What to Feed Your Chinchilla
- a colorful mix of fruits, veggies, seeds, and grains. Chinchilla food is made from a variety of fruits, vegetables, seeds, and grains. ...
- rich in DHA and omega-3 fatty acids. A good chinchilla food contains a high protein content and includes ingredients such as alfalfa meal, linseed, wheat middlings, and soybean oil.
- easy to chew. ...
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. ...
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 are some foods chinchillas can eat?
What Vegetables Can Chinchillas Eat?
- Celery. There is no doubt that celery is one of the healthiest and tastiest vegetables out there. ...
- Potato. Potato is a starchy root vegetable that can be cooked and consumed in a variety of ways. ...
- Carrot. Carrots come in many shapes and sizes. ...
- Kale. ...
- Alfalfa. ...
- Squash. ...
- Sweet Potatoes. ...
- Lettuce- Green Leaf, Red Leaf, and Oakleaf. ...
- Dandelion Greens. ...
- Parsley. ...
How much food should you give to a chinchilla?
Scientifically speaking, however, little is understood about the ideal chinchilla diet beyond the need for lots of roughage. Most chinchillas will eat one to two tablespoons of pellets a day. While they are not prone to overeating, for freshness it is a good idea to feed a small number of pellets at a time.
What do chinchillas naturally eat?
Chinchillas' digestive systems need hay and grass to function properly, and in the wild they naturally eat grasses, leaves and twigs. Here are our tips for making sure your pet chinchillas have the diet they need to stay happy and healthy.
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.
What can I feed my chinchilla if I'm out of food?
Also, as with people, some chinchillas may not react well to all foods so give new items in small amounts.Fresh Apple.Plain Cheerios.Dried Cranberries.Plain Shredded Wheat.Raisins.Organic Cranberry Juice.Prunes.Fresh Grapes.More items...
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.
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.
What is toxic to chinchillas?
There are a number of foods that are poisonous to chinchillas so always double check before you feed them. 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.
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 fresh carrots?
Overall, carrots and other vegetables and some fruit can be delicious treats for your chinchillas. As a general rule of thumb, dried versions of foods are better.
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.
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.
What toys are safe for chinchillas?
The 9 Best Chinchilla Toys — Reviews 2022Emours Soft Hanging Chinchilla House — Best Overall. ... Pawliss Teeth Grinding Lava Blocks — Best Value. ... Living World Tech N Treat Toy — Premium Choice. ... Kaytee Chinchilla Chiller Granite Stone. ... Kaytee Silent Spinner Wheel. ... Kaytee Small Animal Apple Orchard Chew Sticks.More items...•
What are some good foods for chinchillas?
The greens that are essential in the diet for chinchillas include carrots, kale, and sweet potato. For the full list of chinchilla greens that you can feed your pet, it is best to know through your pet veterinarian or through the people at the pet shop.
How to feed a chinchilla?
They should be given very small amounts of chinchilla vegetables like carrots and leafy greens as healthy treats. The diet for chinchillas should be monitored to make sure they follow it daily. Following this diet routine is to make sure your chinchilla doesn’t turn into a malnourished animal. The most important thing is to provide chinchillas with additional water, especially in summer, and monitor their daily water intake. Again, although this is the common amount of food that your pet needs, you need to contact the pet veterinarian to be sure of ample amounts of food that your chinchilla needs.
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 do chinchillas eat?
The treats that these exotic animals eat are dried rose hips, dandelion, and hibiscus leaves, basically dried fruits, and root vegetables should be given to them. Make sure to read the product form to know what you are getting when buying treats. The bottom line is, chinchillas don’t need treats, but if you feel bad or want your chinchilla to be happy, then you can give them treats occasionally. Just make sure that they are safe.
How to keep chinchillas healthy?
Selecting the best pellets: How to select the best healthy pellet to keep chinchilla healthy? Well, make sure that the pellets that you choose are plain and without any additives like seeds, nuts, and dried fruits, as these can be harmful to their digestive health. Make sure not to give them unlimited pellets unless the chinchilla is lactating or juvenile. Moreover, buy a good quality pellet and excellent feed for your chinchilla.
How much fiber should chinchillas eat?
To be more specific, the diet should have 30% fiber, 16% protein, 35% carbohydrates, and the rest should be filled with fat, minerals, and sugar. As you know, chinchillas are plant-eating animals. They need to have variety in the boring food they eat while also getting all the nutritional requirements met.
What do acrobatic animals eat?
Food items that need to be provided to them continuously are hay and clean drinking water. Their access to water and hay or grass should be maintained in a way that they never run out. This acrobatic animal eats food with a sweet smell as they are very picky.
What is the best food for a chinchilla?
Hay is very important in your chinchilla's diet. What nutrients they don't get from their pellets they get from their hay, and what they lack in hay they get from their pellets. Hay not only is a good staple in keeping a Chinchilla's digestive track on track, but it's also one of the main sources for keeping teeth healthy.
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 are chinchillas prone to liver disease?
Fatty liver disease is known as a "silent killer" in chinchillas because they'll be gone before you realize that was the cause of any problems.
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, ...
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 is the best food for chinchillas?
If it is impossible for you to get a good quality chinchilla diet, many experts suggest substituting a good rabbit or guinea pig pellet with similar characteristics but this should only be done temporarily and in emergency situations. Online stores should be utilized if your local pet store does not carry a quality chinchilla formula. Chinchillas have specific dietary requirements that are different than other rodents and their health will suffer if they are not fed quality, chinchilla-specific food.
What do chinchillas eat?
Instead, feed your chinchilla quality chinchilla pellets supplemented with plenty of fresh grass hay.
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 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 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 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. While alfalfa may be offered occasionally, it should not serve as the sole source of hay as it is too high in calcium and could result in the development of calcium-containing bladder stones. Additionally, chinchillas can be fed a small amount (1-2 tablespoons per day) of a commercially available pelleted diet formulated for chinchillas.
What are the common conditions of chinchillas?
Common conditions of pet chinchillas include bite wounds, respiratory diseases, overgrown and impacted teeth, gastrointestinal stasis, bloat, diarrhea, skin problems, and heat stroke. Any deviation of your chinchilla's behavior from normal should be a cause for concern and requires immediate evaluation by your veterinarian.
Do chinchillas need vitamins?
Chinchillas do not require additional vitamins if fed properly.
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.
What to feed chinchillas?
Growing, breeding, and nursing chinchillas may be fed a larger amount of pellets to provide additional calories, protein, fat and calcium. Fresh greens, such as dark green lettuces, should also be given to provide additional water and fiber. Fresh drinking water should be offered daily in a water bowl or bottle.
Why do chinchillas chew?
Because chinchillas’ teeth grow throughout their lives, when they are not offered enough hay (and consume mainly pellets), the surfaces of their top and bottom teeth collide inside their mouths with such force as they chew that the roots of their teeth become impacted, like a person’s impacted wisdom teeth. This leads to severe pain as they chew, in addition to drooling and possible eye discharge from upper tooth root pressure on tear ducts. Once this condition occurs, there is nothing that can be done other than to provide pain medication and soft foods.
Can chinchillas have diarrhea?
Overfeeding of fresh greens also can lead to soft stool or diarrhea. While hay should be offered in unlimited quantities, feeding large amounts of high-calcium alfalfa hay to non-breeding, adult chinchillas has been associated with the development calcium-based bladder stones.
Can chinchillas eat pellets?
Foods to Avoid. Feeding your chinchilla excessive amounts of pellets does not supply enough fiber for their gastrointestinal tracts (which require high fiber for fermentation of food) and doesn’t provide the roughage to wear down their continuously growing teeth.
Can chinchillas vomit?
Finally, since chinchillas cannot vomit, small or hard foods such as dried fruit, nuts, seeds, or raisins can get stuck in the back of the mouth or esophagus leading to salivation, gagging, lack of appetite and possible problems breathing. Indigestible bedding, such as wood shavings, also can cause obstructions.
Do chinchillas make good pets?
When cared for and fed properly, chinchillas can make great pets. As with all pets, a proper diet is key to health and long life in chinchillas. Feed them right, and you’ll have a happy, cuddly pet for many years. So, what exactly do chinchillas eat?
Do chinchillas eat hay?
To try to mimic this rough vegetation, the mainstay of pet chinchillas’ diets should be hay offered in unlimited quantities. Commercial pelleted food is also available for chinchillas but should be offered in limited quantities of no more than one-to-two tablespoons per day for an adult chinchilla.
