what to feed a chinchilla

What Can I Feed My Chinchilla?

• Grass hay. Choosing a good hay is vital for your chinchilla’s overall health. Although hay is used for thousands of...
• Grass pellets. Grass pellets for chinchillas should be made with high quality ingredients. Many pellets are fortified...
• Apple wood sticks. Apple sticks can be great for your chinchilla. Cut the sticks to four to five...

Full Answer

Are chinchillas good beginner pets?

👉 Are chinchillas good beginner pets? Domestic chinchillas can be kept as pets. Because of their high-strung disposition, they are not usually considered to be good pets for small children. However, chinchillas can be very friendly animals if sufficiently acclimated to human touch as kits (babies), making them excellent pets for patient owners.

What foods are safe for chinchillas?

What Can Chinchillas Eat List

• Dietary Basics. This article deals with the somewhat “controversial” topic of diet and nutrition. ...
• Chinchillas Dietary Adaptations. ...
• Chinchilla Pellets – The food of Choice. ...
• Hay – the Fiber Provider. ...
• Hay Alternatives. ...
• Supplements. ...
• Treats. ...

What should a chinchilla eat daily?

• Hay: A chinchilla needs hay as part of a chinchilla treat to provide them with the necessary fiber source or roughage source. ...
• Selecting the best pellets: How to select the best healthy pellet to keep chinchilla healthy? ...
• Greens: To avoid poor nutrition in your chinchilla, greens are required. ...

What vegetables can a chinchilla eat?

What fruits and vegetables can chinchillas eat?

• Apple
• Carrots
• Sweet potato
• Kale
• Parsley
• Strawberries
• Pears
• Dandelion greens
• Celery
• Blueberries

More items...

What human food can a chinchilla eat?

Chinchillas need around a tea spoon a day of fresh greens. Fruits are only to be given as treats as they are high in sugars. Chinchillas can eat small amounts of fruit such as: Apples....The following vegetables can up make the majority of a chinchillas' core diet:Carrot.Kale.Alfalfa.Celery.Potato.Sweet potatoes.Squash.

What should I not feed my chinchilla?

DO NOT FEED your chinchilla with the following: asparagus, avocado, peas, cabbage, corn, lettuce, broccoli, spinach, rhubarb and rhubarb leaves. Other dangerous foods are banana, sunflower seeds and peanuts.

What are chinchillas favorite snacks?

According to our online community of chinchilla owners, the most popular and healthy treats for chinchillas are Timothy Hay, Rosehips, Plain Cheerios, dried calendula, and goji berries. It's recommended that you try a small amount of everything to see what your chinchilla likes.

How many times should chinchillas eat a day?

Chinchillas in the wild tend to consume most of their food early in the morning and late at night. Similarly, pet chinchillas should be offered food twice a day but may consume food throughout the day, as they tend to eat more slowly than other small animals such as rabbits and guinea pigs.

Can chinchillas have raw carrots?

As pets, chinchillas typically have access to more varieties of foods that are either scarce or nonexistent in their natural habitats. One of these foods is carrots. Although carrots don't naturally grow in the Andes, they are safe for chinchillas to eat in moderation.

Can chinchillas just eat hay?

Your chinchilla is a herbivore, which means he eats only plant material. Grass hay should be the high-fiber cornerstone of every chinchilla's diet. The fiber in hay helps meet the important digestive health and dental needs of herbivores such as chinchillas.

Can chinchillas eat cheerios?

Cheerios are a popular, healthy breakfast cereal that many people enjoy, but can chinchillas eat this famous cereal? Yes, chinchillas can eat Cheerios, but they should only be given in moderation. Cheerios have a higher concentration of phosphorus than chinchillas need, so too much can cause a nutritional imbalance.

Can chinchillas eat peanut butter?

Salted peanuts are even worse than regular peanuts because the sodium content is far too high. Raw peanuts and peanut butter still have fat contents that are too high to be appropriate for a chinchilla's diet.

Are pea flakes safe for chinchillas?

Product Description. Exotic Nutrition Pea Flakes are a healthy all natural treat for small animals such as Chinchillas, Prairie Dogs, Guinea pigs, Sugar Gliders, Degus, Skunks, Backyard Chickens, Rabbits and other pets.

Do chinchillas need veggies?

Fresh Produce About 10% of your chinchilla's diet should consist leafy greens and herbs (see provided greens list for ideas). Your chinchilla can also have other vegetables in small amounts. Fruits and high-sugar vegetables (e.g. carrots, corn), should only be offered as treats in very small quantities (<1 tsp/day).

Do chinchillas need timothy hay?

Chinchillas require a high fiber diet and should be offered grass hay (such as Timothy hay or other low calcium hays such as orchard grass, oat hay, or meadow hay) free choice (available 24 hours a day). Hay should be the main component of their diet.

Should I free feed my chinchilla?

When feeding hay, it should be free fed. It can be placed in a hay rack, in a bowl, on the shelf, or in some sort of container. One good rule of thumb is to give the chinchilla a large handful of hay every day. If the chinchilla eats all of the hay, more hay is needed.

Chinchilla food options

So, for a chinchilla to have healthy digestion and be free of illnesses like dental disease and digestion troubles, you need to choose the best chinchilla food that is healthy and appetizing. Some common options for food items that every pet chinchilla owner needs to keep their chinchilla safe and healthy are listed below.

Feeding amounts

Along with the quality of good that you feed your pet chinchilla, the quantity is just as important. The pets need chinchilla vitamins and nutrients like Omega-3 fatty acids, folic acid, nicotinic acid, vitamin C, natural vitamin E, and many more through adequate nutritional content.

Make feeding fun

To make sure that your pet eats food properly, you need to make the feeding time fun. You can do this by understanding how a chinchilla behaves and using that to your advantage.

Treats

Now, let’s talk more about the healthy treats that you should feed these exotic animals. As you know, chinchillas are very sensitive animals, so you need to be very careful with what you feed them. They can easily get an upset stomach and have a limited capacity for digestion.

Hay supplementation

The diet that you choose to feed your chinchilla should mostly contain hay. Thankfully, nowadays, there is a variety of hay available so that you can choose the hay type that your chinchilla loves the most.

What fruits and vegetables can chinchillas eat?

Fresh vegetables and fruits can occasionally be fed to your chinchillas, but only some of the fruit and vegetables your chinchillas’ digestive system can bear. So here is a list of fruits and vegetables that you can feed your chinchillas.

What treats do chinchillas like

Keeping in mind that chinchillas can’t eat fatty food, there are some treats that they like that contain fat, but chinchillas love them.

What are some good treats for chinchillas?

Common healthy treats for Chinchillas are Rose hips, non-frosted Shredded Wheaties, Old fashion rolled oats, Alfalfa hay, and an array of chinchilla safe herbs.

What do chinchillas chew on?

As a Chinchilla chews on their hay they grind their back molars together keeping them short and trimmed.

Why do chinchillas bloat?

Excess moisture in their food will lead to bloating. Bloating is a hazard because chinchillas can not relieve themselves of any gasses, meaning without intervention they can pass from buildup. Nuts + Seeds are high in fat. When a chinchilla is fed a diet high in fat they become prone to ailments like fatty liver disease.

Can you feed a rabbit pellet to a chinchilla?

If you can get these 3 things together, you'll have a healthy well-nourished chinchilla. A quality pellet can be made specifically for Chinchillas or you can choose to feed a high quality rabbit pellet. A lot of the pellet selections sold at the pet store are not "quality pellets". In fact, they're junk food riddled with fruit, nuts, fillers, ...

Can you use compressed hay for chinchillas?

Or you can purchase compressed hay cookies for your chinchilla. Choosing any of these will greatly reduce the amount of hay-dust in your home that may be affecting your allergies. Treats. While it can be nice to treat our pets, something important to understand is that it's mostly for us.

Do chinchillas need sugar?

Fruits + Vegetables contain a lot of natural sugar in their natural and dried forms. Pet chinchillas do not need this excess sugar. This excess sugar can resort in your Chinchilla becoming ill. Diabetes, hyperglycemia, and hypoglycemia are all risks when feeding a sugary diet.

What do chinchillas eat?

Instead, feed your chinchilla quality chinchilla pellets supplemented with plenty of fresh grass hay.

How much protein is in a chinchilla diet?

Look for a pelleted, formulated diet specifically for chinchillas that is 16-20 percent protein, low in fat (2-5 percent), and high in fiber (15-35 percent).

How to keep chinchillas teeth healthy?

This roughage in hay helps keep chinchillas' teeth in good condition and the digestive system functioning properly. Feed as much good quality grass hay (orchard grass, Timothy-grass, etc.) as your chinchilla wants each day. Hay should be cleaned out and fed fresh on a daily basis to keep it from becoming soiled or moldy.

How to keep chinchillas from getting dumped?

Try to be consistent with whatever you choose to do, as chinchillas like routine. A small food hopper or heavy ceramic dish is the best way to keep the food from getting dumped or soiled.

Can chinchillas eat corn?

Since corn is starchy and likely largely indigestible for chinchillas, whole corn should be avoided as a treat or the main part of a diet. Scientifically speaking, however, little is understood about the ideal chinchilla diet beyond the need for lots of roughage.

What do chinchillas eat?

What do pet chinchillas eat? Chinchillas require a high fiber diet and should be offered grass hay (such as Timothy hay or other low calcium hays such as orchard grass, oat hay, or meadow hay) free choice (available 24 hours a day). Hay should be the main component of their diet.

Can chinchillas eat treats?

Can I offer my chinchilla treats? As a rule, chinchillas don't require treats, although an occasional offering of various fresh, low calcium green vegetables or an occasional piece of high fiber fruit (such as a slice or apple). Do not offer any people food without checking with your veterinarian first.