Recently, among domestic pets, chinchilla is very popular, caring for such a small animal does not cause special difficulties. An exotic animal comes from the mountainous regions of South America, but it is easily attached to a person, caring for him is more like a pleasant bother. In response, the cute fluff will give a lot of positive emotions to all family members.
Chinchilla - description
These exotic animals belong to the detachment of rodents. Description of breed:
- pets grow to 38 cm, the tail has a length of 10-17 cm;
- the weight of the animal reaches 800 grams;
- The head of the animal is rounded, the neck is short;
- The body of the rodent is covered with strong and dense fur, which in nature easily heats it in the highlands. It is an industrial value used for sewing fur products;
- the animal has rounded ears up to 6 cm high;
- the tail is covered with stiff long hairs;
- rodents have black round eyes;
- the animal has strong hind legs that are twice as large as the forelegs, and allow them to bounce high;
- The standard color of the rodent is bluish-gray (ashy). Less common are black and white individuals.
Animals are bred for fur by farmers and are popular as pets. Proper care for chinchilla includes competent arrangement of the cage, balanced feeding, cleaning. The advantages of such pets are that they do not have sebaceous glands and do not have an unpleasant odor. In addition, the animals do not shed, they always have a clean and pleasant to the touch fur. They do not bite, do not scratch and are well suited to education. Animals are interesting in their behavior, they make funny sounds, similar to tweeting or quacking.
Life expectancy of chinchillas at home
If you properly provide chinchilla care and maintenance, then as a pet, she can live up to twenty-five years. But this time depends on how well the owner will monitor his fuzzy. It is important to know the characteristics of the content of chinchillas, the factors that affect their life span :
- Exotics can not stand the heat. The temperature regime in the room should be given special attention.
- To increase the life expectancy of the animal, as care it needs frequent bathing in a special sand. This clears the fur and relieves stress.
- Carry out the correct feeding. Ensure that animals do not eat grapes, nuts, seeds, branches of stone and coniferous trees, newspapers, wallpaper.
Chinchilla content at home
In the apartment, keep the chinchilla in a cage or window. But such animals are subject to stress. Therefore, to make the rodent feel good, you need to know how to contain the chinchilla at home. When choosing a place to install a home, factors such as temperature and lighting are taken into account. Also, the pet does not tolerate drafts and overheating. Chinchilla - care and conditions of detention:
- The house is set in a shaded and quiet place. Zverek leads a nocturnal lifestyle, so if you put his home in the bedroom, he will prevent the hosts from resting.
- The maintenance of pets in very warm rooms causes them a heat stroke and cardiac arrest. The optimum temperature for rodents is 18-20 ° C. The lower will cause them to decline activity and the appearance of diseases .
Contents of chinchilla at home - choose a cage
The rodent likes to move, he needs a spacious cage with dimensions of at least 50 cm by 50 cm and a height of 60 cm with metal rods. The dwelling is important to equip. What you need to keep chinchilla:
- a small enclosed lodge for privacy where the animal can hide;
- equip a lot of moves and shelves, ladders, rings, (wooden);
- a drinking bowl (or screw the usual, so as not to turn over);
- a feeder hinged or heavy, so as not to be thrown;
- salt or mineral stones (serve as a source of useful substances);
- toilet with filler in the corner;
- nursery for hay;
- filler as litter on the floor.
Chinchillas - cons of content
Such an exotic animal attracts soft wool, unpretentiousness in the care, absence of an unpleasant smell. But you need to know what difficulties can be encountered in the decision to acquire such an unusual pet. Contents of chinchillas - cons:
- the animal can escape from the cage, often opens the door itself. Then it must be painfully to seek;
- when walking around the apartment a pet gnaws everything - wires, shoes, furniture. It is impossible to get rid of this from it;
- the pet needs frequent sand baths, from which a lot of dust is formed;
- rodents do not tolerate changes in temperature and high humidity;
- they do not like to sit on their hands;
- it is difficult to find a doctor if necessary treatment.
Care for chinchillas at home
Such rodents are by nature shy. It is important to know how to take care of the chinchilla at home and build a trusting relationship with her. When the animal appears in the apartment, he needs to give the first few days to get used to and not touch. Then you can open the door, gently place the rodent hands and repeat his nickname. The pet will respond to the game over time and begin communication. The main thing - do not scare and do not strongly impose, treat a delicacy - half a raisin. Chinchilla - care for the pet and the cage:
- Drink the boiling water with boiled warm water, change every 2-3 days;
- litter and toilet are updated once a week;
- The cell is thoroughly washed with detergent once a month;
- The sand for bathing is sieved once a week, varies once a month.
What to feed the chinchilla at home?
Eating chinchillas at home is very simple - the basis of the ration is hay and granulated fodder. In a day an adult animal eats 2-3 tablespoons of a dry mix, it should be given once a day at the same time - closer to the evening. Hay needed for normal operation of the intestine. In food, you need to add leaves of dandelion, nettle. Delicacy for the pet will be dried apples and pears, karkade. Do not give fresh vegetables, fruits, seeds or grass. All ingredients are sold at a pet store.
Home chinchilla - do I need to wash it?
Because of the chic fur fur water shower is categorically forbidden for pets. Care for chinchillas in the apartment involves mandatory bathing of rodents, which is performed several times a week. For this, a bath with special sand is used. In such a container the animal with pleasure tumbles, after "bath" it becomes beautiful and cheerful. There is a special sand with anti-inflammatory therapeutic effect. Leaving the container in a cage is not always recommended - the animal will swim too often, and dry its skin.
Breeding chinchillas at home
Sexual maturity of rodents is reached at the age of seven months, in a year they are able to bring 2-3 litters for 1-3 cubs. Mating animals at night, to determine that the reproduction of chinchillas at home will be successful, you can by lump wool on the litter. The duration of pregnancy is 105-115 days. Care for the female during this period: increased feeding, remove the male from the cage and, before the appearance of the offspring, cover the house with fresh litter. Childbirth occurs often in the morning and does not require outside interference.
Babies are born sighted, with teeth and hair. They weigh about 70 grams, move around, so the bars in the house are needed very often. They do not need additional care - the mother feeds them herself. But if the offspring sits, hunched with a lowered tail, it may be necessary to give them artificial milk from a glass pipette. The lactation period lasts up to 60 days, then the young are planted in a separate cage.