Febreeze around Chinchilla?

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frisky860

frisky860

Chrisy
Joined
Apr 9, 2009
Messages
88
Location
Aurora, IL
Hey guys, so I am getting my first chinchilla tomorrow night. It's a standard 8 week old. But I was looking into febreeze or any other air freshener. The febreeze brand has a pet odor eliminator type that is safe to use around cats and dogs. It says it is not safe around birds, but doesn't list any other pets. Do you think this would be safe to use around the chinchilla. Just occasionally when the room gets a little stinky or "pet" smelling from the poop and stuff? I obviously wouldnt spray it right on the chin but i dont know if the fumes from it would affect them. I'm guessing that it will be fine since its ok around the cats and dogs. Does anyone have any experience with this or using anything else for smell?
 
Usually, if your cage is cleaned once a week, you'll never get a smell, other than fresh pine. Somehow reminds me of fresh paint?
I have used Fabreze in the chin room, without effects though.
 
I would not use febreeze or anything with a strong scent around the chins, they really are sensitive to that. As stated, you should not get a smell, and if you do, clean the cages more often. My chins can smell when I put on perfume upstairs and on the other side of the house. I can tell because they all get up and look around like "what the heck is that?!?" I know it can stress them out and just bother them, so try to clean with vinegar and that usually helps cut smell as well.
 
I have used febreeze in the same room as my chin, but not close to the cage. I haven't seen her react to it...I don't use it very often, but when I do, I just make sure I don't have a lot of overspray.
 
I thought I read an anecdote somewhere one time about someone spraying febreeze in the room and the chinchilla dying like an hour later. Maybe someone else has the actual story. I've never really noticed a smell unless I haven't changed the liners in a timely manner. Then again, we also have an air purifier. It sounds like a lot of people have used it with no problem, though, so I really don't know!
 
I never use any kind of spray in my house for deodorizing purposes (ie, aside from cleaning the bathrooms or sinks). There is no way those little droplets floating in the air are good for chins...or humans for that matter. I have had many students with allergies and asthma that I have recommended they remove all plug in deodorizers and stop using spray deodorizers. Not a surprise, their allergies stopped and asthma drastically reduced. My chins are acutely aware of smells and I can't see how they could like it..... That's just my 2 cents.
 
seachin said:
I never use any kind of spray in my house for deodorizing purposes (ie, aside from cleaning the bathrooms or sinks). There is no way those little droplets floating in the air are good for chins...or humans for that matter. I have had many students with allergies and asthma that I have recommended they remove all plug in deodorizers and stop using spray deodorizers. Not a surprise, their allergies stopped and asthma drastically reduced. My chins are acutely aware of smells and I can't see how they could like it..... That's just my 2 cents.
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Weird, I AM severely asthmatic and I love febreeze. Especialy febreeze allergin reducer when I am at my parents house. Make my life alot easier. I wouldn't suggest drinking it but if you use it correctly aka spray and then leave the room for a minute while it settles there really shouldn't be an issue of inhaling it.

If I were to use it around my chinchilla I would have them in a diffenert room. There should also be pet cage deoderizers at your local pet store.
 
If the cages are kept clean, there shouldn't be an odor from the chins.

Clean fresh shavings do have a natural woodsy scent to them, and they drove my allergies wild when the chins were in my bedroom. But there wasn't any smell to them, as long as the cage was thoroughly cleaned once a week. I clean with a 50/50 mixture of vinegar and water; it is antibacterial, natural, and kills odor.

We switched to fleece liners, and I usually change those about twice a week now; the chin's urine seems stronger on the Panr than the Mazuri. But still, as long as the cages are kept clean, there's no odor. That's the wonderful thing about chin poo; while bountiful, it doesn't smell. :D
 
As just about everyone else has said, most people change cage bedding once a week and have no problem with smell. Chinchillas do not have a strong urine smell like most rodents do. I would not risk using any kind of chemicals, especially sprays, around them.
 
I've never used any sprays around my chins either. Like many of the others said, as long as the cage is kept clean you should not have an odor problem. The pine bedding will have a bit of a smell...I love the smell of pine shavings.
 
Chinniechantel said:
I would not use febreeze or anything with a strong scent around the chins, they really are sensitive to that. As stated, you should not get a smell, and if you do, clean the cages more often. My chins can smell when I put on perfume upstairs and on the other side of the house. I can tell because they all get up and look around like "what the heck is that?!?" I know it can stress them out and just bother them, so try to clean with vinegar and that usually helps cut smell as well.
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*wonders if Chantel has cameras in the chin room that feed into the bedroom* :neener:

I will agree, however, not to use anything like that around the chins. They can even be bothered by scented candles on the otherwise of the room if it's a cheaply made candle.
 
Thanx alot everyone for the replies. I posted the same question of Chinchillaclub forum and I only got 2 short replies back. I think this is the better forum!
 
I go by the rule that if you let it get to the point of a smell you've gone past the point of a clean cage...dig in and get it un-dirty!!! :thumbsup:
 
I'm not sure if it really matters, but most varieties of Febreeze are fabric refreshers, not air fresheners. So it is not really a good idea to just spray it all around the room, the droplets could have an effect. There are newer febreeze air sprays, but not any of the pet odor eliminator variety. Hope that helps.
 
If I use febreeze, I spray it directly into the fabric or carpeting - which is its designed use. But I think it goes beyond febreeze...any sprays or cleaning products in the house emit an odor and could potentially be hazardous to our animal friends. I do use febreeze from time to time, away from the bird and chin cages, but I try not to use any other chemicals in the home besides dish soap and the disinfecting wipes. A combination of chemicals can be deadly to anyone... just my two cents.
 
I know I am new here.....but Fabreze is not safe to spray around animals. Or even on things they touch. It contains ethylene glycol.....ANTIFREEZE! Now, a dog might have to drink a little bit to get sick, but chinchillas are so tiny and sensitive....I wouldn't risk it. Besides, it does not actually clean anything...just masks. Cleaning the carpet or couch would be better. And as for room sprays....why risk it? Ask your vet about fabreze and she should tell you of its contents. Personally, I won't have it in my house and I don't like the smell of it anyway. I would rather play it safe and treat the chins as if they were as sensitive as birds....they seem to be :)
 
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