First time chin owner - a few mistakes

[Myt]

I found this site about an hour ago and have been surfing through the pages since. Unfortunately I've come to realize my boys that I adopted about 2 weeks ago have been slightly mis-cared for. I also have a few questions about them.

Nothing too horrible of course, but things that need to change ASAP. I was hoping to get some help so I can put these guys on the right track.

1. Raisins. I really wish I had known about these little monsters before hand. I had been giving them each two raisins a day. That's going to stop right now. In an attempt to gain the boys' trust, is there anything I can give them more than once a day? I've learned that treats are to be once per day, but is there anything out there that I can use to begin to establish a bond with them?

2. Are pumpkin seeds from Kaytee suitable for chins? I have an entire jar left over from my robo hamsters and I was curious to see if they were safe for chins? If they are, how many a day should they be limited to?

3. I've seen a lot of threads that say NO PLASTIC SHELVES. Unfortunately that's what I was given with my boys. ): If plastic shelves are a no-no, then what is acceptable? I have a potential cage that I can purchase off of CL, but I don't want to go ahead with the sale if I find out that the cage is not chin-safe. The cage has wire shelves, with a plastic bottom. If this isn't acceptable, what is? As much as I would LOVE a FN, I simply don't have the funds for one right now.

4. Fleece liners. What exactly are these and what are they used for?

5. Can a chin eat too much hay? I've noticed my boys have been consuming an amazing amount of fresh timothy hay, along with gnawing on a few alfalfa cubes.

6. Unfortunately I don't believe they are eating their pellets. If they are, it hasn't been a considerable amount. Thankfully that was something I did right; I bought pellets and not Kaytee Fiesta mix. The couple I adopted the chins from gave me what was left of the food they had been feeding the chins, but they don't even seem to want that. They are drinking out of their water bottle regularly though.

I hope I'm not asking too many redundant questions. I did search the forums for my answers, but I couldn't find exactly what I was looking for. Please don't be too hard on me... I should have done all this research beforehand. :/ I really want someone to help set me on the right track so I can be a good caregiver for my boys.

 

[mishellyshel]

Well welcome to the group. It'd always good to do research & now that you are here you will get lots of good info.
No raisins. NO nuts or seeds.
Plastic shelves are ok if your chins dont chew plastic. If you catch them chewing remove the shelves. Wood shelves are more desirable. If you can make them or afford to buy them that is the best option.
Fleece liners are used in place of shavings. Instead of changing shaving you wash the liners. It is a personal preference. They are a little less messy in my opinion plus you can pick fun patterns to decorate your chins cage.
No they can not eat too much hay! Chins love the taste and need the texture & coarseness to wear their teeth.
Treats that you can give your chins in place of raisins are unsugared mini shredded wheat, pinch of old fashioned oats, rosehips, cheerio, dried rose petals. No more than 1 of those per day or less. Something you candice your chins that they love & it can be unlimited are prepared wood sticks. They especially love apple wood!

There is a to of info here. Look around and ask away. I prefer to buy supplies from vendors here instead of pet stores. Better variety and prices even with shipping.
Plus if someone lives close to you than there Is options of pickup and even shared shipping. Hope that helps!

 

[Myt]

I'm honestly glad I found this place. I feel a little better now knowing that at least now I can start doing everything right.

The raisins have thankfully been given to my boyfriend, he'll eat the squishy little terrors. The seeds will now be given to the new owners of my robos, now that I know they're not allowed either.

I so far haven't had a problem with them chewing on anything they're not supposed to. I give them a lot of chew toys including a ka-bob with 5 different chews on it (including apple wood ) , simple wood chews scattered around the cage, plus the aforementioned hay cubes. I think eventually I will switched to all wood shelving though.

I like the idea of a fleece liner. I'm a little afraid of having an allergic reaction to the bedding I'm using (hence why we no longer have the hamsters...). With a fleece liner does this mean I no longer have to buy bedding/shavings at all?

I'm very glad to hear they can't have too much hay. I feel like these two are hay maniacs - everytime I turn around they're in that hay tray.

I used to be obsessed with pet stores, but after some browsing around here I think that's done and over with. I think I'll start buying supplies online from people that actually know what they're doing.

Thanks for all the info mishellyshel!

 

[rutherford]

i bought a quality cage company cage for my chinchilla, rutherford. it was pricey, but i see it as a longterm investment because it is durable and provided that he is healthy and i take good care of him, rutherford will stick around for 10+ years. anyway, the website sells individual pine shelves, http://qualitycage.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=129_142_143_149 , that you can check out. it's not too expensive, and it does the trick. rutherford bites his shelves quite often and these shelves definitely withstand a lot of his nibbles.

as for not eating their pellets, i don't think you need to worry too much as long as they're eating their hay. at times, rutherford prefers pellets over hay and rarely touches it. maybe switch the brands? i tried that, thinking maybe it was the brand or perhaps the hay wasn't fresh anymore, and it worked.

 

[Myt]

I think eventually down the line I will buy a FN because I do love the look of them. Thank you for the link to the shelves, I'll be sure to check that out.

As for the pellets, it would make sense that they weren't fresh. The people I got my boys from didn't quite seem to know what they were doing. I am actually awaiting a package in the mail containing some Mazuri feed, so I hope they take to that.

 

[Irishsk8r66]

i am not a hundred percent on this so please feel free to correct me if i am wrong but i think the pellets are alfalfa also so if they are eating the alfalfa cubes then wouldnt eat as much of the pellets....maybe? possibly??? just a thought but im not sure.....im a newish owner myself

 

[emily]

In regards to the fleece liners.

If you have them, then you dont have to put shavings down. I just have a little pan (a glass pyrex dish) with some shavings in it, and my chin pees in there.

The liners catch all the poo, etc, and i take them out every few days, shake them off in the woods, and lay down another set!

Easy peeeeeasy!

 

[Myt]

Irishsk8r66: I suppose this could be possible, but I'm not sure.

emily: The more I look into these liners the more I want one! Did you have to train your chins to use the dish to pee in?

 

[Dusty Foot Prints]

You can try the litter box method by putting a bit of the used litter into a Pyrex dish and adding fresh litter. Some chins never get the hang of it, but a lot do.
Welcome to the forum, and in the words of Oprah- "when you know better, you do better". :thumbsup:

 

[Myt]

Just wanted to throw an update on here since it's been roughly a week since I posted.

It actually is amazing how much happier they seem. Caught them popcorning for the first time during playtime today!

I've found out their new favorite treat is shredded wheat! They will come up to the cage and beg me for one.

I bought about 2 yards of fleece, so I'm going to be experimenting with making liners, a hay bag, fleece tubes, etc. Wish me luck, I'm not particularly handy with a needle and thread!

They're now eating their food, but unfortunately I did finally find out what brand of food they had been given before I got them; Wild Harvest: Western Timothy Essentials. Hopefully when my shipment of Mazuri gets here they'll like that more!

I also have one question. Are there any brands of pine shavings that you don't want to use for chinchillas? I have a fresh pack of shavings in my trunk, but I didn't want to use them unless I knew it was okay.

 

[Cuddlebug]

The brand of shavings doesn't really matter, as long as they are either pine or aspen. Definitely no cedar as it can cause respiratory issues.

 

[Myt]

I'll probably end up using Aspen because it seems to be easier to get.