Chinchilla

Intermediate. Soft, funny and long-lived, but a serious long-term commitment with two strict needs: they must be kept cool (they overheat dangerously) and they bathe in dust, never water. Add a companion, a hay-based diet and a sugar-free menu for their delicate gut, and a chinchilla can share 15–20 years with you.

Good-quality hay makes up the majority of the diet and must be available at all times — it keeps the gut moving and wears down their continuously-growing teeth. Add a small daily amount (about 1–2 tablespoons per chinchilla) of grass-based chinchilla pellets. Treats should be only tiny amounts of dried herbs or plantain and, sparingly, a little dried fruit or root vegetable — their gut is delicate and sensitive to sugar, so keep sweet foods to an absolute minimum. Provide constant fresh water.

A large, secure, tall cage (or a fully chinchilla-proofed room) with multiple levels and shelves to jump and rest on — they’re agile climbers and jumpers. If the cage has a mesh floor, provide solid wood or flooring areas too, because standing on bare wire damages their feet. Avoid any uninterrupted drop greater than about 60 cm, so a fall can’t injure them.

Chinchillas are sociable and live in groups in the wild, so keep yours with at least one other compatible chinchilla unless a vet or behaviourist advises otherwise. They can be kept as male/female pairs (only if you intend to breed, with a plan for the babies) or in single-sex groups; introduce new chinchillas gradually and near each other for a week first, as they can be aggressive at first meeting. A chinchilla kept alone needs daily human interaction.

The critical factor. Chinchillas come from cool, dry mountains and their dense fur means they overheat easily, so keep them indoors somewhere well-ventilated, dry and draught-free, ideally at 10–18°C. Hot, humid, damp or stuffy conditions make them ill and can cause fatal heatstroke — never let their room get hot, and cool it actively in summer.

Warm, safe-to-eat bedding such as good-quality, dust-free hay; many chinchilla cages have a tray under a mesh floor to collect droppings. Never use cotton-wool or fluffy strand bedding — they can get tangled in it and it isn’t safe to eat. Clean regularly so waste doesn’t build up.

A daily dust bath is essential, not optional: give a shallow tray of clean fine “chinchilla dust” to roll in each day to keep their fur in condition, then remove or sieve it clean so it doesn’t get soiled. Add shelves and safe things to climb and jump on, and safe items to gnaw (their teeth grow continuously). They’re active and playful at night.

Chinchillas groom through dust, never water — their fur is so dense it can’t dry properly if it gets wet, which risks fungal skin problems and chilling, so give a daily dust bath and never a water bath. Their teeth grow throughout life, so unlimited hay and gnaw items are what keep the teeth right; a vet should check teeth if you see drooling or difficulty eating. Handle gently — a roughly-grabbed chinchilla can shed a patch of fur (“fur slip”).

None needed on a correct hay-based diet. The bigger risk is the opposite of a deficiency — avoid sugary treats and supplements, which upset a chinchilla’s sensitive gut.

Adults weigh about 450–680 g (1–1.5 lb) — a round body with big ears, short legs and a long tail, under extraordinarily dense fur (up to around 60 hairs from every follicle).

Long — about 10–15 years on average, and some pet chinchillas reach 20. This is a 15–20 year commitment, not a short-term pet.

See a small-animal or exotics vet if you notice: Not eating, or no droppings — a chinchilla with a stalled gut is an emergency; see a vet the same day; Panting, lying stretched out, hot or red ears, or dullness in warm weather — heatstroke, which is a life-threatening emergency; cool them and get to a vet; Drooling or difficulty eating, or weight loss (often dental disease); Soft droppings, diarrhoea or a bloated belly; Fur loss or fur-chewing, or bald, flaky or sore skin; Discharge from the eyes or nose, or laboured breathing.