How to Feed a Chinchilla

Chinchillas, like any pet, need to be fed. It may sound like an easy task, but it can, in fact, be somewhat tricky. There are several considerations, including brands and ingredients, including the addition of hay in their daily diet.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A chinchilla
• High quality food (Oxbow, Tradition, or Mazuri)
• Ceramic food dish
• Hay
• Hay holder

1. Find the pet stores in your area. You may have to visit several of them before finding a high quality food, so be prepared.

2. Go to the chinchilla, small pet, or rodent section. You will be looking for a high quality chinchilla pellet. Anything that has nuts, seeds, or pieces of fruit is automatically out as these are unhealthy for your chinchilla. Brands most often recommended by breeders and vets are Oxbow, Mazuri, and Tradition.

3. If your local pet stores do not carry a high quality food, you will need to look online for your chinchilla's food. It is better to pay extra by buying online and have a healthy chinchilla, than settle for unhealthy food that could take years off of your chinchilla's life.

4. To find chinchilla food online, go to your favorite search engine and search for one of the brand names mentioned in this article. There are hundreds of sellers of these foods and you can sometimes find some really good deals.

5. Your chinchilla will also need hay, but you need to have your chinchilla's primary source of food first. Look on the back of your chinchilla's pellet bag at the ingredients list. If the main ingredient is alfalfa, you need to buy timothy hay. If the main ingredient is timothy hay, you need to buy alfalfa. There are no special brands for hay, so just buy either timothy hay or alfalfa that your local pet store carries.

6. Once you have bought your chinchilla's pellets and hay, you need to get him all set up. Place the ceramic food dish on a higher shelf in the cage so that he doesn't get urine or feces in his food dish, which is a high possibility if it is on the floor of the cage.

7. Fill your chinchilla's ceramic food dish about halfway. You do not need to measure the food. A chinchilla can be given any amount of food and you do not have to worry about him overeating. Chinchillas will eat when they are hungry and they will stop when they are not hungry.

8. As with the ceramic food dish, you need to place the hay holder on a higher shelf to avoid being contaminated with urine or feces.

9. Fill the hay holder completely. A chinchilla needs access to hay at all times and he needs to be able to eat as much of it as he likes.

10. Whenever your chinchilla's ceramic food dish or his hay holder gets low, you will need to refill it. Every time you refill the hay, make sure to check on the freshness of your chinchilla's hay supply. It should be green and smell strongly of hay. If it has turned brown or has a musty smell, it needs to be replaced with fresh hay immediately.

Tips & Warnings

• Even if you cannot find a high quality pellet at a pet store, there is a high chance you can find it online for the same price or less than you would have found at the pet store.
• Always let your chinchilla have plenty of pellets and hay. They will not overeat and can have a constant supply of it without you needing to measure it out.
• It does not matter if a food has a cheaper price tag, if it has seeds, nuts, or dried fruit in it, it is not healthy or worth it. It is the equivalent of feeding a human child candy for every meal. In fact, your chinchilla could develop any number of complications from these cheap foods and die from them. It is far better to pay a few dollars more and get a high quality food than have your chinchilla die a painful death several years too early.
• Your chinchilla must be given his pellets in a ceramic or stainless steel food dish (ceramic is better as it is heavier and reduces tipping). You cannot use plastic food dishes. Chinchillas are prone to chewing on the plastic. If he chews too much, he could block his intestines and die from it. It is better to be safe and spend a few extra dollars on something that will not hurt him.

[tiffownsthis]

on 11/25/2009 It is important to buy a high quality hay, and the fresher the better. The hay needs to be green and sweet smelling. Often the hay in the pet stores has been sitting on the shelves for months, so a better solution may be buying directly from a farm or at a feed store. Otherwise, great info! Thanks for sharing.

[ohjujube]

on 8/17/2009 Great information! I wish more people knew this -- it would save a lot of chins from a lot of unnecessary health problems :(

[miasavc]

on 12/15/2008 Great tips how to feed and care for chinchilla pet! I enjoy reading and can say that steps very easy to follow and understand! Thanks! *****