Non-nocturnal chin?

[Chinzilla]

So I have always heard that chinchillas are primarily nocturnal, or even crepuscular. However, my new chin (4 month old female who I brought home a little over a week ago) is soooooooo active during the day. She jumps on every ledge and perch in her cage, hops in and out of her hammock, puts her paws longingly up on the cage bars wanting to come play, and runs all over when I let her out. This starts at about 6 am and then if she's got sufficient play out of the cage she will settle into my lap and fall asleep there around 8pm and remains relatively calm in the evening and seems to rest at night. Has anyone had experience with a non-nocturnal (diurnal) chin?

 

[InkedupTara]

Slippers seems to get up at noon and then be in bed by 10 pm. Maybe because she is new and there are new noises she is up, or maybe she is just liking that schedule

 

[oxchincerelyxo]

I know that when I am active is when I see the most activity in my chins. I work most nights from 3pm to 11pm, so they are awake usually from noon till three, then sleepy time till the boyfriend comes homr around 6ish...then a last short play right before I go to bed...but when I work mornings they sleep in till I get home....


Maybe she is just used to your schedule being an early one...maybe it'll change with age...I guess you just have to wait and see:winkers:

 

[KrisLynn]

I've read that some chinchillas can be trained to be active during the day. Max is definitely a night owl - the second my light flips off he's bouncing around.

 

[Chinzilla]

My other chin is definitely a night owl, comparatively. She's very active starting at around 6pm and gets some great run-around time between then and 10 and I know she's up most of the night. When she was in a cage in our room she would beg to be talked to or played with at about 1am. Right now they are in separate rooms and I'm worried that if I try to put them together they are going to annoy each other with these totally separate sleep patterns!

 

[iayla]

As stated by the others, chins can learn to adjust to your schedule. If you are consistantly on the same schedule every day, they'll learn to be most active when you are most active.

When I worked afternoons, my chins were most active during the night, after midnight. Because thats when I would get home & let them play, give them the most attention, and so on. Now that I work midnights, they are most active in the morning (when I get home) and again in the evening when I check on them as I'm getting ready for work.

~Barb~

 

[Jenn]

Tinkerbell is active on and off throughout the day. She will be up in the morning, afternoon, and early evening hours. I think she hears the rest of us in the house so she tends to be up as well.

 

[Essentia]

I think Chula just sleeps whenever he's tired. Sometimes during the day, sometimes at night. I don't think he's ever put himself on a set schedule.

 

[JennyBug]

My two girls are awake on and off throughout the day on days when my husband and I are home. They seem to take a nap for an hour or two, be awake for about an hour or two, then back to sleep. They almost always fall right to sleep after evening playtime!

 

[TinaM]

Chins aren't nocturnal. They are crepescular.

 

[Chinzilla]

Chins aren't nocturnal. They are crepescular.

Yeah, I mentioned that in my first post of this thread...but I was commenting on how her behavior doesn't correspond to being crepuscular either.

 

[TinaM]

My bad. I guess I skimmed too quickly. Anyway, my chins usually just go by my schedule. There've been times on the weekend when I wanted to clean during the day so they came out and played and dusted at that time.