Outdoor chinchillas

[Chefscott]

I was wondering if it or if chinchillas would like to be outside in a safe protected zone like a 5 ft high enclosure with a cover for the top almost like a chicken wire type thing and they could be outside running in the grass of course on a dry fall day, is it possible, has anyone ever done this?

 

[ticklechin]

I did it when I first got them, it was a total DISASTER! One froze and would not move and the other scaled the enclosure and got away into the yard. That and who knows what is in the grass.

 

[ArmyWife]

I wouldn't risk it

 

[Cuddlebug]

Chins are prey animals and when you take them outside, they get frightened because they think that they are going to get eaten by something. Also, you cannot control what might come into the yard and terrorize them while they are in their cage. It is just not a good idea at all.

 

[AZChins]

I had a customer last year put her chin outside on a nice day in a playpen. It overheated because it was in direct sun for 20 minutes or so, it was maybe 70ish outside.

Don't put chins outside...they won't enjoy themselves for all the reasons that other people have given. They get so scared outside, they want the comfort of an enclosed indoor area.

 

[3CsMommy]

Short answer: NO! They can't tolerate heat, they're freaked out by flying/slithering creatures, they can get skin fungus if they get damp and don't get dry... so generally speaking, they need to be in a climate-controlled area at all times. You'll see YouTube videos of people walking their chins on ferret harnesses or (in a move that nearly gave me an apoplexy) "taking them swimming", but it's not a good idea. It's usually too stressful for them. Often it's outright dangerous and cruel (seriously, a chinchilla swimming for its life in a lake. If I could reach through the Internet and throttle somebody...).

 

[Chefscott]

thats a big 10-4, and thanks, god i feel like an idiot

 

[Zoaea]

thats a big 10-4, and thanks, god i feel like an idiot

Don't feel like an idiot for asking an honest question. <3 Idiots are the people that know better but still do it. ^_^ Besides a lot of normal pets do like outside so its normal for you to wonder if that had applied to chins or not.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Ok, so what about the natural environment? Obviously chins lived in the wild. Have we bred the ability to survive out of them? Not trying to start something, just wondering. Many cats know how to hunt and will catch food to survive, as will dogs scavenge to find enough to eat. If you built an outdoor enclosure and let them out in the evenings, and built it of rocks and wild type grasses to mimic their habitat, then do you think they would enjoy that?

 

[Stackie]

Our domesticated chinchillas are very different than their wild counterparts. They have been bred in captivity for years for thicker fur, bigger size, etc. with no wild specimens being brought in the "vary" the gene pool. Not to mention their natural environment is cool and has very low humidity- hard to find here in the states. Our domesticated chins are comfortable in their cages- that IS their natural habitat. You can't mimic something they're not used to and haven't lived in for generations upon generations and expect them to be comfortable in it as their "natural" habitat.

 

[AZChins]

Our chins aren't really much like wild chins. They are much different from wild chins as far as their size and body composition goes. And, they really don't have much instinct for survival. They can run and hide, but I don't think that any of my chins could find food on their own if left outside to forage and live on their own. Chins get so frightened outside, an enclosure outside probably would scare them. It may as well be built inside. They do enjoy having a nice play area, but it may as well be inside since there's nothing at all to be gained by putting them outside except they will probably be very scared.

 

[ChilliPepper]

Thank you. I wouldn't let my guy out, nor do I have the inclination to build something so elaborate. But it is a question I get asked a lot, why can't you put him out on the concrete? Why does he have to have playtime in the bathroom? etc...

 

[AZChins]

I don't think there'd be a problem with concrete. Playtime in the bathroom is because it's easy to keep the chins from getting into anything or getting lost or have them hide, you can do the same thing in any room as long as it is appropriate and safe for chins.