can be given as an occasional treat. You can also give treats a couple times a week too, here is a list of currently recommended treats (it's from a FB group I am in, they recently updated it) Oh and keep in mind that recommendations on things do change, sometime we find that things aren't as bad as we thought so they are ok to give, or find out that they do harm long term and stop recommending them.

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Also a word of caution with Mazuri, it's not as highly recommended anymore since it does contain oats, which can cause gas, as well as whey (a milk byproduct) so it can cause digestive issues for some chins. These things are not new, it just seems more chins are now having a problem (I was told in the past it's likely genetic since it seems to just effect certain breeding lines, my guess they are likely unable to digest the whey), but if your chin does well on it then it's still a good food.
Oh ok, I have never heard that about Mazuri...My chins have always done wonderful on it. You're probably right though, it may affect certain lines. Thats also most likely why Chico has also never had an issue with oats, but is does affect some.

@Amethyst something I've been meaning to ask, It says magnolia is safe. Are they referring to the leaves and/or flowers?? I know the wood is safe.
 
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