Painting around chins

[Cuddlebug]

Is zero VOC paint safe to use around chinchillas?

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

I've been told it is when I ask about painting.

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43633

 

[midevalmiss]

I will never paint around small animals again. I think that is what killed my last hedgehog Storm. My husband and I are going to be moving soon so we are painting the old place to spruce it up. We took Storm out of the room and keep her out for 2 days for the smells to dissipate. 2 days after putting her back in the room she was gone with out any singes. I whent that night to get her out for play time and she was gone :cry3: she seamed fine that morning when I gave her new water. Nothing else changed just the painting. So if you paint keep your little one out for a week if you can.

 

[Babydoll]

Um, I wouldn't feel comfortable using any kind of paint around chinchillas or other small animals. They have sensitive respiratory systems, so you never know how something could affect them, no matter how safe the product may claim to be. I am unsure of what you are painting or how much, but I recommend removing your chin from said room. Place your chin in another well ventilated room. I agree with midevalmiss, to be safe you should probably leave the chin out of the room for a couple of days so the paint can set and any odor dissipates.

 

[ccchins]

To answer your question, yes a paint with zero VOC is safe to use around animals and small children. VOC ( Volatile Organic Compounds) are the "fumes" that people are talking about. Using a paint with no VOC is what most schools and daycares use nowadays. I just helped a breeder insulate, drywall and paint the inside of a barn to house her chins. the min we were done we moved them in and had no problem. You can't even smell that the room had just been painted. Make sure that the paint is a No VOC not a LOW VOC.


Steven
CCChins

 

[Cuddlebug]

Seachin and Steven,

Thanks. You confirmed what I thought was the case. We will be painting the cement floor of the basement. It is a 580 sq ft open area with a huge egress window that is unfinished. Except for the corner with a washer, dryer, water heater and furnace, it is all just for the chinchillas. Eventually, the whole room will be dry walled and finished properly with good lighting, an area for evaluating the chinchillas and a little office section, but it will always be for the chins. It would be quite difficult to move the chinchillas out of their room to paint since there is nowhere in the house to put them. I currently have 38 chinchillas that are split up into trios (breeding herd), plus growing cages and 3 cages for rescues. In all, it is 5 towers of Quality Cages chinchilla condos stacked 3 high, a 2 level ferret nation and 1 chinchilla mansion. I am so glad that I can use the paint around them as I would really love to seal the cement floor to make it easier to clean.