Questions about wood and a few on storage

[MNChinLover]

Hello, I am getting back into chins. I have another thread in a different section here explaining that as well as showing my double FN with all the supplies I have.

But I have some questions about wood and other miscellaneous things that I can't seem to find an answer by searching this site.

1. Twigs, sticks, or disks??
I know the difference but is there a different purpose for each? Is one preferred over the other, etc.

2. How "fresh" does the wood have to be? For example, I won't be getting a chin, probably two, until July-October, can I stock up on wood now or does it go bad like food?

3. Kind of related to Q#2, how much oz/lb does a chin go through in a month? And how many months worth of wood can I have to make sure it is "fresh" ?

4. I have heard to store wood in a cardboard box with its top cut off to allow proper airflow, is this correct?

5. Is there an airtight container that fits under the FN that will store 10 lbs of oxbow pellets?

6. How much hay can I store per chin to make sure it is fresh?

Thanks you for your time and patience and knowledge!

 

[ninjaturtletayy]

Hello, I am getting back into chins. I have another thread in a different section here explaining that as well as showing my double FN with all the supplies I have.

But I have some questions about wood and other miscellaneous things that I can't seem to find an answer by searching this site.

1. Twigs, sticks, or disks??
I know the difference but is there a different purpose for each? Is one preferred over the other, etc.
I think it depends on your chin. My guy prefers twigs or smaller sticks. Coins aren't a huge hit with him. Most coins are used to make toys and stuff I think. Nothing wrong with any of them! You just have to know what your chin prefers.

2. How "fresh" does the wood have to be? For example, I won't be getting a chin, probably two, until July-October, can I stock up on wood now or does it go bad like food?
This I'm not 100% sure about.

3. Kind of related to Q#2, how much oz/lb does a chin go through in a month? And how many months worth of wood can I have to make sure it is "fresh" ?
Again, depends on the chin. I have a lone male and he can go through about a pound or two in a month. I usually buy on a monthly basis.

4. I have heard to store wood in a cardboard box with its top cut off to allow proper airflow, is this correct?
I THINK this is correct. I personally store my twigs and stuff in a tupperware bin I got from Target, but I drilled holes in it.

5. Is there an airtight container that fits under the FN that will store 10 lbs of oxbow pellets?
Go to Target and in the home improvement section there are a bunch of storage bins. I got clear ones that fit on my FN shelf no problem

6. How much hay can I store per chin to make sure it is fresh?
I have one chin and I bought 5 pounds of Bluegrass and 5 pounds of Timothy off of KMS. They're just in the boxes I got it in with the top open so it can breathe.

Thanks you for your time and patience and knowledge!

Hope I helped some!

 

[Amethyst]

1. As said depends on what your chin likes, some like thin twigs others prefer thick sticks, and the disks/coins are used for making hanging toys or for toss toys.

2. Wood doesn't go bad, the only thing that can really happen to it is getting moldy if not processed and/or stored properly.

3. It does depend on the chin, and what kind of wood you buy. Most chin's just like chewing the bark off, so a pound of twigs would give you a lot more then a pound of thick sticks or coins. Also every chin is different in terms of how much they chew, and some prefer hanging toys over hand held sticks and some like sticks more.

4. You want to store the wood in cardboard or a paper bag, so they it can have airflow. A plastic container with lots of holes drilled in it could work too so long as it's not stored somewhere humid.

5. I use a one gallon ice cream tub to store 5 lbs of food (one month worth for 2 chins). Though any large food container will do.

6. If properly stored hay is good for roughly one year from the time it's harvested before it looses nutrients. It's best if you are buying from a pet store to go with just a pound or two at a time since they could have been sitting in a warehouse then on the shelf for awhile. Hay should smell good, not dusty or moldy. Just like the wood cardboard boxes work well for storing hay. It depends on how much your chin's eat vs waste for how much you need per month, most chins waste a lot. Most chin's eat about one handful of hay each per day.

 

[MNChinLover]

Thank you, you guys have been very helpful!

I am waiting till the end of summer to get my chin(s) and enjoy buying things in the mean time.. I was looking at rondaschins and she has sample boxes that have each type of wood labeled so I can find out what my future chin(s) prefer.

Is there a way to see how much humidity is in a room for chinchillas?

 

[Amethyst]

I use a digital thermometer with humidity reading on it, you can get them pretty much anywhere that sells thermometers, I got mine at a hardware store.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Hay storage... I use a mesh laundry hamper so the whole pile of hay has air flow. I buy it by the bale but I have 7 chins and 1 degu eating it.

Wood. I say stock up now. You can never have to much wood. Just make sure you are buying fully processed wood.

 

[ticklechin]

I am a wood hoarder, get as much as you can especially when the vendors have sales (but you will have to beat me to it, LOL)

 

[MNChinLover]

I am a wood hoarder, get as much as you can especially when the vendors have sales (but you will have to beat me to it, LOL)

Lol I recognize your name buying wood from the classified section! I was thinking of buying from rondaschinchillas because I can get samples of each of her woods that are labeled so I can see what my guys will like. I believe they are fully processed too.

 

[jamiethomas12]

I store my hay in a plastic tub with a lid...we drilled holes in the top and a few on each side.