Is it safe to buy baby chin off of Craigslist?

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Ingola

Ingola
Joined
Mar 4, 2013
Messages
31
Location
Canada
Hi,
I would like to buy a baby chin off of a person who is not a breader. He has 3 new born babies, 2 females and male. One of the females is pregnant again which upsets me. He now sales them for $50 and up.
What are your thoughts?
How will I know that they are healthy?
Thank you.
 
How do you know any kit is healthy?! You either personally trust the breeder or trust their reputation for breeding quality animals. Without that....it's a crap shoot.

And just as a clarification are you saying the mother of the kits is pregnant (which I believe to be what your stating) or one of the female kits is pregnant?
 
I would never buy a chinchilla from a breeder that I didn't trust and I've only bought from breeders that show. I'd buy from all of the breeders I met at two shows because they all showed a dedication to breeding that I respect. If you don't like the practices of the breeder why would you buy from them? Your purchase only gives them room to breed more.
 
My chins come from top breeders all over and I have sold on craigslist but I always thoroughly screen the potential buyers and ask all kinds of questions aout the living arrangemants, what they will feed etc....And they come to my home so I can get more of a feel for them and see how they interact...I have also turned people away as well...Craigslist can be iffy but also ok if you are smart about it....
 
If he has kits available often then he is a breeder. Anyone who says they aren't but has litter after litter is lieing. I wouldn't trust someone who can't tell the truth that they breed. If he chins don't have peidgrees I wouldn't even bother. Sounds like a byb to me.
 
In my opinion... if someone has infant animals of any sort (any animal under about 3 months or so) they are breeding and using craigslist to sell. This is first of all against craigslist terms and conditions. First of all, why would anyone have babies if they weren't breeding? There are the few cases where people buy a chin and it's already pregnant etc. But if I have dogs, cats, chinchillas, whatever... who are unaltered and mixed genders are living together then I am breeding. It could be out of stupidity, carelessness, or whatever... but it's still breeding in my opinion. You see tons of people doing this on craigslist. It's not really a "rehoming fee" if you're breeding. You intentionally allowed animals to procreate and are now trying to get money for it.

That being said, I agree with the others who say you can't guarantee any kit is healthy. Even if it comes from a great breeding line there is no guarantee it will not have any issues. However, if you have a reputable breeder you can possibly get a refund or at least inform them so they don't continue breeding an animal who is producing sickly kits. Things like fur chewing, malo, and other diseases would be things I'd want to let a breeder know about. Also, much of any animal... or even people, is how well it's cared for after the animal is born. A chin given quality pellets, hay, lots to chew, good environment, etc. is going to have a better chance at being healthy. If you want to take the risk just know it is the risk you're taking. Also, keep in mind you may be supporting an irresponsible breeder. It's not really worse than picking up a chin from Petsmart though... and it sounds like it's a heck of a lot cheaper. Pet stores here want like $180 for a chin and most of them are over 6 months old when you get them. To me if I had no other options I'd rather get an 8 week old for $50 than an 8 month old for $180 if the risk was the same.
 
Here is my take on Craigslist...while there are plenty of backyard breeders on there which I do not condone the issue I have is that soooo many people are aware of Craigslist vs. other sites... People are familiar with it and because of that will look there to get pets. I have advertised on Craigslist, Hoobly and Ebay classifieds and honestly the Craigslist "brand" so to speak is the most widely known... therefore I do sometimes list chins for sale on there... I wish more people were familiar with sites like Hoobly but I just don't seem to get much traffic from there and quite honestly I would rather potential Craigslist buyers come to me before some of these others I have seen on there... While the drama and reputation of Craigslist is certainly an issue amongst people who are more familiar with the pet trade most of the time the general public has no clue and they just want a pet and unfortunately Craigslist is where they know to look...
 
If you don't want to encourage his breeding practices I would buy a chin from someone else. Look for local breeders or rescue a young chin that is being resold on craigslist because the owners didn't know what they were getting into..

Either way it is your choice, make sure you get a chin that fits you and not just to save it. That way you can have a long term pet that you enjoy.
 
There is no guarantee that buying a chin anywhere be it a award winning ranch or
Petco will result in a healthy chin free of health issues, that said I would not buy from this person because it appears he is using these chins as baby making machines.
 
Selling chinchillas on craigslist is not against the terms. Chinchillas are considered "livestock" as they are "farmed". Therefore, because livestock sales are allowed--chinchillas may be sold.

That said, I personally use Craigslist, Hoobly etc as a source to sell my animals. I've found great homes from there, I've found people I turned away. I've had a sale through the forum go horrible, I've had good sales through the forum... Buyers have had good outcomes with craigslist, they've had bad... they've had good on the forums, they've had bad... So in the end... Only you can decide if they are reputable-- be it forum, show, craigslist, local paper etc.
 
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