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lydz

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 1, 2009
Messages
216
Location
Des Plaines, IL
What sites are good for buying pellets, hay and dust and are reasonable on the shipping?

I almost ordered from chinworld.com but the shipping was more than everything I ordered all together. And I do not want to have to buy from the pet shop.

Also, you hear so many different things from different owners that it gets confusing as to what is good and bad for a chinchilla. Are giving some treats (dried fruit) a few time a week that bad??
 
Check the classifieds section, or post a wanted ad. Most people ship in priority boxes, which is a flat rate of $10.95 I think? It just went up, so I can't keep track. When I shipped stuff, I could get like 13-14 pounds in each box, so it really wasn't bad for shipping.
 
The small flat rate boxes are 4.95, regular ones are now 10.35 (Sheesh..they were 7.35 3 years ago!) and large flat rate boxes are 13.95!
 
A bunch of us posted threads with our stores in them and what we sell in the classifieds so I agree with everyone else, go check them out!
Lots of places to choose from :)
 
Thanks, I did check it out. New to the site and as a chin owner. Acutally picking them up this week so still getting orientated.

There is so much contradicting info out there it gets confusing.
It's interesting though. My sister-in-law has a chin in Europe and hers does not chew anything around the house. They let him out and he runs around the whole house, sits with them, follows them, watches tv. He gets into things but doesn't chew on cords, furniture, etc. Just papers lying around.
 
As for your second question, do not feed dry fruits. They are too high in sugar. There are several safe options out there for treats. Rosehips (whole or crushed), apple sticks (or other sticks that are chinchilla safe), a periodic cheerio, or a unfrosted shredded wheat.
 
What's wrong with the pet shop? I try to support my local, independent pet store.
 
Pet shops can be a good source of supplies for chinchillas but they also carry a LOT of crap products too. As long as you know what's good and what isn't it's fine to shop there.

I support a local pet shop that carries Mazuri pellets, nice quality Timmy hay and their dust isn't too bad but they also carry a lot of other things I wouldn't give my guys such as those Snack Shack logs and Tiki Huts and those fruit/nut/seed bars.

This particular shop also carries lava ledges, perches and dots. Whenever I go in there I always talk to the owner and he's more than happy to hear me out when I tell him what I like, what I don't like and why, when it comes to chinchillas.

They also don't carry any live animals except for kittens, which I don't have a problem with b/c they always seem to be adopted out fairly quickly, they're spayed/neutered already and have their shots and are reasonably priced. Unlike our "free" kitten who cost us $500 for all that stuff at the vet. :rolleyes:
 
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I agree Carol Anne. I want to support my local pet shops as well, and I can get my Mazuri pellets from there, but a lot of the food for the chins and toys are not good...a lot of plastic. they also sell treats for chins that you would not want to give them like dried fruits and nuts, even though it says right on the label that they are specifically for a chinchilla.
 
Depending on where you live and what you want to buy, I found good deals and reasonable shipping on a lot of what I wanted to buy at Rabbit Stop. They have a whole chinchilla division located here:

http://www.rabbitstop.com/chinchillaproducts.shtml

Even after shipping I saved a lot of money over my local pet stores.
 
I agree about supporting your local businesses but you have to be careful about the food that you get at some or most pet stores. I was at Petsmart today to pick up some carefresh and I decided to look at the pellets that they sell for chins and they do sell several different brands there including oxbow and mazuri, but most of the bags that I picked did not have an expiration date nor a "milled" date on them, so you don't know how long its been there nor how long its been at their warehouse before being shipped to the store. Your chin really deserves to have the freshest food/hay that you can get for him.
 
Unlike our "free" kitten who cost us $500 for all that stuff at the vet. :rolleyes:

MY friend adopted a free kitten but turns out it has asthma and needs meds and was sick a few times. All in all, after 2 years she's spent at least $1500. It's the most expensive free kitten ever. lol
 
This particular shop also carries lava ledges, perches and dots. Whenever I go in there I always talk to the owner and he's more than happy to hear me out when I tell him what I like, what I don't like and why, when it comes to chinchillas.

I never thought to check my local privately owned pet store. She might even be able to get her hands on them and get them in her store.
When I first went in there looking for something for the chins she had nothing, went back and she had chin food and dust. (neither of which I use but hey who knows)
 
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