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All instructions for keeping chinchillas mention that it is necessary to provide the animal with the opportunity to bathe at least 2 times a week. But if a person immediately associates the word “bathing” with a shower, bath or pond, then for chinchillas everything is not so.
An inhabitant of high mountains, located above the level of clouds, is poorly adapted to swimming in water. The thick fur of chinchillas absorbs water well, becoming very heavy. After bathing, the fur does not dry well, since air does not circulate between the hairs.
Living in a dry climate with relatively uniform temperatures throughout the year has led to the fact that chinchillas lack sweat glands that regulate heat loss in the heat and the ability of fur to remove moisture. And the thick fur, which helps the rodent maintain a constant body temperature in any season of the year, does not dry at all and, when wet, begins to rot.
Taking into account the conditions of wild life of rodents, there can be only one answer to the question of whether it is possible to bathe a chinchilla in water: no. But with a caveat.
This is the only option: due to severe diarrhea, the animal has turned into a lump of manure. You will have to wash the animal with warm, clean water.Do not use any detergents. There are no special shampoos developed for chinchillas, and regular shampoos or those for other animals can cause skin irritation or even poisoning in the rodent. The shampoo cannot be completely washed off from the coat, as the thickness of the fur gets in the way.
Water procedures are dangerous to the life of a chinchilla, and, if possible, it is better not to bathe the animal, but to carefully trim the fur. It will grow back quickly. The rodent owner carries out the water procedure at his own peril and risk with a high chance of losing the pet as a result of hypothermia or a fungal disease.
If you still had to bathe the chinchilla in water, it will have to be thoroughly dried and warmed. The best option for such drying is in the owner’s bosom. Due to its thickness, chinchilla fur takes a very long time to dry. This means that the owner must be prepared to serve as a living heating pad for a long time.
But unless absolutely necessary, it is better not to experiment, not to bathe the chinchilla, but to use special volcanic sand.
Bathing chinchillas
To thoroughly clean the skins, rodents are given special dust baths. Chinchillas love to bathe and can do this procedure every day if given the opportunity.
Owners inevitably have to limit their pets’ pleasures, since the “sand” for bathing chinchillas is called that only for simplicity. Not everything is simple here, and to properly bathe an animal you need to be careful when choosing such “sand”.
How to choose sand
In natural conditions, chinchillas bathe in volcanic dust, so the name “sand” when applied to the substance that fills the bathing suit is very arbitrary.In fact, it is dust, which creates additional difficulties for the owners of these adorable animals.
The particles of this sand are too large and sharp. They damage the chinchilla's fur. Even if you sift regular sand through a fine sieve, its particles will still remain too sharp. In addition, river and sea sand usually contains a lot of quartz particles.
When purchasing lava dust, you need to make sure that it does not shine. High-quality sand/dust for bathing chinchillas should be matte. Shine means the presence of quartz particles, which will damage the wool.
High-quality filler absorbs dust very well. If you drop water into it, the sand should immediately absorb it. A ball rolled from wet sand retains its shape after drying.
Talc can be added to the dust to better clean the wool from grease. And to prevent parasites, feed sulfur is added to the sand for swimming. But sulfur will only be needed if there are cats or dogs in the house. Fleas cannot live on chinchillas due to their thick fur, but occasionally they move from other pets to the rodent’s tail.
Since animals bathe very energetically, and the dust is more like fine flour, it will not be possible to get by with a simple tray. For chinchillas, you need to buy a special bathing suit that prevents the room from turning into the foot of an extinct volcano. You can make an analogue of a store-bought bathing suit yourself from available materials.
DIY bathing suit for chinchillas
The main property of the bathing suit is to prevent it from falling apart while the animal is spinning in it. Bathing a chinchilla is reminiscent of a dust geyser erupting.
The simplest version of a bathing suit is a regular three-liter jar.Sand is poured into the jar, placed on its side and the chinchilla is released through the hole. For 15 minutes they enjoy the dust flying out of the neck, and then try to remove the animal from the jar.
Not the “cleanest” and most convenient way to bathe your pet. There are more suitable containers. A chinchilla bathing suit can be made from various plastic devices:
- food container;
- plastic bucket of suitable size;
- detergent cans;
- water bottles from 5 l.
A food container will require the least amount of time and effort. All you have to do is go to the store and buy a container of the appropriate size. The video shows a chinchilla bathing in a similar container.
It is impossible to tightly close the container with a lid and leave the animal there for a long time. But it is possible to protect your apartment from dust with the help of such a container.
Bucket
A large plastic bucket is convenient because it can be used “hourly”, or can be placed in the cage as a permanent bathing suit.
- Choose a low but wide bucket.
- A hole is cut in the side of the bucket to the size of the animal, and the edges are smoothed with sandpaper. The hole is cut so that the bottom edge, when the bucket is inverted, is 15-20 cm from the floor.
- The bucket is turned upside down and sand is poured into it.
The advantage of a bucket over a jar or canister bath is the ability to remove a chinchilla who wants to continue bathing from it without scaring the animal or physically harming it. The bucket is carefully turned upside down, the lid is removed and the rodent is taken out.
The disadvantages include the fact that with a large layer of sand, there will be as much dust in the room as from a three-liter jar.
Canister or bottle
A large water bottle and a plastic detergent canister are virtually identical in technical characteristics to each other. Bathing suits are made from them in one way.
- A hole is cut in one of the walls for the chinchilla. In the case of a canister, this will be one of the wide sides.
- The edges of the hole are also sanded with fine sandpaper.
- Place the container with the hole facing up and pour sand inside.
All that remains is to put the chinchilla in the bath.
General disadvantages of all plastic swimsuits:
- Light weight. The chinchilla can knock them over by jumping in and out of the container.
- Smooth surface. It is difficult for the animal to catch its claws in order to get out of the bathing suit.
- "Edibility" of plastic. A rodent can taste the bathing suit, but plastic particles in the intestines have never added health to anyone.
Compared to plastic containers, jars have the advantage that they are not edible. Otherwise, glass bathing suits are inferior. The jar may roll around on the floor while bathing. The only sustainable option is a rectangular glass jar, but this is not always available. In addition, if the chinchilla manages to break the jar, then there is a risk that the animal will cut itself.
Tree
One of the best options would be a homemade wooden bathing suit. But it requires skillful hands. Made from chinchilla-edible wood, it has significant advantages over glass or plastic.
- Rough wood makes it easy for a rodent to jump into and out of the bathing suit.
- The lifting lid makes it easy to change used sand or catch an animal in a bathing suit. For a chinchilla you will have to make a latch to close the entrance to the bathing suit.Important! The bathing suit is made only from natural wood.Neither plywood nor chipboard are suitable due to the toxic adhesives with which they are made.
- Natural wood is heavy enough to prevent your chinchilla from knocking over the container while bathing.
- Making a bathing suit is not particularly difficult for anyone who has ever made birdhouses. Essentially, this is the same box with an entrance hole.
The downside of a wooden bathing suit is the possibility of it being eaten by a rodent.
A similar box can be made from tin, but measures will need to be taken to ensure that the animal does not cut its paws. Tin, despite its apparent thickness, is actually not inferior in sharpness to a razor.
This option is for sewing lovers.
Swimwear sizes
Chinchillas come in two varieties: decorative and industrial. They are the same species, but the fur industry benefits from large pelts. At the same time, it is more convenient for hobbyists to keep a smaller variety in the house. Apart from size, these animals are no different from each other.
It is the type of rodent that determines the size of the swimsuit. The container is selected so that an adult animal fits freely in it and can spin around. But you shouldn’t make a swimsuit that is too large, since in this case there will be a very large consumption of expensive sand.
How to bathe a chinchilla in sand
To bathe a chinchilla in the sand, just put it in the bathing suit. Then the animal will do everything itself at the level of instincts. The chinchillas are bathed for about 15 minutes, after which the animal is removed from the tray and shaken off.
There are certain rules for this final action. A chinchilla should not be simply picked up under the chest with its hind legs hanging in the air. Such a grip can damage the spine.
The animal is placed on the palm of your hand and the sand is gently shaken off one side. After which they transfer it to another palm and similarly clean off the remaining sand from the other.
When can a chinchilla bathe after giving birth?
After giving birth, any female will experience mucus and blood discharge from the birth canal for some time. Chinchillas are no exception in this regard, and it is believed that they should not be bathed during this period. Since there are still open wounds in the female’s reproductive system, she can become infected when swimming in the sand.
Opinions vary on when to allow a chinchilla to bathe after giving birth. According to some chinchilla breeders, you should wait 1-1.5 weeks. According to others, if the female has stopped estrus, the animal can be bathed already on the third or fourth day.
If the birth was complicated, the female should not be bathed if there is inflammation or discharge.
Conclusion
There are very few rules that need to be followed when bathing chinchillas, but those that exist require a very responsible attitude from the owners of these amazing animals.
Thank you for your videos about chinchillas. Advise a veterinarian for chinchillas in Odessa. And if possible, write where you can order grass leaves for chinchillas and which food is preferable (in Odessa pet stores)