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Apollo

Apollo

Chinnie Noob
Joined
Sep 27, 2011
Messages
28
Location
Sacramento
Hey guys,

I just got my first chinchilla about 4 days ago, and I spent time next to her cage talking to her, her name is Apollo. How long should I wait till I can start to handle her? If I try to touch her she makes this squeeky noise at me. I'm totally new to all this so I apologize for the noon questions. I am learning so much from this forum and am a bit confused on why you have to use fleece hammocks verses ferret hammocks? She is also a black velvet chin. Im guessing around 4 months old? How can you tell? Thanks in advance!
 
As far as the hammock goes, the ferret hammocks are made from material with fibers that can unravel and end up getting eaten by your chin and getting stuck in their digestive system and possibly killing them. There's also the possibility of the threads getting wrapped around limbs or even necks.

Fleece isn't made from fibers like that. If a chin chews it, it won't unravel.
 
welcome to the forum! :wave3:

Apollo may just take some more time to get used to you. spend as much time as you can while she's awake, talking to her, reading her books, and letting her get used to you. put your hand in the cage and let her come to you to investigate on her terms. some chins warm up quickly to their humans, some take longer. my Guss has only been home for 17 days and he's already the biggest sweetheart with me, whereas Rhino, who's been home since February, is still a bit standoffish with me.

the reason we use fleece only hammocks is due to the way fleece is made - it cannot unravel in threads, whereas other fabrics can and pose a hazard if the chin were to eat the threads. the ferret hammocks are not safe at all due to the canvas type material and the nylon straps.

as for age, it is hard to tell just by looking at a chin. if you got her from a breeder then you should be able to get her birth date from them. if from a pet store, you'll most likely never know her age.

chins under a year should not have any treats, just good quality pellets and hay to eat. same goes for a wheel and for playtime out of the cage, because young chins need to conserve their energy to grow and fill out, instead of wasting that energy running on a wheel or running around a room during playtime.

one thing i would suggest is telling us the food you are feeding, as well as the type of hay. this will help us help you give your chin the best quality diet, as so often new chin owners are misinformed by the pet stores on what to give to chins. would be good to post photos of your cage as well, for the same reason.
 
Hi and welcome from a fellow Californian! Congrats on your new chin! Where did you get her from?

She may take some time to settle in as she adjusts to her new surroundings. With new chins, let them get familiar with you and your hands ("no chinnie, the hands aren't going to eat you!"). You can sit in front of the open cage door, with your hands resting inside. Most chins are curious and will investigate if they are comfortable. She is too young for treats but you can offer her a stick to chew on anytime she approaches and if she sill tolerate it, a scritch under her chin. Many times when the chin gets comfortanle, they'll start jumping out into your lap or crawl on your hands for more "playground equipment."

We use fleece hammocks as oposed to the store bought ferret hammocks because fleece does not have long straps or unravel with loose threads (all of which can get caught around legs or toes). Also, fleece doesn't have threads that chins will try to eat!

As for age, there's no sure way to tell unless you purchased her from a breeder. You can estimate based on weight and growth rate but every chin is different and there isn't an accurate way.
 
Fleece is the only type of cloth that is recommended for chinchillas. It does not fray, and it is hard to tear apart. If it is torn apart it comes apart in pieces instead of individual threads. Some chinchillas do eat fleece, and if they start you'll need to remove all fleece from the cage.


Take is slow with her, start out just by talking to her, allow her to come up to you and sniff your hand on her own terms. Most chins don't like to be 'pet' but rather scratched around the head, chest, and neck. Very few chins enjoy or allow people to touch their body, and butt areas. Good luck with your new baby, if you post pictures we can help you with her color.
 
She is currently eating Kaytee Naturals chinchilla, once that runs out I was planning on give her Oxbow Chinchilla, since shes already eating the Oxbow hay and seems to really like it. I will change the bedding to aspen since I was recommended carefresh, and I will take the hammock that came with the cage out since its for a ferret. Do any pet stores carry fleece hammocks? I work at petsmart and have never seen any. I love that I am learning so much! Thanks everyone, Apollo appreciates have a well informed mum.
 
No, I've never seen a fleece hammock at the petstores. Very few petstore products are safe or healthy for chinchillas. Many members of this forum (including myself) make chin safe fleece items. Here is the forum's grand master list of suppliers http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20384

The Kaytee pellets aren't healthy for your chin. I'd just throw them out and switch to Oxbow now. Aspen bedding is good, there are mixed feelings about carefresh. Personally I don't think it's safe because paper products expand when wet (in the stomach) and can form impactions.
 
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Welcome to the forum!

Every chin is different. Like some other people said, put you hands in the cage and let her investigate. Caboose let me pet her all over on the first day, Miette still doesn't let me, and Leeloo is warming up.

Oxbow is definitely better, it's what my dad and I use for both our rabbits and chins. Kaytee has too many treats and such. Just out of curiousity, what cage do you use? Chinnies like lots of jumping and playing room. ;)
 
I will switch her to oxbow for sure when her current food runs out. The cage isn't too tiny, I plan on getting a larger one when she gets bigger. It looks like this: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4471000&lmdn=Pet+Type
But it has two levels verses only once, and the ramps are all plastic, not wire. Its also about 2x the height of that one also. She has her hay ball and corn ball to play with and she loves her apple loofah chews. ;))

I also put a picture of her on here for you all to see. She is still a bit shy so im working on getting cuter ones.
 

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Had a breakthrough tonight! Apollo jumped right out of her cage into my lap and then proceeded to sit on my head! Im really glad shes coming around, she also sat on my boyfriends head hah. Such a cute girl Im so glad I took the plunge and got her. Now I understand chin fever;)
 
should she mix the junk food with the oxbow to start, or is that stuff just bad news? hate to see the kid get tummy trouble so soon after getting home.

there are some awesome vendors on here, on the supplies for sale page. i've dealt with lots of members/vendors and had nothing but great experiences.

and ChinnyMom is taking you under her wing--she saved me at every panicked post for the week before and the week Jonesy came home.

the squeak is a good noise. it's barking that means "back off!" listen to these (closely, more than once, though the bark is pretty distinctive: http://www.chinchilla-sounds.de/index_en.htm

you're doing fine. (take it from someone who is still new enough at this that she's sleeping on the couch so she can gaze at her chin as she falls asleep...my poor husband.)

pics of her and the cage would definitely be good. and fleece is pretty cheap--it goes on sale a lot, and if you don't sew, PM me and i'll let you know who my favorites are when it comes to making hammocks and hideys and pillows.

since everyone else says it, i think i can say outright that Ronda (of rondaschins.com) has the most killer wood. the sticks are too big and heavy for Jones to carry around from level to level (she's also abt to be 4 months), so i'd go the apple twigs, cholla logs, and a small amount of regular size sticks.

one last question: do you know where your nearest exotic vet and ER vet are?
 
I do actually work in a pet store where we have a vet inside, we have 2 of the best exotic pet vets in the area, so as far as that im totally covered. One of the vets actually has 3 chins herself, so needless to say Iv been asking her a lot of questions as well lol. A corn ball is a ball made of corn husk leaves i think? Apollo just picks it up and carries it around with her, too cute. I cant wait for my next paycheck to get all new accessories for Apollos cage.
 
Yes I did. Iv always wanted a chinchilla but was waiting for one that I fell in love with. I just loved her personality, and we had her for about 2 weeks and I said yes finally. Well, more like I had to beg my fiance to let me have another pet lol. I already have a small zoo.
 
don't be surprised if your fiance falls for Apollo. my husband and i are both dog lovers, but he's more exclusive: until Jonesy, he thought pets started at +50 lbs. we can't have dogs in our ap't., and after we decided to stay here another year, i announced (again) that i wanted a chinchilla. (the first time he'd looked at me like i'd said i wanted to fill the apartment with free-range vultures, and said we should hold out for dogs.) my mom is dog people, too, and she thought getting Jonesy was a little silly and frou-frou...until i told her about her TV preferences and the dirty look she gives if the DVD ends and you don't notice and put on a new one, her crafty habit of hanging out at her cage door looking desperate for attention then jumping over us when we open the door to visit, the way she refused to acknowledge me for two hours after i stayed overnight at mom and dad's. Now all I hear is "How's Jonesy?" and "I have to come over and meet her; I hope I'm not allergic."
Andy lasted a little over a week, announcing every now and then, "That thing hates me." After not quite a month, he's calling me in to watch her do something or get a picture, and the other day when I walked over to the cage while they were playing, he accused me of "hogging the chinchilla"! Yesterday, I knew he was really sprung on her--he actually gave me his debit card to go buy her the Oxbow Timothy Bungalow, then raved about how cool it is.
Being exotics and small, people think of chins as an affectation pet. Once you actually know one, I think it would be pretty hard not to get attached. Nothing against snakes, fish and gerbils; it's just that chinchillas' behavior is so easy for a human to identify with that it's easier to bond.
 
So I took Apollo in for a check up at the vet and they gave her a clean bill of health and things to look out for and basic chin care. The vet just loved her, she has 3 of her own. :wink2:
 
So do Chins go through an adolescent stage where they act like little brats? lol It seems like Haru (I changed her name, Apollo wasn't fitting), was fine and not she tries to act like a brat. She wont let me hold her, and when I do grab her she tries with all her might to fight me. But she wants to come out of her cage, just not be touched at all. Any thoughts?
 
ohyes. Jonesy will be 4 months on the 10th, and just in a month, we've been through escaping moods, ignoring us moods, a shoving and biting phase (to get me out of the way so she could get out of her cage).
last weekend, she spent a lot of time curled up inside my new Columbia fleece, taking naps and tunneling through the sleeves. this week, since i'm off and can spend unlimited time with her, she runs off every time i reach for her. (and she fears NOTHING, so it's not that--she chases the vacuum, for heaven's sake!)
she also has days she prefers me and days she prefers Andy.
i've been told this is normal kit behavior, and that adolescence will be even more not fun, but that once she's a big girl, she'll level out a lot.
also, a few people on here have said that the girls are harder and take longer to "train" than are the boys. maybe they just have a tendency to be a bit wilder.
 
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