Unexpected Kit Arrival

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tweak1976

Member
Joined
Feb 13, 2012
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5
I have a Chinchilla as a class pet for my 5th grade students. Nala is the third chin we've had and she was 6 months old when we got her in October. When I came into work 2 Thursdays ago we were shocked to find two newborn babies in the cage. Obviously Nala was pregnant when we got her (we did not know- and she only could have become pregnant by her father or brother). Anyway- we now have two babies to take care of. We have moved them to a different cage (since the babies kept falling through the holes in the other one) but it seems small for three chins. The babies seem to be doing fine. I think there is one boy one girl. Any advice out there about what I need to be doing for mom and the babies? When can they go back in the large cage (multi-level, wire bottom)? Do the babies need anything special? We switched mom's food to a healthier food with only pellets (she had been eating a low quality food when we got her) but her stools have been softer than normal. Might that be due to the food switch? I am experienced in having chinchillas as pets, but never planned on breeding them or raising kits (I didn't even know babies were called kits until a week ago).
 
Where are you located? You want the babies to be at least 8 weeks old before they go back into the big cage, and then only if they can't fit through the bars. It really depends on how far apart the bars are. Also, only the female can stay with her. The male will need his own cage at that point, unless one of your other chins is a male.

Try taking Mom's pellets away for a day and give her a lot of quality hay. Make sure, though, that she eats the hay, as she needs to produce enough milk for the kits. Hay only usually takes care of loose stools.
 
The stool being soft very well could have been from changing her food, especially if it was cold turkey. I would watch to make sure that it doesn't continue or get worse. You could give her a piece of plain (not-frosted) shredded wheat to help with the soft poops.

Here is the link to the thread that covers sexing baby chins, with pictures:

http://www.chins-n-hedgies.com/forums/showthread.php?p=179051#post179051

As Becky said, once weaned if there is a male kit it cannot live in the same cage with the mom and sister.

You want to make sure mom always has access to good food, fresh water and hay. If there are levels in the cage they should be taken out so mom be where the babies can't get to her to nurse. I'm guessing if they are two weeks old that they are nursing fine. They shouldn't be weaned until they are at least 8 weeks old. If they were born on February 2nd, it looks like 8 weeks is March 29th. It is also recommended that you keep the babies for at least a week afterwards to make sure they don't regress and that they are fully weaned. If the other is a girl she can stay with mom.

Congrats on your surprise bundles. =)
 
follow-up questions

Thanks for the advice. I never owned the father so there is not an issue with him being separate. Do I need to separate the boy kit from mom and sister right after they are weaned? I am thinking about keeping the daughter/mother as a pair. Any advice on mother daughter chin relationships? Also- why can't they go back into the large cage once they are big enough to stay contained? I feel like mom needs the room to run and more around (they are currently being housed in a cat crate and I'd prefer not to purchase another cage since I have no intention of having anymore babies in the future)... are wheels not safe for the kits either? (I don't have one in the cage they are in, but was wondering).
 
Mom and babies can't go back because the kits still need time to grow and get their bearings and such before being placed in a larger cage. Think of how goofy babies are, still learning how to do everything. The kits will face these same sorts of problems and need to be more steady before being introduced to a larger cage. Also, mom needs to spend as much of her energy as possible producing milk for the kits. They will be fine in the smaller cage for now, many breeders house chins in runs, which aren't much bigger than a cat-sized carrier.

The male kit should be separated from the mother and sister at 8 weeks. Mom/daughter relationships usually go pretty well, but like any chin relationship, that can change at any time.
 
chins and classrooms

im sorry and i hope i dont offend but if this chinchilla and the kits are housed as a class room pet i highly sugest you reconsider that idea as a class room enviroment is a very stressful place for any animal but more so true for one that sleeps most of the day and has new babys to take care of , chinchillas are in no way truely suitable as a class pet for any grade they require quiet low trafic areas during the day to sleep and the class room enviroment can not provide that creating unnessary stress for the sake of your chinchilla bring it home to someplace more suitable or rehome her to someone that can provide the proper enviroment and if you really wont your class to have a pet consider a fish or a small lizard .
 
Chins don't need to be in complete silence and sheltered from everything, they do fine when there is noise during the day.
 
I agree with Dawn. When I handfed Nixi, she came with me everywhere, including a bridal shower full of squealing women and a wedding (for about an hour). Consequently, she's the only chin I have who is well socialized, doesn't flinch at loud music or loud people, and is the first one to jump in the carrier when she sees it because she's just happy to go anywhere with me. While the others are skeptically cowering in the back of the cage at new people, Nixi is front and center with her nose twitching away. I think the classroom environment would be great for both kits.
 
I normally would agree with Dawn and Laurie. However this a VERY young chin who has babies that need to be weight and check to make sure they are getting enough to eat. Also I know of a very young chin who delivered 2 babies, a week later she died during the night. The owner (not the person who sold the mother) said the mother convulsed then died. I figured she died because she didn't have enough calcium to feed the babies and for herself since she was so young. What happens if this young mother dies during the night when NO ONE is around because she is in the school??
 
That's a good point. I didn't even think about the mom's age. And this is why I try to steer clear of breeding threads. Lesson re-learned.

Edit: When the kits are weaned, the classroom environment will be great for them. :))

I sincerely hope everything goes smoothly for you, Tweak. The Breeding & Babies FAQs should help as well. I only bred once, but that page was bookmarked on every device that I own.
 
At this point I have been taking them back and forth from home and school. They are only alone in the classroom at night, and if something were to happen it would be no different than if it happened at night at my house when everyone is asleep. I more worry because one continues to escape from the crate. Every time I think I have solved the problem she gets out again. She only escapes in the classroom though and I wonder if she already knows it is safer there (we have cats at home, and though they are not anywhere near the chin's crate, I am sure they can smell them).
That all being said, I want to repeat I am not "breeding" them. They came unannounced. I have had a chin as a class pet for years and they have done really well. They get a lot of attention, and they get to go home with different kids on the weekends who give them so much playtime and love. I do make sure the kids and families are well versed in chin care and that they know exactly what to do and how to care for the chins.
Knowing that though, the kids are not taking home the mom or kits now. I am taking care of them. I do want all three to thrive and am trying to do my best with what I have been given. With the comment about calcium, do I need to do anything to make sure mom is getting enough. Should I be giving mom cranberry juice (as some websites suggest)? I have not been weighing the kits, but it is obvious to me they are gaining weight and getting bigger. I appreciate all the advice and suggestions!!
 
Ummm.. I hope this doesn't come off badly on my part, I will try to phrase it as nicely as possible. You say you have had chins for years as classroom pets. How many years? How many chins? Chinchillas can live up to 15 years. If they are thriving on the classroom environment shouldn't they live long lives? I know there is maloclussion and other complications but what happened to the previous chins? I am hoping maybe students adopted them? I am a teacher which is why I had to reply. I know around here some schools shut off the heat or AC at night. I also know what 5th graders are like. Isn't it a bit risky to let a 5th grader take a chinchilla home to a new environment? Doesn't this also require colapsing a cage/transporting one? I just worry about the constant change of environment. Other pets, siblings in the house, unsafe play spaces, etc. Children are impulsive. Many places don't recommend children have chinchillas before like 13 or 14. I know chinchillas can thrive with loud places and grow use to them but a new home every weekend... isn't that a bit of an adjustment? Also does a student and/or there parent know what to do in an emergency? Are they willing to rush to an overnight vet? I know the little guy I just lost went to the vet probably five or six times after vet hours. Often chinchilla issues show up at night. A teacher leaves the school in the afternoon. That means between say 4ish and 7ish no one is there to check on the mother or the babies. I would be wary of such a situation myself even with a healthy chin without babies to care for.
 
Cranberry juice is used if the mother's milk has not come in. Obviously, that is not a problem or the kits would be dead by now. Like suggested, give the mom some alfalfa. It is higher in calcium than timothy hay.
 
For kids and mom at this fragile point in their lives, it might be better to be in a quiet, stationary home with someone to watch them. However, it doesn't sound like their owner has that option.
If the classroom really is too stressful, one would probably notice a difference in the mother's behavior such as fur biting, loss of appetite, aggression, or self-injury. Since the kits are growing and being cared for by the mother, it sounds like mom is coping with the stressors just fine :)
I second the alfalfa idea, and you could also give them a cuttlebone to chew on. Calcium -rich treats like these are good at this stage of life, but too much calcium continuously can lead to kidney problems, so switch back to timothy hay when the kits are bigger.
For the escape artist, if you can't invest in a baby-proof cage (this would have wire mesh 1 by .5 inches or so) you might try altering their current home with chicken wire.
 
You can give her some alfalfa hay or even tums for added calcium. Hopefully everything goes well.
As for a second cage you could buy one and then sell it with the baby boy when you find him a new home.
Typically mother daughter pairs do just fine!
 
Thanks for all the advice!!! Mom and babies are growing rapidly and mom is eating up a storm!! As far as chins in the classroom and some objecting, I took in my brother's chin Dre years ago when he moved back home from college, Dre lived in the classroom (going home with students for the weekend) and died at around 10-11 years old. We were handed another chin, Drea, days after. She had come from multiple homes, no one knew her age or any health history on her. We knew she was not young, but that is about it. She died a year later (maybe due to stress, health) but it was very unexpected.
Decided to get a young chin so we could raise her in the classroom and she was doing wonderfully. A little less active than I expected and I was keeping an eye on her for that reason, low and behold, she was pregnant. (probably explains the greater amount of rest).
All in all I think chins are great class pets if treated well and if the owner and students are educated.
 
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